Streaming: The quality of series is desperate but there is new hope (Analysis)

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Can we talk about a decline in the quality of series and films offered on streaming platforms ? The answer is clearly yes, although we will of course have to back this up. While the taste for risk tends to disappear on these services and formatting is the order of the day, there is no need to despair, because some producers are also advocating an upgrade.

Remember the 2010s. While it was trying to distinguish itself from the big studios and television channels, Netflix was investing massively in original content. This is how widely acclaimed series like House of Cards, Orange is the new Black, Stranger Things, but also The OA were released. The latter were often characterized by a form of audacity and an ability to shake up the established order.

At the same time, the streaming platform brought in big names from the seventh art to gain prestige. We think in particular of The Irishman by Martin Scorsese or even Roma by Alfonso Alfonso Cuarrón, and these are just a few examples from a long list.

Attracted by this flourishing market, players such as Disney, Warner Bros, Apple, and Paramount have in turn launched their offers. War was declared and we imagined that this fierce competition would guarantee us quality productions over time. A few gems have indeed seen the light of day. But a few years later, the time has come to take stock and it is not very encouraging.

In 2024, Hollywood is struggling to recover from the actors' and screenwriters' strike that paralyzed the sector the previous year. According to data from the company ProdPro, the total number of productions filmed in Uncle Sam is down 37% in the first half of the year compared to the same period in 2022.

Worse, channels and platforms seem to have a real aversion to risk. An agent told Business Insider that these companies favor content that can be watched in a single episode without the need for long-term monitoring.

Even big stars are no longer enough to convince the industry's giants to get involved, to the point that some stars call the bosses of Warner Bros or Amazon Studios directly to sell them a project.

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While series and films are of course managing to get through these increasingly drastic selections, the freedom that was once left to creators is increasingly reduced. In his book, Netflix, l’aliénation en série, Romain Blondeau notably returned to this tipping point that occurred in 2017 with the release of the Spanish production La casa de papel.

From then on, the entertainment giant will work to format the writing and aesthetics of its creations. A specification is provided to the showrunners with very precise standards to respect.

Contemplation and reflection are reduced to a minimum and each shot is supposed to serve a specific purpose. This idea is confirmed by J. D. Connor, associate professor of film and media studies at the University of California. According to him, the streaming platform asks directors to use only one type of camera and to adopt an image resolution that meets its expectations. In short, the series are becoming more and more similar.

And these problems do not only apply to the red N. In an article published on his site Puck, our colleague, Matthew Belloni, gives the point of view of David Beaubaire, a producer who has worked for giants of the film industry (Warner Bros, DreamWorks, Paramount and Sony).

According to him, broadcasters tend to underestimate the filming phases. Thus, studios used to allocate dozens of producers to the sets. Today, there are far fewer of them scrutinizing the proper progress of the scenes.

He therefore believes that there is a niche to be filled for his current company Sunset Lane. The idea is to ensure the development of film projects that studios and broadcasters no longer want to deal with: small books, true stories, or untreated commercial ideas. Such a perspective could allow a real upgrade of series and films.

Especially since David Beaubaire is not the only one to position himself in this niche. Puckmentions companies like MRC (American Fiction), Fifth Season (80 for Brady), Artists Equity (Air) which do everything in place of the studios and then resell their content to the highest bidder. In addition to improving quality, this also ensures better remuneration for talent, which is not to be overlooked.

Finally, let us point out that this relative loss of audacity of the entertainment giants is also a boon for independent cinema. We are thus thinking of the success of A24, which has been able to establish its brand over the last ten years and now has a global aura.

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