Movie producers and the statistical distribution of achievement

Abstract

This article investigates De Vany's (2004) application of the Pareto distribution to the careers of actors and directors by considering a sample of movie producers. The results support the Pareto distribution for describing the ‘number of films produced’ and the ‘sum of box office revenue’ earned by a producer. The results suggest that a producer is more likely to produce another film as the number of films which they have already produced increases. Also, although an early career producer faces more chance of securing a further film by pure luck, an established producer greatly benefits from his/her previous success.

Acknowledgements

I am grateful to Arthur De Vany for guidance and the research assistance of Haishan Yuan.

Notes

¹A full list of the films and producers used in this study is available from the author on request.