Apple Inc.’s video division is making entry into the film industry with the acquisition of two new projects. Apple has reportedly acquired global rights to two feature films “The Elephant Queen” and “The Wolfwakers”. Bloomberg had first reported about Apple’s agreement with Cartoon Saloon in June, and now director Tomm Moore has confirmed the acquisition of “Wolfwalkers” on Twitter.
It’s Official: Apple Has Picked Up Rights To Cartoon Saloon’s ‘Wolfwalkers’ https://t.co/E18WpSJq3t
— tomm moore (@tommmoore) September 10, 2018
These agreements give us an idea of Apple’s next strategy; to take on Hollywood market. While Apple has plenty of deals in television content, it will be a tough path to compete with competitive brands in movie market. It hasn’t been revealed that whether the movies will get a theatrical release, but the partnership with Cartoon Saloon suggests that Apple is eyeing Oscar-worthy films.
Two Apple executives, Zack Van Amburg and Jamie Erlicht got a budget of $1 billion to spend in a year on movies, Bloomberg last year reports reveal.
The Elephant Queen” is a documentary move that follows an elephant named Athena as she leads her herd away from a drought.”The Wolfwalkers” is two-time Oscar-nominee Tomm Moore’s animated film which follows a young apprentice hunter who travels to Ireland with her father to hunt wolves.
Experts believe that Apple is all set to produce its own content and start its own streaming service in order to rule the growing video streaming industry dominated by Netflix and Hulu.
It will be interesting to see how the entry of Apple makes a difference in the Hollywood industry.
