Title: Context as a mediator in film projects: lessons from Cleopatra to John Carter

Authors: Barry Shore

Addresses: Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics, University of New Hampshire, 10 Garrison Avenue, Durham, NH 03824, USA

Abstract: Context may be an important factor in understanding project management practices in both traditional and non-traditional project areas. It may not only be important in the type of practices that are appropriate but also the form these practices take as well as their challenges. One such non-traditional and unexplored context is filmmaking. Two case studies are explored. The first is Cleopatra, a film made over 50 years ago and the second John Carter, a more recent film that opened in 2012. What becomes apparent from the case studies of film projects separated by five decades is that the context of filmmaking is challenged by at least nine key factors including feasibility, governance, evidence, risk, teams, scheduling, metrics, scope and control.

Keywords: project management; film making; Hollywood; context; risk; box office; failure; key factors; critical success factors; CSFs; mediator; film projects; cinema; movies.

DOI: 10.1504/IJPOM.2015.073141

International Journal of Project Organisation and Management, 2015 Vol.7 No.4, pp.389 - 405

Received: 22 May 2012
Accepted: 06 Apr 2013

Published online: 25 Nov 2015 *

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