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A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a
feature-length film
A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...
that is produced and originally distributed by or to a
television network
A television network or television broadcaster is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, where a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay television providers. Until the mid- ...
, in contrast to
theatrical films made for initial showing in
movie theaters, and
direct-to-video films made for initial release on
home video
Home video is prerecorded media sold or rented for home viewing. The term originates from the VHS and Betamax era, when the predominant medium was videotapes, but has carried over to optical disc formats such as DVD, Blu-ray and streaming me ...
formats. In certain cases, such films may also be referred to and shown as a
miniseries, which typically indicates a film that has been divided into multiple parts or a series that contains a predetermined, limited number of episodes.
Origins and history
![The Pied Piper of Hamelin (1957) 2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/25/The_Pied_Piper_of_Hamelin_%281957%29_2.jpg)
Precursors of "television movies" include ''Talk Faster, Mister'', which aired on WABD (now
WNYW
WNYW (channel 5) is a television station in New York City, serving as the flagship of the Fox network. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside Secaucus, New Jersey–licensed MyNetworkTV flagsh ...
) in New York City on December 18, 1944, and was produced by
RKO Pictures, and the 1957 ''
The Pied Piper of Hamelin
The Pied Piper of Hamelin (german: der Rattenfänger von Hameln, also known as the Pan Piper or the Rat-Catcher of Hamelin) is the title character of a legend from the town of Hamelin (Hameln), Lower Saxony, Germany.
The legend dates back to ...
'', based on the poem by
Robert Browning, and starring
Van Johnson
Charles Van Dell Johnson (August 25, 1916 – December 12, 2008) was an American film, television, theatre and radio actor. He was a major star at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer during and after World War II.
Johnson was described as the embodiment o ...
, one of the first filmed "family musicals" made directly for
television
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...
. That film was made in
Technicolor
Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades.
Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films ...
, a first for television, which ordinarily used color processes originated by specific networks. Most "family musicals" of the time, such as ''
Peter Pan
Peter Pan is a fictional character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood having adventures on the mythi ...
'', were not filmed but broadcast live and preserved on
kinescope
Kinescope , shortened to kine , also known as telerecording in Britain, is a recording of a television program on motion picture film, directly through a lens focused on the screen of a video monitor. The process was pioneered during the 194 ...
, a recording of a television program made by filming the picture from a video monitor – and the only (relatively inexpensive) method of recording a television program until the invention of
videotape
Videotape is magnetic tape used for storing video and usually sound in addition. Information stored can be in the form of either an analog or digital signal. Videotape is used in both video tape recorders (VTRs) and, more commonly, videocasse ...
.
Many television networks were hostile toward film programming, fearing that it would loosen the network's arrangements with
sponsors and
affiliates
In the broadcasting industry (particularly in North America, and even more in the United States), a network affiliate or affiliated station is a local broadcaster, owned by a company other than the owner of the network, which carries some or ...
by encouraging
station managers to make independent deals with advertisers and
film producers.
Conversely, beginning in the 1950s episodes of American television series would be placed together and released as
feature film
A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...
s in overseas cinemas.
Television network
A television network or television broadcaster is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, where a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay television providers. Until the mid- ...
s were in control of the most valuable
prime time slots available for programming, so
syndicators of independent television films had to settle for fewer
television markets and less desirable time periods. This meant much smaller advertising revenues and license fees compared with network-supplied programming.
The term "made-for-TV movie" was coined in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
in the early 1960s as an incentive for movie
audiences to stay home and watch what was promoted as the equivalent of a
first-run theatrical film. Beginning in 1961 with ''
NBC Saturday Night at the Movies
''NBC Saturday Night at the Movies'' was the first TV show to broadcast in color relatively recent feature films from major studios. The series premiered on September 23, 1961, and ran until October 1978, spawning many imitators. Previously, tel ...
'', a
prime time network showing of a television premiere of a major theatrical film release, the other networks soon copied the format, with each of the networks having several ''
ay of the Week
Ay, AY or variants, may refer to:
People
* Ay (pharaoh), a pharaoh of the 18th Egyptian dynasty
* Merneferre Ay, a pharaoh of the 13th Egyptian dynasty
* A.Y. (musician) (born 1981), a Tanzanian "bongo flava" artist
* A.Y, stage name of Ayo Maku ...
Night At The Movies'' showcases which led to a shortage of
movie studio product. The first of these made-for-TV movies is generally acknowledged to be ''
See How They Run'', which debuted on
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
on October 7, 1964.
A previous film, ''
The Killers
The Killers are an American rock band formed in Las Vegas in 2001 by Brandon Flowers (lead vocals, keyboards, bass) and Dave Keuning (lead guitar, backing vocals). After going through a number of short-term bass players and drummers in t ...
'', starring
Lee Marvin
Lee Marvin (born Lamont Waltman Marvin Jr.; February 19, 1924August 29, 1987) was an American film and television actor. Known for his bass voice and premature white hair, he is best remembered for playing hardboiled "tough guy" characters. Alt ...
and
Ronald Reagan, was filmed as a TV-movie, although NBC decided it was too violent for television and it was released theatrically instead.
The second film to be considered a television movie,
Don Siegel
Donald Siegel ( ; October 26, 1912 – April 20, 1991) was an American film and television director and producer.
Siegel was described by ''The New York Times'' as "a director of tough, cynical and forthright action-adventure films whose taut ...
's ''
The Hanged Man'', was broadcast by
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
on November 18, 1964.
These features originally filled a 90-minute programming time slot (including
commercials), later expanded to two hours, and were usually broadcast as a weekly
anthology television series
A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...
(for example, the ''
ABC Movie of the Week
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
''). Many early television movies featured major stars, and some were accorded higher budgets than standard television series of the same length, including the major dramatic anthology programs which they came to replace.
In 1996, 264 made-for-TV movies were made by five of the six largest American television networks at the time (CBS, NBC, Fox, ABC, and
UPN
The United Paramount Network (UPN) was an American broadcast television network that launched on January 16, 1995. It was originally owned by Chris-Craft Industries' United Television. Viacom (through its Paramount Television unit, which pr ...
), averaging a 7.5 rating.
By 2000, only 146 TV movies were made by those five networks, averaging a 5.4 rating,
while the number of made-for-cable movies made annually in the U.S. doubled between 1990 and 2000.
In several respects, television films resemble
B movies, the low-budget films issued by major studios from the 1930s through the 1950s for short-term showings in movie theaters, usually as a double bill alongside a major studio release. Like made-for-TV movies, B movies were designed as a disposable product, had low production costs and featured second-tier actors.
Examples
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
's ''
Battlestar Galactica: Saga of a Star World'' premiered to an audience of over 60 million people on September 17, 1978.
The most-watched television movie of all time was
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
's ''
The Day After
''The Day After'' is an American television film that first aired on November 20, 1983 on the ABC television network. More than 100 million people, in nearly 39 million households, watched the film during its initial broadcast. With ...
'', which premiered on November 20, 1983, to an estimated audience of 100 million people.
The film depicted America after a
nuclear war with the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
, and was the subject of much controversy and discussion at the time of its release due to its graphic nature and subject matter. The
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
’s 1984 television film ''
Threads'' earned a similar reputation in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
as it followed two families and workers of
Sheffield City Council
Sheffield City Council is the city council for the metropolitan borough of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. It consists of 84 councillors, elected to represent 28 wards, each with three councillors. It is currently under No Overall Con ...
in the run up and aftermath of a nuclear war. The two are often compared on aspects such as realism.
Another popular and critically acclaimed television movie was 1971's ''
Duel'', written by
Richard Matheson
Richard Burton Matheson (February 20, 1926 – June 23, 2013) was an American author and screenwriter, primarily in the fantasy, horror, and science fiction genres.
He is best known as the author of '' I Am Legend'', a 1954 science fictio ...
, directed by
Steven Spielberg and starring
Dennis Weaver
William Dennis Weaver (June 4, 1924 – February 24, 2006) was an American actor and former president of the Screen Actors Guild, best known for his work in television and films from the early 1950s until just before his death in 2006. Weave ...
. Such was the quality and popularity of ''Duel'' that it was released to cinemas in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
and
Australia, and had a limited theatrical release to some venues in the United States and Canada. The 1971 made-for-TV movie ''
Brian's Song
''Brian's Song'' is a 1971 ABC Movie of the Week that recounts the life of Brian Piccolo (James Caan), a Chicago Bears football player stricken with terminal cancer after turning pro in 1965, told through his friendship with teammate Gale Sayer ...
'' was also briefly released to theatres after its success on television, and was even
remade in 2001. In some instances, television movies of the period had more explicit content included in the versions prepared to be exhibited theatrically in Europe. Examples of this include ''
The Legend of Lizzie Borden
''The Legend of Lizzie Borden'' is a 1975 American historical mystery television film directed by Paul Wendkos and starring Elizabeth Montgomery—in an Emmy-nominated performance—as Lizzie Borden, an American woman who was accused of murdering ...
'', ''
Helter Skelter'', ''
Prince of Bel Air'' and ''
Spectre
Spectre, specter or the spectre may refer to:
Religion and spirituality
* Vision (spirituality)
* Apparitional experience
* Ghost
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Spectre'' (1977 film), a made-for-television film produced and writ ...
''.
Many television movies released in the 1970s were a source of controversy, such as
Linda Blair
Linda Denise Blair (born January 22, 1959) is an American actress and activist. She played Regan MacNeil in the horror film ''The Exorcist'' (1973), for which she won a Golden Globe Award and received a nomination for an Academy Award. The fil ...
's 1974 film ''
Born Innocent'' and 1975's ''
Sarah T. - Portrait of a Teenage Alcoholic
Sarah (born Sarai) is a biblical matriarch and prophetess, a major figure in Abrahamic religions
The Abrahamic religions are a group of religions centered around worship of the God of Abraham. Abraham, a Hebrew patriarch, is extensivel ...
'', as well as 1976's ''
Dawn: Portrait of a Teenage Runaway'' and its 1977
sequel
A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music or video game that continues the story of, or expands upon, some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the same ...
, ''
Alexander: The Other Side of Dawn'', which were vehicles for former ''
Brady Bunch
''The Brady Bunch'' is an American sitcom created by Sherwood Schwartz that aired from September 26, 1969, to March 8, 1974, on ABC. The series revolves around a large blended family with six children. The show aired for five seasons and, afte ...
'' actress
Eve Plumb
Eve Aline Plumb (born April 29, 1958) is an American actress, singer and painter. She is best known for portraying the middle daughter Jan Brady on the ABC sitcom ''The Brady Bunch''.
A native of Southern California, Plumb began appearing in co ...
. Another significant film was
Elizabeth Montgomery
Elizabeth Victoria Montgomery (April 15, 1932 – May 18, 1995) was an American actress whose career spanned five decades in film, stage, and television. She is best remembered for her leading role as the witch Samantha Stephens on the televisi ...
's portrayal of a rape victim in the drama ''
A Case of Rape
''A Case of Rape'' is a 1974 American made-for-television drama film starring Elizabeth Montgomery and Ronny Cox. It premiered on NBC on February 20, 1974. The film tells the story of a wife and mother who is raped twice by the same man and her o ...
'' (1974).
''
My Sweet Charlie
''My Sweet Charlie'' is a 1970 American made-for-television drama film directed by Lamont Johnson. The teleplay by Richard Levinson and William Link is based on the novel of the same name by David Westheimer. Produced by Universal Television and ...
'' (1970) with
Patty Duke
Anna Marie "Patty" Duke (December 14, 1946 – March 29, 2016) was an American actress and mental health advocate. Over the course of her acting career, she was the recipient of an Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, three Primetime Emmy Awa ...
and
Al Freeman Jr.
Albert Cornelius Freeman Jr. (March 21, 1934 – August 9, 2012) was an American actor, director, and educator. A life member of The Actors Studio, Freeman appeared in a wide variety of plays, ranging from Leroi Jones' ''Slave/Toilet'' to Joe P ...
dealt with racial prejudice, and ''
That Certain Summer
''That Certain Summer'' is a 1972 American made-for-television drama film directed by Lamont Johnson. The teleplay by Richard Levinson and William Link was considered the first sympathetic depiction of gay people on American television. Produc ...
'' (1972), starring
Hal Holbrook
Harold Rowe Holbrook Jr. (February 17, 1925 – January 23, 2021) was an American actor, television director, and screenwriter. He first received critical acclaim in 1954 for a one-man stage show that he developed called '' Mark Twain Tonight!'' ...
and
Martin Sheen
Ramón Antonio Gerardo Estévez (born August 3, 1940), known professionally as Martin Sheen, is an American actor. He first became known for his roles in the films ''The Subject Was Roses'' (1968) and ''Badlands'' (1973), and later achieved wid ...
, although controversial, was considered the first television movie to approach the subject of
homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to pe ...
in a non-threatening manner. ''
If These Walls Could Talk
''If These Walls Could Talk'' is a 1996 American television film, broadcast on HBO. It follows the plights of three different women and their experiences with abortion. Each of the three stories takes place in the same house, 22 years apart: 195 ...
'', a film which deals with
abortion
Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pre ...
in three different decades (the 1950s, the 1970s and the 1990s) became a huge success, and was
HBO's highest rated film on record.
If a network orders a two-hour
television pilot
A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television network or other distr ...
for a proposed show, it will usually broadcast it as a television movie to recoup some of the costs even if the network chooses to not order the show to series. Often a successful series may spawn a television movie
sequel
A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music or video game that continues the story of, or expands upon, some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the same ...
after ending its run. For example, ''
Babylon 5: The Gathering'' launched the
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...
series ''
Babylon 5
''Babylon 5'' is an American space opera television series created by writer and producer J. Michael Straczynski, under the Babylonian Productions label, in association with Straczynski's Synthetic Worlds Ltd. and Warner Bros. Domestic Tele ...
'' and is considered to be distinct from the show's regular run of one-hour episodes. ''Babylon 5'' also has several made-for-TV movie sequels set within the same fictional continuity. The 2003 remake of ''
Battlestar Galactica'' began as a two-part
miniseries that later continued as a weekly television program. Another example is the
Showtime
Showtime or Show Time may refer to:
Film
* ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film
* ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur
Television Networks and channels
* Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...
movie ''
Sabrina, the Teenage Witch
''Sabrina the Teenage Witch'' is a comic book series published by Archie Comics about the adventures of a fictional American teenager named Sabrina Spellman. Sabrina was created by writer George Gladir and artist Dan DeCarlo, and first appeared ...
'', which launched the
sitcom
A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...
of the same name that originally aired on ABC, and used the same actress (
Melissa Joan Hart) for the lead role in both. The term "TV movie" is also frequently used as vehicles for "reunions" of long-departed series, as in ''
Return to Mayberry
''Return to Mayberry'' is a 1986 American made-for-television romantic comedy film based on the 1960s sitcoms ''The Andy Griffith Show'' and '' Mayberry R.F.D.''. The film premiered on April 13, 1986, on NBC, and was the highest- rated televis ...
'' and ''
A Very Brady Christmas''. They can also be a spin-off from a TV series including ''
The Incredible Hulk Returns
''The Incredible Hulk Returns'' is a 1988 American television superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character the Hulk which serves as a continuation of the 1978–1982 television series ''The Incredible Hulk''.
In ''The Incredible Hulk Retu ...
'', ''
The Trial of the Incredible Hulk'' and ''
The Death of the Incredible Hulk
''The Death of the Incredible Hulk'' is a 1990 American television superhero film, the last of three revival films based on the 1978–1982 television series ''The Incredible Hulk''. Bill Bixby reprises his role as Dr. David Banner and Lou Ferrign ...
''.
Occasionally, television movies are used as sequels to successful theatrical films. For example, only the
first film in
''The Parent Trap'' series was released theatrically. ''
The Parent Trap II
''The Parent Trap II'' is a 1986 American made-for-television comedy film and a sequel to Disney's 1961 film '' The Parent Trap'' (which was based on the 1949 book '' Lisa and Lottie'' by Erich Kästner) and the second installment in ''The Pare ...
'', ''
III'' and ''
Hawaiian Honeymoon'' were produced for television, and similarly, the
''Midnight Run'' sequels have all been released as made-for-TV movies despite
the first having a strong run in theaters. These types of films may be, and more commonly are, released
direct-to-video
Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, TV series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strategy wa ...
; there have been some films, such as ''
The Dukes of Hazzard: The Beginning'' (a prequel to the film version of ''
The Dukes of Hazzard
''The Dukes of Hazzard'' is an American action comedy TV series that was aired on CBS from January 26, 1979 to February 8, 1985. The show aired for 147 episodes spanning seven seasons. It was consistently among the top-rated television serie ...
'') and ''
James A. Michener's Texas
''James A. Michener's Texas'' (also called ''Texas'') is a 1994 ABC television miniseries directed by Richard Lang and starring Patrick Duffy as Stephen F. Austin, Stacy Keach as Sam Houston, Chelsea Field as Mattie Quimper, Rick Schroder as Ot ...
'', which have been released near simultaneously on DVD and on television, but have never been released in theatres.
Made-for-TV movie musicals have also become popular. One prime example is the
''High School Musical'' series, which aired its first two films on the
Disney Channel. The first television movie was so successful that a sequel was produced, ''
High School Musical 2
''High School Musical 2'' is a 2007 American musical television film written by Peter Barsocchini and directed by Kenny Ortega. The 70th Disney Channel Original Movie (DCOM), it is the sequel to ''High School Musical'' (2006) and the second inst ...
'', that debuted in August 2007 to 17.2 million viewers (this made it the highest-rated non-sports program in the history of basic cable and the highest-rated made-for-cable movie premiere on record). Due to the popularity of the first two films, the second ''HSM'' sequel, ''
High School Musical 3: Senior Year'', was released as a theatrical film in 2008 instead of airing on Disney Channel; ''High School Musical 3'' became one of the highest-grossing movie musicals.
Television movies traditionally were often broadcast by the major networks during
sweeps season. Such offerings now are very rare; as
Ken Tucker noted while reviewing the
Jesse Stone CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
television movies, "broadcast networks aren’t investing in made-for-TV movies anymore". The slack has been taken up by cable networks such as
Hallmark Channel
The Hallmark Channel is an American television channel owned by Crown Media Holdings, Inc., which in turn is owned by Hallmark Cards, Inc. The channel's programming is primarily targeted at families, and features a mix of television movies a ...
,
Syfy,
Lifetime and HBO, with productions such as ''
Temple Grandin
Mary Temple Grandin (born August 29, 1947) is an American academic and animal behaviorist. She is a prominent proponent for the humane treatment of livestock for slaughter and the author of more than 60 scientific papers on animal behavior. Gra ...
'' and ''
Recount
An election recount is a repeat tabulation of votes cast in an election that is used to determine the correctness of an initial count. Recounts will often take place if the initial vote tally during an election is extremely close. Election reco ...
'', often utilizing top creative talent.
High-calibre limited programming which would have been formerly scheduled solely as a two-hour film or miniseries also has been re-adapted to the newer "limited series" format over a period of weeks (rather than the consecutive days usually defined by a miniseries) where a conclusion is assured; an example of such would be ''
The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story'', and these are most often seen on cable networks and streaming services such as
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fi ...
.
Production and quality
In a 1991 ''
New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' article, television critic John J. O'Connor wrote that "few artifacts of popular culture invite more condescension than the made-for-television movie".
Network-made television movies in the United States have tended to be inexpensively-produced and perceived to be of low quality. Stylistically, these films often resemble single episodes of dramatic television series. Often, television films are made to "cash in" on the interest centering on stories currently prominent in the news, as the films based on the "Long Island Lolita" scandal involving
Joey Buttafuoco
Joseph A. Buttafuoco (born March 11, 1956) is an auto body shop owner from Long Island who had sex with a minor, Amy Fisher. Fisher subsequently shot his wife, Mary Jo Buttafuoco, in the face. Tabloid news coverage labelled Fisher the "Long I ...
and
Amy Fisher
Amy Elizabeth Fisher (born August 21, 1974) is an American woman who became known in the media as "the Long Island Lolita" in 1992, when, at the age of 17, she shot and severely wounded Mary Jo Buttafuoco, the wife of Joey Buttafuoco, with whom ...
were in 1993.
The stories are written to reach periodic semi-
cliffhanger
A cliffhanger or cliffhanger ending is a plot device in fiction which features a main character in a precarious or difficult dilemma or confronted with a shocking revelation at the end of an episode or a film of serialized fiction. A cliffhang ...
s coinciding with the network-scheduled times for the insertion of
commercials, and are further managed to fill, but not exceed, the fixed running times allotted by the network to each movie "series". In the case of films made for cable channels, they may rely on common, repetitive tropes (Hallmark Channel, for example, is notorious for its formulaic holiday romances, while Lifetime movies are well known for their common use of
damsel in distress storylines). The movies tend to rely on smaller casts, one such exception being those produced for
premium cable
Pay television, also known as subscription television, premium television or, when referring to an individual service, a premium channel, refers to subscription-based television services, usually provided by multichannel television providers, b ...
, such as ''
Behind the Candelabra
''Behind the Candelabra'' is a 2013 American biographical drama film directed by Steven Soderbergh. It dramatizes the last ten years in the life of pianist Liberace and the relationship that he had with Scott Thorson. It is based on Thorson's ...
'' (which featured established film actors
Michael Douglas
Michael Kirk Douglas (born September 25, 1944) is an American actor and film producer. He has received numerous accolades, including two Academy Awards, five Golden Globe Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, the Cecil B. DeMille Award, and the A ...
and
Matt Damon
Matthew Paige Damon (; born October 8, 1970) is an American actor, film producer, and screenwriter. Ranked among ''Forbes'' most bankable stars, the films in which he has appeared have collectively earned over $3.88 billion at the North Ameri ...
in the lead roles) and a limited range of scene settings and camera setups. Even Spielberg's ''Duel'', while having decent production values, features a very small cast (apart from Dennis Weaver, all other actors appearing in the film play smaller roles) and mostly outdoor shooting locations in the desert.
The movies typically employ smaller crews, and rarely feature expensive
special effects
Special effects (often abbreviated as SFX, F/X or simply FX) are illusions or visual tricks used in the theatre, film, television, video game, amusement park and simulator industries to simulate the imagined events in a story or virtual wo ...
. Although a film's expenses would be lessened by filming using
video
Video is an electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving visual media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, which were quickly replaced by cathode-ray tube (CRT) syst ...
, as the movies were contracted by television studios, these films were required to be shot on 35 mm
film. Various techniques are often employed to "pad" television movies with low budgets and underdeveloped scripts, such as
music video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...
-style montages, flashbacks, or repeated footage, and extended periods of dramatic
slow motion
Slow motion (commonly abbreviated as slo-mo or slow-mo) is an effect in film-making whereby time appears to be slowed down. It was invented by the Austrian priest August Musger in the early 20th century. This can be accomplished through the use ...
footage. However, the less expensive digital 24p video format has made some quality improvements on the television movie market.
Part of the reason for the lower budgets comes from the lack of revenue streams from them; whereas a theatrical film can make money from ticket sales, re-releases and syndication to television stations, most television films lacked those revenue streams, and the films are seldom
rerun
A rerun or repeat is a rebroadcast of an episode of a radio or television program. There are two types of reruns – those that occur during a hiatus, and those that occur when a program is syndicated.
Variations
In the United Kingdom, the word ...
. Raconteur
Jean Shepherd
Jean Parker 'Shep' Shepherd Jr. (~July 21, 1921 – October 16, 1999) was an American storyteller, humorist, radio and TV personality, writer, and actor. With a career that spanned decades, Shepherd is known for the film ''A Christmas Story'' ...
produced several television films in the 1970s and 1980s before realizing that the proceeds from his first theatrical film, ''
A Christmas Story'', far exceeded anything he had ever done in television.
Nonetheless, notable exceptions exist of high production quality and well-known casts and crews that even earned awards, such as ''
The Diamond Fleece'', a 1992
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
TV film directed by
Al Waxman
Albert Samuel Waxman, (March 2, 1935 – January 18, 2001) was a Canadian actor and director of over 1,000 productions on radio, television, film, and stage. He is best known for his starring roles in the television series '' King of Kensingto ...
and starring
Ben Cross
Harry Bernard Cross (16 December 1947 – 18 August 2020) was an English stage and film actor. He was best known for playing Billy Flynn in the original West End production of the musical ''Chicago'', and his portrayal of the British Ol ...
,
Kate Nelligan
Patricia Colleen Nelligan (born March 16, 1950), known professionally as Kate Nelligan, is a Canadian stage, film and television actress. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for the 1991 film ''The Prince of Tide ...
and
Brian Dennehy
Brian Manion Dennehy (; July 9, 1938 – April 15, 2020) was an American actor of stage, television, and film. He won two Tony Awards, an Olivier Award, and a Golden Globe, and received six Primetime Emmy Award nominations. Dennehy had roles in ...
. It earned Nelligan the 1993
Gemini Award for "Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series".
Human Cargo
'' CBC.ca''. Accessed April 29, 2008.
Movie-length episodes of television shows
Occasionally, a long-running television series is used as the basis for television movies that air during the show's run (as opposed to the above-mentioned "reunion specials"). Typically, such movies employ a filmed single-camera setup
The single-camera setup, or single-camera mode of production, also known as portable single camera, is a method of filmmaking and video production.
The single-camera setup originally developed during the birth of the classical Hollywood cinema i ...
even if the television series is videotaped using a multiple-camera setup
The multiple-camera setup, multiple-camera mode of production, multi-camera or simply multicam is a method of filmmaking and video production. Several cameras—either film or professional video cameras—are employed on the set and simultaneou ...
, but are written to be easily broken up into individual 30- or 60-minute episodes for syndication
Syndication may refer to:
* Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system
* Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips
* Web syndication, ...
. Many such movies relocate the cast of the show to an exotic overseas setting. However, although they may be advertised as movies, they are really simply extended episodes of television shows, such as the pilots and the finales of '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'', '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' and '' Star Trek: Voyager''. Most of these are made and shown during sweeps period in order to attract a large television audience and boost viewership for a show.
Crossover
Crossover may refer to:
Entertainment
Albums and songs
* ''Cross Over'' (Dan Peek album)
* ''Crossover'' (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles album), 1987
* ''Crossover'' (Intrigue album)
* ''Crossover'' (Hitomi Shimatani album)
* ''Crossover'' (Yoshino ...
episodes containing a number of episodes of the characters of individual series interacting with characters across different shows (as has been done with the '' CSI'', '' NCIS'' and ''Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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, subdivision_name ...
'' franchises, along with between '' Murder, She Wrote'' and ''Magnum, P.I.
''Magnum, P.I.'' is an American crime drama television series starring Tom Selleck as Thomas Magnum, a private investigator (P.I.) living on Oahu, Hawaii. The series ran from December 11, 1980 to May 8, 1988 during its first-run broadcast on ...
'', ''Scandal
A scandal can be broadly defined as the strong social reactions of outrage, anger, or surprise, when accusations or rumours circulate or appear for some reason, regarding a person or persons who are perceived to have transgressed in some way. Th ...
'' and ''How to Get Away With Murder
''How to Get Away with Murder'' is an American legal thriller television series that premiered on ABC on September 25, 2014, and concluded on May 14, 2020. The series was created by Peter Nowalk, and produced by Shonda Rhimes and ABC Studios ...
'', and '' Ally McBeal'' and ''The Practice
''The Practice'' is an American legal drama television series created by David E. Kelley centering on partners and associates at a Boston law firm. The show ran for eight seasons on ABC, from March 4, 1997, to May 16, 2004. It won an Emmy in ...
'') also play as films, encouraging tune-in among all the series crossed over to effectively create a multiple-hour plot that plays as a film when watched as a whole.
See also
* Direct-to-video
Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, TV series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strategy wa ...
*
* Miniseries
* Soap opera
A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...
* Telenovela
A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning "novel"). Similar drama genres around the world include '' teleserye'' ...
* Téléroman
A téléroman ("telenovel" or ''annual drama series'') is a genre of French-language drama television series in Canada, similar to a soap opera or a Spanish language telenovela. In France, the ''téléroman'' genre is known as feuilleton télév ...
* Television play
A television play is a television programming genre which is a drama performance broadcast from a multi-camera television studio, usually live in the early days of television but later recorded to tape. This is in contrast to a television mov ...
* Television pilot
A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television network or other distr ...
* Television special
A television special (often TV special, or rarely television spectacular) is a standalone television show which may also temporarily interrupt episodic programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Some specials provide a full range of ent ...
* Limited-run series
In television programming, a limited-run series (or simply limited series) is a program with an end date and limit to the number of episodes. For instance, The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences' definition specifies a "program with two or mo ...
Notes
References
Bibliography
* Marill, Alvin H. ''Movies Made for Television, 1964–2004''. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press, 2005. . (Vol. 1: 1964–1979; Vol. 2: 1980–1989; Vol. 3: 1990–1999; Vol. 4: 2000–2004; Vol. 5: Indexes.)
* Marill, Alvin H. ''Movies Made for Television, 2005–2009''. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press, 2010. .
* Marill, Alvin H. ''Main Title: Big Pictures on the Small Screen: Made-for-TV Movies and Anthology Dramas''. Westport, Conn.: Praeger Publishers, 2007.
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Film
it:Fiction televisiva#Non seriale