MOVIE INDUSTRY DreamWorks has a lot riding on 'Shark Tale'

New movie opens as the studio prepares to sell stock to the public.
LOS ANGELES TIMES
HOLLYWOOD -- Fresh off its blockbuster "Shrek 2," DreamWorks plays to a whole new audience today -- Wall Street investors anxious to see whether its new film "Shark Tale" sinks or swims.
The computer-animated movie about a vegetarian shark and a fast-talking wrasse opens in theaters just as DreamWorks is poised to spin off its computer animation unit.
Although DreamWorks hit pay dirt with two "Shrek" films, the initial public stock offering has the studio under pressure to show it's no one-trick pony -- or, in its case, donkey.
In a Securities and Exchange Commission filing last month, DreamWorks Animation acknowledged much is riding on whether its new movie -- featuring the voices of Will Smith, Jack Black, Renee Zellweger, Robert DeNiro and Angelina Jolie -- makes a splash.
"If 'Shark Tale' fails to achieve domestic box office success," the document says, "its international box office and home video success will be in doubt and our . . . financial condition could be adversely affected in 2005 and beyond."
High stakes
Although some of that passage reflects the boilerplate language of an SEC filing, it nonetheless underscores the stakes involved. The 10-year-old studio founded by moguls Jeffrey Katzenberg, Steven Spielberg and David Geffen is expected to raise as much as $650 million in the spinoff, now expected in late October. A successful offering also is a crucial step if billionaire Paul Allen is to eventually cash out as an investment partner.
DreamWorks spokesman Andy Spahn declined comment, citing SEC rules restricting companies from publicly discussing upcoming stock offerings.
Computer animation is one of the most competitive arenas in the entertainment industry; the public has shown a clear preference for the genre's brilliant graphics and irreverent storytelling over traditional hand-drawn animation. A digitally animated film typically takes three to four years to complete and costs more than $100 million.
Rival
DreamWorks Animation already suffers from inevitable comparisons among investors to rival Pixar Animation Studios. The publicly traded company is five-for-five in animated hits that include "Toy Story," "Monsters, Inc." and "Finding Nemo."
To date, "Shrek 2" -- starring Mike Myers as the cranky green ogre and Eddie Murphy as sidekick Donkey -- has grossed $873 million worldwide and has now surpassed "Nemo" as the most successful animated film of all time.
Thanks largely to the film's success, DreamWorks Animation reported revenue of $119.4 million in the six months ended June 30, reversing a $115.5 million loss in the same period of 2003, according to SEC filings. Huge sums are expected to flow into the company when "Shrek 2" is released on DVD in November.
Unlike the near-unanimous praise from critics for the "Shrek" films, however, "Shark Tale" is drawing decidedly mixed reviews, with some critics contending that the film simply tries too hard to be funny.