Last year, a total of 504 movies were released in the US. The top movie of 2023, “Barbie”, grossed $1.45 billion worldwide with a production budget of $145 million and an estimated marketing budget of $150 million. The second highest-grossing film, “The Super Mario Bros.”, brought in $1.36 billion globally with a production cost of $100 million and an estimated marketing budget of $100 million. Large film production and distribution companies like Warner Bros. and Universal Pictures have realized they need to spend big on marketing to increase the chance of commercial success. Good scripts and famous casts alone cannot guarantee a box office hit. Small movie production companies need to understand that the marketing budget is just as important as the movie script.

Low-budget movie producers and investors often bet that the quality of their scripts and sometimes talented actors will make their movies commercially successful. However, it’s hard to sell good quality products without fully marketing them. Word of mouth is powerful, especially in the social media era, but it’s not the most effective way to push many to watch movies. There were a few low-budget movies that became successful last year. "Godzilla Minus One," directed by Takashi Yamazaki, grossed $115 million with a budget of $15 million. Another movie, "Evil Dead Rise," directed by Lee Cronin, made $146 million worldwide on a $19 million budget.