The last few years have been good ones for shareholders of amusement park stocks like The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) and Six Flags Entertainment Corp. (NYSE:SIX). DIS shares are up more than 300% since March of 2009, when the bear market officially ended, while SIX shares are up more than 350% since the company went through a bankruptcy reorganization in the middle of 2010. And why not? "Fun" is always marketable as long as the economy is decent, and Six Flags Entertainment as well as The Walt Disney Company serve up fun as much as anyone can. What constitutes "amusement" at amusement parks, however, is slowly shifting. That shift is playing right into the hands of a small (but budding) company called Independent Film Development Corporation (OTCMKTS:IFLM) - aka IndyFilmCorp. To get a grip on that paradigm shift unfurling in the theme park world, you don't have to go any farther than.... your TV?
It's true. If the kind of programming found on television is a mirror into our cultural preferences - and it is - then consumer preferences are mysterious, strange, spooky, and maybe even macabre... things that The Walt Disney Company has traditionally steered clear of, favoring lighter fare like the traditional rags-to-riches princess story. As partial proof of this shift in consumer preferences, Disney is the producer of live-action television show "Once Upon a Time", which puts its famous animated movie characters on the small screen, all in the same world, and explores slightly-darker ideas and themes... as far as Disney cares to go with it anyway. But, as Ken Tucker accurately assessed it a couple of years ago, "dark-fantasy fans will probably find the series not dark enough."
So what exactly what level of darkness are people looking for now. Dark. Think reality/documentary shows Ghost Hunters and Ancient Aliens. Think zombie nail-biters like The Walking Dead. Think drug-centric hits like Breaking Bad. Think twisted game shows like Fear Factor and Total Blackout. These shows would have been lucky to be on the air at all ten years ago, and even if they were they'd be relegated to the fringe and placed in irrelevant time slots. Now they're prime-time programs, with huge followings.
Great, but what's that got to do with amusement parks? A lot.
While DisneyLand, DisneyWord, and EuroDisney will undoubtedly go on doing the typical Disney thing at its theme parks - and ditto for the straight-up adrenaline-driving Six Flags Entertainment parks - Independent Film Development Corporation is melding the new social preference for dark and creepy into always-in-demand amusement parks.
Though the first of what should be several theme-driven resorts/amusement parks is still being built, IndyFilmCorp has already painted a pretty good picture of how it's going to cater to the modern, real-chill-seeking visitor. The water flume ride, rather than a cute trip through a cartoonish briar patch, will be a journey through the River Styx, ending with a narrow flash-filled escape. Its haunted house attraction will be filled with ghosts that actually look like ghosts, as opposed to a giggling ghost that looks like little more than a shadow puppet. The Walt Disney 'shooter' rides like Buzz Lightyear's and Woody's sit-down-and-zap-em will be a zombie-shooter at theme parks from Independent Film Development Corporation. Rather than hugging a lovable character seen in an animated movie, guests at one of IndyFilmCorp's parks may catch a glimpse of Bigfoot lurking around in the trees. It's all still going to be family-friendly, of course, but it's going to cross a line that Disney wouldn't with its theme parks, leaving guests with perhaps a little amusing doubt as to whether or not there's actually something to be afraid of. As proof that IndyFilmCorp is serious about making its attractions as convincing as possible, it's contacted Hollywood's top special effects and design people to supply the ambience.
It's definitely different, but that's a good thing for investors. So is the fact that IFLM is a relatively new stock, under the theme park business model anyway. With the proverbial cat not yet fully out of the bag, newcomers can pick the stock up for a song... or maybe a scream. For more on the company and its theme parks, visit the Independent Film Development Corporation website here.
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