This issue features a decidedly different PBM game from the United Kingdom. While many PBMs focus on traditional gaming genres, such as fantasy, sci-fi, World War II, or sports, a trend towards unconventional games seems to be making its presence felt.

"Movie Mogul," from the company of the same name, is one such game. "Movie Mogul" places the player in the role of a fledgling Hollywood film producer. The goal is to amass awards and box office receipts by producing blockbuster films. All aspects of the process are covered, including casting, production crews (and costs), censorship, advertising, and distribution. Players also have the option of submitting a short (220 words or less) script synopsis!

The players are predominantly European, but the moderator, Andrew Perry, is serving his American players well, and is seeking to expand his US player base. Turnaround via airmail is reasonably quick and a fifty cent stamp is all that is required to mail a turn. Payment is presently only accepted in British currency, so a trip to the local post office for an International Money Order may be in order. Those fortunate enough to live near major cities or international airports may inquire about currency exchange at such locations.

The setup package is available for £ 5 by surface mail, or £ 7 by airmail. It includes a setup, a free turn, a 26 page rule book, and a 20 page source list. The source list is essential to "Movie Mogul," as it contains a listing of all actors, actresses, directors,, editors, writers, and cinematographers who are currently available, as well as important information about their "asking price," the quality of film that they normally work on, and their previous work. The following examples are taken from the source list:

Prof.	Name	Nat.	Style	Age	Advance	F%
Actor Actress Director Writer Editor Cinemat.	Sean Connery Kim Basinger James Cameron Wes Craven Robert Brown Adam Greenberg	GB. US -- -- -- --	d,a c,d s,a,f h,f -- --	60 30 -- -- -- --	$2.5m $500k $1.0m $300k $75k $150k	70 40 50 40 40 60

The filmographies normally present in the source list are not presented here. Nationalities and ages are listed for actors and actresses only; ages are rounded to the nearest 10 years. "Style" refers to the genre(s) that the person has proficiency in; (a)ction, (ani)mation, (c)omedy, (d)rama, (f)antasy, (h)orror (s)cience fiction, or (t)hrillers.

"Advance" represents the minimum advance that the person in question will accept. This figure is only a guideline, however, as many factors will affect the price that a producer must pay. Someone who has offers from other players on the same game turn or who had recent success at the box office, may demand more money. By the same token, a seldom-hired individual may accept less than his usual advance. Another way that a player can hire someone for less than the usual advance is to offer a percentage of the box office take. Naturally, professionals will be wary of accepting percentage-heavy deals from novice filmmakers, but established players with a proven track record may be able to significantly lower somebody's "asking price" by offering a percentage.

"F%" represents the overall quality of a film, and in the sourcebook listing it indicates the quality of films that the individual is used to participating In. If a player is known for producing films of a quality greater than the listed F%, then a lower "asking price" can be offered.

The source list, which is updated every few months, is quite comprehensive. Additionally, players may hire individuals who are not in the source list by providing the GM with whatever information about the individual that they have; the GM will respond with a suggested advance, and the individual may be hired thereafter. New positions consist of one Movie Mogul, and $1,000,000 cash. The Movie Mogul (the player) has a skill range of 0-100 in the following categories: Business, Acting, Cinematography, Directing, Editing, and Writing. The latter five categories are used if the player casts his Mogul in any of the corresponding positions. The Business skill will affect negotiations with professionals, distributors, and anything else involving money.

A Mogul also has a Status rating, which starts at 200. It increases with the production of quality and/or successful films, as well as when a Mogul's film is nominated for (or wins) an award.

Filling out a turn sheet can be accomplished in an hour or less, if the player has an idea for a movie. The first step should be selecting a film genre. Then, the player should hire and assign crew units. For a "C Grade" film which will be the first sort of film any new player will produce, each unit costs $2,000 and represents about 10 people. Units need to be assigned to eight departments, including Camera, Sound, and Labor, in both the pre- and post- as well as actual production phases. A typical first effort could involve as many as forty or fifty crew units total.

The player must also select a "production scale" for his film. This represents the size of the film in terms of physical locations. For example, the film "E.T." uses only a few rooms and a small, suburban street. The rulebook rates "E.T." at a 3 on the production scale (PS). A film like "Total Recall," with many large sets, might rate as high as a 9 PS. A film with a larger PS will naturally require a greater number of crew units.

Next, the running time of the film must be specified, and the shooting rate selected. A quick shooting rate (e.g. 30 minutes per week) may result in more mistakes and a poorer film quality. Of course, with a C Grade film, this is not too important. Dividing the running time by the shooting rate will yield the shoot schedule, which is the amount of time that the actual production stage of the film will take.

The player must then determine how much time is to be allocated to pre- and post-production. Usually, this is at least as much time for each stage as actual production, and often twice as much or more. A typical first effort might require seven weeks of pre-production, six weeks of production, and twelve weeks of post production, for a grand total of twenty-five weeks.

All of this can easily bring the production cost of a first effort to between six and seven hundred thousand dollars. This leaves the fledgling mogul a mere $300K with which to attract Big Name Stars. However, the sourcebook is filled with lesser-known individuals who are often play important roles in first films. Another excellent source of inexpensive labor is child stars.

Once the player has cast his main roles, and signed on a Director, Cinematographer, Editor, and Writer, he must select a distributor. There are presently eight major distributors available, and each has their own special characteristics. The player may also specify how much money the distributors will spend out of their own pocket to advertise the film, and exactly where the advertising will appear. However, distributors who make large expenditures on advertising are likely to take larger percentages of profits to cover their fees.

If the Mogul has any money left over (highly unlikely on early turns), he may invest it in a number of low, medium and high risk ventures. Finally, if a Mogul has any time left over (highly likely on early turns), he may seek work through his agent. His chance of finding work. and the amount of work, depend upon his abilities in the job for which he applies. For example, a Mogul with a high Writing ability would be advised to seek work as a Writer.

All that remains is to write a brief, 30-word synopsis of the him, as well as a more detailed script summary. Plot synopses for all films will be printed in the newsletter that accompanies every turn. If the film is nominated for an award (or if the player pays an additional fifty pence), the full script summary is used.

Each player receives a detailed individualized results sheet, detailing the performance of the film, the effectiveness of all components of the film process, and (of course) finances. Additionally, all players receive "That Was the Turn That Was," the newsletter that is published with every turn. The newsletter contains plot synopses and script summaries, as well as player messages, GM notes, rankings, and other similar information. It averages around twenty pages in length.

Overall, Movie Mogul certainly represents a break from traditional PBM design. The subject matter is certainly fresh, as is the game system. At first glance, it appears to be largely arbitrary and moderator driven, but once players have actually run a turn, it is apparent that the computer plays a large role in the process. Turnsheets and results printouts are easy to read, and well laid-out. Results sheets are usually one side of a single page, but they do contain all pertinent data. The printing appears to be simple dot-matrix.

The newsletter can be very dull for players who don't care to read the script summaries of their fellow Moguls, but most people who will be attracted to this game will find it a pleasure rather than a chore, as there is usually a smorgasbord of creative concepts to enjoy. The Gamesmaster seems friendly and knowledgeable about the game, and has been both communicative and accommodating in the task of bringing in American players.

Game turns are currently priced at £ 2.54 for surface mail (not recommended) or £ 2.95 for Air Mail. Players who miss the biweekly deadline will be sent the newsletter by surface mail for a charge of 90 pence. Exchange rates between the dollar and the pound fluctuate constantly, but a safe rule of thumb is that it will require $1.50 to purchase £ 1.00.

For more information about Movie Mogul, contact:

Movie Mogul,
55 Martley Road,
Worcester,WR2 6HG, England

Be sure to write or stamp Air Mail on the outside of the letter, and be sure to mention SHADIS & POST MARQUE. See you in the movies.