One reason that the film industry is so small is that film makers have not been able to be innovative because of many barriers. One of the biggest barriers of film making is the huge budgets required to make a movie, which reduces the willingness of producers to take risks or to attempt to implement innovations the way Stanley Kubrick did. But digital technology may push through some big changes.

1995 was the centennial anniversary of the motion picture. In that memorial year a Disney film called Toy Story was made without using optical tools like lenses or cameras. Instead, it was a full digital movie, the first movie made only by computer. Toy Story, a joint project of Disney and Pixar, is not a studio-made movie but a desktop-made movie. Although most movie-making is still done with expensive production facilities and equipment, digital technology is expected to reduce costs rapidly.

The production of a film generally is limited to specialists such as directors, technicians, actors, and the film crew, who must attempt to deliver what the general public wants. However, to make the business effective and cohesive, attention to the needs of audiences must be put into proper balance with the desires and training of the production teams. This is the function of the groups responsible for distributing and marketing the product, and their involvement is the basis of the film industry. Several decades ago, the relationship between producers and moviegoers was monopolized by studios and distributors. Studios had everything: human resources, facilities and funds. But now, digital technology is cutting the costs of production and the network, the Internet, allows independent filmmakers to distribute their work by themselves.