Soderbergh inks six-picture deal with 2929 Ent.
Source: Hollywood Reporter
In a move that provides significant momentum to Mark Cuban and Todd Wagner's efforts to collapse the traditional distribution windows, their 2929 Entertainment company has signed a six-picture deal with maverick director Steven Soderbergh.
Announced Thursday, the deal through 2929's HDNet production company will see Soderbergh's films released simultaneously across theatrical, TV and home video platforms on the theory that collapsing the traditionally staggered windows gives consumers a choice regarding how and when they want to see a film.
Soderbergh will have creative control over all the films' content, with each produced in 1080i high-definition format. The first project, "Bubble," centering on a murder mystery in a small town in Ohio, is in production on a three-week schedule with Soderbergh writing and directing. The casting director trawled area malls and beauty shops to find local residents to audition for the nonprofessional cast.
HDNet Films is financing all the projects with "Bubble's" budget between $2 million-$3 million. Wagner said this number might increase for the yet-to-be-announced projects, if Soderbergh pitches a compelling concept.
"I'm excited to work with Todd and Mark and appreciate the freedom to create independent films under this new distribution model," Soderbergh said in a statement. "All of us see consumer choice driving the future of the movie industry and this is a giant leap in that direction." Soderbergh has long been a fan of digital filmmaking. His digital projects include Miramax's "Full Frontal" and the HBO series "K Street" and "Unscripted."
The day-and-date strategy will be executed via 2929's Magnolia Pictures label, with theatrical distribution initially taking place at the company's Landmark Theatre chain and TV distribution through the company high-definition cable channel HDNet Movies. It's unclear whether the theatrical distribution will expand beyond 2929's properties, as the strategy of collapsing windows is seen as a threat by many in the industry.
However, as Soderbergh's recent projects, "Criminal" and "The Jacket," both performed dismally at the boxoffice via Warner Independent Pictures, 2929's strategy might provide an attractive alternative for Soderbergh's smaller projects. (2929 also produced "Good Night, and Good Luck," the story of broadcast journalist Edward R. Murrow, directed by George Clooney, Soderbergh's production partner in his company Section 8.)
"I think the distribution strategy was part of why (Soderbergh) did it," Wagner said. "Some of the things he did before didn't get the theatrical attention he would have liked. With us, we can make sure they get theatrical distribution in addition to television and home video. We can get it out there and test this model."
Another driver of this strategy, which Wagner hopes will one day be releasing a theatrical film each quarter, is to add subscribers to his burgeoning HDNet network. "We want the HDNet subscribers to be happy," Wagner said. "We need to make it worthwhile for them to be on the system. With a director of this caliber they will know that this is something we are serious about."
Wagner also hopes that Soderbergh is not the only director to sign on. "This is just the beginning. This deal doesn't prevent other directors or actors from trying to do something different. But we're off to a good start with Steven leading the charge."
wow, crazy. i wonder if any good can actually come from this? or how long before clooney gets to star in one? its funny when the financier is like 'i hope we can spend some more money on this' cause they know that a 2-3 mill movie starring nobodys will not make as much money as a 7-8 mill movie starring one of stevens actors.
I like it. The best thing about this is that won't be films that really get large distribution. It won't tempt me into a situation of choosing to see a film on DVD instead of in the theaters because its that much cheaper or worst, that much nicer. It just allows for a fair method of distributing films that are hard to come by for a lot of people. My current city is so small and isolated I get the feeling the films I really want to see are as exclusive as Broadway shows. There are so many films I know I never will have a chance to see til a video release. I wish the entire art film circuit could adapt this method.
i'm really not excited to hear this. mark cuban's sole purpose is to rid the industry of film as an aquisition and distribution format -- he's a extremely strong advocate that is agressively throwing a lot of time and money to make celluloid extinct for his financial gain. soderbergh is now apparantly on his boat.
I'm not sure if you're entrenched in Hollywood production or not, but I've got to assume that the "film" lobbyists have a strong prescence.
Is the Director's Guild holding on to this power, because I believe that producers could give a shit less as long as it saves a dollar in production.
Quote from: PwaybloeI've got to assume that the "film" lobbyists have a strong prescence.
Is the Director's Guild holding on to this power...
I don't quite follow - What power are you referring to? Regarding film as an aquisition format?
Quote from: PwaybloeIs the Director's Guild holding on to this power, because I believe that producers could give a shit less as long as it saves a dollar in production.
Isn't Soderbergh head of the DGA?
last i heard Michael Apted was head of DGA
mark cuban makes harvey weinstein look like harvey kietel. I dunno what I just said. he's a dick.
How about:
Mark Cuban makes Harvey Weinstein look like Eammon Bowles or Bingham Ray?
That's not exactly fair, but anyway, I know what you're getting at. Mark Cuban is a bit of a doofus, but I'll give him credit for anticipating technological trends and, by securing Soderbergh, legitimizing these trends for those with artistic intent, rather than capital (which is what Cuban himself is concerned with, but still, that he's largely been working with Soderbergh rather than, say, Brett Ratner shows some gumption).
The deal doesn't excite me that much, but it is interesting if you look between the lines. The whole simultaneous three-tiered release format is a bit of a facade, I think, meant to ease the transition of purely digital exhibition - TV media, theatrical films and home video will all be piped in through the same avenue, and Cuban's smart to get an early angle on what is certainly an inevitable (although not, I assume/hope, totalitarian) development.
I don't hink cuban has the ability to predict anything. from interviews and real-life encounters, he's really rich and dumb. he jumps on the digital bandwagon prematurely because it's a buzzword and it makes him look like he has some type of cause. is he even aware that digital projection is still a much more flawed technology than celluloid?
i don't think you can go as far as calling him dumb - you can't get THAT rich by being dumb.
and unfortunate as it is, digital exhibition IS where the business is going - the studios inked the deal with the exhibitors this month - to start fully making the swap from celluloid to digital projection - its a numbers game and cuban had the forsight and is at the helm of this progression - he's throwing a lot of money at it to make it happen - and will most likely profit immensely - so I don't think you can call him dumb - heartless...sure.
Quote from: cowboykurtisQuote from: PwaybloeI've got to assume that the "film" lobbyists have a strong prescence.
Is the Director's Guild holding on to this power...
I don't quite follow - What power are you referring to? Regarding film as an aquisition format?
Yes. I was using the DGA as an example, but I just assumed they would have the political power to hold celluloid as the industry standard. Is there any other organized group that may have the same (or more) power to stop the influx of digital?
While I doubt it, don't you think powerful vendors like Fuji or Kodak still has some proponents of celluloid in their backpocket?
Quote from: PwaybloeQuote from: cowboykurtisQuote from: PwaybloeI've got to assume that the "film" lobbyists have a strong prescence.
Is the Director's Guild holding on to this power...
I don't quite follow - What power are you referring to? Regarding film as an aquisition format?
Yes. I was using the DGA as an example, but I just assumed they would have the political power to hold celluloid as the industry standard. Is there any other organized group that may have the same (or more) power to stop the influx of digital?
While I doubt it, don't you think powerful vendors like Fuji or Kodak still has some proponents of celluloid in their backpocket?
the DGA has no power and quite frankly doesn't really care. The industry will always be run by the money men. As far as film companies - they have jumped on the digital wagon - kodak is developing a HD camera and technicolor has developed the hi def projectors that will become the standard in years to come.
I quite like this deal...but where does it leave my dear anticipated "Che"?
i don't think the simultaneous release strategy will prove to be very effective. there are many holes in this strategy.
1. The only theaters that will carry this are the ones that Cuban own (REGAL CINEMAS). Any other exhibitor will refuse a film that is already out on dvd.
2. The tv broadcast element is directed towards those who own cuban's HD net - For those who can get it dierectly streamed, why would they go out andspend money on the dvd.
3. For the most part, if a consumer has the option of buying a 15 dollar dvd and viewing it as many times as he pleases vs. paying 11 dollars to watch it once on a bigger screen - i think the majority will buy the dvd.
it completley convelutes the traditional release strategy - On top of that, Cuban is essentially applying verticle integration - Cuban now controls production through distribution - last time i checked this wasn't legal - it harcks back to the studio system in the 30's which many fought hard to dissolve. It seems that Cuban is implenting the same business structure with little to no resistance from the industry/competition that will mostly likely suffer becuase of it.
this bastard has to be stopped
I don't think it will work simply because something trying to be an alternative is either not viable in reality or will get ignored.
The vertical integration thing is interesting. cowboy, you say Cuban owns Regal theaters? Is this part of 2929 or something else? If 2929 operates production and distribution, and Cuban has some other ties to Regal, this could be a loophole?
He bought out Regal Cinemas about 1.5 years ago - I think Regal equates to 1,400 screens Domestically - He plans to outfit every screen with Digital projectors (if he hasn't already). Along with the distributor Magnolia Pictures. I don't know if these were bought under 2929 or not ( I doubt it - I'm sure he spread them out between a few Partnerships/Corps). Regardless, he's the sole propreitor behind these companies - all roads lead back to him, which in essence make him liable. Just like Warner Bros has a branch like Dark Castle Pictures - It's under a different title and management, however at the end of the day WB stockholders feel the effective off all inclusive entities. And those at the top are the ones open to litigation if it comes to that. However he's a smart guy - it all depends how the company is structured on paper. He may have protected himself.
They also own Landmark theater chains and rest assured, this deal will work. Soon everybody will doing this, Cuban and Co. are just the pioneers.
Quote from: UltrahipThey also own Landmark theater chains and rest assured, this deal will work. Soon everybody will doing this, Cuban and Co. are just the pioneers.
Where are you getting your information from? As far as I know they have no ownership in Landmark.
Quote from: UltrahipSoon everybody will doing this, Cuban and Co. are just the pioneers.
I think you're wrong. No one will do this. It's risky, and it's not like Soderbergh is a big enough name to draw people to the theater, in order to assist this experiment and really get it rolling.
it's true (http://wired-vig.wired.com/wired/archive/13.04/cuban_pr.html), cuban owns landmark. and he's an asshole.
then i truly hope I'm wrong about Regal - Myabe I just mixed it up with Landmark - Please don't tell me he owns both.
This quote sums Mark Cuban up:
"I'm not doing this for some greater good - I want to make more money. I love to fuck with people, and I love finding ways to make more money."
I'm really excited to see all the great things he'll do for an industry that I thought couldn't get much worse.
What a fucking piece of work.
assholes do very well in america, though, which is why in a few years I'm moving to France and becoming a wino on the sidewalks of the cinemateque and surrounding villages.
Hah, that Cuban quote is classic.
He was here (in Dallas) the other night showing George Clooney a good time at one of the many strip clubs this lovely city has to offer. I wonder what those guys see in him. Besides financing.
perhaps soderbergh saw into the future and read that cuban revolution article, and confused it with his che project.
jokes aside, i assume they see in cuban that really hip combo of antihollywood while also in debt to hollywood thing that is in a twisted way independent yet undeniably captialist, in which artistic freedom is granted in the name of money. And talent, which cuban has, albeit not in the way we'd traditionally like to think of talent.
Regal refused to book the Enron film, which was produced by HDNet, so perhaps it isn't the lock on distribution some may think it would be.
oh, regal didn't book it? who cares, because the enron film stilll had the highest per screen avg it's opening weekend.
Closing windows make exhibs hot
Source: Hollywood Reporter
If Mark Cuban has his way, theatrical distribution may never be the same. 2929 Entertainment, the company Cuban founded with partner Todd Wagner, is determined to collapse the traditional distribution windows by simultaneously releasing films across theatrical, home video and cable. But even though the experiment has barely begun, it already is running into steely opposition from theater owners across the country who are up in arms.
While 2929 announced late last month that it plans to produce and then release six Steven Soderbergh films on the three platforms simultaneously, exhibitors already are saying they will refuse to play the director's new fare.
As the owner of two of those three distribution outlets -- it controls Landmark Theatres and the high-definition cable channel HDNet Movies -- 2929 has the ability to fulfill its agenda on a limited basis. But if the company aspires to distribute Soderbergh's product beyond Landmark's 209 screens, it faces a formidable roadblock in that many commercial theaters have refused to play product that is released in other formats at the same time as it is offered to theaters.
"Our policy will continue to be that we don't exhibit films that are already in the market on DVD or pay-per-view," said Mike Campbell, president and CEO of Regal Entertainment Group, the largest U.S. theater chain. "We believe the plan is ill-conceived and won't receive much support from the traditional exhibition or distribution community."
Said Tony Karasotes, chairman and CEO of Chicago-based Karasotes Showplace Theatres: "I just think it's a wrong-headed approach. The way to properly distribute film is to use the traditional sequential pattern set up by the studios. (2929's plan) is ass-backwards, and I don't want to encourage that kind of approach because I own motion picture theaters."
AMC Theatres, Loews Cineplex, Cinemark USA, Pacific Theatres, National Amusements and Wisconsin-based Marcus Theatres, among others, all have declined to play films with simultaneous release in the home market.
"We just have to show them results," Cuban said. "By pricing the DVDs at a premium for day-and-date delivery, I think we help create a better value for in-theater viewing. By leveraging day-and-date, we can spend more on P&A, which should also help."
Soderbergh's first announced project is "Bubble," a murder mystery set in a small Ohio town and cast with nonactors. If the six films Soderbergh creates for 2929 all resemble that model, they might well receive little distribution beyond Landmark's art houses. At least on paper, "Bubble" sounds like an experiment in the vein of the director's R-rated 2002 release "Full Frontal." Even though that film had the benefit of such stars as Julia Roberts, David Duchovny and Blair Underwood, it grossed just $2.5 million after bowing on 209 screens.
"It's really a break for all of us that these films are being released by 2929 and not a Warner Bros., which has to make Soderbergh happy because they have the next 'Ocean's Eleven,' " said one exhibitor at a leading chain who asked not to be named.
Theater owners, of course, have a vested interest in the current distribution model; in many cases they have signed 20-year leases, taken in cash infusions from enthusiastic investors and turned their popcorn-selling, seat-filling operations into profitable businesses.
But even though 2929's proposal threatens to upend a system that guarantees theaters to be the exclusive venue for new film titles, the vision of the future also has a certain logic of its own.
The company first tried its hand at the model, albeit in a more limited fashion, last month with the release of the Magnolia Film documentary "Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room." Produced by HDNet, 2929's low-budget film production arm, and distributed by Magnolia Pictures, the Alex Gibney-driected film opened in Landmark Theatres and had an exclusive day-and-date release on the HDNet channel on DirecTV. "Enron" has earned $2 million theatrically since its April 22 bow, a respectable gross for a limited-release documentary.Cuban said HDNet subscriber additions won't be available until next month, but the executive said the response to "Enron" has been great. "From subs, from people who told us they just subscribed, and the continued boxoffice success of the movie will only continue to benefit us," he said in an e-mail.
And while the film originally opened in three Landmark Theatres, it has since expanded to other circuits, including Los Angeles-based Laemmle Theatres.
"We felt that HDNet didn't have a significant market penetration," Laemmle Theatres president Greg Laemmle said. "It wasn't like going day-and-date with cable or DVD, and therefore we felt the boxoffice wouldn't be negatively impacted."
While Laemmle was willing to experiment with a film simultaneously bowing with a day-and-date premiere on HDNet, he won't go down the path of exhibiting titles that also are available on home video.
"It's a whole different ball of wax," Laemmle said. "A lot of people have DVD players, and a lot of people who see art films have DVD players. I have no interest in encouraging that sort of thing. That said, if someone shows it can work, I don't own that decision, and we'll choose to re-evaluate as the situation demands."
Other theater chains might be forced to re-evalute the situation as well. At the Milken Institute's Global Conference in Beverly Hills last month, studio heads admitted that the cost of piracy is forcing them to rethink the time between a theatrical release and its home video availability. Barry Meyer, chairman and CEO of Warner Bros., predicted that in the future "your premiere will be in Wal-Mart."
While many distributors are paying lip service to the exhibitors, agreeing with them on the dangers of collapsing traditional windows, some of them actually are looking forward to 2929's test of its strategy.
"It's going to be an interesting test," said one distributor who declined to be named. "On the issue of piracy, it would certainly help eliminate some of the concern about the amount of money we spend trying to protect against piracy. Marketing costs are another thing no one has been able to control. If we go video, theatrical and pay-per-view all at once with a well-known title, you could bring in $100 million in one night, similar to a (pay-per-view) fight."
Shari Redstone, president of Boston-based National Amusements Inc., disagreed. "It's a short-sided approach -- not just for exhibition but for the people making these decisions. It will diminish the total revenue that can be generated by any one product. People do want to see movies in different venues: You see it in a theater, you buy it, you rent it, you watch it on TV. When you start to merge these windows, the total revenue starts to go away. You may get a big hit on the opening weekend, but it doesn't go further.
"You also reduce the 'wow factor' of seeing a movie in a theater," she added. "If it's just seen in the home, you decrease the excitement and energy for entertainment and the movies."
Cuban doesn't seem all that concerned with exhibition's opposition. Added the billionaire, "If all else fails, we focus the movies we make towards the Landmark chain. If we are successful, we can lever that success and expand the chain."
One argument for 2929's approach is that it will reduce overall marketing costs, since all markets could be reached at once. However that scenario plays out, one marketing exec said that the challenge to bring consumers to the theater only will grow.
"The challenge will be to get these people to pony up the money to go to the theater when it's available everywhere else," said one studio marketing president who declined to be named. "We always hear from focus groups whether (they deem a movie) a rental or something they want to see in the theater. For most people it's a real financial decision, and there has to be a reason they need to see it in that environment. Releasing simultaneously on different platforms takes away a lot of that reason."
While Cuban and Wagner are pioneering the new model, other distributors want to see ongoing tests to determine whether the promised benefits -- curtailing piracy and lowering marketing costs -- outweigh any hits to theatrical revenue.
"It's a little premature, but somebody is going to do it," said one distributor who asked not to be named. "It's inevitable that the industry will move in this direction. It opens the opportunity for a bigger window while the bloom is still on the rose."
But for now, it's the exhibitors who are determined to keep things as they are.
Soderbergh, outsiders challenge studio model
Source: Hollywood Reporter
The movie business is "out of whack," director Steven Soderbergh says. "The studio model has to be rethought."
Never one to talk idly about such things, the national vp for the Directors Guild of America has banded with dot-com entrepreneur-turned-movie mogul Todd Wagner to try out some radical new ideas. This month, they are showing their first collaboration -- the digital movie "Bubble" -- to receptive film festival audiences and critics at the Venice, Toronto and New York events. Shot for $1.6 million, "Bubble" is a far cry from "Ocean's Twelve."
The two make unlikely allies. Brainy Hollywood insider's insider Soderbergh, with partner George Clooney, runs production company Section 8 on the Warner Bros. lot. Together, Soderbergh and Clooney have produced a wide range of movies, from the star-studded big-budget "Ocean's Eleven" series to such indie films as "Criminal," "The Jacket" and Clooney's sophomore directing effort, "Good Night, and Good Luck." That's how Soderbergh got started talking with rangy Hollywood outsider Wagner, whose 2929 Prods. helped to finance their indie films.
Ever since jumping into the entertainment business in 2002, Wagner and his outspoken partner, Mark Cuban (www.blogmaverick.com), have been openly challenging established modes of distribution in Hollywood. They're building a high-tech, new-model, vertically integrated studio. Their 2929 Prods. and digital production house HDNet Films produce low-cost movies; HDNet Film Sales raises financing for them overseas; Magnolia Pictures Distribution books them on the 200-screen art-house Landmark Theatre chain; and for the first time, with "Bubble" in January, the high-definition cable channel HDNet Movies will air the films at the same time that they go out through their nascent DVD division.
"I like Mark and Todd's energy and enthusiasm," Soderbergh says. "They're free-thinking."
Soderbergh, Wagner and Cuban cooked up a deal that has had industry tongues wagging since they announced it in April. HDNet Films agreed to finance and distribute six high-definition video movies directed by Soderbergh, to open day-and-date in theaters, on HDNet Movies, and on DVD. "This is my response to certain trends in the entertainment industry," says Soderbergh, who believes that the good old days of watching 35mm movies in theaters, where they play for weeks at a time "are gone. I wish it weren't so. Everything changes and evolves and we've got to get with it, embrace it and find a way to make it work. The movies are not the way they used to be when I grew up. It's 30 years later!"
Last summer, Soderbergh shot the murder mystery "Bubble" on location along the southern Ohio/West Virginia border, with locals who had never acted. Soderbergh used three of the same high-definition Sony 950 cameras George Lucas deployed on the "Star Wars" movies. "I just wanted to make a movie about love and jealousy," Soderbergh says, "but in an environment that you don't often get to see in movies. The whole appeal was the simplicity of it. The idea was just to not tart it up. These cameras make it easy to go in without any lights, on all real locations."
Made with no established actors and none of the bells and whistles that most of us are accustomed to seeing in movies, "Bubble" is downright radical. Debbie Doebereiner, its 40-ish star, is the blue-eyed, chubby general manager of a Kentucky Fried Chicken in Parkersburgh, W. Va. Casting director Carmen Cuba scoured the area, approaching people who fit writer Coleman Hough's descriptions, then interviewed them at length on tape.
"Debbie is arresting," says Soderbergh, who paid his actors slightly more than scale and gave them all a piece of the movie. "I love looking at her. There shouldn't be anything unusual about seeing any of these people."
The lean and mean production was made possible by Soderbergh's experience making "K-Street," HBO's weekly political TV series that he and his crews shot on the fly in Washington. "It was total full-on boot camp," Soderbergh says. "I came out of that knowing that if I can survive that, I can do anything. I had so much fun doing this one. I wish I could do the rest of them right away."
That will have to wait until 2007, because of Soderbergh's busy schedule -- first, he is directing "The Good German," Paul Attanasio's adaptation of Joseph Kanon's post-war Berlin novel, which stars Clooney, and that will be followed by "Che," starring Benicio del Toro as the Latin American revolutionary. Soderbergh plans to shoot his second and third films under the HDNet pact back-to-back, he says.
With his feet firmly planted in the two worlds of big-budget studio production and indie experimentation, Soderbergh is openly critical of what he calls the "skewed studio system." The overall economics of cost vs. revenue "need to be rethought," he says. "People need to be made true partners in the real risk/reward ratio. Everybody needs to be talking about fair compensation and participation. It can be done. The force of economics is irresistible."
In January, the new paradigm will be tested when Soderbergh's no-frills "Bubble" opens at the same time in theaters, on HDNet Movies and on DVD. " 'Bubble' is just the beginning," Wagner says. "It's a process of learning the best way to package and integrate and market movies so consumers can buy a DVD in a theater or Best Buy or go to the theater or do both."
"I want them to sell 'Bubble' DVDs in the theater lobby," Soderbergh says, smiling.
As independents, Soderbergh and Wagner are willing to talk openly about subjects that are being hotly debated behind closed doors elsewhere in Hollywood. When Disney chief Robert Iger recently brought up the concept of shortening the window between theatrical release and DVD, he was fiercely criticized by the National Association of Theater Owners. "Because of piracy, the studios are already thinking about DVD day-and-date," Soderbergh says. "It's already happened. Now is the time to own it. The situation with exhibitors is going to have to be addressed. They've got to be a partner in all this. But there's going to be a new normal. That's the sad fact. The whole business has to change now. And everybody has to participate in this conversation."
Their new distribution model won't cannibalize the theaters, Wagner says. "I don't buy the argument that this is a horrible thing for exhibitors," he says. As part of the HDNet experiment, exhibitors who played the documentary "Enron: The Smartest Guy in the Room" are receiving a 1% share of that film's DVD sales.
"We're saying, 'Have a piece of what you generated,' " says Wagner, who admits he's been talking with NATO "so that we make it a good thing for everybody. This is an opportunity to rethink the rules of exhibition, to learn the most effective way to reduce costs and increase revenue and make customers happy."
While he plans to buy more theaters, Wagner hopes that the big chains that so far have resisted playing his movies will change their minds. Soderbergh has been a big help, Wagner says: "Steven's A-list credibility has made the community take us more seriously, has accelerated the process and brought it into the open. Steven will help. Writing checks for 'Enron' will help."
The day-and-date concept is not written in stone, Wagner says. Going forward, he's not just talking to studios and exhibitors. As he and home video executive Randy Wells put together their new DVD division -- "Bubble" will be their first release -- Wagner also is talking to Netflix, Amazon and Yahoo! "These are not fly-by-night companies," he says. "They have hundreds and millions of customers. The studios don't have one-on-one relationships with their customers, or have their credit card numbers. There are enough other paths available and accessible to go in other directions to get the same result. If we hit the wall, we will go under it, or over it."
up next: a spalding gray documentary.
and some other stuff.
TORONTO -- HDNet Films, the unit of 2929 Entertainment that produces low-budget films in high definition, announced an ambitious new slate Monday at the Toronto International Film Festival. 2929 co-heads Mark Cuban and Todd Wagner have been using this year's fest to promote their vision of a vertically integrated, 21st century digital mini-studio.
The entrepreneurs, who are challenging established film industry practices, also are debuting three productions at the fest: Steven Soderbergh's no-frills murder mystery, "Bubble"; Alex Steyermark's dark comedy "One Last Thing," about a dying kid's surprising last wish; and Joseph Castelo's "The War Within," a chilling tale of a terrorist in New York.
Run by producers Jason Kliot and Joana Vicente, HDNet Films has contracted for a new film from Soderbergh, who is prepping a digital documentary about the late Spalding Gray's last never-performed monologue, to be produced by Washington Square Films. (The film is in addition to the six high-def features -- "Bubble" is the first -- the director already has committed to deliver to HDNet Films.)
In addition, Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter, who has produced "The Kid Stays in the Picture" and "9/11," will return to the documentary world to produce "Hunter," a portrait of the late gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson to be directed by Alex Gibney, who directed HDNet Films' "Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room." Gibney had exclusive access to film Thompson's recent pyrotechnic memorial service.
Carter also will produce "Surfwise," director Doug Pray's portrait of the mythic Malibu surfer Dorian "Doc" Paskowitz.
"Before we started HDNet Films we weren't making docs at all," Kliot said. "It took us 12 minutes to greenlight 'Enron.' Now a lot of the best projects are docs. We're buying some people cameras and seeing what they come back with. People are coming to us before places like HBO."
HDNet Films also will collaborate with This is That to reunite director Hal Hartley, Parker Posey and Ted Hope for the spy thriller "Fay Grim." Mike Ryan is also producing the project, set to start in Europe in January.
Kliot and Vicente are riding high from the success of "Enron," which grossed more than $4 million -- mostly on 2929's Landmark Theatre screens because when "Enron" premiered simultaneously in theaters and on 2929's cable channel, HDNet Movies, bigger theater chains refused to book the film. "It could have done even better," Vicente said. "But Mark and Todd are willing to take a hit just to see what will happen."
The "Enron" DVD will be released by Randy Wells' nascent home video unit this January.
Soderbergh's $2 million "Bubble," which he shot with local actors, will debut simultaneously in theaters, on HDNet Movies and via Wells' home video unit.
2929 plans to give exhibitors who play these films 1% of their DVD sales. "This is just the beginning," Wagner said of the groundbreaking experiment, saying the films will be promoted in video stores as "now showing in theaters." "It's a process of learning the best way to package and integrate and market movies so consumers can buy a DVD in the theater or go to the theater or do both. Steven Soderbergh's A-list credibility has made the community take us more seriously, has accelerated the process and brought it into the open. The studios are all watching us. We have the luxury of creating a studio system from the ground up, using the newest technology."
Kliot and Vicente's HDNet Films, with its staff of six, already has produced five films. Currently in postproduction are Matthew Tauber's Chicago drama "All Fall Down," starring Anthony LaPaglia and Isabella Rossellini; Katherine Dieckman's '70s Hamptons drama "Diggers"; Gibney's jazz docu "Hancock"; and J.T. Petty's horror documentary "S & Man."cq "They have the money to back us at whatever level we need," Kliot said of Cuban and Wagner. "There's no pressure to fill the pipeline, to appeal to the lowest common denominator. That's what separates us from Hollywood."
Five additional projects are in the works. Carlos Brooks' relationship drama "Quid Pro Quo" stars Vera Farmiga as a woman who gets involved with wheelchair-bound journalist Nick Stahl and is being produced by Sanford/Pillsbury Prods. HDNet Films' most ambitious production to date, "Quo" starts four weeks of production next month.
"It's refreshing to be able to make a movie based on the quality of the project," Vicente said, who toiled in the freelance indie sector for years assembling funds for such films as "Welcome to the Dollhouse," "Chuck and Buck" and "Three Seasons." Now she and Kliot can rely on 2929's distributor, Magnolia Pictures, to release their movies on the 200-screen Landmark chain. "Now we have a structure that allows us to do that," said Kliot, who hopes that with time, more theaters will be willing to book their movies.
Kliot and Vicente also have joined a consortium of British companies -- including Optimum, Warp and Film Four -- chipping in several million each to fund a series of British-directed movies. "We'll go to the Film Council to request development funds and we'll all put some real money into the consortium. We'll all bring projects to the table, and opt in or out as we wish," Vicente said. "They're interested in us because American distribution is hard to come by. We want to make films for an international audience."
check it: http://www.backstage.com/backstage/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001136971
2929 creates Truly Indie for filmmakers
2929 Entertainment is demonstrating its belief in the indie filmmaker by creating a distribution company called Truly Indie that will allow filmmakers to control how and when their film gets distributed.
Using 2929's Landmark Theater chain and marketing and distribution resources from Landmark and 2929's Magnolia Pictures, Truly Indie will provide filmmakers with a self-funded distribution operation whereby filmmakers pay a flat fee for one week of theatrical distribution across Landmark's indie theater network while retaining complete control of all rights to the product.
"We believe that the traditional distribution model is inefficient and closed off to a number of quality films. We are trying to create an alternative," said Bill Banowsky, Magnolia Pictures CEO and Landmark president. "If a film is made and has the potential to find an audience, rather than depend upon an existing company to buy into the belief that the film has marketing angles and commercial potential, we want to give the keys to the filmmaker to distribute it themselves."
2929 plans to use Landmark's digital projection system, set to launch next year, to inexpensively distribute digital movies that would otherwise not get picked up for theatrical exhibition.
"By utilizing digital projection and the best independent theaters in the country, we've created a business model that allows filmmakers to control the distribution of their films," 2929 co-founder Mark Cuban said.
MADE-TO-ORDER MARKETING
Truly Indie has created an internal process to assess films from interested filmmakers on the basis of artistic and commercial viability. The filmmaker will then be able to choose which markets he or she wishes to release the film in, and Truly Indie will dedicate customized marketing resources to the advertising and publicity of that film.
According to Banowsky, the flat fee will differ market to market and is negotiated on a film-by-film basis. In addition to the 57 Landmark Theatres, 2929 hopes to sign affiliate theaters to its digital network. The company is not commenting on the technology details of the project at this time.
According to Banowsky, by the time Truly Indie launches in the first quarter, Landmark will have digital capabilities in every one of its markets.
The Philippines-set "Cavite," which has screened at the South by Southwest Festival and the Los Angeles Film Festival, among others, already has been chosen for a Truly Indie launch. Co-directed by Ian Gamazon and Neill dela Llana, "Cavite" is being repped by indie vet John Pierson in conjunction with his Advanced Producing class at the University of Texas at Austin.
"It would make no sense to take a do-it-yourself digital film and spend three or four times the budget to blow it up to 35mm," Pierson said. "With Truly Indie, we can release the film in digital theaters. Then we can intelligently control every single expense in the big, key media markets while also targeting both Filipino and college audience strongholds."
Other films signed on to Truly Indie are actor Donal Logue's directorial debut, "Tennis Anyone...?" and "Fall to Grace," a debut effort from Mari Marchbanks.
Maverick director toys with screen conventions
Filmmaking is one big experiment for Steven Soderbergh, writes Garry Maddox.
STEVEN SODERBERGH is used to working with just about the biggest names in Hollywood. For Ocean's Thirteen, which he is finishing in Los Angeles, the Oscar-winning director of Erin Brockovich, Traffic and two other Ocean's movies roped in Al Pacino as a bad guy alongside George Clooney and Brad Pitt.
"I think we're going out strong," he says of the close of the Ocean's chapter.
Soderbergh also thinks big. In midyear, he starts shooting back-to-back movies about Che Guevara with Benicio Del Toro as the famed revolutionary in Cuba and then Bolivia.
But it was working with a small-town cast who had never acted before, including a woman who had worked in a KFC outlet for 24 years, a trainee computer technician and a cop, that gave him one of his best filmmaking experiences. That movie was Bubble, a low-key drama that stirred up controversy when it was released in the US last year.
The issue was not what was on screen. Bubble centres on three struggling workers in a small-town doll factory where nothing much happens ... until there's a murder. But the crime is not the focus of the movie.
"It's about the circumstances in which these people live and the environment that they're around and the fact that pressure builds up and has to be expressed somehow," Soderbergh says.
What upset many theatre owners was his bold strategy to give Bubble, the first of six planned high-definition digital movies, a simultaneous cinema, DVD and pay TV release.
The head of the US National Association of Theatre Owners, John Fithian, called it "a radical misguided experiment" after many of his members refused to screen the movie, which led to poor ticket sales.
But Soderbergh disagrees.
"It's hard to judge how it went because we were never able to expand beyond the Landmark Theatre chain, which is only 50 screens," he says. "We weren't able to open as wide as we wanted because other theatre chains weren't interested in playing the film. The good news is we sold a lot of DVDs."
Pressed on the financial success of the venture, Soderbergh admits the exercise only just covered the movie's $US1.6 million ($2 million) budget. "We broke even, which, considering what an odd movie it is, is great. And we've got five more to go. To my mind, it's all just one giant film being made in six segments."
Next up is a movie about "super high-end call girls" in New York, who make $US2000 an hour. Soderbergh will again use non-actors and plans another simultaneous ("day and date") release.
"This is a genie that's out of the bottle," he says. "I've been making this argument for years when people say you can't have movies that go out day-and-date in all formats. I say to them that it's already happening in Canal Street in New York.
"Lord of the Rings went out day-and-date in the US all over the street. It's happening now; it's just underground."
Soderbergh says movie release strategies will inevitably change when digital projection reaches cinemas in a couple of years.
"The opportunities for theatre owners to expand what they're able to do and show will counteract a lot of the things that I think they're afraid of right now," he says. "Once everybody goes digital, you're going to have theatres that are able to program very personal calendars. You can decide there are a whole generation of filmgoers who haven't seen The Godfather on the big screen.
"You call Paramount, they put it on a server and that Friday and Saturday, it's 'one weekend only - The Godfather: Part I and Part II' in your theatre. It costs nothing.
"You're going to have live shows, live concerts. For people who have an entrepreneurial spirit, it's going to be an amazing time."
Soderbergh wanted to use non-actors for Bubble because of their lack of self-consciousness.
The movie's casting director walked the streets of two Midwestern towns looking for people who matched the descriptions in the script outline, finding Debbie Doebereiner on a drive-through visit to a KFC store. Like everyone else in the cast, she had never acted before.
"I would interview each of the cast members and incorporate their personal stories into the movie," says Soderbergh. "So when the young guy [played by student computer technician Dustin James Ashley] is talking about the fact that he had to leave school because he had this anxiety issue - these panic attacks - that really happened to him."
Soderbergh maintains that Bubble is as political as many of his other movies.
"I jokingly refer to the Ocean's films as a prayer for peace but those are fantasy films. I put those aside. I feel a movie like Bubble reminds you that more people lead that kind of life than a better kind of life."
You know, I was against Soderbergh's experiment at first. But then I had this conversation with a guy at work, who talked about how the way the theater experience is going, there is a very large, growing population of people who want to stay and watch dvds. That's not news, but then he explained the idea of a Direct TV kind of deal where day and date would apply to, not just a dvd copy, but feeding it into homes. To make a long story short, I think he really had the right idea. I don't think theaters will go out, but they will become either a really shitty experience and start losing real money, or they will charge more, but have better services. People pay $30 to see a play, why not a film? That was his point, and I think it's a good one.
Plus, in the end, who would you rather agree with, Soderbergh or Shyamalan?
Quote from: Gamblour. on March 22, 2007, 04:02:12 PM
...or they will charge more, but have better services.
That will more than likely be the case.
Basing it on history of course.
or they will charge more. and have the same services. which they are doing endlessly. FUCK YOU ticket prices.
Quote from: modage on March 22, 2007, 05:46:15 PM
or they will charge more. and have the same services. which they are doing endlessly. FUCK YOU ticket prices.
But what I mean is when it comes down to exorbitant prices and a shitty experience, or watching it in your home (especially as tvs get bigger, better quality, etc), they will be forced to offer better service or go out of business. The guy I talked to imagined fine wine, food, seating, dress code, excellent service, for the price of going out and paying so much.
hollow man: the black tie event
Quote from: Gamblour. on March 22, 2007, 08:09:32 PM
Quote from: modage on March 22, 2007, 05:46:15 PM
or they will charge more. and have the same services. which they are doing endlessly. FUCK YOU ticket prices.
The guy I talked to imagined fine wine, food, seating, dress code, excellent service, for the price of going out and paying so much.
Uhhh...
Well mod has a point anyway, theater experience will always be theater experience. Going out with friends to a theater is something to do, and enough to keep theaters in business for a very long time. I was originally implying slight improvements to seating, screens/image quality, sound and so forth... Theater equipment is improving just as home theater equipment is.
That hollow man comment is spot on, so many people use the theater as an excuse to 'hangout', like teenagers for the most part. And for the majority of their movie selections, think about all the cheesy movies dying out because of theater dress codes... Hollywood would never allow for such things.
Quote from: overmeunderyou on March 22, 2007, 11:05:32 PMTheater equipment is improving just as home theater equipment is.
Theater etiquette however...
Quote from: overmeunderyou on March 22, 2007, 11:05:32 PM
Quote from: Gamblour. on March 22, 2007, 08:09:32 PM
Quote from: modage on March 22, 2007, 05:46:15 PM
or they will charge more. and have the same services. which they are doing endlessly. FUCK YOU ticket prices.
The guy I talked to imagined fine wine, food, seating, dress code, excellent service, for the price of going out and paying so much.
Uhhh...
Well mod has a point anyway, theater experience will always be theater experience. Going out with friends to a theater is something to do, and enough to keep theaters in business for a very long time. I was originally implying slight improvements to seating, screens/image quality, sound and so forth... Theater equipment is improving just as home theater equipment is.
That hollow man comment is spot on, so many people use the theater as an excuse to 'hangout', like teenagers for the most part. And for the majority of their movie selections, think about all the cheesy movies dying out because of theater dress codes... Hollywood would never allow for such things.
Well the crowd I'm talking about isn't teenagers. Teenagers will always have stupid parents with stupid money, but there is going to be, if there isn't already, a market of people older than 25 who hate teenagers and want to have a better theater-going experience, and would be willing to pay for it. The larger prices get, the more people like mod would rather sit at home with the high quality technology they can easily afford. This isn't just around the corner, this will probably be something 15 or 20 years from now.
Mac hits the point I'm getting at, that theater equipment might get better, but audience etiquette doesn't. If people were offered a theater that promised a lack of hooligans, I'm positive people would pay a bit extra for it. These theaters are already there. What is going to happen is where the ticket prices get too high and people would rather say fuck it I'll just watch it at home or fuck it I'm going to go some place nice instead.
i would pay more for a hooligan free theatre. unfortunately they cant really promise that. loews/amc did try that crazy thing a few summers ago where they had 2 rows of "premium seats" that were basically reserved and ushers made sure no one else sat there and the chairs were nicer and there was more room and they would bring you food like a waiter, and the price was a few bucks more. but it failed, for whatever reason, so now they are just weird seats that anyone can sit in.
arthouse theaters are hooligan free for the most part. you can't really make movies with hooligan content and then expect the people to come in with dogearred kunderas books. that's life though, if you wanna share an experience with a group of strangers, you'll have to deal with the good and the bad. I'll figure that 1 in 5 movies that I see will feature some kinda annoying audience member, that's the chance that I'll have to take. sometimes they hush up, sometimes they don't, oh well, a horror movie is still way funner to see with a bunch of screaming teenagers.
soderbergh is not coming from an honest place though; he's just looking for ways to make more dough. his pretty theory about what people really want is just another way to get the studios even more control pass the assembly line.