I have read this backward and forward and am having a tough time with some of the conclusions they come to, and some of the assumptions they make that flies in the face of other evidence that's out there.
(Granted some of that evidence is anecdotal)
The report is designed from the ground up to determine economic impact on SoCal, but unfortunately doesn't paint a clear picture because it uses words like "unpredictability" in making some of its statements, and castigates RedBox while acknowledging that Netflix performs a similar function.
So is it Redbox with it's cheaper rentals that's hurting the entertainment industry or is it a fundamental shift in consumer spending and habits and a lack of responsiveness on the part of the studios in forging new markets?
As an indie producer, Wagner said she's very focused on finding the best way to deal with the exponential growth in distribution options for pics.
"The real issue now is distribution channels," she said. "We need to know what size screen we're working for."
The movie biz has always faced dynamic changes - from the dawn of talkies to the 1948 breakup of the majors and their exhibition holdings - but the transformation underway in the present day are staggering, Wagner said.
"We are in a seismic revolution in the movie business," she said. But the good news is, as domestic B.O. approaches the $10 billion mark, the aud's appetite for movies shows no sign of slowing down.
Since the iPhone 3GS came out with video recording features, a small subset of people have been pushing the limits of what is the accepted norm and using the device in actual production work. When the 3GS came out, Alex Lindsay put out a humorous video in which he attached the phone to a full Redrock Micro shouldermount stabilization rig. We all had a good laugh, and then suddenly Zacuto and others started making professional grade accessories for the device. There are handheld rigs with wide lenses, and even an iPhone stabilizer in the works. For the most part, iPhone video seems to be limited to quick and dirty video blogging, and the occasional music video. But by far the most professional use to date has to be the following spot courtesy of the geniuses at The Mill…
They built a custom iPhone rig with 3D trackers, and used three witness cameras to capture the handheld movement of the camera as it shot the performance (which was to be dressed up with quite a bit of CGI work). The resulting advert is a meld of high-tech compositing and low-tech iPhone video, complete with rolling shutter goodness and shaky handheld work. Watch below.
And here's a video breakdown of how they married computer graphics with video you could shoot yourself:
Universal Pictures has built a wonderful legacy website for its pantheon of fright films as a promotion for its new WOLFMAN feature starring Benicio Del Toro. You can see film clips, listen to title themes, look at photo galleries and posters for a variety of the Universal Monsters (R).
Project is being written by Joshua Miller and M.A. Fortin. DreamWorks TV toppers Justin Falvey and Darryl Frank would exec produce.
"Howl" is described as an epic family saga about warring families of werewolves in a small Alaskan town.
"Alaska is a place where people disappear and now you know why," Miller said.
The script reflects the changes that are going on in the country, and "metamorphosis and constant change is the basis of werewolf mythology," he added. "Howl" is about "the psychology of living with change."
"The world is full of festival movies that never get out or go anywhere. If people are trying to break into Hollywood movies and bigger movies, not make something personal that they're going to put up on the Internet, they have to look at the commerciality of their subject matter and they have to fit what they're trying to say into a framework that is in some form entertaining for people. It has to be meaningful or moving or exciting or funny or dramatic. It can't just be what you'd tell your shrink, you know what I mean?
If they're trying to break into Hollywood, they have to be aware of something commercial in the project. Take a look at some of the things that have sold out of festivals. For example, Hustle & Flow. It's about a pimp. It's about sex. And money. That’s an easy sell."
Read the rest. It's an interesting read about someone who made it happen.
DMc has a great post up today regarding the change that is raining down over Canadian television (or perhaps a better phrase would be lack of change in certain corners of their business), and how creative people are leading the way - "story" in hand - to create better looking, more dramatic shows such as FLASHPOINT, THE BORDER and BEING ERICA (which I haven't seen yet). This is in the face of an industry that is seemingly ill-prepared to embrace the future.
But that's kind of how it always is isn't it? The "creatives", the "weirdos" leading the charge "...half a league, half a league half a league onward... into the valley of death..."
(Okay, maybe that wasn't a good analogy)
But the creative types see not how things are, but what they could be... what they hope and work at it to be. Because that's part of the sustaining energy and excitement of it all.
Never was that more evident than at last night's premiere party for COMPULSIONS a new web serial created and written by my friend Bernie Su. This was a compelling piece of work that looked good. Tee Vee good... but different. Made for a fraction of the cost. (I write that because the economics of it always factor into these things).
Last night in Los Angeles, in a packed screening premiere at Cinespace a room full of some 200 or so lucky ones had a chance to collectively writhe and squirm through the first 4 episodes. “I know the expectations are high,” wrote creator Bernie Su in a post before the premiere, “especially for independent web content but I honestly don’t know if the general audience will love it or not. Our show is dark, intense, and gritty. Though I can say this… our show is definitely something else.”
The series centers on three hidden desires, or compulsions, afflicting three respective main characters. There’s Mark (Craig Frank), the compulsive sadist chillingly unaffected by his routine torture games. Mark’s mysterious handler Justine (Janna Bossier) who’s compulsive “trophy hunting” has something to do with tracking down a missing “package.” And Mark’s office co-worker Cassandra (Annemarie Pazmino) who delivers a tech-infused modern day twist on compulsive voyeurism.
Here's the trailer:
Bernie and co. are doing something new-ish for the web, creating something they wanted to seemade that didn't fit into the normal "box." If the last night's audience response was any indication, they struck a nerve.
When was the last time you read something like that about a series on television that wasn't written by the PR department of the network?
Striking. A. Nerve. Plowing. New. Ground. Making. Something. Yours.
And Bernie isn't the only one. Good friend of the blog James Moran (Twitter: @jamesmoran), writer of the recent TORCHWOOD series CHILDREN OF EARTH, struck out on his own (okay, with others in his merry band) and created GIRL NUMBER 9.
So, where am I going with this?
Well, to quote Denis:
See, I'm really not doing it justice. And that's the point. Reaching back to an earlier form, the rules are different, the delivery different, but what was there, gloriously alive and vibrant and entertaining -- was the story. The story will survive, no matter what form or challenge we throw at it. For those of us whose business is story, that's got to come as a comfort, no matter how backward and antiquated and maddeningly out of touch the captains of the industry seem, it's we, who have rolled with the punches and changed what we do already over the last few years...it's we who will survive.
Yes, we will survive. Thrive even. If we own it, grow it and deliver it ourselves. So, in light of everything Denis talks about in his post I have this to say:
"According to Uruguayan newspaper El Pais, with help from the folks at Film Junk, Alvarez has signed a deal with Ghost House that will allow him to make a feature-length version of Panic Attack! on a budget of $30-40 million. According to the report, Raimi spoke with Alvarez over the phone and the two seemed to hit if off. The idea is to recreate the relationship between Jackson and Blomkamp, allowing Raimi to handle the business side of things and Alvarez to handle the creative without getting caught up in studio politics, etc."
I've added several titles to the Burroughs books available on the Issuu Pulp Bookshelf at the bottom of the page. As I said earlier I will be adding more books as they become available to create a nice little online pulp library. Enjoy!
In light of the recent move by the Asylum to bring Edgar Rice Burroughs' A PRINCESS OF MARS to the screen, I thought it might be nice to brainstorm other possible "public domain" movies (or web serials) we might like to see in the near future:
For those of you not up on the idea of the public domain it boils down to the idea that anyone can take these characters and either reprint their old editions or create new work based on the character (which is then copyrightable, but you can't sue others who use the same character you did in their book). It's a LITTLE more complicated, but that's the basics.
It's an interesting situation using the public domain characters and material because you have instant recognition with your audience. You say you're making a movie with Captain Nemo and they get it because they've seen / read / heard his name for years. The problem (if it is a problem) is that anyone can make a Captain Nemo movie.
So yes, The Asylum and Pixar can both make their versions of A Princess of Mars (read it here). You can make your version... or you can make your version of 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA (I hear Disney abandoned theirs).
The point is to use this material to your advantage and make something!
Which public domain character would star in your movie or serial?
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Bill Cunningham
Los Angeles, CA, United States
Mad Pulp Media is the production company headed by Mad Pulp Bastard Bill Cunningham. MPM creates and distributes all sorts of pulp entertainment media including books, comics, videos, movies and web series.
Bill screened my film twice... Both times he gave absolutely indispensible advice on cuts, music and sound design. If you're making a movie, webserial, short, (or let's face it, ANYTHING you expect people to actually sit through and pay for the privilege to see) you'd be a fool not to consult with him.
-- Lis Fies (Kid Sis in Hollywood)
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