NEWSWEEK: A Better Alternative

"If you want to see great acting in American movies today," writes David Ansen in Newsweek, you're not likely to find it in big studio movies." Continuing he surveys some of the better performances in this fall's films, saying:

I wouldn't be surprised if 80 percent of the nominations this year came from the indie world. That's been the trend lately, and it's going to get more pronounced if Hollywood's lust for the youth/action/blockbuster market continues unabated. In the meantime, we can celebrate a fall movie season teeming with extraordinary performances—and extraordinary movies: 2005 is proving to be a vintage year for American indie films.

 
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NY Times: Study Finds Young Men Attending Fewer Films

In the New York Times, Sharon Waxman reports on a new study that indicates a drop in moviegoing among younger men:

In a survey of 2,000 moviegoers by OTX, a Los Angeles-based online research company, men under 25 said they had seen 24 percent fewer movies this summer than they did in the summer of 2003, when the same study was conducted. The drop in moviegoing was much smaller for women and for other age groups.

Instead, young men ages 13 to 25 reported that they were busy surfing the Web, instant-messaging with friends and playing video games on consoles like PlayStation 2 and Xbox.

The study also found that people who were attending movies less often were doing so because of the cost.

 
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Weinsteins Bank $230 Million for New Company

Bob Weinstein and Harvey Weinstein have raised $230.5 million from 18 investors for their new venture, The Weinstein Company, and are on track to hit the $420 million mark according to a Bloomberg report Thursday. Citing securities laws, TWC spokesperson Sarah Levinson declined to comment on the status of financing arrangements, other than to say that the Weinstein Company "is confident that it has the operational capacity and financial resources to successfully meet its goals and carry out its business plan." The Weinsteins said in a statement:

"We are excited about our upcoming slate and feel renewed and energized to be officially launching The Weinstein Company on Monday and releasing the company’s first film, Derailed, on November 11. We feel humbled by the great successes we had in the past and look forward to all the exciting opportunities we have planned for the future."

 
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INDUSTRY MOVES: Roth and Barry Littman Named EVPs & Co-Heads of Business/Legal Affairs

Former Miramax executives Eric Roth and Barry Littman have joined The Weinstein Company as executive vice presidents and co-heads of business and legal affairs. Both will be based in the company's LA office, reporting directly to Bob Weinstein and Harvey Weinstein. 
[permalink]   [ filed under Industry Moves ]

Big Blogging Deal

In a pact pegged as high as $25 million, AOL has acquired Weblogs Inc. (WIN), Jason Calacanis' blogging network that includes such sites as the film blog Cinematical.com (2929's Mark Cuban was an early WIN backer). Commenting on the deal, Nick Denton (who's Gawker Media blog network includes such sites as Gawker, Defamer and others), quipped in a post on his blog today:

The whole point about blogs is that they're not part of big media. Consolidation defeats the purpose. It's way too early. Like a decade too early.

 
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INDUSTRY MOVES: Foursome Found Safe House

Will Battersby, Tory Tunnell, Jacob Kornbluth and Stelio Kitrilakis have formed Safe House Pictures, a New York-based company with a multi-year overhead and development fund. The new venture will produce features, documentaries and television. Battersby joins from HDNet Films and was previously at ICM, Tunnell is from Deutsch Open City Films and previously Miramax, Kornbluth is a filmmaker ("The Best Thief in the World", "Haiku Tunnel"), and Kitrilakis is joining from Radium. He was also previously involved with launching the firms Complete Pandemonium, and Lushadelic). [Eugene Hernandez] 
[permalink]   [ filed under Industry Moves ]

"Habana Blues" to Open 9th LA Latino Fest

The 9th Annual Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF) will open October 21st with the Spanish film "Habana Blues" by Benito Zambrano at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood. The film tells the story of two young Cuban musicians, Ruy and Tito, who share the same dream: to become famous music artists. Their lives and relationships will change when they receive an offer to leave Cuba for a shot at a recording contract. In addition, a total of 52 short films from Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, France, Mexico, Peru, Spain and the United States will be presented over two full days at CINE SPACE on Hollywood Boulevard. For more information, visit their website. [Brian Brooks] 
[permalink]   [ filed under Festivals ]

American Cinematheque and Outfest Team Up for "Outfest Wednesdays"

The American Cinematheque at the Egyptian Theatre and Outfest will once again cooperate to present gay and lesbian programming on Wednesdays at the Egyptian in Hollywood. Outfest Wednesdays is the only gay and lesbian-themed weekly screening series in the country. Founded in 1999, the programming features favorites from past festivals, Hollywood revivals, filmmaker retrospectives and sneak preview and word of mouth screenings of upcoming releases. Outfest Wednesdays programming will be announced quarterly. For more information about Outfest visit their website. [Brian Brooks] 
[permalink]   [ filed under Events ]

LA Times: Filmmakers Are Swept Away by Romania

Along the route to MediaPro Studios, packs of feral dogs wander unpaved streets, children as young as 7 beg for handouts, and some government buildings still bear the bullet scars of the 1989 revolution. But for a growing cadre of Hollywood producers, the drive is becoming as familiar as a trip to the Universal Studios back lot. Romania is proving such a great value that Canada, once the top money-saving film destination, is feeling the squeeze. John Horn reports. 
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The Guardian: Make laugh not war

Roberto Benigni is once again testing the boundaries of good taste. Having found the funny side of the Holocaust in Life is Beautiful, his latest film sees him on a comic love quest through war-torn contemporary Iraq. John Hooper reports from Rome.  
[permalink]   [ filed under Production ]

Who Is Philippe Martinez?

With a reported $200 million investment, Philippe Martinez has moved to Los Angeles to, in his not so modest words, build "the number one independent U.S. distributor." Continuing, he told the New York Times, "To get ahead of Lions Gate we have to do $350 to $400 million of business a year. We have less money than they do, and fewer employees. But I have my passion. That's what's going to make the difference." The exec, fresh from a European jail (as detailed in the Times piece), had his company, Bauer Martinez Distribution, pay the big bucks and beat out competitors for David Ayer's "Harsh Times" at this year's Toronto International Film Festival. 
[permalink]   [ filed under Biz, Toronto ]

ThinkFilm & HBO Go For "Favela Rising"

A deal for Jeff Zimbalist and Matt Mochary's "Favela Rising" has been announced, with THINKFilm and HBO/Cinemax Documentary Films nabbing distribution rights to the movie. THINKFilm's head of theatrical distribution Mark Urman clarified that his company has theatrical rights, HBO has the first pay TV window and the film's producers have retained video rights. The doc debuted earlier this year at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York and follows former favela drug dealer Anderson Sa as he aims to establish a group that uses music and dancing to fight drugs and violence in the dangerous slums of Rio. A tragic accident threatens the movement and heightens the drama captured in the film, which will be released next year. The filmmakers were repped by Stephen Raphael and Ben Feldman who negotiated with acquisitions VP Daniel Katz and U.S. theatrical division chief Mark Urman from THINK, and supervising producer John Hoffman and documentary programming president Sheila Nevins, both from HBO Documentary Films. Lumina Films has acquired international rights, according to the announcement. The movie was produced by Sidetrack Films, Mochary and Zimbalist, in association with Voy Pictures. [Eugene Hernandez] 
[permalink]   [ filed under Acquisitions, Documentary, New York ]

Movie Trailer Redux

By now, there's a good chance you've already seen that hilarious mock trailer for "The Shining", using footage from the film to re-imagine it as a light family comedy. But what about the new take on "West Side Story" and an alternatve version of "Titanic", as horror/thillers... The P.S. 260 blog indicates that the trailers were created only for a private audience and not "made for promotional or monetary reasons." [Eugene Hernandez] 
[permalink]   [ filed under Movies ]

Mormon Boy Band Movie Mixed Up With "Porn Star" Title

Woops! DVDs of Halestorm Entertainment's "Sons of Provo," a comedy about a Morman boy band, were mistakenly packaged with copies of the Italian melodrama, "Adored: Diary of a Porn Star" from Wolfe Video. Halestorm and Wolfe share the same replicator, which was responsible for the error. A Utah shop pulled copies of the Latter Day Saints comedy from its shelves, according to the locall Deseret News, which reported on the mixup. In a statement today, Wolfe's Kathy Wolfe reiterated that the mixup was beyond her control and quipped, "But, if any of the adults in the audience enjoyed what they saw, we encourage them to check out the entire DVD of 'Adored' and some of the many fine films available from Wolfe." [Eugene Hernandez] 
[permalink]   [ filed under Biz ]

INDUSTRY MOVES: Weinstein Company Taps Biber

Liz Biber has been hired by The Weinstein Company to run the Los Angeles publicity office and Dimension Film campaigns for the new company. She will serve as SVP of publicity for Dimension Films, reporting to Liza Burnett, EVP of publicity for The Weinstein Company.  
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INDUSTRY MOVES: Rogue Hires Getto & Heinemen

Focus Features' Rogue Pictures division has announced the hiring of Paul Getto and Alex Heineman as creative executives at the company. They will report directly to president of production Andrew Rona (who joined the unit from Dimension Films). Getto spent two years working for Focus, while Heinemen worked for Dimension Films.  
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SXSW Unveils A Few '06 Panel Plans

"A Conversation with Peter Bart" is among the panel discussions set for the 2006 SXSW Film Conference & Festival, according to organizers. The conference, set for March 10-18, will also include the session, "A Landmark Business," looking at Mark Cuban and Todd Wagner's many properties, including Landmark Theaters, Magnolia Pictures, and HDNet. Other panel titles include, "Doc Locally, Think Globally," "Legal Advice for Filmmakers," and "The Subject of Documentaries."  
[permalink]   [ filed under Festivals, SXSW ]

Additional Cast Unveiled as "Quid Pro Quo" Goes Into Production

On the day that the new HDNet Films feature "Quid Pro Quo" went into production, the company announced that Aimee Mullins, James Frain and Kate Burton have joined the cast that already includes Nick Stahl and Vera Farmiga. HDNet Films heads Jason Kliot and Joana Vicente are making the movie with producers Midge Sanford and Sarah Pillsbury. Kliot, Vicente, Todd Wagner and Mark Cuban are executive producers. The writer-director is Carlos Brooks and the film was described today as:

A unique New York love story in which a wheelchair-using public radio journalist named Isaac (Stahl), broken-hearted after being rejected by the similarly disabled love of his life (Mullins), is introduced to a culture of "wannabes" - otherwise able-bodied people who crave to become paralyzed and live life on wheels. Through this culture he meets Fiona (Farmiga), a gorgeous, driven and perhaps self-destructive woman who secretly shares many of Isaac's motives.

 
[permalink]   [ filed under Production ]

LA Times: This Just in: Flops Caused Box Office Slump

In the Los Angeles Times this weekend, a piece about the box office performance examines numbers that are apparently down about 6% from last year, with attendance having dropped by 8.7%. Thats better than the comparison between '04 and '05 made this Spring and Summer. Apparently, according to the article, its the movies that were bad and Hollywood execs are admitting that:

"It's really easy for all of us to blame the condition of the theaters, gas prices, alternative media, the population changes and everything else I've heard myself say," said Sony Pictures Vice Chairman Amy Pascal, whose summer releases "Bewitched" and "Stealth" flopped. "I think it has to do with the movies themselves."

 
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"Capote" close to $30k Per Screen

Sony Pictures Classics reported estimates of nearly $30,000 per screen for the opening of Bennett Miller's "Capote" this weekend. The film debuted on 12 screens, earning an estimated $348,978, according to a company rep. Thats an average of $29,082 for its opening weekend.  
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The NY Film Fest in the NY Times

For years, industry insiders and film aficionados alike turned to the New York Times daily for full length reviews of each of the two dozen features screening at the annual New York Film Festival, that is until this year. In 2005, the Times has decided to impose a new policy, offering capsule reviews of festival films, saving the full reviews for a few select films about to open in theaters. Those in the film business have applauded the decision, saying that it is a more appropriate way to cover the event, giving distributors quotable blurbs without hurting a movie in the media to quickly, or preventing a full review from running once the film actually opens. Catching up with the paper's pieces, there's "The Death of Mr. Lazarescu," "L'Enfant," "The Hidden Blade," "Methadonia," "Regular Lovers," "Avenge but One of My Two Eyes," and "Bubble" in a Sept. 24th dispatch, "Greeneland: Graham Greene and the Cinema," "The Squid and the Whale," "I Am," and "Something Like Happiness" from the Sept. 26th report, "Lady Vengeance," "Manderlay," "Breakfast on Pluto," "Haze," "Tale of Cinema," "Through the Forest," and "Views From the Avant-Garde" in the reviews from Sept. 30th, and "Three Times," "The President's Last Bang," "Who's Camus Anyway?," "Beyond the Rocks," and "Paradise Now" in today's (Oct. 3rd) piece.  
[permalink]   [ filed under Festivals ]

Jamie Stuart on NYFF05

Jamie Stuart and the crew at Mutiny City News, hosted by Movie City News, offer a unique take with video dispatches from the New York Film Festival. The first two distinctive dispatches offer an inside look at at festival press conferences, and include moments exploring press person's passion for Philp Seymour Hoffman.  
[permalink]   [ filed under Festivals ]

Austin Chronicle: No Family Is an Island

In their hometown alternative weekly, The Austin Chronicle, John and Janet Pierson talk about the reactions to the release of "Reel Paradise":

The disapproval has been way more about me than the family. And it's been more about the perceived politics of the film, my colonial stunt, quote-unquote, than about my personal character. I am who I am in the film, and there's not much I can say about that. I'll let a jury of my peers decide. But the political argument, the "colonial stunt" argument, is quite upsetting to me because I think an inherent flaw in the movie itself is that it leads people down that road. Steve, I think correctly and justifiably, is proud of raising questions, but I don't think that he perhaps answers those questions fully and completely, and without complete context in the movie, maybe it hangs me out to dry on a certain level. ... But then, I think there's a standard documentary device, of presenting the one hand and on the other hand, with one person saying this and another saying that, and then you choose, and viewers who don't watch that closely can be very selective in terms of what they pay attention to. And they'll tend to give more weight to what they expect or want to hear.

 
[permalink]   [ filed under Movies ]

A Sundance for the small screen?

Calling it a sort of Sundance festival for the small screen, the Los Angeles Times reports on the first New York Television Festival, which opened on Wednesday:

After eight years of pitching and persuading, the first New York Television Festival opened Wednesday with the backing of TV Guide, such networks as NBC, Fox, MTV and Comedy Central, and powerhouse agencies like William Morris. Participants are an eclectic lot that includes a former NASCAR racer and a metalworker in Madison, Wis. Most found out about the event online or at one of three launch parties in New York, Los Angeles and London earlier this year. As the first event of its kind, the television festival represents an initial step toward creating an alternative way to develop programming outside the studio and network system.

 
[permalink]   [ filed under Festivals ]