my profile | my password | search | faq & rules | forum home

» Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE   » Operations   » Digital Cinema Forum   » dforced? (Page 4)

This topic comprises 4 pages: 1  2  3  4

Author Topic: dforced? Bill Enos Film God Posts: 2081 From: Richmond, Virginia, USA Registered: Apr 2000 posted 04-15-2009 10:00 AM                     No prints/digital copies doesn't mean not enough exist, it means none are available to YOU.  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 04-15-2009 10:07 AM                        Well yeah, but this is the area that 'satellite distribution' is supposed to fix. Anyone who wants to abide by the terms 'should' be able to open any film if they have satellite delivery. I've never seen an estimate of what that little add-on would cost....anyone have any idea?  |  IP: Logged David Zylstra Master Film Handler Posts: 432 From: Novi, MI, USA Registered: Mar 2007 posted 04-15-2009 11:36 AM                     If you are talking about the add on of satellite delivery it should not cost much to the exhibitor since most of the benefit is to the company sending out the HDs - i.e. by sending via satellite they don't need to stock and manage an inventory of many thousands of HDs. Our current satellite delivery cost per print matches what we pay per HD delivery. I hope digital will help small town theatres by allowing them to book films on opening day instead of having to wait for a 35mm print to be available.  |  IP: Logged Bill Enos Film God Posts: 2081 From: Richmond, Virginia, USA Registered: Apr 2000 posted 04-15-2009 12:33 PM                     It's not a shortfall in product. If they don't want you to get it, you won't get it, even if there are 100 prints in the warehouse or satellite downloads. A few weeks back when Fox Searchlight said they had no prints of Slumdog it was bullshit. The delivery driver said there were dozens of prints in the dist. center and he had a few more on the truck but none were going out. Same with Wrestler, they claim they have no prints, a call to the driver revealed otherwise. Digital won't make the decision makers change their minds on who gets what and when, the only thing that will change is the excuse stated for withholding product. Maybe they will claim that all the encription keys are used up.  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 04-15-2009 03:18 PM                        quote: If they don't want you to get it, you won't get it, I remember years ago when Fox had a ridiculous "small town" policy in place; when a movie came out, they would set an arbitrary date on which it would "become available" to small towns. It didn't matter how many prints were sitting idle on the floor - if the magic date hadn't arrived, we were out of luck. Sony was the opposite -- if they had a print, they would overnight it from New York City if necessary, gross potential be damned...they just wanted as many prints on the screen as possible. Since there are more prints, things are better now -- we started playing movies on the break in 1999 and we now play around 12 to 16 a year on the break. The most recent time we didn't get a title we wanted was last year's Indiana Jones film but in most cases, if we are willing to play the required amount of weeks, we don't have a problem.  |  IP: Logged Frank Angel Film God Posts: 5305 From: Brooklyn NY USA Registered: Dec 1999 posted 04-17-2009 05:52 AM                        quote: Bill Enos It's not a shortfall in product. If they don't want you to get it, you won't get it, even if there are 100 prints in the warehouse or satellite downloads. Bill, you are too too cynical....almost as much as I am. And of course you are completely right. I have come to the conclusion that because many of these live-or-die decisions on the part of the studios suits are so irrational, that the ONLY conclusion one can come to is that they are made solely as ego-boosting power-trips and to give an aire of importance to their positions....makes them feel like "movers and shakers." In what other business would a company have a supply of product sitting on a shelf but refuse to sell it to a customer who comes in offering money to buy it? OR, they are just totally corrupt scum and in bed with the big chains getting kick-backs from them when they refuse product to smaller players. Oh, what? Like that's never happened before? Just theories, of course.  |  IP: Logged Martin McCaffery Film God Posts: 2481 From: Montgomery, AL Registered: Jun 99 posted 04-17-2009 09:11 AM                        I don't know what it is like in the commercial film biz, but in the art film world, such behavior is standard. I can accept not getting prints right away, as the films we show usually only have a couple of hundred prints, tops, and they want to make the money in the big cities first. However, I recently showed an academy award winner that I wanted to show while it was still a nominee. I called every week for over a month and each week the distrib told me "It is going to be in [corporate chain] next week." It never was. Finally, the week before the Awards, he tells me he didn't want to "ghettoize" it by putting it in the art house (keep in mind, this is the art branch of a studio), but let us have it. Because we are a calendar house, it wouldn't be until the week it comes out on video, even though I held my schedule in the hopes of getting the film. To add insult to injury, the week before I show it, it shows up in the other corporate chain with 1) no listing in the paper and 2) no listing on their website. I imagine they grossed $40 for the week, but at least it was released out of the ghetto first.  |  IP: Logged Rod Cornelison Film Handler Posts: 13 From: Jonesboro,AR./ Craighead ,USA Registered: Mar 2009 posted 04-26-2009 03:49 PM                     Wow!!! I love how a simple question can be turned into this!!! We did a satelite special of some concert when i worked for my competition and it was horrible!! I just hope i can get through this "technology upgrade" and still have a job. As to special school and factory holliday interlock "fun" this will be lost as so many things are. Here is to all the lost sleep i may be able to catch up on in the digital relm!  |  IP: Logged

All times are Central (GMT -6:00)

This topic comprises 4 pages: 1  2  3  4

Printer-friendly view of this topic

Hop To: Select a Forum: Category: Operations -------------------- Digital Cinema Forum Film Handlers' Forum Large Format Forum Ground Level Feature Info, Trailer Attachments & REAL Credit Offsets Category: Community -------------------- Film-Yak Film Handlers' Movie Reviews The Afterlife Bob Maar's Joke-A-Thon Category: Classified -------------------- Equipment and Supplies Wanted/For Sale Help Wanted/Seeking Employment Category: System -------------------- Software Beta Testing Forum

The Film-Tech Forums are designed for various members related to the cinema industry to express their opinions, viewpoints and testimonials on various products, services and events based upon speculation, personal knowledge and factual information through use, therefore all views represented here allow no liability upon the publishers of this web site and the owners of said views assume no liability for any ill will resulting from these postings. The posts made here are for educational as well as entertainment purposes and as such anyone viewing this portion of the website must accept these views as statements of the author of that opinion and agrees to release the authors from any and all liability.