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Warner's Launches Anti-Piracy Campaign For Dark Knight

28 July 2008 11:02 AM, PDT | From Studio Briefing | See recent Studio Briefing news

In advance of the release of The Dark Knight, Warner Bros. launched an unprecedented anti-piracy effort to prevent copies of the movie from being uploaded onto file-share websites and being distributed on DVD, the Los Angeles Times reported today (Monday). According to the newspaper, the studio set up a "chain of custody" system so that studio executives could keep track of who had prints of the movie and where they were at any given moment. The film reels were delivered in staggered shipments so that a complete version was not available in theaters until the last moment. Exhibitors in Australia, where the film opened two days in advance of its U.S. premiere, were given special night-vision goggles to help spot anyone in the audience attempting to camcord the movie. The strategy, according to the Times, kept any print of The Dark Night off the internet for 30 hours -- enough time to allow it to break box-office records in its first weekend. In an interview with the Times, Darcy Antonellis, president of Warner's distribution and technical operations, said, "A day or two becomes really, really significant. You've delayed disc manufacturing that then delays distribution,which then delays those discs from ending up on street corners for sale." (Many of those who buy bootlegged films insist that they are among the most devoted movie theater customers.)

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The strategy, according to the Times, kept any print of The Dark Night off the internet for 30 hours

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The strategy, according to the Times, kept any print of The Dark Night off the internet

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You've delayed disc manufacturing that then delays distribution,which then delays those discs from ending up on street corners for sale.

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quote: Stupid Article

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The strategy, according to the Times, kept any print of The Dark Night off the internet for 30 hours -- enough time to allow it to break box-office records in its first weekend.

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They can't really believe that the reason it broke records is because it wasn't pirated before it's release.

If that's why it broke the record, how do they explain the all time biggest second weekend, then? Wouldn't it have plummeted after the bootleg was available?
 

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Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 07-30-2008, 04:11 AM:
 
...and our two prints came in on Wed before opening friday, I put them both together and we ran them down that night to chek them out..

..and no locks on the cans ....

could the vidpirates have a heyday with this much time before opening....
 

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Posted by Justin Hamaker (Member # 2165) on 07-30-2008, 05:17 AM:
 
Mine was also delivered more than 24 hours before the midnight opening.
 

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Posted by Paul Gordon (Member # 3320) on 07-30-2008, 07:16 AM:
 
Their all just pissing in the wind... a good movie will make money at the theatre regardless of "Pirates" now those night vision goggles could have gone to good use at the lab I work at...no more stapling in the dark...
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-30-2008, 08:57 AM:
 
I was doing service at one theater in Wyoming that was already running theirs free of charge for employees at least 24 hours before they shouda been. This IS one thing digital will take care of and then Bollywood can fire all the suits that dream up these rediclous letters!!

Mark
 

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Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 07-30-2008, 10:13 AM:
 
Somehow I knew you'd bring up digital cinema. And Bollywood is in India. But sure, fire 'em.

Theaters have every right to screen their prints.
 

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Posted by Bryan M. Montgomery (Member # 4412) on 07-30-2008, 11:14 AM:
 
Yes, and digital cinema will stop things like...
- Terrorism
- Aids
- Cancer .....

 

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Posted by Frank Angel (Member # 248) on 07-30-2008, 11:39 AM:
 
Look, it's obvious these guys must get some kind of a bone playing this macho Rambo role -- look at us...we thwart the bad guys in our camouflage suits and our night-vision goggles. Obviously they love this fiction and show no signs of changing their tune. They trot it out over and over. You would think even THEY would get sick of hearing it as well as the dumbass reporters (don't these hacks EVER ask for verification of these contentions?). Did this reporter even think to ask if even a single person was spotted and stopped and arrested due to the night goggle nonsense? Or did he just regurgitate whatever the Warners suit spewed out?

And can the suits REALLY think that if a bunch of pimply prepubescent toads were to get an off screen copy and watch it on an ipod, it would have changed those big opening weekend numbers one iota? Actually, who cares. Let them think it; they're idiots. And someone should let them in on a little secret -- it's not macho Rambo they look like with their big tough anti-piracy goggles, but more like wussy gurlie Alice....Alice in freakin Wonderland.
 

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Posted by Chris Slycord (Member # 4239) on 07-30-2008, 01:21 PM:
 

quote: Frank Angel

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Did this reporter even think to ask if even a single person was spotted and stopped and arrested due to the night goggle nonsense? Or did he just regurgitate whatever the Warners suit spewed out?

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quote: Frank Angel

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Have the studios publicised this night vision goggle thing to the public?

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The fact that this thread started from the fact that this vision goggle thing was mentioned in a news article would show the answer to your question is "yes."

Further, my point wasn't that having a gun stops people from robbing you. I was pointing out how having it could reduce the chances. Just like if, like your example, you have a shop with no cameras or any security system you'll be more likely to have someone rob you. And installing a security system and NOT having anyone arrested isn't necessarily a bad thing because places with security cameras get robbed less often than ones that do.

But I concur that we have no evidence the goggles really did anything. I was only pointing out that what you specifically asked for wasn't an accurate method for determining if it helped.
 

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Posted by Carl Martin (Member # 1146) on 07-30-2008, 02:39 PM:
 
well, that article did come out after the fact.
 

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Posted by Chris Slycord (Member # 4239) on 07-30-2008, 02:54 PM:
 
Yes but the fact is that the info about it happening was posted here before it happened. So the bootleggers very likely heard about it too and could've (shockingly) avoided bootlegging for a few days (until the theaters more or less forgot about the goggles).
 

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Posted by Benny Walters (Member # 4894) on 07-31-2008, 08:18 PM:
 
The only security on our prints was the 'fake' name and our three prints arrived at 1205A.M., 24 hours before our midnight. The feature came in packed fox boxes each accompanied by a tiny metal box 2 reel-sized, with all the trailers.

I was really annoyed with some of the other prints this Summer for bigger releases arriving early but having one can locked and they refuse to give out the codes until early the next day.

If I can't screen it how am I supposed to know if one of the reels is unwatchable, which has happened before and will happen again, thanks studios...
 

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Posted by David Kilderry (Member # 142) on 08-02-2008, 04:28 AM:
 
Warner Roadshow sent TWO security guards out to our drive-in instead of night vision goggles and they patrolled the field during the first screening. One guy in a car yelled out "stop walking in front of my car you dumb @#$%" The crazy security guy (Rambo in disguise) almost pulled him out of the car and lauched his own tirade of abuse back!

David
 

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Posted by Frank Angel (Member # 248) on 08-02-2008, 11:22 AM:
 
That is ing outrage! I would have throw this guy out of my theatre on his ass for causing a disturbance like that, just the same as I would throw out anyone disrupting a show. I'd have the SOB escorted out by police if he refused to leave. You don't have to take that kind of crap no matter what the circumstances or they are. This isn't freakin Homeland Security against terrorism, IT'S A DAMN MOVIE.

David, don't let this slide; at the very least, you should file a formal complaint with both Warners and with the trashy security company they are using.

Do you insist on seeing identification when these morons show up? Does WB give theatres proper advance notice, or do their aparachaks just show up and say they are going to walk around your field all night?

I think we need to be as officious as the studios. If the studios want to pull this gestapo nonsense, then we can do the same. Make them send you ADVANCE notice that they are sending people -- and how many -- and with proper identification. And have the studio FAX a sample to so the GM can see what it's supposed to look like.

Now MY terms: they can sit unobtrusively like the counters do; they can't do anything that disturbs my patrons or interferes in any way with my staff or my projectionist. These goons were way beyond that, walking around during the movie in front of cars.?!! To me, that is totally, unequivocally unacceptable. They can do their "police activity" as long as it isn't disruptive to my operation. If they do anything disruptive, they are out on the sidewalk in 10 seconds.

Son of a bitch!
 

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Posted by Tom Doyle (Member # 1474) on 08-02-2008, 05:49 PM:
 
Has anyone ever, in any movie piracy case, ever heard of a particular theater being named as the origin of a pirated copy? Or is the CAP code not working?
 

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Posted by Chris Slycord (Member # 4239) on 08-03-2008, 03:54 AM:
 
Well there was at least one post on here by the late John Pytlak stating that there were cases of the CAP working and pirates being caught from it. And I believe he was the one at Kodak who devised the code system they use.
 

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Posted by Phil Blake (Member # 2012) on 08-03-2008, 05:10 AM:
 
This is all very interesting , but I doubt all these precautions have contributed alot to the opening gross, this show has been receiving so much attention since Heath Ledger died it was bound to be big.

But just maybe all this extra has helped a bit at our end of the chain but what is stopping one of the many who have access digitally to the final production in the editing or processing departments. Does anyone check their back pockets when the knock off for the day ?
 

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Posted by David Kilderry (Member # 142) on 08-04-2008, 07:16 AM:
 
Frank, it was our first experience of security on duty for this kind of thing; I would not welcome this style of security again. In fact the night vision goggles given to other theatres would have been much more appropriate, given it is very difficult to see inside a dark car!

I plan to speak to Warner Roadshow and suggest that there is a better way to handle the issue in future at our drive-in.

David
 

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Posted by Geena Phillips (Member # 3726) on 08-05-2008, 01:25 PM:
 
Don't be naive, Mike. If studios acknowledged a positive contribution from exhibitors toward the success of their films, that might be seen as an argument for them NOT taking 90+% of the opening-weekend gross.
 

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Posted by Anslem Rayburn (Member # 1267) on 08-05-2008, 02:16 PM:
 
If you're paying 90% someone is doing something wrong.

Edited to remove unnecessary quote.
 

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Posted by Geena Phillips (Member # 3726) on 08-05-2008, 02:25 PM:
 
Granted, that's kind of an extreme example, but it HAS happened.
 

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