MICRO-BUDGET SELF-DISTRIBUTION Corona pre to post in 1 month

See the links list (screenshot to right; scroll down the blog to find links lists on the right side) for other examples of filmmakers showing gutsy determination despite very limited resources to produce and gain distribution for full-length feature films. Especially Coz (Corrie) Greenop (Wandering Rose, or Demon Baby in the US market) and Harry MacQueen (Hinterland). Coz used a broken back to inspire his £40k horror, and social media to get distributor meetings in Cannes, leading to a US DVD release and a multi-million 2nd feature. Harry, an actor, a £10k inheritance to shoot a social realist drama, and a limited theatrical distribution deal with Curzon Cinemas' screenings with Q and A's for members plus Ilkley Film Festival.

This new example has the spirit of Shane Meadows' infamous five day shoot, £48k Le Donk and Scor-Zay-Zee about it...


Spotted a rather excellent example for all of you of fast, determined real-world media production. A Canadian director has scripted, cast, location scouted, costumed/set dressed, filmed, edited/post-productioned, cut a trailer and now released (self-distributed) through VOD platforms Corona. A little exploitative perhaps, but nonetheless when it's easy to make excuses for yourself you could maybe ponder this example. He's done this all in March.

Coronavirus: the movie is somehow already here – but are we ready for it?

I can't see any specific release details yet - perhaps he can't do it all?! Info should appear on the IMDB page. Or on his own website...

DISNEY China, convergence and franchising exemplified

UPDATE...

China had 4 of 2019's top 20 WORLDWIDE films. In September 2020 it was easily the world's biggest cinema market with the US covid-hit. Read an excellent analysis here.

As of the end of 2019, China now has 69,787 cinema screens, up 9,708 from 2018, according to the Communist party mouthpiece the People’s Daily, which added that more than 1.7 billion tickets were sold. The propagandistic publication went so far as to deem the current moment a “golden age” for the Chinese film industry’s development, as “the market bubble fades… and Chinese films continue to steadily improve.” (Variety: China’s Box Office Hit New Heights in 2019, as Hollywood’s Share Shrank. Good detail on how the Chinese market is shifting towards homegrown hits)

FURTHER UPDATES: Barr condemns Disney and Hollywood for 'kowtowing' to China.

Mulan shows how far Disney will go, self-censor, to maximise the Chinese market (Guardian).

Disney is so damned big it even owns one of its main TV subscription rivals, Hulu. The mighty mouse movie company now gets 50% of its revenues from its multiple theme parks, but is also as much a TV company as it is a film company - from its subsidiaries like ESPN (sports channel) to zeitgeisty series making baby Yoda a global phenomenon, there's more to Disney than movies.

It's buying spree was seen as crazy by some - but bear in mind that Marvel cost them $4bn ... and the last Avengers movie alone raked in $3bn from the box office, never mind its value in driving $5.99/month subscribers to Disney+.

It's even managed to get back into China, having been banned for years because of pro-Tibet movies it now has a Shanghai Disneyland (but it's 57% owned by the Chinese government!) and since 2016 it has been getting movies distributed there again. Their Mulan remake has changed a lot of aspects to avoid upsetting the Chinese government!

This article ends on an intriguing notion - because their stock market value has dropped by over $80bn since the coronavirus hit (a third of their value) ... could Apple sweep in to buy this giant???

Taking the Mickey: how Disney swallowed up all of culture.

Statista.com breakdown of China's surging global share

UNIVERSAL OFFER CINEMA STREAM and PANDEMIC DISRUPTION threat to cinema future?

"Universal Pictures has a broad and diverse range of movies with 2020 being no exception. Rather than delaying these films or releasing them into a challenged distribution landscape, we wanted to provide an option for people to view these titles in the home that is both accessible and affordable," said Jeff Shell, CEO of NBCUniversal, in a statement. "We hope and believe that people will still go to the movies in theaters where available, but we understand that for people in different areas of the world that is increasingly becoming less possible." [MacRumors]

FilmGuardian analysis

It's unclear how (if??) NBCUniversal have cleared this with cinema chains (all posed to be forced to close in the USA, already shuttered across much of the world), but they've announced a new streaming option for titles currently/recently on their theatrical run.

The price is $20 per movie, not quite the cost of two cinema tickets.

They are clearly online innovators, seeking to flip the narrative of disruption into their own favour. I haven't seen any reports on how successful Prima was (if you don't remember, find the tag on this blog), but that for-the-filthy-rich-only model now has its own scruffy cousin. 

The disruption of convergence and digitisation was meant to be in favour of the little guy, according to web 2.0 evangelists like David Gauntlett and Malcolm 'long tail theory' Gladwell, but the dead hand of the big five has not loosened at all from around the throat of the global film industry. We're not seeing a spurt of Indie growth like the late 60s or late 80s/early 90s - though in both cases most of the new auteurs became studio insiders and the upstart companies got bought up.

The pandemic could have as big a long-term impact in disrupting traditional practices and behaviour in its estimated 18 month run as a couple of decades of digital - more specifically, online - disruption has managed. All the big 5 have delayed their tentpole releases and productions (same for TV) are grinding to a halt. 

Universal are trampling over the theatrical release window in a way that Disney tried with Alice in Wonderland - only to back down when the major cinema chains threatened a complete blackout/boycott of the movie. It could be that the pandemic lockdown builds up a renewed appetite for expensive cinema screens ... or that people get very used to their home cinema setup. And just how long can the Bond and all the other tentpoles be held back? Will all the studios ultimately copy Universal's innovation as this lockdown looks set to continue for many months???

SEE: MacRumors and As cinemas go dark, the film industry may go straight to Netflix.

LONG TAIL EDITIONALISING The 4K re-releases

Elberse did a pretty good job of demolishing Gladstone's widely accepted long tail theory, but there's life yet in the notion that reduced storage, reproduction, manufacturing and distribution costs (notionally zero if streamed) make back catalogue highly valuable.

Wind back to the 60s/70s and it was common for TV and radio shows to be wiped so the expensive tapes could be reused. There were no DVDs or channels dedicated to re-runs, and the global TV market was not fully formed. Lots of Dr Who episodes have been forever lost that way.

Just as the music industry experienced a boom, up to 1999 (the year of Napster...), through fans buying CDs to replace their cassette and vinyl copies of albums (we see the reverse in 2020!), the movie industry has ruthlessly exploited fans with its editionalising strategy - the vanilla DVD, Blu-Ray, special edition, unrated cut (MPAA ratings are voluntary), collector's edition, ultimate edition, directors cut - check out the release of 1979s slasher archetype Halloween as a good example.

Then there's the boxsets - and even the likes of Warp get involved in that (with its epic 10 Years of Warp boxset and This is England collections), while the various Working Title rom-coms appear in near-infinite boxset permutations, including franchise sets like Bridget Jones. Which are heavily pushed through their social media every Valentine's, Mother's Day and Xmas (Love Actually anyone?).

4K, which in time will be replaced again with 8K, is the new wheeze, with multiple older movies getting the remastered (the music industry's fave wheeze for repackaging and re-selling new copies of albums fans already own) 4K release for DVD/Blu-ray and even, for some, limited theatrical re-release.

See these Universal examples...

https://thedigitalbits.com/columns/my-two-cents/030920-1200

UK CREATIVE FUND BOOSTS TV/FILM CONVERGENCE with BFI

This ISN'T the same as the main BFI (formerly UK Film Council) funding stream that channels government funding and national lottery funds to provide GRANTS (generally non-repayable) to Indie filmmakers to ensure variety of representation and the viability of a UK Indie sector in the face of the big 5, American stranglehold on British cinema and audiences.

It IS a source of funding - but one more comparable with Film4/Channel 4/BBC Films who will pay for rights to screen productions. The BFI backs the fund but DOESN'T provide funds. This is a for-profit investment fund, pitched as an attractive investment opportunity that takes advantage of the government tax incentive of 30% tax relief for film investors that meet criteria of being 'British productions'.

They emphasize how SVOD, subscription video-on-demand, services like Netflix have created a boom in TV/film production markets.

https://creativecontenteis.co.uk/about-the-fund/uk-creative-content-eis-fund/

Colin Firth's own production company is among those that has successfully pitched for TV and film financing (risk capital remember, not a grant):

Colin Firth's film firm moves into TV amid streaming boom

https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2020/mar/09/colin-firths-film-firm-moves-into-tv-amid-streaming-boom?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Gmail 

DISTRIBUTION Bad Boy Will Smith shows R/18 success is possible

Lets be clear - an R or NC17 (MPAA) or 18 (BBFC) rating is nearly always a box office kiss of death. On the big 5 front it's grown ever less likely as a tentpole or even mid-budget level release rating thanks to the dominance of censorious Disney, with its 33.3% share of global box office achieved through PG-13 or lower.

But - there are no rules in the crazy industry of film, just conventions, and the belated trilogising Bad Boys threequel has surprised most with its x5 budget global take, clearing all costs with its x2 domestic take alone. Will Smith's still fresh it seems.

This article looks in depth at the history of R-rated hits in the US. I've blogged before on the commercial death knoll that is the 18:rating. Usually...

https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2020/03/06/bad-boys-for-life-box-office-will-smith-martin-lawrence-one-of-biggest-r-rated-action-movies-ever/

DISTRIBUTION Kevin Smith Indie breaks Avengers record?!

You probably haven't heard of Kevin Smith.

Shame on you - but Clerks, Mall Rats et al are widely available. The story of Clerks is a truly inspiring one - a guy with fewer resources than the typical teen reading this post who somehow combined a scrappy job with scraps of film reel to cut the dialogue heavy Clerks...shot where he worked.

And giving birth to Jay and Silent Bob. Smoothie boochies.

Smith has gone on to establish the cult success of his View Askew universe/company label, briefly dabble with Hollywood millions, quit film-making, resume low-budget film-making, have a heart attack, drop more weight than some of you weigh, and bring his uber-positive post-attack outlook to a reboot of his underground franchise. As heavily documented on Facebook. Smith ain't no kid anymore - his kid is grown up too.

The Facebook log of his promotion around the movie continues. The screen count is very similar to This is England and Tyrannosaur, peaking at just 17. SEVENTEEN. And yet Forbes business magazine, in an excellent column well worth following (as good as the Guardian's box office columns but US-centred), did a feature on the movie's theatrical run. WTH, eh?

Smith has multiple strings to his bow, including his comic books and extensive merch line. I've paid for an autographed poster or two myself. Then there's the phenomenon of his podcast series, recorded live in front of adoring, paying audiences, and his separate An Evening With... shows. That's on my bucket list.

Smith has toured with the tiny handful of prints, often doing a director Q&A at $47 a ticket. No movie has racked up more weeks of $60k+ screen averages. Smith has long been sneered at by elitist critics dying to salivate over the next 'difficult' therefore worthy movie to cross their mighty crania, seen as a cheap, crass pop culture stoner. Well, the slimmed-down post-heart attack stoner Smith strikes back with this underground, slow churn success, with marketing heavily centred on his well-followed social media.

See https://www.forbes.com/sites/travisbean/2020/03/07/jay-and-silent-bob-reboot-shattered-box-office-records-and-nobody-noticed/

And at some point - when you're old enough - don't just watch Clerks but also a feature on how it was made.

Then look up my other posts on other micro-budget films, some with very limited theatrical releases - including one Harry Potter scion who took a £10k inheritance and cut a movie, each of its few screenings either linked to the Curzon Cinemas membership scheme (regular director Q&As as a benefit) or film festival appearances - I asked him a few questions myself at the Ilkley Film Festival. 

If you happen to be working on a coursework evaluation question about how your opus might be distributed ... add Smith's astonishing underground success to case studies like those mentioned above and the awesome tale of how Coz Greenop spun a ricked back and consequent months laid out in a caravan in Scotland to a movie debut via Cannes meetings set up by social DMs (messages - he didn't stick a fashionable boot in).