Reply #29: Did you read that recent ruling about film releases?

[Javaman]

FCC grants studios right to show new movies at home

http://www.kansascity.com/2010/05/07/1931942/fcc-grants-studios-right-to-show.html

"Federal regulators have granted a controversial waiver to the Hollywood studios that clears the way for them to show first-run movies in the home shortly after - or even during - their release in theaters."

How indeed are we going to fund the movies.

what I think is going to happen is this: more bells and whistles will be attached to various films to get people into the theaters to 1) justify the higher ticket costs 2) to keep the theaters alive.

This is very reminiscent of the 1950's when TV started to take audience share and in the 1980's with video tapes doing the same thing.

But on the flip side, those independent productions will suffer from less and less funds as return on investment dwindle based on distribution deals. If an independent doesn't have a distributor, they might as well kiss funding goodbye. That means there will be more presales, which will further dumb down the product. Because even though a filmmaker has a good story, if they don't have someone or something special about the film, it will be very difficult for them to get the funding.

This is what happened in the late '90s. As studios began paying outrageous sums for scripts, they wanted "insurance" in the way of big names attached. Thus defeating the whole concept of what made the indie's special: Story.

there is so much at play, it's really hard to see where it begins and ends.