The fourth of five 1996 AFM seminars on Wednesday found an international panel of film and television distribution, production and sales representatives explaining the importance of domestic theatrical release, the credibility of film festivals, the impact of media coverage, the expenses of marketing and the difficulty of securing and keeping theater screens. Moderator Howard Frumes, partner in the Motion Picture/TV department at Los Angeles law firm Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, elicited surprisingly diverse responses from his initial inquiry of whether U.S. domestic theatrical release was essential to the success of an independent film in today's market.

Richard Sands, President of Miramax Pictures, stated that while domestic theatrical release is helpful, it is not essential to the success of a film. Though it is often used to "test the success of a film" in other markets "it's not a real indicator" of performance, Sands said, citing Wayne Wang's Smoke as an example of an eight million dollar domestic box office not acting as an indicator of the film's eventual $30 million take in all other theatrical markets. Industry veteran Carole Myer, chief executive of the U.K. based The Sales Company, agreed and cited Antonia Bird's Priest as an example of a poor U.S. domestic theater performance prompted by an increasingly conservative American marketplace that was no indication of the wide international success of the film. No North American distributor would originally touch the film despite the fact that the original, uncut version had been cleared for theatrical release in the Catholic country of Italy where any moviegoer 12 years old could watch the film. Alan Howden, Head of Programme Acquisition Group for BBC Television/Films, was quick to point out that U.S. theatrical release is a double edged sword. With decent box office performance, the BBC will pay two million dollars to license a blockbuster but only $100,000 or so for a "regular" movie. Howden clarified that if a film makes a poor theatrical showing, "it will have a negative value when it's aired on television" because viewers can rely on poor theatrical performance as a "reason to watch something else" when the film comes on TV. Howden also pointed out the frequency that BBC telepics get picked up for theatrical release in the United States. Myer agreed and pointed to Priest and the recent Persuasion as examples of films that were made purely as BBC telepictures that found theatrical life.

Before obtaining a North American distribution deal, many filmmakers face the economically intimidating task of publicizing their film. Not only do the filmmakers sweat blood to raise production funds, but after the project is completed tremendous amounts of time, energy and money must often be expended in order to attract a distributor. That's where film festivals come into play. However, filmmakers often find their promotional dollars competing with the very companies they are trying to attract. Sands proclaimed Miramax to be "the most festival oriented company in the film business." The company gets talent to travel to festivals, makes deliberate decisions relating to entering films in competition and takes the effort very seriously. "We plan our work and work our plan" says Sands of the now familiar Miramax festival presence. Myer agreed that a festival launch is very important but lamented the fact that festivals "want Hollywood, and so they love Miramax." Myer was quick to clarify that she is delighted about the attention Miramax has helped bring to independent films, but regrets the great costs of traveling to festivals. Myer claimed that today she makes sure that the festivals that call to request her films must pay for them and, when later questioned by an audience member about the rates, specified that her product has secured prices from $250 to $500 per screening with the festival also paying for the print and freight.

Panelist Jeff Lipsky, President of Plainview Pictures, Inc., consultant for Bravo Television's Independent Film Channel and co-founder of October Films, explained an important difference between the Miramax and The Sales Company positions on film festivals. "Miramax uses festivals as part of its marketing effort to promote its films and [The Sales Company] uses them to try to sell their films." Lipsky's biggest beef (or rather mutton) rested with the "media who are sheep who need direction." This year Lipsky is distributing Rebecca Miller's debut film Angela that won two prizes at the 1995 Sundance Film Festival but was ignored by the press when it was released in January of this year. Lipsky decried the fact that "it takes money to buy good press these days" and independents are forced to rely upon the mercy of the media. (Lipsky may or may not be right. His critique went unreported in the trade papers circulating the AFM in the days following the seminar.) Sands countered with a statement that a distributor "can only do so much with promotion" and that "eventually, a film must stand on its own" and offered Michael Radford's Il Postino as an example without discussing the amount of pre and post Academy Award nomination advertising and re-releasing costs incurred by Miramax on behalf of the film.

Michael Ryan, Co-Chairman of Britain's J&M Entertainment, a leading international film finance and distribution company with 1995 worldwide sales in excess of $65 million and a current catalog of over 150 films, gave his own example of the high, hidden costs of festivals. Two years ago J&M had a Robert DeNiro picture at Cannes and paid over $36 thousand for DeNiro's two week stay. That was a hefty part of the price tag for launching the movie and it is a cost that only a giant like Miramax may easily incur. Myer agreed and from the perspective of a sales agent stated that a bad performance at a festival competition slot can do great damage to a later theatrical release. So, "you don't just want any slot in a festival," Myers says, "you want to know the film will play well there and after." Sands added that the positive impact of a film festival screening can be immediately diluted by a poor press conference performance by a filmmaker or star.

Lipsky labeled "incredible" the recent evolution of the Sundance Film Festival where he said winning a top prize before 1989 was "almost a kiss of death" for filmmakers hoping to obtain a distribution deal. Today, Sundance has grown so large, with nearly 150 total screenings, that films can easily get lost and filmmakers remain "still a little fish in a big pond." Despite the festival's growth, however, Lipsky pointed out that Sundance remains the only U.S. festival with national and international name recognition.

Lipsky also made a point of asking the audience -- as well as fellow panelists -- to think about the one element in the film chain that is forever under represented -- if represented at all -- at seminars, festivals and markets: the exhibitors. He claimed that 80% of the box office gross receipts from U.S. theatrical release come from only 50 screens. So, according to Lipsky, the problem isn't the number of screens carrying a particular film, but what films are being shown on the 50 most lucrative screens in the country. Lipsky also proclaimed his belief that it was time that magazine, newspaper and television editors were also invited into the discussion so that they may be instructed on their role in expanding the audience for independent films. In keeping with his earlier analogy, Lipsky claimed that the "bottom line" was answering the question of "how to get the sheep (media) to tell their local audiences to get to the theaters to see the films." It may take just a little bit of money to make an independent film compared to a studio blockbuster, Lipsky commented, but the independents pay the same advertising rates. "Ultimately only about 1% of independent films succeed," Lipsky claimed before he candidly admitted that "nine of ten independent films stink and should never have been made in the first place."

The AFM seminar series concludes on Day 8 of the market with "Financing the Independent Vision."

For the remainder of the Market, the Internet Entertainment Network will profile an assortment of international distributors/sellers as well as buyers and bring you short takes on each of the five seminars at this year's market, each focusing on Realizing the Independent Vision; Strategies to Survive and Prosper in the Age of Mega-Mergers.

If you have any special requests for information from the market or would like us to profile any particular buyer or seller, please email us at producing@hollywoodnetwork.com

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