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Promark Entertainment Group


Seven-year-old Los Angeles based producer and distributor Promark Entertainment Group has a firm grip on the market niche it serves -- sci-fi action -- and is now deftly moving into thrillers and family fare with promising acquisitions on display at the AFM. The Swedish conglomerate Promark Konsult owns Promark and re-capitalized it two years ago at the same time it brought in Jonathan Kramer as President. Because of Promark's positive cash flow and the reasonable budget levels of its niche-driven fare, it doesn't have to rely upon pre-sales to get projects in the can or ready for delivery. However, Kramer must still be savvy with every decision affecting the projects his company develops, and he believes that international TV sales will eventually replace the now dead video revenue stream. Current pay-TV markets are controlled by a few media magnates, but Kramer doesn't think you can forever control access to millions of subscribers, low ball the sales company and expect to continue doing a healthy independent business. Kramer has been quoted analogizing the international TV sales business to real estate, stating that just when everyone is running away from the independent marketplace is the time to be resilient and stay put "because eventually, climates change."

Promark's president is also a big fan of listening to his client's requests in non-market periods. Not long ago his French, Spanish and German clients all told him they'd like to see Lorenzo Lamas in a high-tech thriller called Cybertech PD. Lamas may not have been Kramer's own first choice, but when more than one client on more than one occasion mentioned Lamas, Kramer moved to get him involved in the picture. It was budgeted at $4 million and is available at the AFM. Kramer realizes he's in a low-profit-margin business and he can't afford to make poor decisions, from script to cast to direction to budget. "Everything starts with the script," says Kramer, but the best business decisions don't stop there.

At this year's AFM, Promark introduced its newest production, Persons Unknown, a $3 million action adventure starring Joe Mantegna as an ex-cop who steals money from thieving sisters Kelly Lynch and Naomi Watts that they originally stole from the mob. Eventually all three get chased by the mob, the D.E.A. and the police. The film is in production and will likely premiere at Cannes. Examples of some non-action product being presented at the AFM are Clubhouse Detectives, a $2 million family film directed by Eric Hendershott about a boy who has trouble convincing anyone that he witnessed his neighbor commit murder; Playing Dangerous II, a $1.5 million feature from director Lawrence Lanoff; and Amityville Dollhouse, about a girl who unknowingly unleashes the Amityville evil lurking in her dollhouse, a $1.5 million thriller from director Steve White.

Promark has a five-title U.S. home video deal with Hallmark Home Entertainment and Hallmark holds an option to take theatrical rights to any of the projects. Jon Kramer Distribution, a producer's rep operation run by Promark's president, often has financial involvement in some of Promark's product and frequently controls all U.S. rights to projects not carried by other companies pursuant to a one-off or multi-picture deal.

In a refreshing change of pace, Vice-President of Production Steve Beswick lives up to his reputation in Hollywood of being a genuinely nice guy. He stops by the Promark suite at the AFM during the first few days of the market to meet and greet some familiar buyers. Later, he'll probably prowl around the lobby where badgeless producers circle like sharks hoping to spot an exhibitor's green badge with the word "acquisitions" or "production" after the wearer's name. For the moment though, he's greeting people in the Promark suite, making sure they're comfortable and prepping Kramer just enough to allow him to smoothly sit down and talk about his favorite things: good movies that sell and satisfied buyers who buy them.

Promark Entertainment Group
The Promark Center
3599 Cahuenga Blvd. West, 3rd Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90068
Phone (213) 878-0404; Fax (818) 878-0486



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