Crunching The Numbers As Star Trek Ends Theatrical Run

Fall has started and most people have moved on from the summer blockbusters, but the dedicated Trek fans at Trek Movie are taking one last look at the box office receipts from this summer’s Star Trek, and have found that it finally surpassed Star Trek: The Motion Picture as the highest-grossing Trek film of all time.

OK, see if the next entry below surprises you…

https://www.cinemablend.com/new/Crunching-The-Numbers-As-Star-Trek-Ends-Theatrical-Run-15099.html

‘Paranormal Activity’: Do midnight sell-outs suggest it’s the next ‘Blair Witch’?

Producer Jason Blum spent nearly two years bringing the ultra-low-budget thriller “Paranormal Activity” to theaters. “It finally feels,” he says, “like we’re entering the third act.”

https://latimesblogs.latimes.com/entertainmentnewsbuzz/2009/10/paranormal-activity-do-midnight-sellouts-suggest-its-the-next-blair-witch.html

Bill Mechanic: “The Next Few Years Will Be about Survival”

…Those who will win will be smart about what they make and how they sell their films. They will hopefully make good films but perhaps even more key they will make unique films that stand out, which means they will not have to compete against the bulk of the films for talent. They won’t look like all the other films so they won’t have to spend as much money marketing them…

An excellent article. A must read for those interested in the business.

https://www.indiewire.com/article/the_next_few_years_will_be_about_survival/#When:22:24:05Z

MGM Makes Phone Plea To Bondholders To Stay Alive; Both ‘Hobbit’ And James Bond In Peril; Bondholders Tell Studio To Go Bankrupt; MGM Calls That Worst Possible Outcome

…MGM made a desperate plea for money because the studio had missed its numbers and was going to be out of funds very soon. “The implication was that it’s teetering on bankruptcy,” one source told me. MGM said it needed $20M in short-term cash flow to cover overhead, and an additional $150 million to get through the end of year and continue funding its projects, and to start Peter Jackson’s Hobbit.

https://www.deadline.com/hollywood/exclusive-details-mgm-makes-phone-plea-to-bondholders-for-millions-to-stay-alive-both-hobbit-and-james-bond-in-peril-bondholders-tell-studio-to-go-bankrupt-mgm-calls-that-worst-possible-outcom/

No More Doom and Gloom? IFP Crowd Eye Distribution’s Silver Cloud

The sky is falling. Indie bloodbath. Independent film is dead. All are phrases that have provoked passionate discussions. Instead of going there, though, a group of distribution veterans eschewed dark talk in favor of optimism earlier this week at a signature IFP panel discussion on the current state of film distribution.

The old model-making a film with investors, taking it to festivals, selling it there and releasing it months later in theaters before hitting other ancillary markets-is nearly gone, the group seemed to agree.

https://www.indiewire.com/article/no_more_doom_and_gloom_ifp_crowd_eye_distributions_silver_cloud/#When:13:00:28Z

Wake the Witch is a $10,000 Horror Movie

As hard as it is to get your ideas onto the page, getting them from the page onto the screen can seem like an unattainable goal. Even if you’re a smart scriptwriter who’s written scenes and chosen settings that can be recreated on the cheap, the task of the independent filmmaker can seem like a daunting one. But knowledge is power, and a group of DIY movie moguls can get a very long way on several thousand dollars and a lot of goodwill.

https://www.studiodaily.com/filmandvideo/projects/11308.htmlhttps://www.studiodaily.com/filmandvideo/projects/11308.html

Toronto Wrap: Indie Bloodbath

If industry-watchers didn’t see it coming, they figured it out at this year’s Toronto Film Festival.

The old independent market is over. A new one will take its place. But we are smack in the middle between the end of one paradigm and the start of another, and it’s a scary place indeed.

https://blogs.indiewire.com/thompsononhollywood/2009/09/19/toronto_film_festival_winners_and_losers/