Chapter 896： struggling indie film

Head to head Hollywood 896 author Qian Duxue Full text 3407 words

Robert De Niro's home, it seems to be more than a hundred years old, the whole building is very old school. After entering, it gives people a quiet and elegant feeling, not a vulgar place like a party mansion in Los Angeles. There are works of art on the walls, I don't know if they are true or not, but they are full of life style and artistic atmosphere. After Dunn appeared, the atmosphere of the whole party seemed to stagnate for a while. All eyes were focused on him. Independent filmmakers, the biggest shortcoming is lack of money! Many movies cost more than ten to two hundred thousand dollars. Dunn is undoubtedly the biggest moneymaker in the world! Dunn's signature sunny smile nodded and greeted almost everyone on the scene. However, there was no familiar face. No way, the level gap is too big. In the past few years, Dunn and the intersection of independent film circles, that is, Harvey Weinstein, Quentin Tarantino, or executives of independent film companies such as Focus Pictures, Miramax, and Fox Searchlight. It's really irrelevant to these bottom-level independent filmmakers! The same is true, as long as any independent filmmakers who can do something, go to Los Angeles and try their best to go to Hollywood for a camp, and it is impossible to take time to participate in such small film festivals. Don't look at the founder of the Tribeca Film Festival is Robert De Niro, but the theme of this film festival is really not very high! The biggest goal is to find 5 films from the participating films every year and push them to the cinema! If you do it, it is a success! It can be seen that although the Tribeca Film Festival has a great reputation, it really has no industry strength. Even Focus Pictures, the weakest independent film maker under the New Universal Group, can kill everyone here in seconds. The real movie power is still Hollywood! New York, no! Dunn's attitude towards these movie "artists" in the party was quite friendly, but all those who wanted to come up and talk to them all refused one by one. Going inside, I finally saw Robert De Niro. And the star-studded Martin Scorsese. Martin Scorsese's films belong to the category of independent films. However, he cannot be regarded as an independent filmmaker in the conventional sense. Independent filmmakers often struggle with film budgets for years at a time. Unlike Martin Scorsese, he is probably the only big director in the world who dares to make an independent film into an A-level production! He hardly ever encountered a financial hurdle. In recent years, the reputation of Martin Scorsese's films has declined, and it seems to have lost the sharpness and innovative exploration of film language in "Taxi Driver" and "Goodfellas". However, after seeing the internal screening of "The Departed", all the movie people are crazy about it. The familiar Martin is back! He really is the master of film techniques after Francis Coppola! Robert De Niro and Martin Scorsese were sitting on the sofa, accompanied by several men and women. Except for Al Pacino, Dunn didn't know anyone. "Dawn, I've been waiting for you for a long time!" Robert De Niro quickly got up and greeted Dunn warmly, and several others also stood up to invite. Tang En hurriedly said politely: "Everyone is a senior, don't be so polite to me, sit! All sit!" After some introductions, Tang En realized that the people present were all with Robert Deney. The filmmakers who co-founded the Tribeca Film Festival with Luo. Among them is a producer, Jane Rosen, who was a smash hit 20 years ago, Megatron Hollywood, and has produced masterpieces such as "Forrest Gump" and "Mrs. Kramer". However, when you get older, it becomes outdated and outdated by Hollywood. Only to engage in this marginalized independent film festival. "Dawn, you have a smart mind, come and give us an idea, what is this film festival going to do?" Robert De Niro is highly respected in Hollywood, and even in front of Dunn, he has the right to speak. Dunn smiled and said: "I still don't know the situation, what do you want me to say?" Robert De Niro quickly explained the current situation of the film festival. This year's Tribeca Film Festival is extraordinarily grand! There are as many as 126 participating films! When he founded the Tribeca Film Festival, Robert De Niro's idea was to make the festival a platform for showcasing the work of filmmakers who pursue cinematic art and innovation. It is a platform for display, not a platform for selling movies. Robert De Niro doesn't have his own film company, and even if he wants to sell it, he can't sell it. This year is different, Harvey Weinstein is down! In the past, Harvey Weinstein was able to handle the release of at least 20 independent films a year. Now that Robert De Niro is in charge, what about the indie filmmakers? Only Robert De Niro can help! No matter how high you stand, you have to take on a lot of responsibility. Harvey Weinstein has such a high prestige in the independent film circle, he has not eaten! He really did some good things for independent filmmakers. This makes Robert De Niro very embarrassed. Harvey Weinstein has his back on Miramax, his back on Disney, and of course he can do it all. But not Robert De Niro! He is dry and alone, and he has no big backers! Pulled in Martin Scorsese, can only help him, but can't help him. I can only put my hope on Dunn. Tang En looked around and found that many people were secretly observing him, their eyes... full of expectation and hope. They make a movie, ranging from two or three years to five or six years. It is a tragic thing that a work that took so much painstaking effort to make, but could not face the audience. Tang En sighed secretly. There are bottom groups in all walks of life. Helping people at the bottom to improve their lives is often the most difficult thing. He asked, "How did you deal with it?" Robert De Niro shook his head, a little helpless. Said: "The festival has several micro-distribution companies working together, and their attitude... This year they can help release 15 films. 5 will go to cinemas, and 10 will be released mainly in the form of video-on-demand." In the film's release , the most high-end is pushed to the cinema. The second is video-on-demand and TV stations. The second is to release it directly on DVD. In theory, any movie can be released on DVD. Even the most restricted adult films can be released in this format. Therefore, the films here do not have the problem of dvd distribution, and they can be done very cheaply. The key is that higher distribution channels are more difficult to find, especially movie theaters. However, even if you enter a movie theater, it must start with a very small-scale screening, maybe 3 movie theaters, maybe 5. The box office has exploded, it will increase in scale, and the box office will be flat... Maybe within a week, it will be forced down by the theater. Very poor. Before he came, Tang En firmly believed that he would not take any action casually, and to be able to come to cheer was already enough face. However, after arriving, seeing the status quo of these low-level independent filmmakers, I was still moved with compassion. Although these people are dressed formally, Tang En can see that many people's suits... are old styles from six or seven years ago. Sticking to poverty on the road of pursuing art, no matter whether the film is good or bad, this spirit will always move people. Tang En was silent for a while, his face solemn, "Actually, don't limit the distribution channels to cinemas and TV stations only. If a movie is well-known enough, even if it is released directly on DVD, it can still make a lot of money. However, if it is unknown, No matter how good it is, it is destined to be ignored. Propaganda is important!" Robert De Niro gave Martin Scorsese a bitter look. publicity? If there are publicity funds, the film can become famous, even if it is promoted to the cinema. How can there be so much trouble? Tang En said slowly: "The traditional mode of operation of film festivals is to show selected films at art film festivals first, then independent distribution companies select films and push them into small theaters for screening, and then, half a year later Is it the same model for DVD sales Tribeca Film Festival?" "Yeah, what's wrong?" Robert De Niro was stunned for a moment. Film festivals all over the world are like this. mode, right? Even the Cannes, Berlin, Venice Film Festivals are in this pattern. Dunn shook his head and said: "It's too outdated and must be reformed. The film festival simply cannot control the ups and downs of the market in the future." Robert De Niro frowned: "This has been implemented for decades and is regarded as the safest by industry insiders. Guaranteed movie sales model. Is there a problem? Even Universal Pictures, right?" Dunn waved his hand, "Most of Universal's productions are commercial movies with Hollywood temperament. However, this model can no longer be used for art. The film festival provides basic shelter from the wind and rain. The limited choice of theaters is difficult to guarantee access to many people who really like art films, and the sales of DVDs after half a year are almost out of touch with the fiery marketing during the festival. No matter how good Movies, if very few people have heard of it, who would spend $20...or $30 on a later DVD? It's a cycle like this, and art films will naturally struggle to survive." Robert De Nero couldn't turn his head around a bit, and looked at Martin Scorsese again for advice. In his film career, Martin Scorsese was his life mentor. Martin Scorsese smiled and said succinctly, "I believe in Dunn! When it comes to understanding movies, especially the movie market and movie models, he is unmatched in the world today!" Such an abrupt compliment did not arouse The contempt of the people around. Instead, they all take it for granted. He is Dunn, and he deserves all the good words. Robert De Niro quickly said seriously: "Dawn, tell me, what are you going to do?" I want to chat with more like-minded people about "One-Down Hollywood", and WeChat pays attention to "Youdu Literature" and chats about life. Looking for a confidant~