Cinematical

Today is one of those red-letter dates in the history of film. Maybe not quite as momentous as August 6, 1926, when Warner Bros. released the John Barrymore film Don Juan with Vitaphone sound, but still up there. Today, Oscar-winning director Steven Soderbergh will premiere his new film, a small-town murder mystery called Bubble, in theaters. And on television. And it will arrive on DVD in just a few days. By releasing Bubble on their own, without the blessing of the studio dons, entrepreneur Mark Cuban and his partner Todd Wagner have taken the first step towards rattling Hollywood's creaky distribution and exhibition foundation. And this is just the beginning. Most major studios have already committed to collapsing the so-called 'window' between a film's DVD street date and the date you can buy the film on pay-per-view. But if Bubble and its follow-ups do well - Cuban and Wagner's 2929 Entertainment has an entire slate of feature films for 2006 - then the way you watch movies will change forever.

Cuban recently took a few questions from Cinematical about what he's up to with Steven Soderbergh, why the theater business needs to be changed, and what we can expect from 2929 in the near future.

 

Ryan: Two weeks ago, 20th Century Fox signaled their commitment to collapse the DVD-VOD window, bringing us closer to the day when the theater-DVD window will follow. Lots of influential people think its unwise to go down this road, and not just theater owners. M. Night Shyamalan got attention recently for saying that the public views DVDs as "souvenirs" of a memorable theatrical experience. Wearing your film producer hat, do you share the concerns of those who worry about the theatrical experience being diluted by day and date release?

MC: Not at all. As a producer, I want to make it fun and easy to see movies. Movies are 'top of mind' when they are released. The cost to promote a movie has gone through the roof and distributors challenge themselves every day to find better ways. To not maximize revenue when awareness of the movies is highest is moronic.

As a theater owner, I know that I have to make sure my customer has a great time every time out. People go to movies to have fun away from home. You can cook your own meals, but we go to restaurants. We can watch every game on TV, but the worst teams sell 10K-plus tickets in the NBA, NHL and MLB. Theaters have done a terrible job of creating the perception that movies are a great value. People will pay more for a hamburger and fries at Friday's than for a movie and popcorn, and think the hamburger was a better value than a unique film experience. That's called terrible execution and marketing by the theater industry.

Ryan: Do you believe that, having overbuilt in the 90s, the movie theater industry is just doomed to play a smaller role in the future? In a recent interview, you said you believed that the theater business had a "bright future." That sounds like something a guy might say about a girl he just broke up with.

MC: Depends on whether they realize that different demographics expect different experiences or not, and if they learn how to fulfill those experiences. Maybe the days of 'one screen fits all' has changed.

Ryan: How do the Roger Eberts of the world fit into a future where movie houses are not the only destination for first-run film content? Critical bickering, awards ceremonies, and box-office tracking - these things all help a theatrically-released film to linger in the cultural consciousness. If the window collapse is handled sloppily, the public could become confused or lose interest, and all of that scaffolding that supports important films could crumble, right?

MC: Wrong. Critics will still want to do their jobs. They will want to let people know what they think. The celebrity culture will continue. In reality, what will happen is that their influence will grow. They will realize that they can influence more buyers. Four million might go to a movie theatrically, but if another four million can buy it opening weekend on DVD, that makes them all the more powerful. I bet they like that.

Ryan: 2929 Entertainment recently announced a DVD unit for its distribution arm - Magnolia Home Entertainment. Is that the last piece in 2929's film-making machine? The company now has production, distribution, and exhibition capability, as well as television access and content libraries at its disposal - what else do you need to square the circle? Next generation home theater equipment?

MC: It depends on how Blu-ray Vs. HD-DVD plays out. I believe there will be a place for premium home theater experiences. Say D5 or HDcam quality at home. Sold for $49.95 per movie or more. Geared towards the 10K dollar projector home theater. We will figure out how to meet that demand.

Ryan: Can you tell us a little about your ambitions for yourself as a film producer? Do you want to personally develop acting and directing talent? Do your other entrepreneurial projects allow you the time to get hands-on with HDNet films?

MC: I love making movies that tackle controversial subjects. Things that are not politically correct. From Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room to The War Within to Quid Pro Quo to another movie we will be doing that will freak out people. Those are movies that open peoples' minds and to me, that's exciting. And I also like to have fun with movies as well.

Ryan: Your 2006 slate contains some very intriguing projects, with cult directors like Hal Hartley and up-and-coming actresses like Lauren Ambrose, who has a major career in front of her.

MC: Actors and directors who love to challenge themselves and take chances fit right in with our strategy. We have heard from multiple big names who want to do multi-picture deals for day and date release like what we did with Steven. I encourage anyone reading who has established themselves and wants to try their pet project to get in touch

Ryan: What can you tell us about the remaining five films that Soderbergh has been contracted to direct for HDNet? Is he contractually bound to deliver one a year?

MC: Stay tuned. There isn't a calendar per se. Steven has made commitments, but he pretty much has carte blanche. We love letting creative people get creative.

Ryan: Do you already know what's up next? Will all the films be of a similar budget to Bubble? Give Cinematical a little news...we live on this stuff.

MC: Can't, sorry.

Ryan: One of your high-profile projects of 2005, The War Within, about the planning of a suicide bombing, had excellent buzz from people who actually saw it, but it seems to have fallen through the cracks during the awards season. Do you think that was a consequence of its non-traditional distribution? What steps are you taking to keep visibility high for your 2006 films?

MC: I think it was the controversial nature of the subject. Its not a movie that would have opened on 1,800 screens. It would have had a slow rollout to see what kind of audience it got, even without day and date. So theatrically it didn't do well, but it was received on HDNet movies and the pre-orders for video have been great.

Ryan: I read somewhere that you are fond of Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead. The last film adaptation of that book was in 1949. Is it time for an updating? Who, off the top of your head, would you cast as Howard Roark and Dominique Francon?

MC: I don't know who owns the rights, but I would love to see it re-done. I would have to think about who. No one says it has to be anyone we have heard of.