IndieNational reviews the stories grabbing the headlines in the independent film world this week.
This past week the end of HD-DVD was heralded by anguished cries from those who stood next to a Blu-Ray player and plumped for HD. Toshiba, the owners of the technology, have decided to cut their losses in the face of mounting dominance in the HD market by Sony’s Blu-Ray. Scaling back on production will begin immediately and cease all together in March. While this may appear to be in the realms of big business, the end of this competitive technology could have a great impact upon the distribution of Indie films. Healthy competition between technologies breeds an open market, and crucially options for filmmakers and small distribution companies. If you can only go Blu-Ray, then the owners of that technology and also the major Hollywood players, who are already tied into the technology’s success, will hold an uncomfortable sway of the destination of distribution rights for Indie films. Rumblings that HD held benefits in terms of quality for image reproduction are sadly redundant, but let’s see what happens now with smaller companies moving into the high def market. The problems here could run a way deeper than eBay being inundated with auctions for HD-DVD players, and keep your eyes peeled for more on this in the next issue of IndieNational.
Away from the worries of the money men, one of Indie cinema’s most treasured graduates, David Fincher, has announced pre-production on comic adaptation (haven’t they all been made yet?) Black Hole. The plot of the graphic novel by Charles Burns centres on a plague amongst teens in Seattle that is passed on through sexual contact. The problem is that th
e symptoms of the plague include horn growth (not that kind), skin moulting and second mouths. Now we’re interested. The master of alienation and atmosphere, Fincher appears to have a tale of teenage angst that runs on an imaginative plain away from traditional teen flicks. Add to the mix a script from Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary, and you’ve got a pretty potent mix. No words yet on a cast, but expect a whole host of bright young things getting yucked up in the make up department.
So from the exciting to the worrying. Akira, one of the best loved and most widely seen Manga films of all time has been commissioned as a two part feature by Warner Bros. Can it be done? Should it be done? There’s going to need to be a fairly colossal budget if it is to be successful, and first time Irish director Ruairi Robinson will have a big old task to pull it off. Chucking money at world classics does not always bring success (take a bow The Ring, The Grudge and Vanilla Sky) and here the prognosis is already not good. Fanboy reaction is sure to be fierce, but bet also on something of a backlash from fans of the uniquely Manga style of the film and its place within Japanese pop culture. The film is to be “Americanised”, so expect a toning down of some of the more off the wall elements, and gratuitous interiors at a Wendy’s. Leonardo DiCaprio’s Appian Way are on board as producers, but it appears unlikely that he will be in front of the camera here, despite rumours. Watch this space, and best of luck to you Mr.Robinson.
Huw Baines – trying to avoid a second mouth.
This past week the end of HD-DVD was heralded by anguished cries from those who stood next to a Blu-Ray player and plumped for HD. Toshiba, the owners of the technology, have decided to cut their losses in the face of mounting dominance in the HD market by Sony’s Blu-Ray. Scaling back on production will begin immediately and cease all together in March. While this may appear to be in the realms of big business, the end of this competitive technology could have a great impact upon the distribution of Indie films. Healthy competition between technologies breeds an open market, and crucially options for filmmakers and small distribution companies. If you can only go Blu-Ray, then the owners of that technology and also the major Hollywood players, who are already tied into the technology’s success, will hold an uncomfortable sway of the destination of distribution rights for Indie films. Rumblings that HD held benefits in terms of quality for image reproduction are sadly redundant, but let’s see what happens now with smaller companies moving into the high def market. The problems here could run a way deeper than eBay being inundated with auctions for HD-DVD players, and keep your eyes peeled for more on this in the next issue of IndieNational.
Away from the worries of the money men, one of Indie cinema’s most treasured graduates, David Fincher, has announced pre-production on comic adaptation (haven’t they all been made yet?) Black Hole. The plot of the graphic novel by Charles Burns centres on a plague amongst teens in Seattle that is passed on through sexual contact. The problem is that th
e symptoms of the plague include horn growth (not that kind), skin moulting and second mouths. Now we’re interested. The master of alienation and atmosphere, Fincher appears to have a tale of teenage angst that runs on an imaginative plain away from traditional teen flicks. Add to the mix a script from Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary, and you’ve got a pretty potent mix. No words yet on a cast, but expect a whole host of bright young things getting yucked up in the make up department.So from the exciting to the worrying. Akira, one of the best loved and most widely seen Manga films of all time has been commissioned as a two part feature by Warner Bros. Can it be done? Should it be done? There’s going to need to be a fairly colossal budget if it is to be successful, and first time Irish director Ruairi Robinson will have a big old task to pull it off. Chucking money at world classics does not always bring success (take a bow The Ring, The Grudge and Vanilla Sky) and here the prognosis is already not good. Fanboy reaction is sure to be fierce, but bet also on something of a backlash from fans of the uniquely Manga style of the film and its place within Japanese pop culture. The film is to be “Americanised”, so expect a toning down of some of the more off the wall elements, and gratuitous interiors at a Wendy’s. Leonardo DiCaprio’s Appian Way are on board as producers, but it appears unlikely that he will be in front of the camera here, despite rumours. Watch this space, and best of luck to you Mr.Robinson.
Huw Baines – trying to avoid a second mouth.
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