I swear, I don’t want to write about movie theaters and covid troubles again, but Mooky Greidinger (ceo of Cineworld, owners of Regal) and John Fithian (head of the National Association of Theater Owners) just won’t let me stop. They got together over the weekend and thought to themselves, “well, we can’t blame MGM or Eon (the Bond producers) for delaying No Time to Die, because they pay our bills.” They also can’t really blame audiences for not showing up either, because let’s face it, even outside of NYC, they weren’t exactly lining up in droves to see Jesus…I mean Nolan and Tenet… recently, either (theaters sure prayed that was going to be their savior). Then one of them, probably Mooky, thought – well, someone needs to come to our rescue, and the only person who can is a Big Orange Clown who hates NY with a passion, and there’s one way to get his attention and swing him to our defense… so let’s blame … NY Governor Cuomo ?!?!
It’s a pretty brilliant strategy, actually, and it took me about a day to figure out why they kept attacking Cuomo when there were so many other reasons the theaters are in trouble. To be fair, it also isn’t really Mooky and Fithian’s idea, as independent theaters in NY have also been complaining that Cuomo’s policies aren’t fair to them. But there is a slim chance that Trump will see them bitching about Cuomo and come to their defense with an aid package, and if this gambit works, heck, let’s give them all a medal, because theaters do need a lifeline.
 Outside of the US, cinemas are struggling, but people can show up and feel somewhat safe. Not so in the US. Sure, US cinemas have been doing everything they can to convince the public to show up, and most of us believe theaters when they say they’ve installed better air filtration and are following safety protocols. Theater owners also keep repeating the mantra that there have been no outbreaks traceable to a movie theater. But anyone with a brain cell knows you can’t really trace such things – anyone who goes to a movie theater now probably also goes to indoor restaurants, and other potentially unsafe activities.
I’ll admit – I can’t for the life of me figure out how bowling alleys are somehow more essential or safer than movie theaters, either (yesterday NYS said it has to do with ingress/egress). I exhale a lot more (potential Covid fumes) when I hurl a bowling ball down a lane than I do laughing at some movie, but maybe that’s just me. On the other hand, I did have someone cough half a bag of popcorn onto the back of my head once at a movie in Atlanta (during a preview, not even the movie! And on a first date, no less!), and that never happened when I was bowling. And that memory is part of the problem. Anyone who loves going to the movies probably has plenty of memories of other audience members not exactly being models of cleanliness pre-covid. We might trust theaters, but we don’t trust one another.
The reality is – we should not have opened bowling alleys or restaurants in NYC (but they must have had better lobbyists than the movie theaters), and they’ll likely be closing again soon. Case counts are going up, and it’s not only in the Orthodox communities. Speak to any epidemiologist (which I do daily as I live with one) and they’ll tell you they are getting more cautious now, not less. Guess how long you have to be sitting next to an infected person in an indoor space like a theater/restaurant to be considered at risk by contact tracers? 15 minutes (and some argue for 10). My personal bet is that we’ll close all NYC schools again within a week. On Monday, the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation estimated that we could see as many as 2,900 deaths a day in the US by the end of December, and add another 100,00 deaths by early December here, given current projections.
Aside from blaming Cuomo, many theaters and pundits are blaming studios and producers for not releasing more blockbusters. I don’t believe for a second that a greater supply of great movies would change the reality that few people trust one another enough to show up and hang out with strangers in a closed space for two hours – in the United States. And definitely not in NYC, where we’ve been scarred for life by seeing trailers filled with dead bodies on the sidewalks of our streets. That reality can only be blamed on one person – and it ain’t Cuomo, but Trump. If we had any kind of leadership, we’d not only have dealt with this more like other countries, we’d have good testing and tracing, less politicization around masks (and whether they’ll stay on your cinema neighbor’s face for two hours) and we’d be in theaters by now. And if we weren’t, we’d have an actual plan to help theater owners survive this catastrophe, with subsidies, loans and grants, so we could wait and reopen when it’s safe, instead of begging audiences to take a chance, and for studios to hope against all odds that enough people will show up to not lose their investments.
It’s really unfortunate that three of my favorite activities in life – going to movie theaters; drinking in a crowded bar, and eating inside a restaurant with friends – are among the more dangerous activities to do during Covid. But I don’t like them more than life itself, and I don’t blame Governor Cuomo for doing the right thing and limiting such activities when the federal government has yet to do a single part of its job here. I’ll join cinemas in lobbying for federal relief, but not in castigating Cuomo for being smart, or the Studios for not releasing blockbusters into mostly empty theaters.
On the other hand, I would also favor an industry-led rescue plan that lets the Studios release blockbusters across the world, alongside a day-date PVOD release in the US, with a portion of all revenues going to a theater-relief fund (matched by Government dollars?), to help them pay the rent and staff until they can open and welcome us all back again.
Meanwhile, AMC isn’t closing, partly they say because they have their PVOD deal with Universal. So Cineworld… follow the AMC lead and turn your loyalty program – Regal Unlimited in the US - into a Cinehome program and offer movies like Bond for a PVOD price of $50 USD. I know my wife and I would pay that much for No Time to Die (or Tenet, but not crap like King of Staten Island, mind you) and you could split the revenue 50/50 with the distributor and you’d both be ahead. We’d also come watch it again when theaters can open, safely, in the future and Cuomo could expend his energies fighting with de Blasio, which is a lot more fun to watch.
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Film
Maria Agui Carter's Magical Realist Dream for Media: Last week, I mentioned that I was looking forward to Maria Agui Carter's Keynote at the IDA Getting Real Conference, and her speech wasn't just great, it was a manifesto that will be spoken about within the community (and hopefully beyond) for years. My colleagues in the doc world haven't been able to stop speaking about it. I've tried to write up my thoughts on it a few times, but I keep failing. Just watch it. But I will leave one quote from her speech, that I found inspiring:
"By 2034, Latinx will be over 40% of this nation's workforce. Every 30 seconds, 2 non-Latinx reach retirement age and 1 Latinx turns 18. So while 10,000 Baby Boomers meet retirement age of 65 every day, a million Latinx hit 18...that's voting age. How can it be that we are not integral to the story that America tells about ourselves, integral to the media industry as authors of our own narratives. American media is killing us and we deserve better. Our Nation's well-being and future will be dictated by how much access we have to telling our own stories. Dream with me..."
She then goes on to give her "magical realist dream" for the future of American media, and asks "what do media reparations look like?" Watch the full speech, the call to action at the end, and the Q&A that follows - it's well worth your time.
Points North Pitch - This weekend, I co-moderated the Camden Film Festival's Points North Pitch (with my friend and filmmaker Marjan Safinia) and it will be broadcast online for free on October 10th at 1pm est. Check it out here. Tickets are free but you have to register. The Fellows who pitched are listed below, and they're all projects worth tracking. The projects selected for this year's Fellowship and Pitch are: Q (Jude Chehab); Esu and the Universe (Thiago Zanato, Adriana Barbosa); Seeking Mavis Beacon (Jazmin Jones, Guetty Felin); I Didn’t See You There (Reid Davenport, Keith Wilson); River of Grass (Sasha Wortzel, Danielle Varga); The Tuba Thieves (Alison O'Daniel, Rachel Nederveld). (The pitch was recorded for broadcast on YouTube to make the tech more seamless).
Don't Panic - Fundraising in a Pandemic - I'll be speaking on this panel at the Chicago International Film Festival's Industry Days. Oct 17th 2:00 – 3:00pm (CST): With economic uncertainty and insurance issues unresolved, what are the ways that filmmakers can fund movies now? From grants to private equity to branded content, these experts offer some options that may still be available.Panelists: Nicole Bernardi-Reis (moderator), Yvonne Welbon (Chicken & Egg Pictures, Sisters in Cinema), Brenda Robinson (GameChanger), Me, Josh Foster (Cinetic Media) Info Here. Full festival info.
Slamdance Sets Up a Cool New Version of the Festival - Slamdance isn't just shifting to a hybrid festival, they're doing something refreshing, new and innovative - kudos. Screen Daily reports. My favorite part- the festival will gather filmmakers in a socially distanced manner in Joshua Tree, CA for a private, filmmaker-only retreat. It will be adjacent to a public facing Drive-In, and there will be virtual offerings, including free screenings for audiences, and my second favorite part - filmmakers get paid via funds from sponsors. I love the idea of just getting filmmakers together, which is something sorely needed right now. They're also holding a sidebar for filmmakers with disabilities, and while this wasn't announced, I've spoken to the organizers and they're working on diversity and inclusion in their programming, and in their thinking about press and audience outreach. I can't wait to hear more.
Ford's Beyond Inclusion Report - The Ford Foundation commissioned a report "on the critical role of People of Color on the US Documentary Ecosystem" written by Sahar Driver, PhD. Among the conclusions: "The report concludes that a generational investment in POC infrastructure is necessary to both shore up legacy organizations that have worked with minimal resources for decades as well as dynamic new organizations and networks that have emerged in the last ten years. These players constitute a powerful ecosystem that—if properly resourced—can be a significant force in transforming the documentary landscape toward one that is more inclusive, ethically grounded and sustainable, and that ultimately is a more powerful force for social change." Read it here.
Intel has a Massive VR Studio - and IndieWire takes a look. Apparently, the 10,000 sq/ft studio is set up for everything from volumetric video capture, to working with theater and performing arts groups, and is designed to help creators experiment with everything from AR to VR, while improving the system as lessons are learned. A lot more to be explored here, but a good start.
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Branded Content
Branded Content is Back, but complicated: In two articles, Digiday reports on how branded content production companies are ramping back up, but with a continued focus on social-distanced production, but that it's also led to "more cooks in the kitchen" as producers navigate when to allow clients to participate in virtual shoots.
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Miscellany:
Jenny Holzer Built an AR App - That allows you to virtually project provocative quotes onto buildings, or anywhere, using AR technology on your phone. This technology forces me to ask - if the slogan protesting is virtual, does it have much of an impact beyond making you feel better? And further, does her art? I ask this only half in jest because whether protest art matters is becoming a serious question again.
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