Read this in Deadline today. AMC Theaters and Regal Cinema have teamed up and created a new film distribution company called Open Road. It's being headed by Tom Ortenberg, a guy I used to brush past in the hallway when I worked at Lionsgate almost a decade ago. Without getting into too much detail, basically it cuts out the studio middle men who essentially mostly dictate what you see and don't see in the marquees. This is a huge game changer, and for someone like me whose gone the rigorous route of self financing, festival circuits, begging buyers - it's welcome news. And with P&A costs of marketing films so high these days, this new company can simply run ads and trailers before other movies in their own theatres. This goes in line with what I've been saying all along. The big tentpole movies have been running s**t for the past decade. People are now yearning for more indie, personal, offbeat fare - as evidenced by the recent Oscars with so many indie films in the running for the more prestigious awards, including The King's Speech, Black Swan, Blue Valentine, and others. The studios gotta be wincing at this news, hoping it doesn't become a larger trend with other theatre chains. The indie movement, I will always love you.
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