April 06, 2006
Another Perspective on Caveh, Cuban and Comcast

I know I am going to lose points with people for posting this but I can't help but chime in on the Sex Addict/Landmark issue. While I agree that such a last minute decision to pull the film is in poor taste and a one-time reversal for the opening would win Cuban and Landmark fans, I also find all the complaining a bit off-the-mark, so to speak.

The reasons to pull are clear and logical, Cuban is fighting to have HDnet included in a distribution chain he (and all the films that go with him) is currently locked out of. One could argue that bowing down to corporate monoliths, as is being widely encouraged, is anti-indie.

Film distribution and exhibition is a no-holds-barred business across the board. Ask any theater owner which indie distribs. play these same hardball games and the answer likely to be short - all of them. And as Eamonn points out on Caveh's blog, so do the affiliated theater chains.

Caveh is caught in the middle and that is a shame but Caveh chose to go the corporate acquisition route and these issues will *always* be part and parcel with taking that road, even if they aren't always so public.

So if we're to pick a team here, let's ask a few questions about the specific players -

Does Comcast care more about indie films or Landmark?

Has Comcast's CEO posted to Caveh's blog? Does he/she care enough to openly describe their position?

Overall, this situation is a great case study for why indies should self-distribute. Aside from that though, Cuban and Landmark get kudos in my book for being open, honest and engaged in the community. That is so much more than we get from most others.

Posted by j.d.ashcraft to Film Industry at 04:21PM on Apr 6, 2006
Comments

nail on the head.

Oh yeah, let's give Mark Cuban kudos for being open with us about his god damn ego and his willingness to position himself and landmark as the only venue willing to screen these films. Plenty of indie theatres are willing and more capable of screening them and they get muscled out of the market place by his "vertical integration" scheme. Wasn't vertical integration unlawful just a few short years ago? Yeah, let's be congratulatory about him flexing that muscle yet again. Come on!

I think you're missing the point. Cuban has a vision and he is executing that vision. He may play hardball with the best of them but that doesn't mean he doesn't care, or isn't passionate about, independent film and indie filmmakers. There are easier ways to make money. In the long run, his shrewdness is a good thing.

That said, my goal is not to defend Cuban or the cut throat world of corporate-based distribution, it's to encourage filmmakers to be a little more practical and a little more educated about business. There are times when one might want to embrace a distributor and their ideas for releasing a film to a large audience. However, most of the time, because of the business mechanics, it's simply not worth it.

If filmmakers as a group had a little more business acumen, we would control the entire distribution process, something Landmark (and others) enables, btw.

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