Showbiz Sandbox 85: How To Save The Movie Business

December 27, 2010

In an age of video on demand and mobile computing, the traditional method for releasing films doesn’t seem to be working. As ticket prices rise, moviegoing and ticket sales are declining. Even worse, the fastest declining segment of moviegoers is young adults who can’t find movies that speak to their generation. Independent producer Cotty Chubb has proposed a potential solution to the problem, but it requires the participation of reluctant theater operators.

In a open letter to Relativity Media topper Ryan Kavanaugh published on IndieWire, Chubb suggests that riskier movies be released “day-and-date” at lower prices not only in theaters but on multiple platforms such as DVD and iTunes. He joins us for an in-depth discussion about his plan and how to bring audiences back to the movies.

As 2010 comes to a close we take a look at some of the year’s highest grossing and most pirated films. We also say goodbye to our co-host Karen Woodward whose career as a social media consultant has truly taken off.

Of course, we cover the week’s top entertainment headlines during Big Deal or Big Whoop, including the latest news from the Broadway version of “Spider-Man”, a delay in the next “DaVinci Code” movie and Steven Soderbergh’s rumored retirement. Our Inside Baseball topic focuses on SoundExchange and the music industry’s rising digital fortunes.

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Showbiz Sandbox 59: Movie Piracy Becomes Unthinkable

June 21, 2010

On the weekend of June 11th the film “Unthinkable” starring Samuel L. Jackson and Michael Sheen rocketed up the Internet Movie Database’s MovieMeter. It wound up at number three beating out such new releases as “Get Him To The Greek” and “Shrek Forever After”. The funny thing is, this film wasn’t playing in theaters and at the time hadn’t even been released on DVD. A pristine pirated version however did leak online.

Cotty Chubb, the producer of “Unthinkable”, joins us to discuss the film, whether the illegal version helped its recent release and ultimately how movie piracy is affecting the entertainment industry.

“Toy Story 3” didn’t have to worry about being pirated when it opened this weekend since most theaters were showing it in 3D. The film earned debuted in first place with a whopping $109 million. That makes it the most successful Pixar opening ever.

Piracy doesn’t seem to be affecting Michael Jackson’s estate either. In the year since the performer’s death his music and film work has earned nearly a billion dollars according to Billboard magazine.

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