Sunday, July 17, 2005
By:
|
Comments
|
This big ordeal between Disney, Miramax and Dimension is turning out to be a blessing in disguise for us horror fans. All of the crap they've done to us horror fans over the years has me steaming, but now we'll now who really was the reason for the crap. The Weinstien's have some fantastic properties and can move them to other homes; franchises like Halloween and Hellraiser can finally be purchased by someone who cares, so keep those fingers crossed that we'll be seeing some GOOD sequels in the near future. Read on for the full story...
DVD Exclusive writes:
Some details of the fledgling Weinstein Co.'s DVD operations are close to being finalized, with distribution-outsourcing talks appearing to narrow to key studio candidates Sony and Warner.
It's also now apparent that there will be a good amount of product to distribute once Harvey Weinstein and Bob Weinstein officially open the company for biz in October.
When the Weinstein brothers split with Disney and left Miramax behind, they abandoned the library of titles produced by the Dimension horror division but retained rights to the Dimension brand. It now emerges that Dimension also will retain rights to make future sequels in the Hellraiser, Halloween and Children of the Corn franchises, though some other horror franchises--The Prophecy, The Crow and Dracula--will stay with Disney.
Hellraiser boasts a particularly flexible story structure that makes for endless sequel possibilities, said Dimension VP Nick Phillips. Phillips also hopes the movie Feast, produced during the reality series Project Greenlight, will become a franchise for the company, though nothing is settled at this point.
"You always have to be on the lookout for the next franchise," he mused.
As for distributing Weinstein Co.'s DVDs, company and studio execs declined to specify which studios were still in negotiations with the Weinsteins. But key industry sources said talks have narrowed to those with Sony and Warner.
Elsewhere among start-up arrangements, the Weinsteins recently hired Richard Saperstein away from Artisan Pictures to head production at Dimension. And the company has struck a multi-year acquisition pact with Rainbow Media to feed future DVD output.
The Weinstein Co. has been tapped as the exclusive home DVD distributor for titles from Rainbow's IFC Films and TV shows from Rainbow pay-TV nets AMC, Women's Entertainment and Fuse.
Some sources believe that eventually, the Weinsteins will take DVD distribution in-house, but that would likely take a few years.
It's worth noting that Dimension's DVD operations have been enjoying a big year at Disney. New episodes of DVD premiere movie series Hellraiser, The Prophecy and The Crow--shot a couple years ago but held back from release--finally debuted on shiny disc this summer, and Dracula III: Legacy will debut on July 12.
Dimension's profitable DVD premieres, shot on budgets of $2 million to $4 million apiece, tend to use acting troupes that move from one franchise to the next, with productions taking just six months from inception to finished film delivery.
Phillips--a 32-year-old exec who started as a receptionist in Bob Weinstein's office--moved to L.A. in 2001 to oversee DVD premiere production.
Source: DVD Exclusive
Be The First To Comment!
You have to be logged in to comment!
If you don't have an account register now for free! Your account allows you to post comments and reviews, upload videos and images, access or our forums, write personal blogs, and maintain your profile.
Print Story
Send to a Friend
