Independent films have enjoyed unprecedented popularity over the last few years—witness Shakespeare In Love and The Blair Witch Project. Despite such successes, many critically acclaimed indie films lack adequate distribution and screening, and never make it beyond the limited film festival circuit.
To provide exposure and distribution for promising work, New York-headquartered independent film studio The Shooting Gallery (TSG) has teamed with Loews Cineplex Entertainment to create a film series that brings indies beyond art houses and into local movie complexes.
The Shooting Gallery Film Series, launched Feb. 25, presents a slate of six highly-praised but underexposed indie movies that will be shown in 17 major markets nationwide in Loews multiplexes over a 12-week period. The series, which will present a new lineup of six films in the fall, kicked off with the Eric Mendelsohn-directed Judy Berlin, which won the Directing Award at the ’99 Sundance Film Festival, among other honors. The film series also offers "club nights," during which movie lovers will be able to converse with those involved in different aspects of the film, including critics and the filmmakers themselves.
Offering a range of film production, postproduction and distribution services, the 10-year-old TSG has produced nearly 20 indie films financed through a network of investors. Tim Clawson, president/executive producer of The Shooting Gallery Productions (TSGP), a commercial and music video division launched last fall (SHOOT, 10/8/99, p.1), also serves as executive VP to the company’s production/postproduction facility Gun For Hire, which has bases in New York, Miami Beach, Vancouver, B.C. and Toronto.
"The challenge of an independent feature film is not so much the initial negative cost and financing," said Clawson. "A lot of films get made. The problem is they don’t get picked up for distribution. That’s because the cost of marketing, prints and advertising is such that—combined with the negative cost—it begins to look fairly challenging when you think about the kind of box office that has to be achieved to get the return on your investment." Filmmakers usually don’t have an outlet for their movies, other than
getting it screened at a film festival.
In addition to partnering with Loews, the nation’s largest theatrical exhibitor, TSG teamed with such sponsors as Polo Jeans, Heineken, Hollywood Video, Encore, Starz! and Yahoo! Movies. "What you end up with," said Clawson, "is an opportunity [for audiences] to see these films as they were intended: on the big screen; not in art cinemas in bad parts of towns, but in major markets across America. I think a program like this bodes well for independent or lower-budget films to continue to have a life. It’s an interesting way to solve a business problem. We hope that this will become an ongoing thing."
The Shooting Gallery Film Series also represents an opportunity for both indie filmmakers whose movies are featured in the program, and the spot directors under The Shooting Gallery Productions banner, to explore different mediums. Observing that TSG’s philosophy is that creative talent can work in different disciplines, Clawson said the film series could serve as a conduit to longform opportunities for TSGP commercial directors such as Carlton Chase and directing duo Spooner/French (Nick and Andrew, respectively).
In fact, Spooner/French wrote and directed the theatrical trailer promoting the film series. Shot like a nature documentary, "Extinct" makes a serious plea to save a soon-to-be extinct animal. As we watch visuals of assorted animals in the wild, a narrator solemnly intones, "With each passing day, another species of wildlife is placed in jeopardy of extinction, as their natural habitats are systematically destroyed. We risk losing these majestic animals forever. But there is hope; we’ve seen that we can do something to make a difference. That’s why The Shooting Gallery and Loews Cineplex Entertainment have joined forces to save the latest addition to this growing list: the independent filmmaker." We see that species in his natural habitat—a diner— where he sits alone, attempting to write a script. The tongue-in-cheek trailer, assessed Clawson, is "not far from what today’s environment is" for indie filmmakers.
TSG is truly an independent studio in that it has many in-house resources available to all its directors, said Clawson. TSG can supply scheduling, budgeting, and in-house casting; directors can also take advantage of TSG’s relationships with talent and talent agencies. Even if TSG isn’t literally financing the film, he said, it can be an active participant in getting that film made and brought to the big screen.
"Although TSG started out as an independent studio, we realized that in order to grow, we needed to expand into a multimedia company," Clawson said. "We think broadband is going to present a tremendous opportunity for those who create content, like TSG. Our goal was to build a roster of directors who can become part of our creative family—whether they’re doing things for us theatrically, in broadband, on the television side, or in commercials and music videos." Clawson noted that TSGP expects to announce several directorial additions shortly.
Clawson observed that TSG is now working with Chase and Spooner/French on developing ideas for Web-based broadband advertising. "There have been other [film] projects we’ve brought to Nick and Andy, and we’re pursuing other projects with Carlton as well.
"The word we often use to describe TSG is ‘community,”’ Clawson concluded. "That means that those who are involved with us really have the opportunity to look at all different areas. We’re there to act as their support, and to help bring their project to fruition. Whether it’s someone like Billy Bob Thornton [writer/actor/star of the ’96 hit Sling Blade, which TSG produced] or Bob Gosse [director of the TSG-produced Niagara, Niagara], or several other directors who’ve worked with us over the years, they are certainly available to do other projects through us."
