Pad the Tab, Go to Jail
Daniel Adams, director of two movies on Cape Cod, has been sentenced to three years in state prison for exaggerating expenses when he applied for Massachusetts film tax credits.
Adams pleaded guilty to larceny and making a false claim when he applied for state film tax credits for the 2008 movie "The Golden Boys" (with Bruce Dern and David Carradine) and "The Lightkeepers," a 2009 movie (with Richard Dreyfuss and Blythe Danner).
Prosecutors said Adams overcharged the state by $4.7 million for expenses related to those movies. A Boston judge on Thursday ordered Adams to pay nearly $4.4 million in restitution and serve 10 years on probation after his prison sentence.
This case is one of several scandals nationwide involving abuses of film tax credit programs.
In January, filmmaker Harel Goldstein of Calabasas pleaded guilty to defrauding Iowa's now-defunct film tax credit program. Former Iowa Film Office Director Tom Wheeler was convicted last year of misconduct over his handling of state film tax credits. And in 2009, a Louisiana film office official was given a two-year prison sentence for steering tax credits to a local producer.
2011 Top 30 Indie Films
by Peter Knegt - IndieWire
|
1. Midnight in Paris |
Sony Pictures Classics |
$56,341,186 |
|
2. The Descendants |
Fox Searchlight |
$39,675,000 |
|
3. The Tree of Life |
Fox Searchlight |
$13,303,319 |
|
4. The Conspirator |
Roadside Attractions |
$11,538,204 |
|
5. Jane Eyre |
Focus |
$11,242,660 |
|
6. Win Win |
Fox Searchlight |
$10,179,275 |
|
7. My Week With Marilyn |
The Weinstein Company |
$8,964,000 |
|
8. Kevin Hart: Laugh at My Pain |
Codeblack |
$7,706,436 |
|
9. Sarah's Key |
The Weinstein Company |
$7,693,187 |
|
10. Cedar Rapids |
Fox Searchlight |
$6,861,102 |
Filmmaking in the Cloud
by Andy Marken
Today, we’re overwhelmed with news, information and entertainment options.
Whether you’re at home or away, broadcasters are all vying for your attention, your time, your money. That’s the evolutionary shift the NAB (National Association of Broadcasters) show participants and attendees struggle with these days.
It isn’t easy to move into new, uncharted areas.
It used to be it was big studios, big iron, and big cigars.
Now, it’s less about being vertically integrated than knowing how to loosely, flexibly integrate and leverage resources. Companies like Dalet, Harmonics and Accenture showed off some great production solutions; but we were more intrigued with their emphasis on how they could help content owners/deliverers protect, repurpose, recycle and monetize the assets.
Produce, Monetize – The most active booths at NAB were those that offered complete solutions built around their core technologies. Solutions that could economically slash production time/costs and enable content providers to provide you with what you want, on the device you prefer … first.
That’s the focus for the majors – CNN, ABC, NBC, BBC, TBS, Warner, Disney and bollywood – all of which continually produce Petabytes of rich content assets they want to leverage to the Nth degree.
We were surprised at first to see a big presence of non-traditional broadcasters – Lowe’s, Safeway, Target, Home Depot, McDonald’s, Starbucks and Pizza Hut – just as intent on finding ways to improve their connection with consumers.
Think about it (which we didn’t before NAB), they have the same problems, networks, stations the indies have. They have to not only produce attention-holding content, they have to also slice, dice and deliver professional-looking content to the store, on the Web, direct to your device.
The new Media Asset Management (MAM) software and systems – along with the big data details on your web/personal device history – enable content producers and deliverers to elegantly provide just the right news/entertainment. It’s spellbinding to see.
The automation gives users the content they want on the TV, iPhone/smartphone, iPad, PC, the fridge/toaster and whatever comes next. It also delivers the appropriate ads for that time, that device.
Of course, there are hurdles to overcome, as Montgomery McNeil noted, “A pie in the face comes with the job. That's what my mom says; she should know.”
Variety on the Block
Industry icon, Variety, is being sold.
Variety, owned by Reed Business Information "is an iconic title serving the film and entertainment industry for more than 100 years," said RBI chief executive Mark Kelsey. "With RBI's increasing focus on data services, and the sale of our other U.S. print magazines, it now makes sense for us to sell the business. Variety has an incredibly talented team who have successfully innovated and expanded the franchise in industry news and analysis. I have no doubt the business will continue to thrive under new ownership."
A Variety staff member who was briefed by management on the status of the sale told paidContent that 11 potential bidders have asked to see the deal book. He wouldn’t disclose who those bidders are. The sale is being handled by Evercore Partners, which managed the sale of both Newsweek and BusinessWeek.
RBI s transitioning from a publisher of ad-supported business-to-business print magazines to being a seller of online data. During an RBI “investor day” presentation in the UK Thursday, CEO Mark Kelsey said that with the sale of Variety, RBI will have completely exited the U.S. magazine market, having divested over 150 print titles across 14 countries in 26 separate transactions, products that represented 45 percent of its portfolio as of 2008.
“We couldn’t see a compelling valuation path in line with our strategy,” Kelsey said. That strategy, he added, is a focus on “paid data services,” which now account for 60 percent of RBI’s portfolio, and a “relentless focus on costs.”
Colorado Film Incentives Bill Passed
Colorado’s film incentives bill HB12-1286 was far enough along in the legislative process that it wasn’t caught in the churn of the General Assembly’s unfinished business. The bill passed Tuesday night in the Senate 24-11.
“We got lucky,” Colorado film commissioner Donald Zuckerman said on the phone Thursday. “It passed at 7:45. We had to go back to the House because of one amendment in the Senate but that didn’t take long.” In April, the House passed the bill 45-20.
Zuckerman spent nearly a year working to draft and then lobby for a bill that is competitive with other state’s film incentives and tax rebates and is expected to bring projects that would utilize local crews and help rebuild the area’s once-robust production infrastructure.
“I feel the vote was a mandate to get out there and bring film and television productions here to Colorado. It wasn’t a squeaker,” he said. “Now it’s time to really do my job, to get actual productions here. And we will. I am absolutely confident that we’ll get something great to start off with.”
Baseline Developing Stories - May 8
THE TALENT TICKER
- Brad Bird will direct “1952” for Walt Disney Studios
- Jeffrey DeMunn, Andrew Rothenberg and Haley Strode have joined the ensemble of TNT’s pilot “L.A. Noir”
- Gary Ross is in talks to direct “Houdini” for Summit Entertainment and Kennedy/Marshall Company
- Teri Hatcher will make her directorial debut and recur on ABC Family’s “Jane By Design”
- Elijah Wood stars in “Grand Piano” for Versus Entertainment
- Peter Jacobson, Dean Winters and Brooke Smith are set to appear in the season finale of NBC’s “Law & Order: SVU”
- Sally Hawkins is in discussions to join the cast of Woody Allen’s upcoming untitled film
- Adrian Pasdar will portray the president on USA Network’s new series “Political Animals”
- Henry Selick helms “The Graveyard Book” for Walt Disney Studios, Gil Netter Productions and Wayfare Entertainment Ventures
- Anna Hutchinson, Jenna Lind and Gwendoline Taylor join the ensemble of the upcoming season of “Spartacus” on Starz
- Julia Louis-Dreyfus and James Gandolfini are in negotiations to star in Nicole Holofcener’s untitled romantic comedy for Fox Searchlight and Likely Story
- Charlotte Ross will co-star in VH1’s pilot “Bounce”
- Wagner Moura stars and Terrence Howard and William H. Macy co-star in “Fellini Black & White” for Mad Chance Productions
- Demi Lovato is in final negotiations to join Fox’s “The X Factor” as a judge
- Julianne Moore is in discussions to star in the remake of “Carrie” for MGM, Screen Gems, and Misher Films
- Mary Lynn Rajskub and Patrick Fischler are set to guest on ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy”
- Josh Gad is in negotiations to co-star in the indie feature “Jobs”
- John Finn will play a CEO in an episode of USA Network’s “Suits.”
IN DEVELOPMENT THIS WEEK
Hole in the Fence
Feature
Paramount Pictures, Weapons of Mass Entertainment
P: Pamela Oas Williams
W: David Harris
Musical drama about a group of kids who form a band while living in a small mining town.
Black Sails
TV series
Starz, Platinum Dunes
EP: Michael Bay, Brad Fuller, Andrew Form
Hollywood's Fuzzy Math
reelgrok staff report
Speaking at the November 2011's American Film Market, Victoria Espinel, the White House coordinator for the Office of Management and Budget, repeated the oft-heard “wisdom” that the theft of intellectual property is costing about $58 billion every year.
Given the scale of the problem, of course, the movie business must have rock-solid numbers on what piracy costs them. But a closer look shows how dubious these figures seem.
“Obviously, the movie industry's number is going to be somewhat suspect," says David Abrams, a fellow with the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University. "Even if a person downloaded a movie, it's very hard to translate that into, '…and they would have paid $10.50 to see it.' "
It turns out that Espinel's $58 billion figure covers IP theft as a whole, not limited to only film and television. And the figure originated in a 2007 report, "The True Cost of Copyright Industry Piracy to the U.S. Economy," written by economist Stephen Siwek for the Institute for Policy Innovation, a right-wing think tank founded by Dick Armey, the former Republican congressman.
The MPAA's credibility on piracy costs was hurt by a separate 2007 report it commissioned which blamed U.S. college students for 44 percent of the studios' losses due to piracy. The studios quickly acknowledged "human error" in its accounting, admitting students were responsible for only 15 percent of domestic losses.
Errors aside, the report was derived from 2005 statistics which claimed the studios lose $6.1 billion or more annually to worldwide piracy. There has been no new report since then.
As to when one will be conducted, Chris Dodd, the former U.S. Senator named chair-man and CEO of the MPAA in March 2011, told The Hollywood Reporter last year: "We are planning that report; it's internal at this juncture. It shouldn't be too long."
No doubt that piracy cuts into Hollywood's profits. But Hollywood doesn't seem interested in knowing how deep that wound.
Featured Member
Anthony R. Peterson
Writer / Director with over ten years TV production experience in Australia, seeking to break into the LA film scene. Willing to work on low budget productions to build up a network of contacts with the right people.
Im developing a couple of my own scripts (a period drama set in the ancient middle east, and a low budget drama).
More about Anthony R. Peterson
Anthony R. Peterson
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Sample budget for a "reality" TV show pilot. In Excel
$150K documentary budget prepared by LB Productions in Word
A low-budget feature entirely in Excel.
HGST (formerly Hitachi Global Storage Technologies and now a Western Digital company) has introduced a new line of CinemaStar drives, offering high capacity at low power. The traditional and ultra-slim drives have been designed for compact DVRs, HDD-embedded TVs and set top boxes
The 2.5-inch drives are designed for audio/video (A/V) and consumer electronics (CE) markets. These sixth generation drives have advanced streaming technology to optimize the 24/7 recording and playback of A/V content.
The line includes:
Read Moreby Steven G. Kaplan
Entertainment Law Partners
Whether it is your first or twelfth time to the Cannes Film Festival, this article will help you navigate the complexity of the festival and market. I first attended Cannes in 1999 to support the international sales efforts on my first feature, TERROR TRACT. Since then, I've attended the festival every year so my comments derive from personal experience (some painful, some not).
1. Stay in Cannes. I really cannot emphasize enough how important it is to stay in Cannes and not outside. Walking distance from the Palais (where most of the sellers have their offices) and the hotel row on the Croisette is critical. Sole exception would be the Hotel Du Cap, particularly if you are a financier or just want your privacy, then Du Cap is the place to be. Most of the major film industry heavy weights stay there, but it is a 25 minute drive into the part of town where most of the action is.
Don’t stay at Du Cap if your meetings and events mostly take place in town. The best locations to stay would be center pointe on the Rue la Croisette, between the Majestic Hotel and the Carlton Hotel, or in an apartment behind those hotels to the main drag. Another great option is staying on a yacht. Even though the staterooms tend to be small, there is nothing like the convenience and glamour of spending your time in Cannes on a yacht.
2. Rent a Car? What’s the point? You have to hassle with parking, the expense and everything that goes with that. Taxis are plentiful and don’t cost that much. Exception would be if you are staying out of town or at Du Cap.
3. What About My Stuff? There is a fair amount of risk of theft or loss of your personal possessions. I follow a very simple rule: carry everything on your body that you can absolutely not afford to lose. This includes your passport, money and credit cards. Hide everything you care about otherwise in your room. Only leave things behind that you care nothing about. With iPads and tablet devices, laptop is no longer necessary unless you are doing heavy duty writing or drafting documents.
4. Advance Planning. The best way to make Cannes effective is
Read More
by Steven G. Kaplan - Entertainment Law Partners
Whether it is your first or twelfth time to the Cannes Film Festival, this article will help you navigate the complexity of the festival and market. I first attended Cannes in 1999 to support the international sales efforts on my first feature, TERROR TRACT. Since then, I've attended the festival every year so my comments derive from personal experience (some painful, some not).
1. Stay in Cannes. I really cannot emphasize enough how important it is to stay in Cannes and not outside. Walking distance from the Palais (where most of the sellers have their offices) and the hotel row on the Croisette is critical. Sole exception would be the Hotel Du Cap, particularly if you are a financier or just want your privacy, then Du Cap is the place to be. Most of the major film industry heavy weights stay there, but it is a 25 minute drive into the part of town where most of the action is.
Don’t stay at Du Cap if your meetings and events mostly take place in town. The best locations to stay would be center pointe on the Rue la Croisette, between the Majestic Hotel and the Carlton Hotel, or in an apartment behind those hotels to the main drag. Another great option is staying on a yacht. Even though the staterooms tend to be small, there is nothing like the convenience and glamour of spending your time in Cannes on a yacht.
2. Rent a Car? What’s the point? You have to hassle with parking, the expense and everything that goes with that. Taxis are plentiful and don’t cost that much. Exception would be if you are staying out of town or at Du Cap.
3. What About My Stuff? There is a fair amount of risk of theft or loss of your personal possessions. I follow a very simple rule: carry everything on your body that you can absolutely not afford to lose. This includes your passport, money and credit cards. Hide everything you care about otherwise in your room. Only leave things behind that you care nothing about. With iPads and tablet devices, laptop is no longer necessary unless you are doing heavy duty writing or drafting documents.
4. Advance Planning. The best way to make Cannes effective is to plan in advance. There is so much happening that the chaos theory frequently rules. I find that starting your meetings at 11 a.m. is most effective to avoid last minute cancellations from too much partying the night before.
Schedule meetings and events in advance but remain flexible as everyone’s schedule is constantly in flux. A typical day would include numerous meetings, cocktail hours (2 or 3), dinner meeting, premiere and afterparty.
5. Things to Pack. Necessities: bring a Tux or Formal Dress, a passport and credit cards (better exchange rate). All of the screenings at the Luminere (the superbowl of movie theaters) require formal wear for the men (including bow tie- NO neckties allowed) and formal dress for the ladies. They won’t let you in without it.
6. Credentials. You must get a Marche du Film credential if you want to see any screenings. A market badge is critical if you want to enter the Palais to meet with buyers or sellers. If you have produced or executive produced a film, register for the Producer’s Network. American Pavilion pass is good if its your first time in Cannes at the festival and need a good meeting spot with WiFi.
7. Pace Yourself. The Cannes Film Festival is a whirlwind of meetings, panels, network opportunities, red carpet premieres, yacht parties, late night drinks and rockstar parties. Pace yourself (see #4). Need I say more?
Most importantly, have fun and don’t get too stressed. After all, you are in Cannes for the Superbowl of film festivals and film markets. It could be worse.
Entertainment Law Partners will be in attendance at the Cannes Film Festival
from May 17-23. To set a meeting to discuss your project, please email us.
COPYRIGHT & DISCLAIMER
Steven G. Kaplan is Partner at Entertainment Law Partners
dedicated to corporate, business and entertainment affairs.
You may contact him at Steve@entlawpartners.com.
Steven G. Kaplan grants column recipients permission to copy and distribute this column
free of charge, provided that copies are distributed for educational and non-profit use,
no changes or revisions are made, all copies clearly attribute the article to its author
and include its copyright notice.
DISCLAIMER: Readers should consult with a lawyer before solely relying on any information contained herein.
I discovered Jacques Tati about 10 years ago thru Turner Classic Movies (probably the best film channel still around) and I couldn't believe I had never heard of him before that. He is a landmark filmmaker and needs to be remembered alongside such comic greats as Chaplin and Keaton.
There are no other films comparable to Tati films -- they are meticulously made observations of everyday life usually told thru the experiences of Tati's alter ego, Mons. Hulot.
'Playtime' is undeniably Tati's masterpiece. It has many levels; a slapstick comedy, a social commentary and a satire of modern life. The 'plot' (a word used loosely in Tati films) centers around Hulot trying to make an appointment in downtown Paris. The film focuses on the modern Paris -- full of cold, steel buildings and the so-called progress of the modern age.
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