Future titles in the Directors Label Series?
 

I am wondering if anyone knows if there will be any future titles in the Directors Label Series from Palm Pictures?

http://www.palmpictures.com/film/-di...bel-series.php

TIA

Shortly after the release of the second series I remember reading that it was pretty much confirmed that Garth Jennings was gonna get one.

That was like 2 years ago and as far as I know there's been no new developments.

The only other tidbit of misc. "Directors Label" info I can think of is that David Fincher was approached but he declined them.

I think a Dayton/Faris disc would be sweet and thanks to "Little Miss Sunshine" there would be a lot of demand for it but between the Smashing Pumpkins and Red Hot Chili Peppers video compilations a huge chunk of their most notable work is well-represented on DVD.

Michel Gondry has been working on a second volume of his. I interviewed him and he said the following:

TF: Well, then, do you know when, if ever, you'll be doing another installment of the Director's Works Series you did with him?

MG: Yeah, I want to do another, but Palm Pictures, they didn't pay me yet, so I'm a little...[laughs] I mean it, this thing was the best thing that happened to me, to put out this DVD, because after that people started to think of me as a creator, as before they said, "Oh yeah, he's a video director, so he's just like the visuals, doesn't care for the story," but once they look at that, they, people from the movie business, who are a little bit close-minded, started to open to me. And they say, "Oh, you can do good videos, actually, he did some good ones, so, maybe these are not so bad," And that helped with a large amount of Eternal Sunshine, so I'm really pleased on the way it turned out, with the book, and all the menus, everything was exactly the way I wanted, and it was very nice, and I wish it was always the case. The only thing is, we sold like two or three hundred thousand copies, but it's okay, I'm [trying with] the next one to have more right on it, and get some...I have already, like, 15 to 20 videos lined up to do it, and I'm doing a subject on my auntie this summer, who has been a schoolteacher all her life in countryside, little town, and my son, the documentary will be called Paul Gondry, he's my son, and it's going to be about his painting, and he's grown up a lot since the DVD.

I'd be very interested in a volume 2 of Michel Gondry. I'm sure a volume 2 of Spike Jonze would also sell well.

love this series, and a new set featuring any directors would make me happy

I only have the Gondry one, great news that they're working on a second one.

I'm a fan of these but it seems Palm Pictures isn't a company with it's head on straight.

How so? Have they had problems with their other releases?

Because they haven't released a new set in nearly 2 years.

Actually, sadly, I was reading filmick today and they say that it looks like the dismal sales of the second wave have been the death knell of the series and that Gondry 2 is the only other volume we're gonna get.

This is massively disappointing. The box set of the first three volumes is still, by far, the best DVD purchase I have ever made.

Well that truly sucks. But at least now I know not to expect anymore.

The second set was poorly chosen.

Romanek's was stunningly good, while Corbijn only had a few videos that appealed to a mass audience, and Sednaoui's was heavy with Mirwais and Tricky videos that don't speak to most buyers. The less said about Glazer's, the better, as his was the least impressive of the bunch.

Fincher would have made the series golden, and some anthologies, instead of single director discs would have sold better.

I also think the re-packaging of the first wave in a box with a new disk made some buyers wary about rushing out to buy the second wave of releases.

Palm Pictures will send you the bonus disc and poster that were added to the box set if you just email them and ask them.

I'm the one that discovered it!

Probably true in the "mass audience" mindset but I definitely came around on the content after awhile, especially Glazer's DVD. I would say that Corbijn is the one I still have the least interest in.

I think if they're gonna go out they should do three others with Gondry to make a final wave of Director's Works. It should be Hammer & Tongs, Gondry, Mike Mills and Jonas Åkerlund (as they've all directed films and will have SOME pull towards the people who will buy this kind of DVD).

Sometimes when I see this, I wonder if the people saying it have actually seen any of Fincher's videos. I've seen a lot of them, and while they're competently shot, they're not really that creative or original, which is a hallmark of the Director's Label series.

And then there's the actual music. If you look at all the Director's Label installments, you'll notice that the overwhelming majority of musicians on there are people who constantly ride the line between well-known and cult item (Bjork, Radiohead, Aphex Twin, The White Stripes, Weezer, The Chemical Brothers). And almost all of them are in genres that non-mainstream (hip hop, trip-hop, electronic, alternative rock, garage rock, power pop, etc.). Sure, a superstar like Madonna is on the Directors Label, but the videos that are featured ("Bedtime Story," "Rain," "Frozen") have striking visuals, and they all come from her flirtation with electronic music.

If they made a Fincher volume, what would we get a lot of? Timeless and respected artists like Paula Abdul, Jodi Whatley, Foreigner, Billy Idol, Loverboy, Rick Springfield, Steve Windwood, and Eddie Money.

Even on the rare occasion when the DL dips into the 80's for a music video, like on Corbijn's, the people they select can easily be called alternative or hold appeal to current generations (Joy Division, Echo & the Bunnymen, Depeche Mode).

It sucks if this is true that the DL is coming to an end. I would've liked to have seen people like Hammer & Tongs and Shynola get a release.

Perhaps with each wave, they could release a second volume of one of their "tentpole" directors (Gondry, Spike Jonze) along with some of the cult directors (or generally unknown ones)?

And for the record, I think the Jonathan Glazer disc is second only to Mark Romanek's as the best disc in Wave 2.

Anytime I think of Fincher I think of that Rolling Stones video with the models walking down the street. David Fincher's name alone would sell the sets. It's too bad that it worked out this way. Palm should've pulled a Criterion and created spine numbers. This would've given people an incentive to purchase the DVDs.

Content doesn't matter. A Fincher release would've sold enough copies to greenlight a third wave, no doubt about it.

what e-mail address did you use?

I don't even remember, it was like a year ago.

I went hog-wild and posted the info on like every online forum I post on though. I bet you could find the thread if you did a search. I'd do one but I'm off to Wal-Mart for midnight DVD releases!

I do remember it was just one of the email addresses readily available on the site at the time. Just shoot off some emails to any address you find there.

I really only have interest in Michel Gondry and Spike Jonze in what they did with music videos so I can't say I am going to be that depressed over the demise. I really liked the Cunningham disc too but he has a small output. I think they should've just put out more Gondry and Jonze since there really was plenty more Jonze to give. They are probably my two most watched discs I own. My niece watches them constantly too. Amarillo by Morning is one of my most favorite documentaries.

I emailed them about this over a year ago and still haven't gotten a response.

Well, Jonze handpicked his. I think the ones that aren't on the DVD he probably left out on purpose.

If Gondry does a second volume, I hope he includes the video for "Knives Out" by Radiohead.
It was even shown briefly in the trailer for Volume 1, but was nowhere to be found. :(

I would just like to know why they were never released enhanced for 16x9 televisions. You would think that these director's would want their vision represented properly.