Films released by streaming services (Netflix, Amazon, etc.) -- Distribution, Awards, etc. Discussion
03-05-19, 12:58 PM
#76
Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
Of course they would only want to recognize theatrically released movies. Nothing wrong with them doing that.
I take back pretty much everything I've said. If the purpose of the Academy Awards is to booster theatre attendance, then there is nothing wrong with them excluding non-theatrical films. They don't have to be an all-purpose awards show. They can make whatever rules they want.
03-05-19, 01:13 PM
#77
DVD Talk Godfather & 2020 TOTY Winner
Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
Glad you see the light. And I didn't even have to make a Tribute to The Movies montage like the Academy tends to do.
03-05-19, 05:07 PM
#78
DVD Talk Hero
Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
I think this is less about big screen vs small screen than about controlling means of distribution. With 35 mm cans, studios had complete control on who would see what when and there wasn't squat anyone could do about it. Then digital cameras arrived and "democratized" the process a little, giving studios less control. And now you have competition from streaming services.
This article has it right IMHO:
That last bit sounds a tad hyperbolic but overall, there's a bigger battle going on here than "big vs small screen".
This article has it right IMHO:
Steven Spielberg Has Picked The Wrong Way To Argue Against Netflix
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You can accuse Netflix of just trying sell subscriptions without really caring who or what they're pushing, but how is that any different from what the more traditional growth- and gross-focused movies studios have done before?
The answer is scale, and like a T-Rex threatening to topple the puny Jeep you're trapped in, Netflix's scale has Spielberg and plenty of other filmmakers freaked out.
.
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... Spielberg is likely looking on in dolly zoom-worthy horror at the big picture. As with Amazon's expansion into physical retail, Netflix or any other streaming service can only grow and conquer so much about filmmaking and distribution before it starts trying to own the process on every single front, up to and including movie theaters themselves.
.
.
Steven Spielberg Has Picked The Wrong Way To Argue Against Netflix - Digg
.
.
You can accuse Netflix of just trying sell subscriptions without really caring who or what they're pushing, but how is that any different from what the more traditional growth- and gross-focused movies studios have done before?
The answer is scale, and like a T-Rex threatening to topple the puny Jeep you're trapped in, Netflix's scale has Spielberg and plenty of other filmmakers freaked out.
.
.
... Spielberg is likely looking on in dolly zoom-worthy horror at the big picture. As with Amazon's expansion into physical retail, Netflix or any other streaming service can only grow and conquer so much about filmmaking and distribution before it starts trying to own the process on every single front, up to and including movie theaters themselves.
.
.
Steven Spielberg Has Picked The Wrong Way To Argue Against Netflix - Digg
03-05-19, 06:15 PM
#79
DVD Talk Godfather & 2020 TOTY Winner
Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
That article is so dumb. Not once addressing the concerns, it is just an excuse to bash Spielberg's films and use Spielberg metaphors in the process. Pointing to Duel as "hypocrisy" is idiotic because of course nobody tried to get Duel into the Oscars in the first place.
Then again, far more prestigeous places have gotten the story wrong. CBS News has a headline that says
Steven Spielberg wants Netflix barred from Oscars contention
but then in the bullet points states :
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If that's what's most important to them, fine. But if they think they're making theatrical movies and not TV movies, if want an Oscar, they should be okay with releasing their movies in theaters first.
Then again, far more prestigeous places have gotten the story wrong. CBS News has a headline that says
Steven Spielberg wants Netflix barred from Oscars contention
but then in the bullet points states :
- Steven Spielberg contends that films debuting on streaming services shouldn't be eligible for Oscars
- That has sparked a debate pitting newcomers like Netflix against Hollywood's old guard
- At least some observers think Spielberg's battle has already been lost as streaming becomes mainstream
We love cinema. Here are some things we also love:
— Netflix Film (@NetflixFilm) March 4, 2019
-Access for people who can't always afford, or live in towns without, theaters
-Letting everyone, everywhere enjoy releases at the same time
-Giving filmmakers more ways to share art
These things are not mutually exclusive.
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If that's what's most important to them, fine. But if they think they're making theatrical movies and not TV movies, if want an Oscar, they should be okay with releasing their movies in theaters first.
03-05-19, 07:14 PM
#80
DVD Talk Hero
Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
I'm not sure what's dumb about an article (and the only one I've read) which correctly points out that there are far bigger issues at play here than just Spielberg's "concerns". Something about a nose, a tree and a forest. 
03-05-19, 07:41 PM
#81
DVD Talk Godfather & 2020 TOTY Winner
Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
I think this Variety article is much better and more balanced.
https://variety.com/2019/film/awards...ix-1203155528/
It's a little hard to say for sure how outlandish Spielberg's demands are because they haven't been clarified yet. The main take-away is that there needs to be more clear rules about what will be eligible and what won't. The times are changing and the Academy must adapt. I do agree with De Vray that this is a process that all Academy members should be involved with, not just the Board of Governors.
https://variety.com/2019/film/awards...ix-1203155528/
It's a little hard to say for sure how outlandish Spielberg's demands are because they haven't been clarified yet. The main take-away is that there needs to be more clear rules about what will be eligible and what won't. The times are changing and the Academy must adapt. I do agree with De Vray that this is a process that all Academy members should be involved with, not just the Board of Governors.
03-06-19, 03:41 AM
#82
DVD Talk Limited Edition
Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
So Spielberg is essentially saying that a movie can't stand on it's own as a piece of art. That's nonsense.
If the medium is that big a part of the art, he also need to advocate for strict and specific demands to the quality of the theater-going experience. No matter the theater and location.
If the medium is that big a part of the art, he also need to advocate for strict and specific demands to the quality of the theater-going experience. No matter the theater and location.
03-06-19, 02:06 PM
#84
DVD Talk Legend
Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
From The ONION
Steven Spielberg Criticizes Netflix For Ruining Golden Age Of Pandering Big-Budget Corporate Films
Steven Spielberg Criticizes Netflix For Ruining Golden Age Of Pandering Big-Budget Corporate Films
LOS ANGELES—Arguing that the streaming service has severely hamstrung the ability of directors to create saccharine, artistically meritless garbage, Steven Spielberg criticized Netflix Tuesday for ruining the golden age of pandering big-budget films produced by media conglomerates. “We were living in a wonderful era of insipid franchise-driven blockbusters when, suddenly, Netflix comes along and screws everything up by giving a platform to underrepresented directors and helping connect audiences across the globe to risk-taking, idiosyncratic films that would never be made by a major studio,” said the director of Ready Player One and Jurassic Park, blasting the streaming service for sabotaging the halcyon days of lowest-common-denominator cinema that gave viewers absolutely no credit and merely indulged their basest instincts. “They should be ashamed. They’ve single-handedly put an end to dull, inoffensive films that privilege melodrama and spectacle over substance, not to mention the fact that they’ve eroded the influence of executives who only care about producing movies that make as much money as possible. There were so many great artists, myself included, who sold out decades ago and, as a result, no longer have the ability to make a movie as resonant as, say, Roma. What will happen to us?” At press time, Steven Spielberg quickly retracted all of his comments and began praising Netflix after the company offered him a multimillion-dollar, two-picture deal.
03-07-19, 04:41 PM
#87
DVD Talk Hero
Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
It's also funny because I thought that another article, which has a completely opposite view, was also an Onion article. Unfortunately, the guy is serious, and then I googled 'Armond White' and I understood. 
Spielberg Recovers His Political Courage
https://www.nationalreview.com/2019/...tical-courage/
03-08-19, 06:22 AM
#89
DVD Talk Legend
Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
Remember when Armond White lost his job for being an overall shithole, and complained that it was because of "racism"? 
03-08-19, 11:55 AM
#90
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Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
No I don’t. When did that happen?
I do remember when he wasn’t a nut. He used to be a pretty good critic.
I do remember when he wasn’t a nut. He used to be a pretty good critic.
03-08-19, 03:13 PM
#91
DVD Talk Ultimate Edition
Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
While I am a Netflix subscriber and I hate going to the movie theater, I feel if they want to be involved in the Oscar race there should be some kind of release window first. Obviously some of these films are of higher quality, but it just comes off as direct to dvd trash. I realize streaming is the wave of the future (present), but I can’t help but be bummed out when I read that Netflix threw their money around and got a Scorsese or Coen brothers film. A high caliber film should be given the opportunity to be seen in a theater where it deserves to be.
03-08-19, 08:18 PM
#92
Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
From my understanding Scorsese is pushing hard for theatrical for The Irishmen.
And stuff like Roma and Buster Scruggs did get theatrical releases, just not anything wide. And no offense, but I would not have gone to see either in a theater, and would have waited for home video/streaming.
And stuff like Roma and Buster Scruggs did get theatrical releases, just not anything wide. And no offense, but I would not have gone to see either in a theater, and would have waited for home video/streaming.
03-10-19, 10:46 PM
#93
DVD Talk Hero
Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
From my understanding Scorsese is pushing hard for theatrical for The Irishmen.
And stuff like Roma and Buster Scruggs did get theatrical releases, just not anything wide. And no offense, but I would not have gone to see either in a theater, and would have waited for home video/streaming.
And stuff like Roma and Buster Scruggs did get theatrical releases, just not anything wide. And no offense, but I would not have gone to see either in a theater, and would have waited for home video/streaming.
03-11-19, 07:47 AM
#94
Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
From my understanding Scorsese is pushing hard for theatrical for The Irishmen.
And stuff like Roma and Buster Scruggs did get theatrical releases, just not anything wide. And no offense, but I would not have gone to see either in a theater, and would have waited for home video/streaming.
And stuff like Roma and Buster Scruggs did get theatrical releases, just not anything wide. And no offense, but I would not have gone to see either in a theater, and would have waited for home video/streaming.
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1ToOw-nsqAE?start=125" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
I moved this discussion to an existing thread that previously had comments from Spielberg.
Last edited by dex14; 03-11-19 at 08:01 AM.
03-11-19, 10:48 AM
#95
DVD Talk Limited Edition
Thread Starter
Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
03-11-19, 11:02 AM
#96
Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
I wonder if this thread about Amazon bulk-buying at film festivals is likewise relevant to this current discussion, since it seems very likely that festivals might eventually be disrupted by streaming as much as theatrical exhibition. Much as I moaned in that thread, it's hard not to imagine a day when filmmakers will probably just submit their in-progress or finished films direct to Netflix, Amazon, et al knowing that that's where they would've ended up anyway, thereby avoiding the pretense (and pretention) of the fest circuit and its "tastemaker" programmers altogether. I'd imagine seeing the equivalent of a Cannes or TIFF or Sundance for a far lower price from the comfort of home -- perhaps for a specified time window for the sake of "competition"? -- would undoubtedly attract more eyeballs than the real-world events, and provide instant wide exposure to just the kinds of films folks here are saying they probably wouldn't have paid to see theatrically anyway. Mind you, the thought of that happening in one place still rankles a bit.
03-13-19, 11:21 AM
#97
DVD Talk Hero
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Re: The 91st Academy Awards --> 2019 Awards Show Discussion
I'd imagine seeing the equivalent of a Cannes or TIFF or Sundance for a far lower price from the comfort of home -- perhaps for a specified time window for the sake of "competition"? -- would undoubtedly attract more eyeballs than the real-world events, and provide instant wide exposure to just the kinds of films folks here are saying they probably wouldn't have paid to see theatrically anyway. Mind you, the thought of that happening in one place still rankles a bit.
Hmm....
HMMMMMMMMMMMM....
If you know anyone with millions of dollars and wants to invest in a US/Canada-wide film fest that is sure to lose money for its first 5 years or so, let me know!
