Friday, December 29, 2006

February, 2007 Hidden Gem Titles

Vivendi's "National lampoon's TV: The Movie" - starring Steve-O, Chris Pontius, Lee Majors, Judd Nelson. It is a celebration of the ever-increasing ridiculousness of society reflected through television...oh, who are we trying to kid? We just wanted to break the stuff, throw Steve-O off a building and get some chick naked. Biting sketch comedy combined with "Jackassian" stunts form the basis of this demented channel-surfing adventure for the unfocused youth of the world. This spoof comedy stars pop-culture icons.


ThinkFilm's "Keeping Mum" - starring Maggie Smith, Rowan Atkinson, Kristin Scott Thomas, Patrick Swayze. Rowan Atkinson is an absent minded vicar of a rural parish who is so distracted by the pressures of his job that he fails to notice thta his wife's dalliance with her brash young golf instructor, his daughter's parade of new boyfriends, and his young son's regular trouncing by the school's bullies. Enter their charming new housekeeper,Grace, the answer to the family's prayers: a sweet old lady with her own distinctive definition of cleaning house - and avery unusual way of solving problems.

Columbia's "Half Nelson" - starring Ryan Gosling, Shareeka Epps, Anthony Mackie. Dan Dunne is a young inner-city junior high school teacher whose ideals wither and die in the face of reality. Though Dan is brilliant, and in control in the classroom, he spends his time outside school on the edge of consciousness. His disappointments and disillusionment have led to a serious drug habit. He juggles his hangovers and his homework, keeping his lives separated, until one of his troubled students, Drey, catches him getting high after school. From this awkward beginning, Dand and Drey stumble into an unexpected friendasip.

Screenmedia's "Disaster! The Movie" - starring Tommy Lee, Mick Mars, Glenn Morshower, Vince Neil, Nicki Sixx. In this spoof of big budget disaster films, a killer planetoid threatens the earth. To combat this threat, the government turns to a vulcanoligist Harry Bottoms. He assembles a crack team of disaster specialists consisting of his estranged daughter Sandy Mellons, a nuclear physician, and a Deepcore driller. Together with a NASA flight crew and a flatulent French astronaut, our heroes face numerous, preposterous complications, including the hazardous gas passed by Bidet and an angry space monkey who dwells on the planetoid.

Columbia's "Boynton Beach Club" - starring Sally Kellerman, Joseph Bologna, Dyan Cannon, Len Cariou, Brenda Vaccaro. Lois, Harry, Marilyn, Sandy and Jack live in an "Active Adult" community in Boynton Beach, Florida. Their lives intersect when they meet at a local Bereavement Club where they go to find emotional support after the loss of a loved one. For anyone who thins that new love and romance ends long before retirement, they're in for a reality check. No one sees themselves as becoming old, and the residents of Boynton Beach aren't about to start. But sometimes we all need a little reminder that life is worth living and sharing.

Thursday, November 30, 2006

January, 2007 Hidden Gem Titles

Anchor Bay's "Veteran" - starring Ally sheedy, Bobby Hosea, Michael ironside. Ray Watson returns to Vietnam thirty years after the fall of Saigaon. he is confronted in his hotel room by an overwrought man wielding a pistol who forces him to recall the life and death moments of hos old platoon. Unbeknownst to the man, however, Ray is not entirely alone. In an office across from the hotel we discover a surveillance team of several American government agents. An explosive climax approaches and yet only one of them will be going home.


New Line's "Undisputed II" - starring Michael Jay White, Scott Adkins. In this sequel to the 2002 film, Heavyweight Champ George "Iceman" Chambers is sent to a Russian jail on trumped-up drug charges. In order to win his freedom he must fight the jailhouse fighting champion Uri Boyka in a battle to the death. This time he is not just fighting for a title. He is fighting for his life.




Columbia's "Quinceanera" - starring Emily Rios, Jesse Garcia. As Magdalena's 15th birthday approaches, her working class family prepares for the all important "Quinceanera" - a lavish coming-of-age celebration. But when her father discovers she is pregnant and refuses to believe the incredible truth - she is actually a virgin - Magdalena moves in with her elderly Uncle Tomas and black sheep cousin Carlos. her newfound family is soon put to the test,however, when an unexpected crisis threathens to tear them apart, and Magdalena learns what it truly means to come of age.

ThinkFilm's "Farce of the Penguins - starring voices of Bob Saget, Christina Applegate, Samuel L. Jackson, Lewis Black. It's mating season... Meet Carl and Jimmy, two cold penguins ona desperate mission to get themselves some hot body. After years of empty one-night stands, Carl wants more than a piece og penguin tale. He wants the love of the beautiful Melissa. Now it's up to Jimmy to help his neurotic friend win her heart and find his dream girl. The only thing that stands in their way is ... a seventy mile trek across Antartica. It's a road trip like no other, as these two best bros make their way to a penguin island paradise. This is a raunchy, yet heart-warming comedy like no other.

Monday, October 30, 2006

December, 2006 Hidden Gem Titles

Echo Bridge's "The Ron Clark Story" - starring Matthew Perry, Judith Buchan, hannah Hodson, Ernie Hudson. Three-time Emmy award nominee matthew Perry delivers a "...tour-de-force performane" as a real-life inspiration Ron Clark, a passionate and innovative teacher who leaves his small hometown to teach in one of Harlem's toughest schools. But to break through to his students, clark must use unconventional methods, including his ground-breaking classroom rules, to drive them toward their greatest potential.


Vivendi's "Pledge This!" - starring Paris Hilton, Paula Garces, Sarah Carter. It's all out class warfare between freshman female pledges and the beautiful soroity "it' girls ruled by Gamma Gamma president Victoria. it's hilarious and sexy in the over-the-top tradition of Van Wilder commedies... a National Lampoon effort.



Allumination's "Checking Out" - starring Peter Falk, David Paymer, Judge Reinhold, Laura San Giacomo. On the eve of his 90th birthday, eccentric, celebrated Borscht-Belt actor Morris Applebaum summons his three grown children to his Manhatten apartment for a festive shindig no one will ever forget. Because when the party's over, Morris intends to make his "final exit." No, he's not up to his hilariuosly angst-ridden offspring to put aside their own excess baggage and convince Morris that it ain't over till the fat lady sings.

Saturday, September 30, 2006

November, 2006 Hidden Gem Titles

ThinkFilm's "Strangers With Candy" - starring Amy Sedaris, Stephen Colbert, Matthew Broderick, Greg Holliman. Going to high school is always scary. It is especially scary the second time around for a 47 year-old ex-con crack junkie prostitute.





Vivendi's "Shadowboxer" - starring Helen Mirren, Cuba Gooding Jr., Stephen Dorff, Joseph Gordon-Levitt. When Rose, a female assasin, is diagnosed with cancer, she decides to carry out one final killing, assisted by her lover and also stepson.





Vivendi's "The Groomsmen" - starring Edward Burns, Donal Logue, Jay Mohr, John Leguizamo, Matt Lillard. The story follows the misadventures of a groom and his four groomsmen a week before the wedding. Wrestling with issues of fatherhood, honesty, and growing up, the five thirty somethings discover their extended adolescence is finally coming to a close.

Wednesday, March 22, 2006

January, 2007 street date product and the Program explained

The Program with All Details

iDEA aka VSDA Rental Profits Program – Hidden Gems
Started with November, 2006 Street Date Product

Purpose: To assist video retailers in identifying profitable New Release Independent Product.

Product Parameters:
- No box office or very little box office.
- Movie genre appeals to virtually all retailers; specifically, action, adventure, western, war, comedy, drama, romantic comedy, romance, horror, etc. NOT XXX or gay or Spanish, etc. And RARELY sub-titled or dubbed or documentary, etc.,
- DVDs are distributed by most, if not all, of the 5 U.S. distributors.
- Artwork will cause the DVD to rent. The artwork will positively highlight the genre and stars.


Promotional Support:
-       Broadcast e-mails to 3,000 employees of EMA/iDEA members.  The e-mail announces the Hidden Gem titles with artwork. 
-       Broadcast e-mail to 3,000 employees of EMA/iDEA members. A pre-order report of all titles is sent four (4) times during solicitation.  The Hidden Gem titles are always segregated and listed at the top of the e-mail.
-       Banner ad on the EMA/iDEA web site for one (1) month.  Titles permanently featured on the site by program month.
-       Artwork of selections distributed to all distributor sales people (~200) via Tollini’s Monthly Rental Purchasing Tip Sheet via snail mail.
-       Broadcast e-mail eight (8) times to 2,000+ Video Retailers that include mass merchants, online retailers, iDEA dealers, and non-IDEA dealers.  The e-mail is a Forecast of New Release Dates by Supplier by Month.  Only Box Office hits and iDEA Hidden Gem titles are shown.
-       Broadcast e-mail to 2,000+ Video Retailers that include mass merchants, online retailers, iDEA dealers and non-iDEA dealers.  The e-mail is a Purchasing Tip Sheet.  Only Box Office hits and iDEA Hidden Gem titles are shown.
-       NEW starting in January, 2011– A Monthly ONLINE Presentation for Video Retailers on Purchasing ALL titles in a month with special emphasis on HIDDEN GEM titles. 200 plus views per month.
-       NEW starting July, 2012 – A broadcast e-mail to 3,000 employees of EMA/iDEA members.  For EACH iDEA Hidden Gem, the artwork and synopsis is shown with a link to the trailer.

Timing Example: Suppliers submit 5 copies of each title approximately 60 days in advance; e.g., September 1st , 2013 submission deadline for titles with street dates in November, 2013. We will start promoting the titles September 15th.

Cost: $0 to submit a film. $1,000 per title accepted.

Selection Committee: Anonymous except for me. Four experienced Video Retailers, who can identify Independent product sleeves, genres, actors, etc. that rent, will select the titles. Then, the Committee has 2 weeks to veto titles after viewing for minimum acceptable quality. We never go negative and announce rejections. We only announce the positive or the titles selected for the month.

Bob Tollini

Deadline Calendar:

For December, 2010 street date product, the deadline is October 1, 2010
For December, 2011 street date product, the deadline is October 1, 2011
For January, 2012 street date product, the deadline is November 1, 2011.
For December, 2012 street date product, the deadline is October 1, 2012.
For December, 2013 street date product, the deadline is October 1, 2013.
For December, 2014 street date product, the deadline is October 1, 2014.

APPROXIMATELY - the deadline is the first of the month of the second prior month
of the street date month.

Submission Address:

IDEA aka VSDA
16530 Ventura Boulevard
Suite 400
Encino, CA 91436

Attention: Jennifer Lane

Wednesday, February 22, 2006

Hidden Gem Video Suppliers - So Far!

Allumination Film Works
Anchor Bay Entertainment
Arts Alliance America
City Lights Media Group
E1 Entertainment
Echo Bridge Home Entertainment
Entertainment Studios
First Look Studios
Fox Home Entertainment
Genius Products LLC
Grand Entertainment
Green Apple
Icarus
Image Entertainment
Inception
KimStim
Liberation Entertainment
Lightyear Video
Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.
Magnolia Home Entertainment
Millennium Entertainment
Monterey Media Inc.
MPI
MTI Home Video
New Line Home Video
Oscilloscope Laboratories
Peace Arch Home entertainment
Screen Media Films
Sony Pictures Home Entetainment
ThinkFilm
Viva Pictures
Vivendi Home Entertainment
Wolfe Video
Xenon Pictures
Zeitgeist Films

Many thanks....