The Little Distribution Engine That Could

Last year the London Observer called “Orphans” and “Croupier” the two best British movies of the year. A few years ago, this would have been enough to attract attention from an American independent company. But in an increasingly competitive marketplace, no one bit, and both films seemed doomed to be seen here only on home video.

Six months into the new year, “Orphans” and “Croupier” have been released theatrically around the country, with the latter scoring some of the best reviews of any movie so far this year. “Croupier” is on its way to becoming a break-out independent film hit, having grossed more than $600,000 in six weeks on about 30 screens, and will eventually play in about 100 cities across the country.

Both movies were part of a six-film series released earlier this year in 17 cities across the country by the fledgling distribution company the Shooting Gallery with the help of the Loews Cineplex theater chain and several corporate sponsors including Yahoo!, Heineken and Ralph Lauren Polo. Originally founded as a production company in 1991, Shooting Gallery began distributing its own films two years ago and company President Eamonn Bowles was also looking “to come up with solutions to problems in the [independent film] industry.”

One of the most pressing problems is that most independent films today are mostly “celebrity driven,” according to Bowles (i.e., the financing and release of these movies depends on attracting star names). The economics of releasing independent films has changed drastically, as have audience attendance patterns. Gone are the days when indie films boasting fresh faces, skin-tight budgets and unorthodox story lines could break through based solely on critical response in major cities and audience word of mouth.

Shooting Gallery

Tried Packaging

It’s not that such films have completely disappeared, says Bowles. “We see movies all the time that are well made and audience friendly that don’t get picked up mainly because they’re not easily marketable and don’t have a star name attached.”

Shooting Gallery decided to take a chance by trying something new. Bowles began experimenting with a new way to package independent movies (both American and foreign) as a series and cost-efficiently release them in the top 17 markets in the U.S. Putting the films into a series, he reasoned, would give the aura of an event, like a mini-festival.

The films that were chosen had already proven themselves popular with audiences and critics via showings at major film festivals. One such film was the American-made “Judy Berlin,” which received rave notices at last year’s’ Sundance Film Festival. But because it was in black and white and had no proven box-office star names (“The Sopranos’ ” Edie Falco and the late Madeline Kahn were the best-known actors in the cast), all the independent distribution companies passed.

Shooting Gallery was careful to keep a lid on its financial risk, especially for the initial series, until the company could demonstrate it had a viable model. The filmmakers were offered a low minimum guarantee up front. The Loews Cineplex chain provided a theater in cities including New York, Los Angeles (at the Loews Cineplex Fairfax), Chicago and Philadelphia for the 12-week run (two weeks for each film), which started in February. According to the chain’s executive vice president, Bob Lenihan, he was intrigued by Shooting Gallery’s concept because “it allowed us to bring specialized films into neighborhoods that don’t usually play those kinds of movies.” The corporate sponsors paid for all newspaper advertising in return for on-screen endorsements. Further, two of the sponsors, Hollywood Video and Starz/Encore, guaranteed video and cable release. The direct cost to Shooting Gallery was minimal--mostly prints and publicity.

“By opening the films simultaneously around the country, we were able to get reviews in national publications and effectively coordinate the publicity campaigns,” Bowles says.

The first Shooting Gallery release, “Judy Berlin,” exceeded the company’s expectations. The reviews were strong and, after the initial two-week engagement, Shooting Gallery was able to book the film in additional markets, both urban and suburban. The film has been playing around the country for 15 weeks and has grossed more than $300,000. Shooting Gallery is now planning additional engagements.

‘Croupier’ Shows

Experiment May Work

Another release, the Japanese-made “Adrenaline Drive”--the last film in the current series--also played past the initial two weeks and has grossed about $50,000 in its first five weeks. In addition to “Croupier” and “Orphans,” the other releases were the boxing documentary “Southpaw” and the Indian film “Such a Long Journey.”

But it was “Croupier” that really demonstrated the potential of the Shooting Gallery experiment. Director Mike Hodges’ (‘Get Carter”) enigmatic contemporary film noir, starring Clive Owen and “E.R.’s” Alex Kingston, garnered some of the best reviews of any film this year. It played to packed houses during its first two weeks and was then moved over to other houses in most of the initial 17 cities.

After the first two weeks, Landmark Theaters booked “Croupier” in San Francisco and, based on the response, booked it in several of its theaters around the country. Bowles expects “Croupier” to be in theaters for several months, eventually playing in about 100 markets, and estimates that the film could gross more than $2 million.

Having proven that the release pattern works, Shooting Gallery will begin another series of six films in September, followed by a full slate for spring and fall 2001 in the hopes of creating a perennial series. Bowles will avoid the busy summer and Christmas seasons, when theaters are solidly booked and there’s little room to expand break-out films after their initial engagements. Loews will again play host to the series, and there’s interest from other chains that operate in markets where there are no Loew’s houses. At present, the company is still negotiating for the titles, having already locked in one, the French film “Human Resources,” another well-received Sundance Film Festival participant.

“The exciting thing about this program is that it puts the emphasis on the film. These are not market-research-driven movies,” says Bowles. “They are being judged solely on their merits. I’m not saying that this is a pure way of releasing independent movies, but it’s a little purer.”