Boxoffice-March.1988

ROUNDTABLE: DISTRIBUTION AND EXHIBITION
THE TIES THAT BIND
By Buddy Golden
Executive Vice President
Domestic Distribution
Orion Pictures
. . . it's part of the
CAN DISTRIBUTION and exhibition
Howwork more closely together? Sho-
West is not only a great place to
raise the question
answer.
Over the years, this annual gathering
has given us a chance to renew friendships,
preview new product, confront the
challenges we share and air our occasional
differences. This year, of course, our
links are even stronger. Now that several
studios are again in exhibition, we can't
help but be more cognizant of each other's
problems. That kind of understanding
can lead only to more cooperation and in
turn higher revenues from which we both
benefit.
As a distributor, for example, I am naturally
concerned about the short shelf life
of the product we sell. There is no way to
vacuum pack or freeze dry a movie. At a
time of escalating print
and advertising
costs, it must open strong and stay on
screens to recoup our outlay.
There are, of course, rare exceptions,
pictures which are justifiably "platformed,"
But in most instances, the challenge
is to survive the birth pangs of the
first weekend's grosses and settle in for a
long healthy run. Nothing is more frustrating
than to see a movie vanish just
when it's starting to find its legs and reach
its target audience.
In the spirit of cinematic glasnost, however,
let's look at the same problem from
the exhibitor's point of view. A fine wine
may need time to breathe but a bad film
doesn't get any better with age. The
temptation to replace a sub-par picture
with an unknown quantity— that just
might be a blockbuster— is understandable.
Still, the beauty of today's multiplex
theatres is that one screen which isn't
performing will not jeapordize an otherwise
strong week. We simply ask our
exhibitor friends to be sensitive to a film's
vital signs and give it every fighting
chance before pulling the plug.
There is another aspect of the relationship
which merits attention; honoring the
commitments we make to each other.
Returning to ShoWest's status as an industry
forum—a swap meet of ideas— the
subject of "theatre environment" has frequently
come up at these conventions.
The nation's exhibitors have made a commitment
to excellence— and kept it brilliantly.
The state-of-the-art projection
and sound, comfortable seats, convenient
parking and well-trained staffs of today's
new cinema complexes confirms the vitality
of our business—and the intelligence
of their management
At the same time, we have honored our
commitment to invest in talent, craft,
imagination and invention— and to back
the films which result with powerful advertising,
publicity and promotion. At
Orion, I'm pleased to say, we have never
(continued p SW-34)
By Samuel Goldwyn, Jr.
President, The Samuel Goldwyn Co.
RECENT YEARS, the relationship be-
exhibitors and distributors has
INtween
become lopsided, with exhibitors
showing a lack of good old-fashioned
showmanship. The burden has been
shifted almost entirely over to the distributors
and producers, with exhibitors in
retreat, particularly on the local level. But
as the business goes through changes year
in and year out, one thing remains the
same—distributors and exhibitors have to
work together. Their mutually beneficial
relationship should both anticipate and
respond to the changing tastes of audiences
by giving the product the best
possible platform.
For the distributor, his work with the
exhibitor is one of his primary marketing
tools. This is particularly true for the
mini-majors and independents, whose
specialized films require an approach
hand-tailored to reach specific audiences
within each market. Although the content
of each film dictates the thrvist of the
advertising and publicity campaigns, the
way that campaign is expressed in terms
of promotions at the local level depends
on the strength of the distributor/exhibitor
relationship, and the imagination that
is put to use.
At Goldwyn, it is one of the areas that
we have concentrated on. Our theatrical
sales managers visit their territories
throughout the year, to get to know the
exhibitors as well as the territories. In that
way the sales managers know the specific
theatres and neighborhoods that will provide
the best results for tlie film.
The sales department, though, is only
the first step in our work with exhibitors.
As soon as bookings are made, the publicity
department steps in, contacting the
exhibitors so that publicity and promotion
will reach optimum levels. In an age
where television and radio film critics
have proliferated on a local level, our contacts
within each territory work with us to
reach these opinion-makers, in addition
to our nationwide press list that gives us
access to the media on a one-to-one basis
across the country. But it is in promotions
that we work most closely with our exhibitors.
Last year, we scored a critical and boxoffice
success with "Hollywood Shuffle."
We felt this film could perfbnn well
across the board, not only in the major
markets, but in smaller cities. In addition
to sending Robert Townsend to New York,
Chicago, Washington, D.C., and other urban
centers, we sent him to places that
most promotional tours don't travel to,
such as Durham, North Carolina. Durham
is the perfect case-in-point to show how
effective good showmanship is on the
local level. Steven Barefoot, a homegrown
Mike Todd from the Carolina
Theatre, got local hotels and merchants
involved both with the film and Townsend's
appearance in such creative ways
thai everyone in town was aware of a very
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