The United Nation's Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) added nine of Alfred Hitchcock's silent films to its Memory of the World Registry.
Dating from 1925-29, the films underwent a three year restoration and are described as "among the greatest achievements of British silent cinema and blueprints for the rest of Hitchcock's body of work." The films include: The Lodger, which was Hitchcock's first major success, Champagne, a social comedy, The Ring, and Blackmail, which was released in 1929 in both silent and sound versions.
"The restored films are attracting not only new audiences around the world but the acclaim of the international community as important works of world cultural note", states Robin Baker, Head Curator of the British National Archives. "We are very pleased to see that the early films from one of the world's best-known film makers are taking their place alongside some of the greatest cultural artifacts in the United Kingdom."
The UNESCO registration of these Hitchcock films provides a great opportunity for any cinema that has converted to Digital Cinema projection. Running a Hitchcock retrospective of these and other Hitchcock classics on mid-week days/evenings could be a good box office draw and all of these movies are available on BluRay discs.
Europeans Push for New Film Rating System
The British Board of Film Classification is developing a system which will allow the public to rate online content, including movies. The BBFC, which uses trained examiners to rate movies and DVD releases is being joined by Dutch media regulators to rate user-generated content. The system would involve viewers providing details about on-line content and would be tailored for different countries to reflect local sensibilities. The system is now ready to test and Italian commercial broadcaster Mediaset has agreed to trial it.
In 2012, the BBFC rated 850 movies, which was the highest number of film ratings in its history.
Tiered Admission Pricing Gets Closer to Reality
Last week I posted that over 4 years ago in my crystal ball I envisioned that one day movies at cinemas would have tiered admission pricing. Blockbusters earning a premium admission over more 'regular' movies. We now are seeing this prediction being tested as last month, Paramount introduced the $50 MegaTicket for World War Z. The $50 admission included a ticket to the movie in 3D, an HD digital copy of the movie, small popcorn, and movie poster. Available through Fandango, participating cinemas included, Regal and Edwards Theatres (a subsidiary of the Regal Group), and United Artists Theatres.
This weekend, Cineplex Odeon, a Canadian theatre chain, introduced the $20 Super Ticket for the opening of Warner Bros. Pacific Rim. The $20 admission includes the movie and a digital copy of the film.The premise for tiered admissions pricing is that the public is willing to pay a premium to attend a blockbuster film, and the Studios want to test this premise. It doesn't take genius to have seen this coming and I believe it will become the norm for cinema admission pricing.
Why should all films be priced the same? Why should I pay $10 to view a 'B' film and the same for a mega hit? Problem being: the 'B' film should priced less than $10, but I doubt this will happen. What you will see is a high premium price for the big hits but no reduction in price for the lesser films. There is a lot at stake with this strategy and the Studios must be very careful (as should exhibitors) - as they run the risk of public backlash and being left with only die- hard fans willing to pay the expensive admission.
Only time will tell, but the independent exhibitor should be aware of what is transpiring and prepare for the reaction to a tiered admission pricing policy from their local moviegoers.
Best
Jim Lavorato
Join This Site Show Konversi KodeHide Konversi Kode Show EmoticonHide Emoticon