This filmed interview was e-mailed to us this week. It lays out in graphic detail what it is like trying to sell indie films to EUK. These are the genuine words of an independent executive, but to protect his anonymity they are spoken by an actor.
"The big problem is that EUK acts as exclusive supplier of DVDs not only to Woolworths, but chains like WH Smith, Zavvi and Borders, and the big supermarkets including Morrisons, Sainsburys, and Asda. If EUK’s buyers don’t select your product for sale to their chains, you have immediately lost 65 percent of your potential sales and all those film fans will not have the chance of seeing it on the shelves. EUK would much rather deal with the big Hollywood studios with their blockbuster films that don’t need any thought or film knowledge. The same goes for TV and children’s programmes. They set barriers to entry that are just too high for indies like me to get past."
Play the full four-minute interview for a real insight on EUK's methods...
About me:
Until very recently I worked for a major high street entertainment retailer on the shop floor and I loved the industry I worked in because it allowed me to sell a product I really believe in....Movies. I love cinema, from the big Hollywood hits to obscure cult artifacts and small indie films. There's nothing wrong with enjoying the latest blockbusting no-brainer, but just as I couldn't eat fast food for every meal, I need entertainment with a little more substance to it.
So as fan and an employee, it upset me when I realized that my customer choice was being drastically reduced. Has anybody else noticed how the range of DVD titles being carried by the large supermarkets and high street shops is getting smaller? if I want to buy a particular title, I usually have to rely on the local chainstores and supermarket superstores, which only seem to stock the latest Hollywood blockbuster releases. Just a while back, after reading favourable reviews of ‘Water Lilies’ and ‘You Kill Me’, I tried to get hold of these films on DVD but was unable to find them in stock anywhere. When I asked in a couple of shops if they would order them in for me, I was told they couldn’t, as they weren’t ‘on their list’.
I’ve encountered similar problems when browsing in shops such as Borders and Zavvi where the DVD racks are full of all the usual mainstream releases while ‘indie’ or ‘left-field’ titles appear not to exist. I can understand that supermarkets have limited space that restricts them stocking a comprehensive list of titles but I just don’t understand why ‘specialist’ stores such as Borders, Zavvi and even Woolworths have such limited ranges of titles on offer and Amazon and the rest of the internet sites are hardly the places for impulse buys. Unless you know exactly what you're looking for you can be in for hours of searching.
Obviously, if you're reading this you will realise I'm confident online but you must admit that you can't browse for films on Amazon etc without knowing exactly what you're looking for or wasting hours searching about. I don't know anybody who goes impulse shopping on the internet, so the argument that anything you can't find in store can be purchased on line is irrelevant.
It’s not so long ago that my local corner shop (which, sadly, no longer sells DVD) had a far better choice of titles on offer than many of the big chains have today. There must be a market for films on DVD other than just the ones that have been big hits at the multiplexes. Surely I can’t be the only one who has experienced this vast reduction in the choice of DVDs available in the shops today. Anybody else?
If you're a Facebook user and you want to help protest this narrowing of our choice, which has dangerous implications for the film industry and future production, follow the link and join the group. The more members we have on there, the more impact we can have...
Please tell your friends on Myspace about this profile if you love collecting DVDs or your a movie fan in general. The more friends we get, the better chance we have of getting something done about the situation.
Who I'd like to meet:
Keep Independent DVD alive!'s Friend Space (Randomized)
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Your comments, observations, and feedback would be appreciated. Thank you.
I'm totally with you on this but how can "we" the indie filmmakers/producers help and what is the solution given that we can't prevent the practices you discuss in your excellent video?
There's a similar campaign called Indie Rental Fight Back (http://www. zenfilms. com/indierentalfightback. html) which I've started to try to network the indie DVD rental stores so that they offer better choice in exchange for filmmakers helping promote the local stores that carry their work. However, the stores have to think laterally and offer something different to the Blockbusters, Walmarts and Woolies of this world - they have to re-imagine themselves as the book stores did when Amazon came online.
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YES YES YES YES YES!!!!! I completely agree with you, so much so infact you've made it straight into my top friends! I am totally pissed off with the selection from your average high street retailer, thank dog for Fopp! If I feel an impulse (DVD or CD) coming on Fopp is where I head now. Recent purchases - a couple of films I've always wanted to see, 'Jules et Jim' and 'Harold and Maude'. Their prices are great too. All hail Fopp! HBx
It's very frustrating indeed. Much the same thing happened years ago with lp's. Though now they are making a comeback so hopefully indi movies will have a resurgance.
dude!!! i totally agree as i buy alot of dvd's some very indie/cult iv found unless u want to pay £15 plus for a dvd ther really isnt any point in going to the larger hight street stores (and thats even if they have the title you want =S ) if found the best places to go id the second hand/ trade in shops, have a good rumage throught and sometimes ull find a gem for £5 or less and ebay is a life saver for asian cinema =DD
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