It’s really hard to write about this whole Red State thing without sounding unnecessarily disparaging, so right away I’m going to clear something up…
I appreciate what Smith is doing, think it’s a shrewd, admirable business decision, and think it’s a fun, interesting way of capitalizing on his brand and product in a way that offers his fans something potentially very cool.
Every word of that I believe, but it’s going to be very nerve-grinding to hear bullshit like “record breaking” and “revolutionary” and “game-changing” tossed around by Kevin Smith’s camp, the bloggers covering it, and/or his fans. It’s also annoying that Kevin Smith’s Red State tour was created with this false revolutionary underdog vibe that will make its big’ish number seem like monumental triumphs rather than foregone conclusions. What big numbers?
$161,590 from a single show at Radio City, with 3600 people attending
That sounds holy shit on first impression, except this isn’t a movie, it’s a concert experience. Even bringing up “a per-theater average” for this kind of an event is ridiculous in the first place, even if it’s a qualified mention. With tickets from fifty bucks to a hundred bucks, an included Q&A experience, star appearances, and everything else that goes with this tour, this is a Kevin Smith Circus Event, not a movie. Also, to look at the nastier side of the number, New York’s Radio City can seat nearly double that attendance (6,000 people) and this is likely one of the more prestigious locations. Yanking out the 60k for the theater rental, that leaves them with 100k in profit- very nice. That said, even if the tour does that well at each stop, then the film will still have a significant amount of money to recoup (well over half its budget still) once it “hits” theaters. The problem will be that Smith’s hardcore audience will have already been tapped (for very expensive tickets), and the theatrical release looks like it will be more of a limited, prestige-style release.
Still, there’s no doubt the economics of all of this will probably work out for Smith. He’ll likely make more money from this than any of his studio arrangements, even if the numbers are never that impressive. But spinning it as “the 10th best theater average of all time” or even the best of the last year is disingenuous. Even moreso is Smith’s constant line about how anyone can rent out Radio City or do their own thing outside of the studios. This idea will work because Kevin Smith is a brand- a brand that tens of millions of studio dollars were invested in building for nearly two decades leading up to Smith ditching the hand that fed. This is a model that will work for Smith, and only Smith, and any implication that he’s paving the way for young directors to get their films out there is garbage.
I’m not trying to rain shit on Smith’s parade- obviously his venture is starting out well and will likely work just how he wants. He’s going to make a ton of money with his tour, and his budget and bar are so low, that any gross at all on his theatrical release will be icing. He’s throwing a loaded die though, so I’m not looking forward to the horse-race coverage of each city’s receipts and his bullshit about sticking it to the studios.
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5 comments
CHECK and MATE. Couldn’t agree more.
Stop whining.
I think something like this could actually work for some filmmakers, at least those that are more widely known, but don’t command studio dollars. I don’t think the success of this is entirely based off Smith’s fanbase, though it certainly is a factor. If you dislike Smith, pick another director that is around his level in terms of notoriety. If Edgar Wright(who is friends with Smith), for example, were to do a road show and he brought Pegg, Frost, and others, I think you could definitely get a lot of people to show up to it(and a lot more enthusiam from the online community). Maybe it wouldn’t be in the same format as Smith’s, but I think there are a lot of people that don’t have access to filmmakers as readily as people in NY and LA and to them, myself included, it is an interesting way to be a part of the filmmaking process. In fact, i think if it was any other filmmaker doing this besides Smith, it would be hailed as a genius move, and there wouldn’t be any need to preface an article about how it is hard not to hate on the director. Good for Smith. I look forward to checking this out later this week. If it’s cool, I hope more director’s do it because in the Midwest, this type of thing rarely happens. I almost paid $60 a ticket to see 127 Hours at the Chicago film festival because Danny Boyle was doing a Q & A after the screening. When I found out it was only about 15 minutes long, I decided against it, but if it was a more extensive experience, cast and crew in tow, I would have happily paid that much to see it…especially if I knew that my money would ultimately help the director get them movie made, and allow more people see the film
My cousin and I have tickets for the Minneapolis screening on Wednesday. I’m pretty excited about it. But then again, I’m probably a bit biased since I love Smith’s podcasts. I also am interested in seeing what he’s done with Red State. Is it worth paying $70 a ticket? No, but the way I justify it is that his Q/A afterwards is more or less like getting to see him do stand up for a couple hours. If you’ve listened to his podcasts, or watched any of his “Evening with Kevin Smith” shows, you kind of know what to expect. Plus you get to see a movie. Movies alone run you $20 minimum with concessions these days, so $50 for a ‘comedy concert’ seems justified. Sort of. Well, to me at least.
I will say that a production like this works a bit better in Smith’s favor that it would work for other directors. I doubt Steven Soderbergh would be able to do live screenings across the US and still pull profits like that. Smith is working his audience to his favor, and for that I applaud him. He’s found ways to make a lucrative business with his podcasts and by screening his movies a bit different than anyone else is. The movie industry needs shake ups like this. The MPAA is constantly bitching about lost profits to the internet, etc. but ideas like this bring new ways to make money (even if the MPAA has very little involvement here) for the industry, without the need to piss and moan about piracy all the time. Like I said, it wouldn’t work for every filmmaker, or audience, but in Smith’s case, this seems like a natural fit.
Assuming we don’t have to sign NDA’s, I’ll post back with a review of both the movie, and the ‘show’ in a couple days.
I dunno. Red State never seemed like the sort of flick that would set the world on fire, but it does indeed sound like a nice component for a Kevin Smith Party. Maybe this is the best way of distributing this particular film. Still, you’re right: This is not a game changer. The big boys won’t be doing much of this and the little guys don’t have the brand. More power to him, but this is a curiosity tailor-made to Smith’s unique niche. Maybe Neil Gaiman (if he ever directs a feature) or a few other guys could pull this off. Possibly Broken Lizard or Derrick Comedy.
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