Word: artisans
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Starring Owen Wilson, Janeane Garafalo, Shooting Gallery & Artisan Entertainment
...happen to view the trailer, you were probably confused as to why the movie itself wasn't being advertised as much as its "conversation follows" tagline (that fascinating scene, incidentally, is nowhere to be found in the actual film). Artisan Entertainment, recognizing the success that the Blair Witch advertising brought them, developed a devilish little pattern in their marketing strategy. First, they design an ultra-cool web page. Then, they show their enigmatic preview to those same people who were sucked in by Blair Witch hype. Finally, they sit back and watch the web geeks do the work, generating more...
...quote Chris Rock, "Where did all the money go?" For $60,000, Blair Witch still seems like a ripoff. It's a gimmick of low quality wrapped in marvelous packaging. Without a doubt, the best production you'll see all year is the marketing magic of Artisan Entertainment, the small studio that suddenly isn't so small anymore. (I also think that Dramamine could have made a fortune by handing out samples at movie theatres to solve the rampant nausea.) But the movie itself was trifling --even though that wickedly clever little ending almost redeems the whole exercise (I like...
Regarded, until now, as a Hollywood fringe player, Artisan hopes to define itself as a brash alternative to the established indies. "We don't want to be another Miramax or New Line," says co-president Amir Malin, formerly co-president of October Films. "We want to be involved with hip, off-center movies that skew toward younger audiences between 18 and 35." Artisan, which is run by the triumvirate of Malin, longtime agent Bill Block and Mark Curcio, a former consultant to Artisan's majority backer, Bain Capital, rose in 1997 from the ashes of a firm that held video...
...though, Artisan is basking in its good fortune with Blair Witch. Its executives plan to meet with the filmmakers this week to discuss sequels and prequels. The film's success has even earned Artisan higher visibility on Wall Street, where there's been talk of an IPO or debt offering. In at least one way, however, Artisan does hope to emulate its chief indie rival, Miramax. "In five years' time," says Block, "we certainly want to win an Academy Award for Best Picture." Blair Witch in Love, anyone...