Producing : Sony going big on the future of the industry! by Sam Sokolow

Optimistic, love to hear this for the future of the industry!

Sony President of International Theatrical Distribution, Steven O’Dell, said "Good is no longer good enough. We have to deliver greatness to audiences. The onus is on all of us.” That's great to hear, Sam Sokolow! Great stories is one thing that's gonna draw more people back to the theaters.

Steven also said "Good is no longer good enough. We have to deliver greatness to audiences. The onus is on all of us” and "The exciting thing is, if anybody wants to doubt that we believe in our future, to invest in cinema is the biggest statement we could make. And we don’t do it to make a statement, we do it to make money, so we’re doing it because we believe in the industry." I see the future of the industry being a mix between streaming and theater. I don't see theaters going extinct. There's nothing like the theater experience. You can't get that experience at home with streaming, even if you have a group of people over for a watch party.

Sony is making some fascinating moves right now including their acquisition of Alamo Draft House. They seem to be rowing in the opposite direction of most, which is refreshing. And, as the only major with no streaming service, they appear willing to play by a different set of rules. Having said all of this, I hope they don't acquire Paramount. We need expansion, not contraction.

I am 100% with you on that, Richard "RB" Botto. I hope Sony stays its course and Paramount figures things out on a different track. This article in today's Variety on how the Paramount-Skydance deal crumbled is fascinating - https://variety.com/2024/tv/news/paramount-failed-merger-talks-1236040673/

Saw that, Sam Sokolow. Posted it to my running Paramount thread which is slowly turning into a time capsule of sorts. Great spectator sport at this point.

It really is a spectator sport, Richard "RB" Botto, and your running Paramount thread is like its very own ESPN.

They're certainly making moves! It's really interesting.

Related, here's some analysis and speculation regarding Sony's purchase of the Alamo Drafthouse chain.

Sony’s Bet on Alamo Drafthouse Is More than a Crunchyroll of the Dice

https://www.indiewire.com/news/box-office/sonys-bet-alamo-drafthouse-cru...

In light of the Spider-verse movies, there's so much they could do with CrunchyRoll alone.

Agreed, Leonardo Ramirez. It's an intriguing theory.

It does make sense that they could use Alamo to test innovative theater experiences. The already existing Alamo customer base is used to very different and fun experiences at their theaters. They could play with a lot of different event concepts. Here in Austin, many of the Alamo locations even have popular bars and themed Karaoke rooms that are often reserved for parties and fun nights out.

In late 2020 and 2021 when most of the world was still using a work-from-home model while also craving human interaction, Alamo started opening up their unused theater rooms during the day to offer as communal workspaces where you could work in their comfy chairs with tabletops, a food menu, and even a classic movie playing.

I'm hungry for anything optimistic! Thanks, Sam!

Exciting times, now that studios can own movie theaters again. Netflix is building a megaplex theme mall in Philly & Dallas.

Interesting Indiewire piece, Richard "RB" Botto - Tom Rothman knows a lot about getting people to the theaters and experiential entertainment under his watch will be really interesting to see.

He also isn't one to go in on the small play, Sam Sokolow. This feels like he's seeing the chess board 5 moves ahead.