..Gary Dretzka
..Noah Forrest
..Leonard Klady
..R.J. Matson
..David Poland
..Douglas Pratt
..Ray Pride
..Michael Wilmington

September 29, 2003

Awards Screeners Or No Awards Screeners...
That Is The Question

1:22pm, Sunday 9/29

This Just In …

Friday: The industry is abuzz with word that the Motion Picture Association of America members have agreed not to issue DVD screeners of films in theatrical release during the upcoming award season to members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Hollywood Foreign Press and other awards organizations.

Sunday A.M.: Industry execs from the major studios confirm they will not be sending screeners as a result of a joint decision agreed upon and brokered by MPAA president Jack Valenti. One exec says he saw a preliminary press release but could not say whether all studios had agreed upon the final wording. He believed that an official announcement would be made as early as Monday.

Sunday P.M.: "It's not a done deal," says Valenti. While he cannot provide specifics, Valenti infers that not all of the MPAA's seven member companies have agreed to the fine points on the table. He says that there is general consensus to the broader issue of "fighting piracy on all fronts, large and small." Valenti is nonetheless confident that all member companies will be aboard the issue of "screeners" in a matter of days.

- Len Klady

Earlier Sunday