Gary Dretzka
Leonard Klady
Emanuel Levy
David Poland
Doug Pratt
Ray Pride

JANUARY 26, 2005

11:19a - Sundance lasted five whole days this year.

Early reports that the festival was more crowded than ever proved to be remarkably inaccurate. Perhaps there is credit due to festival organizers for being better organized this year. But my landmarks are simple… can I park at Eccles, can I park on Main Street, can I park at The Racquet Club, can I park at the Yarrow? This year, for the first time in years, the answer was an astounding "yes." It wasn't even challenging.

Yes, there were still obnoxious crowds on Main Street for parties at night, but by midnight, except on Friday and Saturday night, you could walk the street without bumping into anyone.

And by midnight on Tuesday night, you could throw a rock and not hit anyone… unless you were aiming at Harry O's.

Oddly, this front-loaded festival is still chugging along in terms of movies. Thumbsucker is in play, Murderball is in play, Junebug will be in play, The Dying Gaul is still in play, The Devil and Daniel Johnston is in play etc, etc, etc…There will be one or two more. And the Dependents have proven that they don't learn their lessons well. Hustle & Flow is a statement film, so Paramount's deal was not unreasonable. And the competition was that many millions behind the winner of the bidding war. But $7.5 million for Matador? $4 million for Hard Candy? How much is Pretty Persuasion holding out for?

That's the trick of Park City. There is good and there is good business. Last year, the two met. The richest deal was around $5 million. That figured doubled this year and a with the "real" film business, the middle and lower class got their bumps too. Does Lions Gate think they have another Open Water with Hard Candy? Tee hee.

In the meanwhile, I get the odd sensation that the Paramount Classics situation has turned a corner. With Ruth Vitale and Jeffrey Freedman taking responsibility here in Park City for the Hustle & Flow deal, and Brad Grey staying up until 5 am with them, makes the argument made by myself and others that all Vitale & Dinerstein needed to be effective was the chance. Tom Freston lived up to his word and give them that chance… and they succeeded. Meanwhile, Bob Berney's Newmarket team is covering the festival like a blanket, not even hinting that the possibility of a buy out is still in the offing. Look for Paramount to pick up at least one more title while here - probably a doc - and to start settling into a more aggressive business model by this time next year.

Then over at Miramax, there is the theory that these purchases are a big "screw you" to Disney, but probably not. With the freedom and budget to buy, one has to figure that these two titles (Wolf Creek and The Matador) somehow fit into The Weisteins' financial plans for their Disney exit, though there is a quiet murmur that there may still be one last shot at a reconciliation, even though Harvey has been offering jobs in his new company to various current and former 'Maxers.

Day Six
Day Five
Day Four
Day Three
Day Two
Day One
Preview: The Hot Button