MUMBAI:Voicing their dismay of DirecTV’s efforts to distribute films eight weeks after their releases, a number of top Hollywood directors like James Cameron and Peter Jackson and twenty one others along with the National Association of Theatre Owners have written an open letter.
DirecTV is planning to sell films while they are still in theatres and has made agreements with studio executives to sell them for about $30 each. The previous release date was four months after the theatrical release.
In the letter, the directors said, “As leaders in the creative community, we ask for a seat at the table. We want to hear the studios‘ plans for how this new distribution model will affect the future of the industry that we love. And until that happens, we ask that our studio partners do not rashly undermine the current - and successful - system of releasing films in a sequential distribution window that encourages movie lovers to see films in the optimum, and most profitable, exhibition arena: the movie theaters of America."
The companies who agreed to terms with DirecTV were Sony, Fox Searchlight and Warner Bros. They plan to start with the release of Just Go With It, which has only been in theaters for 70 days.