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May I ask what happened to that Sokurov set? It's no longer listed as coming soon.

Trip wrote:May I ask what happened to that Sokurov set? It's no longer listed as coming soon.

Sure. The Sokurov box is something that we really wanted to do. Unfortunately, there was an issue with the master for one of the titles. None of the films were housed under good conditions, but at least two of the three were salvageable.

So at this point we're deciding between waiting for what could be a year or more to release the set, or releasing two of the titles individually right now. The third would be released if and when it becomes available.

I'd vote for individual releases. The wait could go on a while (see: Die Nibelungen).

Yeah, I figure gaining a financial foot with what you do have right now would be better for you and for the fans than waiting for some end date that might not come up. Releasing what you can now than waiting for some pre-ordained set is definitely the win part of this equation.

Hopefully, one of the salvageable films is Whispering Pages. I never thought I'd see this film on DVD (or, even better, Blu-ray). When it showed at the NYFF, the Times noted it as a film that was markedly unlikely to get a commercial release, though (my comment) it certainly would have had more of a chance than Stone. Re Whispering Pages - you might call it an aberrant adaptation of Crime and Punishment, with a succinct twist in the last seconds of the film that, if you've read the novel, is breath-takingly horrific. Those few seconds, as I read them, is one of the greatest examples in film of a minimum of means yielding a maximum of effect. Without editorializing, it's about an entire culture choosing self-damnation.

I would also rather see two of the three Sokurov films sooner rather than wait for an undetermined period of time for a set of three. It's a shame that the masters were not in great condition. If I recall most of these were German (ZDF, maybe?) productions or co-productions -- are they being licensed from a Russian or a German company?

isakborg wrote:Hopefully, one of the salvageable films is Whispering Pages. I never thought I'd see this film on DVD (or, even better, Blu-ray). When it showed at the NYFF, the Times noted it as a film that was markedly unlikely to get a commercial release, though (my comment) it certainly would have had more of a chance than Stone.

I would be willing to bet that the potentially unsalvageable film is Kamen (hopefully that won't mean unsalvageable toujours). It just seems the most likly to be in a poor state. I think it's been screened the least as well, though this should make it amongst the best preserved except for the fact of its storage. And, yes, I agree with everyone else. Release what you have now. Why not?

Thanks everyone for your input!

The problematic title in question is WHISPERING PAGES. We are working with the producers to see what can be done and hope to have (good) news sometime soon.

In the meantime, we will release STONE and SAVE AND PROTECT individually. Both are brand new director's cuts recently completed by Sokurov and will come with the usual array of bonus material.

Sweet and thanks. Sokurov is definitely one of those directors I want to know more about from my limited experience.

A documentary The Woman with the Five Elephants is being released on February 7. Amazon pre-order is up...

The new poster for Nuri Bilge Ceylan's ONCE UPON A TIME IN ANATOLIA.



Opens January 4 in NY at Film Forum. More dates announced soon.

does Cinema Guild handle theatrical distribution in Canada as well?

Jazzkammer wrote:does Cinema Guild handle theatrical distribution in Canada as well?

We only handle U.S.

Cristi Puiu's AURORA comes to DVD on January 10, 2012.

Bonus features include:
· Cigarettes and Coffee (2004, 15 minutes), a short film by Cristi Puiu, winner of the Golden Bear for Short Film at the Berlin Film Festival
· Theatrical Trailer
· Booklet featuring director's notes

Pre-order the DVD here. And please add it to your Netflix queue here.

Trailer for ONCE UPON A TIME IN ANATOLIA

cinemaguild wrote:Cristi Puiu's AURORA comes to DVD on January 10, 2012.

Why no Blu-ray? What gives?

Anthony wrote:

cinemaguild wrote:Cristi Puiu's AURORA comes to DVD on January 10, 2012.

Why no Blu-ray? What gives?

[wild guess]Because only fifteen people are going to buy this?[/wild guess]

Isn't 15 aiming a bit high with competition and all that?

knives wrote:Isn't 15 aiming a bit high with competition and all that?

Well, let's hope a few more than that buy it.

But yes, unfortunately, aurora will be dvd only. However, on the plus side, film will still look great and the Puiu short is really amazing.

That said, we're planning on a lot more blu's next year.

No offense, but this really is quite disappointing.

You have a tremendous catalog already and are clearly picking up very, very serious films. I fail to see why these films are not getting Blu-ray releases considering that there are no Blu-ray versions rumored/announced anywhere in the world.

I really hope that you are planning to bring Ceylan and Tarr's films to Blu-ray next year, as well as the other rumored titles. These are not some random arthouse/niche films, but some of the most talked about festival films of the year. If you have to please start releasing combo-packs (DVD/Blu-ray), but next year release your films in high-definition.

I am sorry for the blunt statement here, but this is a very frustrating situation - though not as maddening as the one created by IFC Films - because as I said earlier, clearly you are picking up very serious films.

Keep up the excellent work, but please consider adjusting your output in 2012.

pro-bassoonist wrote:I really hope that you are planning to bring Ceylan and Tarr's films to Blu-ray next year, as well as the other rumored titles. These are not some random arthouse/niche films, but some of the most talked about festival films of the year.

I think you'll be pleased with what we've got in store for 2012.

nice! the implications of this post have me feeling all giddy inside

pro-bassoonist wrote:No offense, but this really is quite disappointing.

You have a tremendous catalog already and are clearly picking up very, very serious films. I fail to see why these films are not getting Blu-ray releases considering that there are no Blu-ray versions rumored/announced anywhere in the world.

I really hope that you are planning to bring Ceylan and Tarr's films to Blu-ray next year, as well as the other rumored titles. These are not some random arthouse/niche films, but some of the most talked about festival films of the year. If you have to please start releasing combo-packs (DVD/Blu-ray), but next year release your films in high-definition.

I am sorry for the blunt statement here, but this is a very frustrating situation - though not as maddening as the one created by IFC Films - because as I said earlier, clearly you are picking up very serious films.

Keep up the excellent work, but please consider adjusting your output in 2012.

In Cinema Guild's defense, I want to say that we should be grateful that they care enough to release anything on bluray. This alone puts them a step above Facets and Second Run. Here are my thoughts: we should not expect a supply of something (blu-rays of film-festival art-house fare) when there is insufficient demand; companies like Cinema Guild are just doing what is fiscally sensible for them. We can increase demand by encouraging our cinephile aquaintances and friends to finally upgrade to a darn blu-ray player. There seems to be a reluctance from alot of cinephiles I've met/known to adapt to blu-ray. It seems like bluray is more popular with the home-theatre enthusiast crowd, the majority of which sadly have little interest in films like Aurora.

Just to note, Second Run not going Blu should be filed under doing what is fiscally sensible rather than not caring enough.

I would argue that releasing on Blu-ray now *is* fiscally sensible, because you're releasing a very desirable product into a pond, rather than a less desirable product into an ocean. Longterm, even moreso.

It depends on your approach. Cinema Guild yes, but Second Run is organised around a suckitandsee style which simply wouldn't work if the price was bumped significantly.

CYBER WEEKEND SALE!! 50% off all DVDs and Blu-rays.

We're trying to get into the holiday spirit here at CG, so we're doing our first ever holiday sale. Starting Friday, all DVDs and Blu-rays on our site are going to be reduced to 50% of MSRP. Sale officially kicks off Thursday at midnight and ends Monday night.

Please feel free to pass it on and re-post.

Thanks very much.

CG