Miscellaneous questions about DVD production (1 Viewer)

[Scott D S]

Just a few questions (some are geekier than others):

1. Are studios required to at least consult DVD producers/documentarians if their work is used elsewhere or in another medium? For example, if/when Disney releases Tron on Blu-Ray, are they required to contact you or can they do whatever they want because they own the work?

2. What kind of decisions go into certain things like packaging? I imagine it's mostly marketing and what will catch your eye on the Best Buy shelf. I have the Planet of the Apes collection on Blu-Ray (early Chanukah present for myself

) and while it's a great product and I am not picky with this sort of thing at all, I can only imagine the thought that went into this. "Yeah, we'll make the package too big to fit with the consumer's other discs and we'll make it really difficult to get the discs off the hubs."

On the other hand, as someone who was too young to get into laserdiscs, I can certainly appreciate the value in something like this.

3. Why, oh why, do studios release a title, then re-release said title, but leave off certain feature(s) from the first version? I'm thinking specifically of Jaws. We get a 1-disc, then a 2-disc (original mono!) but it's missing the trailer. I'd understand if space was an issue but still.

4. Re: trivia tracks. Who writes these, and what goes into researching them? I know Van Ling writes the Cameron trivia tracks (because he worked on the films) and the Okudas write the Trek tracks (because they're the Okudas) and others are written by authors and film historians, like PotA and Die Hard, but most of the time the work is not credited. Is it a DVD producer who compiles and writes them, or someone at the production company, or even some marketing person at a studio?

When I temped at MGM, I found the binder with the trivia track info for Fargo. It was written by someone at the company who produced the supplements and every entry was timecoded, cited, and cross-referenced. It was quite interesting.

5. Any progress on Free Enterprise II: The Search for Shatner (or whatever it was going to be called?)

 

[RMBurnett]

Just a few questions (some are geekier than others):

"1. Are studios required to at least consult DVD producers/documentarians if their work is used elsewhere or in another medium? For example, if/when Disney releases Tron on Blu-Ray, are they required to contact you or can they do whatever they want because they own the work?"

All DVD work is work-for-hire. After you deliver your materials, a studio can then do whatever it wants, as evidenced by Universal's repackaging of the wonderful THE THING documentary as a picture-in-picture feature on the Blu Ray release of that title. They never have to contact you again. I'd love to revisit TRON...and especially the upcoming TR2N, but that will probably never happen. But, and I'll say this quite openly, I feel Disney home video owes me big time. I'm waiting to collect.


"2. What kind of decisions go into certain things like packaging? I imagine it's mostly marketing and what will catch your eye on the Best Buy shelf. I have the Planet of the Apes collection on Blu-Ray (early Chanukah present for myself ) and while it's a great product and I am not picky with this sort of thing at all, I can only imagine the thought that went into this. "Yeah, we'll make the package too big to fit with the consumer's other discs and we'll make it really difficult to get the discs off the hubs."

On the other hand, as someone who was too young to get into laserdiscs, I can certainly appreciate the value in something like this."

Actually, a lot of thought goes into the packaging. I think the Planet of the Apes packaging is quite amazing. The heavy card stock, the book inside...really wonderful. And if you store your discs two deep on a shelf, as I do...the POTA package fits very nicely on the shelf. I do agree the discs are extremely difficult to get out. These things are sort of addressed as they go. Believe me, the studios really are trying to create the greatest packaging possible. They employ many, many talented designers to make this stuff...but the designers creating the actual packaging are more concerned with the packaging itself than it's functionality, hence we get the weird rubber posts in the otherwise terrific Apes package. It's also a matter of cost. Hard plastic posts would cost far more and be more difficult to insert into the book.

Personally, my favorite packaging so far are the Warner Digibooks. Love them. I also love what Warners did with the MATRIX set, and both the DIRTY HARRY collection and CASABLANCA. Great stuff.

"3. Why, oh why, do studios release a title, then re-release said title, but leave off certain feature(s) from the first version? I'm thinking specifically of Jaws. We get a 1-disc, then a 2-disc (original mono!) but it's missing the trailer. I'd understand if space was an issue but still."

I have no idea about this. There is absolutely no excuse for leaving anything off a Blu Ray disc. I just shake my head in disgust. Hundreds and sometimes thousands of hours of work gone forever. Fox releasing the director's cut of KINGDOM OF HEAVEN without Charlie's wonderful special features is just criminal. Why would you buy that disc without the features? Not a great way to get consumers interested in the format.

Another disheartening trend is how the studios are now doing just 30 minute HD retrospective documentaries for their Blu Ray releases. They get the whole cast back, but ask the most vapid, boring EPK questions imaginable. The producers of this material simply aren't taking the time to really do their research and make docs which go beyond simply asking questions about the making of the film. RISKY BUSINESS, SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, etc...all squandered opportunities. Sure, they're dressed up with great graphics...but there's no scholorship there.

"4. Re: trivia tracks. Who writes these, and what goes into researching them? I know Van Ling writes the Cameron trivia tracks (because he worked on the films) and the Okudas write the Trek tracks (because they're the Okudas) and others are written by authors and film historians, like PotA and Die Hard, but most of the time the work is not credited. Is it a DVD producer who compiles and writes them, or someone at the production company, or even some marketing person at a studio?"

When I temped at MGM, I found the binder with the trivia track info for Fargo. It was written by someone at the company who produced the supplements and every entry was timecoded, cited, and cross-referenced. It was quite interesting."

Well, you answered your own question. I've worked on the trivia tracks for SPIDER MAN, VALLEY GIRL and THE MANHATTAN PROJECT. Usually I research and write the trivia tracks myself or with someone else. In the case of Spider Man, I worked with New Wave's Jason Hillhouse, when we both worked for Kurtti-Pellerin. They are extremely labor intensive, because not only do you have to write them...you have to place them as well. The book you saw with the timecode numbers were the ins and outs for each and every trivia bit...and their duration. Trivia tracks are a real pain in the ass.

5. Any progress on Free Enterprise II: The Search for Shatner (or whatever it was going to be called?)

2009 will be the make or break year for FE2. The film should come out on video at the same time another Star Trek film hits Blu Ray. Otherwise, it's a dead issue. Mark and I almost have a script we finally like. Incidentally, we're thinking of changing the subtitle to THE WRATH OF SHATNER.

Take that as you will.

 

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[OellyDelly]

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