A few thoughts about...THE WARNER CHAT [Everyone on this forum should read this!] (1 Viewer)

[Mark Oates]

Personally I think it's nothing short of miraculous that Warner is so open about its plans in a public forum. I've chatted to a number of industry sources on this side of the puddle over the years, and there's always a question of contractual confidentiality about upcoming releases - just in case they don't happen.

I think we should be thankful Warner is willing to have a dialogue of any kind, and doubly so that they actually listen to us. It could so easily be the other way.

 

[Jay E]

I agree with everything you say Anthony.

I personally would like to thank Warner for taking the time to chat with us. It is so nice to see a company that cares so much for it's products and it's customers. I just wish I had more money to buy more of their products

 

[Mark Anthony]

Totally agree Ron, I guess the old adage that you can't please everyone is true but some people are just plain ungratefull.

Instead of WB having to come back (indeed if they ever do) how about a thread is created with a wish list of questions and you can decide which ones to ask them and then they can answer or decline to answer just as they do in the chat.

That way everyone who wants to ask something can...

M

 

[Powell&Pressburger]

I felt like the chat was good... but I felt like so much time was spent on the Archive Collection site news and titles that it may have needed its own chat! I felt like a lot of Blu Ray news was pushed away.. but I will say that about 95% of the Blu Rays mentioned I was wating for news for including Where Eagles Dare and Contact... so my comment may sound negative but it isn't.

I think it is hard to get people rounded up and questions asked etc and that nites chat the people had their questions ready!!! I mean BAM they were listed.. for some odd reason I had my original question regarding the use of the Saul Bass Warner Communication logo ready to be pasted but it wouldn't work so I tried to slam out my question as easily as I could and as graciously as I could. Cause I was wondering the main reason the logo was changed on different releases etc.

I just hope I don't come across as a total jerk in stating my love for the keeping things as they were originally created.

I wanted to ask about BLUs coming soon but made myself fight for that logo!

I wanted to ask about Watership Down on BLU so bad as well as Klute All the President's Men, and if The Exorcist will PLEASE be released with the theatrical cut as well as the more recent cut (we've all seen it at this point haha)

I also love their Forbidden Hollywood sets and bought VOL 3 it Tuesday.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I just wanted to add my two cents to Ron, Warner and anyone else reading.

I wasn't able to attend the most recent Warner chat, although I wanted to and read the transcript the next morning. (I usually don't miss these.) I've always been grateful that people at Warner have taken the time and the energy to visit us here. I'm of the mind that we should always treat people the way we ourselves would like to be treated, and the times I have been fortunate enough to be picked to as a question during the chat, I've always tried my best to do just that; I think I've succeeded.

To me, it's inexcusable that a select minority of people would use this forum to make wild claims about Warner trying to screw them or whatever. It's one thing to be disappointed in a certain release or the lack of a release, and there is both a time and a place to express that kind of sentiment. Most of us here do just that. But I don't understand how certain people can so easily jump to the conclusion that someone is out to screw them or isn't being truthful. The people at Warner are generous in giving their time to our forum for this, and for that, we owe them our respect; by coming here year after year to speak with us, they've certainly gone a long way to demonstrate just how much respect and appreciation they have for us.

I imagine it takes a lot more than we're aware of to prepare for one of these chats. On Warner's end, I wouldn't be surprised if they had to make time to meet with lawyers, department heads and sales teams on their end to make sure what titles they could and couldn't talk about. Considering they don't get the questions in advance, I can imagine that there could be a lot of preparation to cover all the bases just in case. I mean, for all we know, Warner might be 99% completed with work on an amazing special edition for a film we all want, but they may not be able to confirm that if they're still trying to negotiate rights or the like.

If anything, these chats confirm that the people who work at Warner not only care about the work they do, they care about the films and are huge fans themselves; there are times they seem as disappointed as us, if not more, when they have to say that there's not enough interest to justify putting out a certain title. I think the Warner Archive is a fantastic idea.

The only thing that's ever frustrated me in a chat, and it's not the fault of Warner or Ron or HTF administrators, is when people ask questions where the answer is already out there. Especially if it's a repeat of a question someone else asked in the same chat, but also if it's something that was recently announced or covered previously. This doesn't seem to happen a ton, so this isn't a major complaint or anything. Probably it would make sense for people to do a little bit of homework about the title they want to ask about before the chat occurs, if they don't already do that. Though I haven't compared the chats religiously before writing this post, the number of inappropriate questions (i.e. asking one studio about another's title, or asking the feature film department about a TV release) seems to be going down each year, so I think the forum is doing a great job of making it really clear exactly what we're here to talk about during one of these chats. That can only help.

I thought whoever asked about when a title goes from the "new release" department's control to the "catalog" department's control was a fantastic question; I think Warner said six months after. Simple questions like that help give us all a better picture of how things work behind the scenes there. Hopefully because of that answer, in the future people won't ask the catalog people about brand new releases; not because the questions aren't valid, but because it's not the right time to do so and asking would only take away someone else's chance to ask a relevant question.

These Warner chats, for me, are almost equivalent to a presidential press conference. As such, we all need to remember (myself included) that they are here to answer questions and give us news of releases, not to give us an all-access pass to their operation. And I, for one, thank Warner for being gracious enough to do so, and thank Ron and everyone working behind the scenes at HTF for facilitating these chats. They are a rare treat, and I'm grateful to have the chance to participate. I truly hope that Warner will not allow a few bad eggs to taint the whole experience for them.

Once again, I'd just like to thank everyone at Warner and the HTF for having these chats. It really is a great opportunity to get sneak peaks at what's coming, and it's great to have the chance to interact with the people at Warner on a limited basis. Nothing but gratitude and appreciation from this forum member!

 

[Roy Batty]

While I agree with Ron about many of his points, and I think that most of the time people is disappointed due to their own preconceived expectations, and not because of the answers given, I still think it would be fair to find this latest chat too vague.

And as long as people does not feel entitled to milk the people from Warner or any other studio for information, as long as posters do not think the studio owes them anything, and as long as board members are not childishly oblivious to the studios' inner workings and commercial limitations, I really believe it should be ok to express a measure of disappointment in a mature and respectful manner.

I feel fortunate for having people from any studio coming to this board willing to share plans and info on future releases, more so when they rarely do it anywhere else, but sometimes it just feels like too little information as oppossed to, well, just no information at all.

I hope that is not seen as adding to the negativity, neither by Ron nor by anyone from any studio following discussions here.

 

[Patrick McCart]

With most of the major studios, I think a great deal of their libraries have been exhausted in terms of top-tier releases. Most of the "sure fire" releases need to be upgrades or BluRays. Consider how all of their best picture Oscar winners are on DVD, plus all of the AFI 100.

Off the top of my head, the major unreleased titles are the Tex Avery cartoons, The Magnificent Ambersons, the "A" silents (The Big Parade, Greed, The Crowd), and probably the Jean Harlow films. Others could point out more than I can. There's a long list of films that seriously need reissues like Cabaret. Most other unreleased films are probably not "A" titles in terms of projected demand, unfortunately.

In the last few years, most studios have been terrific about classic films whether they take the special edition approach or the box sets.

 

[Mark_TS]

Im very disappointed not as cheerfull today as I could be with the news--no upgrade of BARRY LYNDON and LOLITA-even just anamorphic enhancement; I have the French box set where those are included-so they could be frisbeed-it feels like the taint the box somehow-they are in the same template designed covers on black background as the rest, BL has the leg rose and gun over black, and LOLITA the glasses; some saying the EU print of BL is a bit superior, I cannot say
MAD MAX and CONTACT-upgraded-great!

Now how could the chaps at WARNER actually utter the very word/number "2011" in a sentence-with no mention of an upgrade on 2010!?
If this is in the works I have not heard of it
They are the the top dog in dealing with customer ideas and wants, bar none. When they come to a place like this- you know the are into film too, not just as commerce

edit- its up to Lucas im sure, but I would very much like to see the unaltered, remastered THX 1138-even as a second disc in the deluxe, The current frikked-with version is an abomination-and contradicts the very message of the film! can you get a legit version anywhere in the world? I have a tape of the WS laserdisc-but that wont do

edit 2

I dont know how it works-but if Ron gets 3-4 questions at a time on his console-he can screen out the non polite ones or the question about this or that which is either already in general knowledge- or has already been asked once during the course of the chat

I hate to see valuable chat time wasted with the 3rd question of whether an SE of THE GOONIES will be out soon

 

[Mark Oates]

Well, how about this for timing? One of those sources I mentioned has thrown the towel in thanks to a vociferous and hostile minority. The Doctor Who Restoration Team Technical Forum, an excellent resource for discussing the technical side of video restoration, will be closing on April 1 because of the abusive nature of a minority of so-called fans who disagree with the release strategy of 2entertain, the producers of the UK Dr Who DVD releases. Steve Roberts, who runs the website and forum, is intimately involved in the production of the DVDs and often finds himself caught between his employers (the BBC and 2entertain) and the fans. He has always barred speculation on the forum because he has to maintain contractual confidentiality about possible future releases. The only time he is allowed to talk about releases is once all the contracts are signed and 2entertain is ready for the news to be released. Fortunately his informative website on the preparation of the releases will remain, but that will probably become the mouthpiece of the PR brigade in time.

I'm not entirely sure, but I don't know if the Colour Recovery project would have snowballed as quickly into a working solution had it not been for the DWRT forum airing the concept in its early days, so potentially some real damage may have been done for the sake of not knowing how far is too far.

 

[BrianRi]

Hi all,

Some quick stats about me: I read this forum a lot but don't post often.

I don't know much about aspect ratios, pixels, or the names of different types of dvd cases.

No, I will NOT be going to blue-ray. I've got about 500 dvds, and I'll be damned if I'm gonna start all over again.

What I am is just a film buff, who loves movies from the 1920's--mid 1960's (pre-hippie, you might say).

But what's been obvious over the years, even to an average Joe Shmoe like me, is that George Feltenstein is the film buff's best friend. He's knowledgeable, genial, and most important, he really cares about classic old movies. But he's not God. He has to answer to the "higher-ups", just like most of us do in our daily jobs. Yeah, I'm still anxiously awaiting stuff mentioned on this and other threads like The Bowery Boys, Tex Avery, more pre-code Cagney, Harlow, Wheeler and Woolsey, more "B" movies from Warners' Monogram/Allied Artists catalog, various short subjects, The Big Parade, The Crowd, etc. But I have confidence that Mr. Feltenstein is doing all he can to get those titles out as fast as he can and in the best condition he can.

How do I know this? I'm a reader of this forum, a buyer of dvds, and a watcher of old movies. I have no other "connections" and yes, I'll admit to occasionally buying a bootleg or two out of impatience. I even stoop to watching a VHS tape from time to time. (Horrors! What a neanderthal I must be!) But even a barely literate fool like me can read the numerous times George Feltenstein's name comes up on forums like this, and in interviews and articles, as well as seeing him pop up on TCM from time to time. And what is crystal clear and obvious to me is that he is not only the "go-to" guy, but also the "get-it-done" guy when it comes to getting quality releases of classic movies (usually with excellent extras) on dvd.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

 

[FredMihir]

iits a good

 

[Steve...O]

Ron - thanks for saying what needed to be said. WHV is a first class organization all the way and deserves to be treated as such.

When members have offered constructive criticism (in a professional way, WHV has listened and implemented as many as they could. Remember the days of snappers? Gone. Remember pre-released titles in box sets? Gone. During the chat there were questions about retaining original logos and offering standalone BD releases of classics (as opposed to deluxe $$$ editions) and both time WHV said they'd make Upper Mgmt aware of consumer concerns. How much more consumer friendly can you be?

During this chat the Warner reps indicated they know members by name. If that doesn't prove that they have a genuine interest in the thoughts of the membership I don't know what does.

There is a reason that WHV is perenially the HTF "Studio of the Year". Let's make them feel welcome.

Brian Ri - loved your post! Your two main paragraphs are spot on in my opinion.

Steve

 

[Derek Miner]

Thank you, Ron, for this commentary. I, for one, feel incredibly lucky to have the chance to participate in Q&A with a studio.

I can identify with many people who have a pet title they are dying to see released and find themselves frustrated. And I have seen some titles that meant a lot to me ruined by shoddy work or shortcuts (not by Warner, though), which is also frustrating. But even if Warner Bros. occasionally doesn't do something right, they have done SO MUCH that goes above and beyond. I can't believe the amount of effort that went into the Superman and Blade Runner sets, and let's not forget the disc replacements for Superman - one because they decided that it was the "right thing to do" to remaster a disc to include a proper legacy soundtrack. I rarely find anyone who offers that level of customer service anymore.

As the person who brought up The Goonies, I want to apologize to anyone who feels I wasted their time. However, I will defend the fact that I asked specifically about deleted scenes, knowing that there would eventually be a Blu-ray. Sure, I have a decent DVD of the film, but there are still significant completed but cut scenes that could be pulled from the vault to enhance a Blu-ray release, so why not take the chance to plant the seed in the mind of the people who set these releases in motion.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

This has been a very enjoyable read and I sincerely thank all of you.

Some have suggested submitting a list of wanted titles to the studio
in hopes that they would be released.

I am willing to talk with Warner to see if this is something that they
would be interested in.

My personal thought on this process is that the idea could backfire
as it would get people's hopes up that the studio would release
everything that is submitted to them, and I don't think that is the
way these things work. Warner's response in the chat would be
limited to only those titles that they can talk about at the moment
and that would further aggravate those who did not get a response
to their request.

It seems there is a time and place for everything that gets released.
The DVD market needed to mature before many of the most popular
titles started appearing on store shelves. The same thing is happening
with Blu-ray. I *think* the studios take a hard look at what they feel
will sell under the current format climate to a wide audience rather than
relying on a list of titles from hardcore enthusiasts.

Warner reads this forum daily. They are aware of the titles all of you
have been posting about. They have put many of these titles into
production because of these chats and your posted requests.

I just am a little apprehensive about changing the manner in we
conduct our chats. I promise, however, that I will talk to the studio
before our next chat (which may happen shortly) about whether
addressing a list of wanted titles is a good idea or not.

Once again, I thank all of you for being so understanding of my
original post.

 

[rich_d]

I think we can all agree that suggesting that someone lied to you is inappropriate. However, should someone be able to suggest that WHV statements led to unfulfilled results? If not ...

I'm one of those that said just 'don't have these chats anymore.' Reading the couple threads on the aftermath just supports my viewpoint.

I see little benefit of putting WHV in the position of having to make vague answers that tend to irritate forum members. I see little benefit of putting WHV on the spot of commenting on a title that they are not prepared to comment on. I see no benefit of WHV discussing target dates that may change, making them look bad. I see no benefit of putting WHV in the position of potentially feeling disappointed about participating with HTF.

When someone questions why WHV is only putting out high price/deluxe editions of classic favorites (e.g. Casablanca) and wonders about the same for GWTW and The Wizard of Oz and the answer comes back that they will address it with "upper management" and you have George Feltenstein Senior Vice President of Catalog Marketing is in the room, doesn't that come across as (at the bare minimum) awkward? I mean if a S.V.P. is not upper management, what is he?

When three corporate guys say "Good question...that is a corporate issue...beyond our control. However, recent postings expressing your similar feelings have been noted and expressed to corporate." It reads like 'we would change it in a heartbeat, but Time Warner controls the shots around here.' This comes across as ... awkward for all involved.

Technically it is a 'live chat.' But the process of having WHV in their own offices huddling up for their collective answer from their SVP of Marketing and two publicity gentlemen while HTF forum members prepare to submit their questions upon their turn being called hardly seems truly live to me. In this day and age, a video over the Internet would be a huge step up and be a lot more interactive. However, that would mean that WHV could not huddle up for 'hey what are we going to say about that one' ... so my guess is that day will not be forthcoming.

As others have suggested, just seems like it might be better for all involved to just collect questions, submit them to WHV and they can comment only on what they want to comment on. This would eliminate putting WHV in an awkward spot and if they feel like throwing HTF new nuggets of info, all the better.

 

[silentman74]

The idea of sending a list to Warner's would be a good idea. I don't think it would backfire, providing Warner's informs us that the info they are providing could change. When a film's release is pushed back of dropped, it's usually something that even Warner's was not anticipating.

WHV is only a one part of is company. Decisions can be made by those above that can effect what we see on the store shelves. I am sure that George Feltenstein would also be as disappointed if something he was working on was shelved. And to consider that he gets it from both ends.

There might be problems with sending a list to George Feltenstein, but the answers we wanted might have been revealed already if someone has asked them. We know that the Showboat collection is being worked on, but only because someone asked a question about the Ultra-Rez process. But other questions don't always reveal interesting details. I know you can't restrict what people ask, but being able to send a list to get an update would at least tell us where some projects are at.

I wanted someone to ask about Lon Chaney 2. Had this chat gone one for 3 hours we might have found out, but the 2 hours we did get had wasteful questions. Simply sending a list to Warner's, covering a few titles or collections missed in the chat would not be a big deal. After all, I would rather hear that Chaney is not coming out, then to sit around waiting for the collection. Simply knowing the status of a film collection goes a long way. Just consider that we are aware the gangster collection is no more. Are we disappointed, yes, but we know what to expect this fall or beyond.

 

[Bob_S.]

Ron, I'm sorry WB was unhappy with the negative comments, there's really no excuse for it. I think one of the problems is that we're spoiled and some of us EXPECT these chats every year. I'll admit, I DON'T know the studio politics
that go on. I have no idea what has to happen in order to get a question answered. I've never been involved in any of the chats (don't even know how) but always looked forward to reading the transcripts. For me, it was like Christmas morning, ok Santa, here's my list, what are you gonna get me?

Usually all of my questions get answered but this year I noticed that no Mickey Rooney movies were mentioned and I've been DYING for an Andy Hardy set, I was just curious if any one had any info on that.

For years WB has done a bang up job on their releases and I've given them praises on a number of occasions. They truly listen to their fans and for that I'm grateful. I hope they do come back and also realize that ALL of us are passionate about our films (some more than others). I'm alot like Brian Ri, collect mostly golden age hollywood and most of my 500+ collection is WB releases. Thanks WB, your effort is most appreciated!

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Then you'll be pleased to know that a Blu-ray release was announced earlier this year - it's being released in a couple weeks, on April 7th. Amazon.com already has it for preorder, only $14.99 there. I'll be picking this one up as well.

 

[Powell&Pressburger]

I do think they should release Blu Ray Disc editions for Gone with the Wind, Casablanca and the Wizard of Oz... only because of the economy... I am lucky enough to have a decently secure job right now... but I have one friend who buys blu ray etc but has been laid off and hasn't bought a BD in months!

I know some people would be willing to buy titles like Wind and Wizard but the box sets are just too high for some in this climate... I liked the box set for Casablanca esp the size of the box and dimensions, however the new sets for Wizard and Wind seem so not great for the shelf but I could be wrong. The Woodstock one looks nifty though.

I know it was asked during the chat about disc only editions, and I would guess they would sell very well. Just hard on the wallet these days for some.

 

[ReggieW]

I stopped by a local Best Buy in West Los Angeles last night, and they literally had an entire top shelf of those Casablanca Blu-ray sets. They were priced at $54.99. I doubt they are flying off shelves at that price in this economy, nor can retailers be thrilled at those bulky boxes taking up all of that space for something that'll rarely sell.

Bottom line..... I believe Warner is shooting itself in the foot with these bulky collections. There's no reason why there shouldn't be a no-frills version for purchase.