Craig Emanuel at Sundance Summit: “Now is the time to act boldly and wisely”

EDITOR’S NOTE: The following speech was given by Craig Emanuel – a film distribution specialist from Los Angeles law firm Loeb & Loeb
- prior to the opening night panel discussion at the Sundance Creative
Producing Summit held in Sundance, Utah over this past weekend. The
topic for the panel was ‘State of the Union – a moderated discussion
covering the relevant trends in packaging, financing, distribution and
marketing.’  Other members of the panel included, Liesl Copland (WME),
Micah Green (CAA), Winnie Lau (Fortissimo), Tia Lessin (Documentary
Director/producer), Mark Jane Skalski (Producer) and Jonathan Sehring
(IFC Entertainment).  Emanuel noted that the speech below was “intended
to be a somewhat humorous and tongue in cheek overview of the industry
which also was, in part, a parody of the superb ‘State of the Union’
address given by President Obama earlier this year and of the
Inauguration Speech given by President John F Kennedy. All of the above
should be taken into consideration in reading the speech below which
when given, was designed to create a mood of optimism for the 40-plus
producers who had flown in for a weekend of discussions about the film
industry.”

State of the Union Address by Craig Emanuel

John Cooper, representatives from Sundance, fellow speakers and panelists, distinguished guests and wannabe producers:

I have come here tonight not only to address the distinguished men
and women in this great theatre, but to speak frankly and directly to
you all and to share with you the benefit of years of experience from
the wonderful people who appear on the podium with me this evening.

I know that for the many producers in the audience right now, the
state of the economy and the film industry is a concern that rises
above all others. And rightly so. If you haven’t been personally
affected by this downturn, you probably know someone who has—a friend,
a neighbor, a member of your family, a writer, a director, an actor or
even a fellow producer. You don’t need to hear another list of
statistics to know that the film industry is in crisis because you live
it every day. It is the worry you wake up to and the source of
sleepless nights. It is the job you thought you would retire from but
have now lost the business you built your dreams upon that is now
hanging by a mere thread. The impact of this recession is real, and it
is everywhere. But while the film industry may be weakened and our
confidence shaken; though we are living through difficult and uncertain
times, tonight I want every producer to know this: We will rebuild, we
will recover, and the film industry will emerge stronger than ever. The
answers to our problems do not lie beyond our reach they exist in the
creative minds of the people here and those you work with; in the
imagination of writers and directors and the pride of the
hardest-working industry on earth. Those qualities that have made this
industry the great force it is we still possess in ample measure. What
is required now is for the industry to pull together, confront boldly
the challenges we face and take responsibility for our future once more.

Now if we are honest with ourselves, we need to admit that for too
long, we have not always met our responsibilities as agents, producers,
distributors and, financiers and yes, even as lawyers. I say this not
to lay blame or look backwards but because it is only by understanding
how we arrived at this moment that we’ll be able to lift ourselves out
of this predicament.

For too long, agents have demanded too much money for their clients;
financiers have charged egregious interest rates on loans; distributors
have charged ridiculous distribution fees and not committed enough
money to print and advertising costs; lawyers have bogged down the
negotiation process; directors have forgotten when to say “Cut!”;
actors have failed to memorize their lines; and yes, even you, the
producers, have continually tried to get made unproduceable “dribble”
that has no commercial value whatsoever yet you continue to ask “Why
will no one finance my picture?”

The fact is our industry did not fall into decline overnight. Nor
did all of our problems begin with the collapse of the video and DVD
market. We have known for decades that our survival depends on
supporting and nurturing great new writers as well as finding high net
worth individuals and countries around the world who think that being
involved in the film industry is both fun and financially rewarding.
Yet despite this we produce more films than ever before. The cost of
production continues to grow yet we keep living in denial and refusing
to make changes to address what is clearly laid out in front of us. And
though all these challenges went unmet, we still managed to spend more
money and pile up more debt and produce more unreleaseable films than
ever before.

People produced films they knew would never be sold and all the
while critical reform and difficult decisions were put off for some
other time on some other day. Well that day of reckoning has arrived
and the time to take charge of our future is here.

Now is the time to act boldly and wisely—to not only revive this
industry but to build a new foundation for lasting prosperity. Now is
the time to look at realistic fees for actors, writers and directors.
Now is the time to consider distribution in a format other than “big
screen”. Now is the time to embrace the digital age; the use of the
Internet and other creative means of getting an audience to see our
films.

Now is the time to take advantage of tax subsidies that not only
exist in countries around the world but right here at home in our own
backyard (well, perhaps not yet in the great state of California).

Let this not be the winter of our discontent but be a time of
“Transformers”. Let us overcome the “Rocky” road. Let’s avoid the
ongoing “Crash”. Let us take advantage of our “Beautiful Minds”. We
don’t need to sink like “Titanic”. Let’s look for new “Aviators”. We
are all “Ordinary People”. Some of us will travel “From Here To
Eternity” to make their first film to “witness” that a new “Star Is
Born”. Financing may come from a “French Connection” or “Out Of Africa”
or from a stranger in “The Heat Of The Night” or from a “Lost Weekend”.
As a young producer, don’t feel the need to do this journey alone but
seek the help of a friend, a colleague, even a “Godfather”. Don’t
forget to get a great composer as people love “The Sound Of Music”.
Remember that a good film is “The Greatest Show On Earth”. But if not
produced properly, your financing can be “Gone With The Wind”. If you
are realistic in your expectations, “It Can Happen One Night”.

Let producers and financiers explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those problems which divide us.

Let both sides, for the first time, formulate serious and precise
proposals for the financing of pictures and for the first time,
reasonable compensation and backend for producers.
Let both sides seek to invoke the wonders of the industry instead of
its terrors. Together let us explore the stars, find new distribution
models, take advantage of creative tax subsidies, tap the creative
resources of writers and directors and encourage new forms of art and
commerce. All of this will not be finished in the next one hundred days
nor will it be finished in the next one thousand days but let us begin.

In the words of the great president John F. Kennedy from his inaugural address:

“So let us begin anew -remembering that civility is not a sign of
weakness and sincerity is always subject to proof. Let us never
negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate.”

In your hands, my fellow producers and filmmakers, rests the final
success or failure of our course. Can we forge against those evil
agents who make it so difficult for us to close deals with actors? Can
we procure financing from around the world in a global alliance, north
and south, east and west, that can assure a more fruitful industry for
all mankind? Will you join in that historic effort?

In the spirit of working together with agents and financiers, my
fellow producers and filmmakers: Ask not what your financier and agent
can do for you—ask what you can do for your financier and agent.

In the words of the great actor Peter Sellers in the role of
Chauncey Gardner from the film “Being There”, “As long as the roots are
not severed, all is well and all will be well in the garden.”
My fellow producers, filmmakers, distinguished guests, we have the
backbone and “roots” for a great industry. Let us go out and water that
garden, nurture the roots and bring forth great flowers and trees.

Thank you.

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