Nat McCormick of the Exchange noted that sellers are being forced to be particularly creative in how they approach buyers.
“Nobody is putting upfront cash for VOD, and it’s much harder to sell films that are not obviously theatrical titles,” McCormick noted. “We are getting good response on our slate — an Anna Kendrick musical in ‘The Last Five Years,’ a Jean Claude Van Damme action film with ‘Swelter’ and Ron Howard’s documentary ‘Made in America,’ which was just sold to Phase 4 for the U.S.”
McCormick said that the indie sector faces an array of challenges — local production in international markets, the TV production boom, the precipitous decline in DVD sales and young folks not hitting the theaters. “With all the devices that people have, going to the theater does not mean as much to younger people as when I was growing up,” he added.
