Channelblog

OSCARS

It's that time of year again, to cheer us out of the winter wilderness...  and some great films to see on DVD, like Little Miss Sunshine, a lovely happy quirkey film that captures something in all of us, nominated for Best Film! It's amazing that we go what seems like half a year with rubbish product and suddenly it's all change with the advent of the award season. An some great foreign films coming from both Verve Pictures and Soda Pictures... all of which we'll be proud to offer for download! Both these outfits have product nominated for Oscars would you believe - who needs Tartan or Artyficial Eye!    
Also The Devil Wears Prada, for which Meryl Streep is nominated for Best Actress, out next week on DVD. Then we've got the renowned The Departed  directed by Martin Scorsese, for which he's up for a Gong. Our very own Paul Greengrass is also nominated in the Best Director category for United 93 which out now on DVD! And then of course there's the dame Helen Mirren who surely will win Best Actress for her role in The Queen... coming soon    

windy

It's bloody windy out there, you'd think with a bit of dodgy weather customers would be back ? there's even some decent movies out to rent for this month. Great to see Little Miss Sunshine arrive today, this is going to be one of the best rental titles this year; another Sideways, you know if we had one or two more titles of this calibre each month we might get some of our old renters back. First the rental decline and then retail, well they're almost giving it away now ! £1.99 at HMV.
Pretty soon you'll be able to pop into one of our stores and download onto a memory card or portable device take it home, plug it in and watch it, and no disc to return.

Great to see QPR are still in the FA Cup in the middle of Jan !! 

BVA AWARDS

Hey Hey !! it's BVA awards time again, Yipee !!
Only £199.00 a ticket,let's get dressed up, listen to a whole load of old waffle and two hours of back slapping, although if someone out there in studio land is going to pay we may well turn up for the beer or two and get wasted and talk Bo**cks all of our own making.
Who honestly thinks rental dealers are going to fork out £199.00 just to have retail, retail, retail, rammed down their throats and hear what an amazing job the BVA has done in tackling piracy, have a little wander down Kiburn High Road any lunchtime  and I think you'll find out the answer, how many years now ? there's more chance that QPR will win the FA Cup and Pete Docherty will be put in charge of the NHS.
Did you know two years ago that a couple of the major studios took some well known rental dealers, some of whom had been pouring cash into the studio's pockets for years, and probably made the rental industry what it was in the ninties and the film market what it is today, to court for renting out retail stock, WELL HEY !! at least they paid for the stock !!
Unlike the guys running around this city every day with holdalls full of pirated movies, but I guess fairness has no place in this business.

The Pursuit Of Happyness

Went to see The Pursuit Of Happyness at the Sony screening theatre in Golden Square last night... I won't mention my colleague Paul's comments as they're not really mentionable in the blogeshere, suffice to say 'God Bless America'! It was good to catch up on some industry gossip, although sad that we're now amongst the only independent London Film Rental chains remaining, thanks largely to baked bean salesmen Warner Bros. introduction of two tier pricing a few years ago...   
Sony MD Marek Antoniak is retiring gracefully after many successful years. They are a good bunch, consistent in their approach and up for a party. We have many fine memories of being ferried around the world, in the interests of corporate entertainment you understand.
By contrast, it's sad to hear that Momentum Pictures charismatic MD Xavier Marchand has been sacked... although more to do with in-house positioning in light of the imminent sale by Canadian parent. Will there be more happenings when the great and the good return from industry events in Europe and CES in Vegas? More gossip anyone?

shorts

right you lot... we're inviting budding filmmakers to display their wares for FREE (shorts that is) from  our site. From Aprilish we'll have a dedicated FREE area for short films - with full credits - in full gloriously encoded  WMV . So if you're looking to get noticed then mail them to us, preferably on disc, to Channel Films, 58 Salusbury Road, London NW6 6NP.  And don't forget to tell us who you are ! Alternatively, if you're brave enough then try emailing (20 min duration max please) to shortsATchannelfilms.com - did you know that we have  some of the creme de la creme of British Directors/Producers among our clientel... just look at the credits (admittedly at the very end of the roll!) of British arthouse in recent years. So get your didgeridooda's out...   

blog, blog, blog...

OK, here it is... the channelblog you've all been waiting for. You can vent your anger and frustrations, comment on particular movies, recommend friend's sites or even listen to some 70's punk from ageing rockers...