 SHOWEST
2004 A STAR STUDDED ANNIVERSARY EVENT
By Judy Thorburn
For the 30th
consecutive year the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO) and
the movie studios embraced their partnership at the world’s largest
motion picture industry trade show and convention. Known as ShoWest,
this year’s four-day anniversary event was held March 22nd-25th
at the Paris and Bally’s Hotels in Las Vegas where everything from the
latest in film technology to theatre seating, ticketing and concession
items were on display by vendors looking to enhance the movie going
experience. But, if you were to chat with passport holders admitted to
“all” the events, odds are they would say the real treats are the film
sneak peaks and the chance to share the same space with A-list
celebrities. This year proved to be filled with lots of the above plus
unexpected surprises made possible by the film studios and sponsors.
A key topic, first
addressed at last years ShoWest 2003, and one that still remains a
strong issue, is piracy, with NATO undertaking important initiatives to
combat the harmful threat to the industry. Jack Valenti, retiring
President and CEO of the Motion Picture Association of America after 38
years, and the first recipient of ShoWest’s Medal of Honor Award, spoke
at the International Day Press Conference about the importance of
“informational trailers to meet the initial needs of country, creed, and
culture all over the world and to teach children about copyright”. John
Fithian, President of NATO says, “working with our studio partners, we
aim to educate the public and our own employees about the harm caused by
movie theft”. More than 5,000 theatres have exhibited anti piracy
messages to the public. Obviously, piracy is an ongoing subject that
must be dealt with seriously on a global basis, since this is not just
happening in the U.S.
Monday night set
the pace for an Evening of Independent Films at the local Century
Orleans cinema where five films were showcased: Lions Gate Films - Danny
Deckchair, Newmarket Films - Stander, IFC Films - Metallica: Some Kind
of Monster, Film Foundry releasing - Bobby Jones: Stroke of Genius and
my favorite Sony Pictures Classics - Baadassss! starring Mario Van
Pebbles as his real life father, Melvin, which recounts the
circumstances surrounding the making of Sweet Sweetback’s Baadassss
Song, the “black” cult classic of the early 70’s.
Mario Van Peebles and Judy Thorburn
Recognized as a
cultural icon, renaissance man and revolutionary, ShoWest acknowledged
writer/director/producer Melvin Van Peebles’ contribution to films with
the 2004 Lifetime Achievement Award. Son Mario presented his father with
the award at the International Day Luncheon co-sponsored by IMAX,
Nielson and EDI, where the International Achievement in Filmmaking award
was presented to Niki Caro, writer/director of last year’s spiritually
uplifting film, Oscar nominated, Whalerider.
That was just the
beginning. ShoWest proved to be a star studded event like no other in
recent history of this industry tradeshow. Various studio sponsored
luncheons and dinners and preview screenings which brought out other
major stars to promote their movie, and this year there were more than
the usual press conferences by award winners, stars and studio bigwigs
eager to greet the press and plug their projects. While attendees
munched away at daily food offerings in the huge banquet hall, samples
of trailers of upcoming releases and potential blockbusters were shown
on screen in hopes of creating positive buzz among theatre owners who
book the films. We got a glimpse of some highly anticipated sequels
that peaked everyone’s interest for more. By the looks of what I saw,
if the array of movies can live up their hype and expectations, this
going to be great year for the industry filmmakers, distributors,
theatre owners and movie going public alike.
This year Paramount
Pictures “committed to being the best show in town” pulled out all the
stops, starting with an incredible lineup of stars from their upcoming
films who greeted the press and later that night sat on a two row stage
dais at Paramount’s sponsored dinner, a Gala event second only in glitz
to the Final Night Awards Banquet Dinner. Unfortunately, Jim Carrey and
Nicholas Cage (this is second year in a row at ShoWest he snubbed
reporters) were a no show for the press. However, they did take their
seat on stage at the evening’s dinner alongside stars Luke Mably (The
Prince and Me), Lindsay Lohan and Tina Fey (Mean Girls), Nicole Kidman,
Mathew Broderick, Bette Midler, Faith Hill, Jon Lovitz and Glenn Close
(The Stepford Wives), Jude Law, Marisa Tomei, Nia Long, Jane Krakowski,
Sienna Miller (What’s It All About Alfie?), Seth Green, Dax Shepard,
Burt Reynolds (Without a Paddle), Denzel Washington, Meryl Streep, Leiv
Schreiber (The Manchurian Candidate), Samuel L.Jackson (Coach Green),
Nicholas Cage and Michael Caine (The Weather Man), and Jim Carrey,
Cedric the Entertainer, Liam Aiken, Emily Browning (Leminy Snicket’s A
Series of Unfortunate Events). Also, seated was Chairwoman of Motion
Picture Group and Paramount Pictures, Sherry Lansing who said, “ This is
an amazing dais of actors. I am proud and honored to be working with
them.” The night was punctuated by the unveiling of footage from
Paramount’s upcoming releases for 2004.
Twentieth Century
Fox brought in a great lineup of talent from their upcoming slate for
this year. Their early morning press conference included from Dodgeball:
Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn and Christine Taylor. From Garfield: Jennifer
Love Hewitt, Breckin Meyer and the creator of Garfield- Jim Davis. From
The Day After Tomorrow: Director Roland Emmerich and Producer Mark
Gordon, and from I Robot: the surprise guest turned out to be a very
amiable, very press friendly Will Smith.
For the final day,
Twentieth Century Fox and DPL Cinema hosted and co-sponsored a luncheon
and presentation of impressive movies to be released this year. Bruce
Snyder, President of Domestic Distribution said, “I believe this will be
the highest grossing summer in history.” The Day After Tomorrow stars
Dennis Quaid and Jake Gyllenhaal and teams Independence Day director
Rolland Emmerich with Saving Private Ryan and Speed producer Mark
Gordon. It’s a winning combination that was evident in the ten-minute
preview. The storyline relates to the coming of the global superstorm,
so you can expect fantastic visual affects and exciting, suspenseful
human drama, an “immense spectacle” from these renowned filmmakers.
Without a doubt,
another highlight was the Spider 2 Trailer Event hosted by Sony Pictures
Entertainment. It might have been a rough cut, but if this any sign of
what’s in store come June 30, I cannot wait. Let’s just say it is jam
packed with thrilling action, and introduces a new evil nemesis (played
by Frida costar Alfred Molina) for Spidey to contend with. This follow
up is guaranteed to wow audiences and bring in the bucks. Director Sam
Raimi appeared on stage after the trailer and surprised the audience
with an in person appearance of stars Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst.
This was a special, unexpected treat.
Dreamworks
presented a behind the scenes look into the making of their upcoming
Shrek 2, which opens on May 21. Director Kelly Asbury described, and
visually showed step by step, the many aspects involved in the creation
of this animated feature from storyboard to initial design construct,
surfacing, lighting, editing, to final digital work transformed onto
film. Not only was it informative, insightful and fascinating, it
offered an entertaining preview of what to expect from the fun sequel.
Full-length preview
screenings included Miramax’s Ella Enchanted, a delightful reworked
update of the Cinderella story starring The Princess Diaries’ Anne
Hathaway, who appeared live on stage after the film ended to lend
support for her film that opens April 9. Other previews were New Line’s
The Notebook, based on the best selling novel by Nicholas Sparks,
featuring ShoWest Star of Tomorrow, Ryan Gosling, and Lions Gate Films’
The Punisher, an action thriller based on the Marvel comics superhero
who seeks justice for the ruthless massacre of his entire family. The
film costars John Travolta as the villain and opens nationwide on April
16. But, for lead Thomas Jane, this is the breakout role that should
catapult him into fame as an action hero. His chiseled muscular frame
and interesting face could easily turn him into another male sex symbol
for the new millennium. 
Producer Gale Anne
Hurd, co-producer Avi Arad,CEO of Marvel Studios (who was awarded the
first Robert W. Selig Showmanship Award for Achievement in Filmmaking),
director Jonathan Hensleigh, Thomas Jane, and co-star Rebecca
Romijn-Stamos were on hand for a press Q and A, where I got a chance to
ask Thomas Jane if he had to workout to get his body in shape for the
role, and if he did most of the dangerous stunts. Director Hensleigh
answered by saying, “Thomas had to put on about 30 pounds of muscle
because it was a prerequisite to look like the (comic book) character
and he performed about 95% of all the stunts.” Thomas said he has always
been “a lover of hard core action comic books. I always wanted to star
in this kind of film. This film marks the return to barebones, hardcore
acting styles seen in the 70’s, like Charles Bronson and Clint
Eastwood”.
Rebecca added “I am
a fan of Star Trek and the sci fi genre. This is such a great time for
superheroes and escapism in films. My role in The Punisher is the
opposite of my X-Men character. It gives me a chance to show a different
image”.
Producer Hurd
stated (about herself) that she is a “girl who always loved comic books.
They transported me to roles that I could never imagine living….taps
into everything primal, very Joseph Campbell, “The Heroes Journey”. I
hope to continue making comic books into movies for the rest of my
career.”
The anxiously
awaited Gala Awards Banquet was held on the concluding night where the
National Association of Theatre Owners honors the movie industry stars
and achievers in various categories. Sponsored by Coca Cola,
actor/comedian Fred Williard was on board as emcee and he did a bang up
job offering many funny quips. Receiving awards were: Gwyneth Paltrow-
Distinguished Decade of Achievement in Filmmaking Award, Jude Law- Male
Star of the Year, Jack Black- Comedy Star of the Year, Djimon Honsou-
Supporting Actor of the Year, Jennifer Garner- Female Star of Tomorrow,
Ryan Gosling- Male Star of Tomorrow, Nancy Myers- Director of the Year,
Oscar nominated Producer Lawrence Gordon- Lifetime Achievement Award,
Andrew Stanton- Animation Director of the Year, John Davis- Producer of
the Year, and Jack Valenti- ShoWest Medal of Honor. The only
disappointment was the absence of Hallee Berry who, we were told, could
not make it to accept her ShoWest Female Star of the Year award due to
an ear infection. Presenters such as super stars Warren Beatty and
Keanu Reeves and accomplished actor/director Forrest Whitaker, plus that
marvelous roster of celebrities almost made us forget her gorgeous face
was missing.
Additional awards
in filmmaking were given to Columbia University film students Brett
Levner and Steve Sole. They received the 2004 Coca Cola Refreshing
Filmmaker sward for their film short “Beeing Reel”, a sixty second
heartfelt Coke commercial, that will be shown on nearly 21,000 movie
screens nationwide.
ShoWest also took
time at this ceremony to honor Loew’s Cineplex Entertainment, formerly
known as Loew’s Theatres, with a Special Centennial Achievement Award
for their 100th Anniversary in the movie business, and for its
dedication to continually bringing the best movie experience to its
patrons.
As a Las Vegas
movie reporter, it was cool to see one of our local guys win a Hollywood
Reporter’s Showmanship Award for Best Use of Newspaper. Joseph
Girouard, Director of Corporate relations and Promotions for Brenden
Theatre at the Palms Casino, was the recipient of this prestigious award
in honor of his campaign for Fox’s “X2: X-Men United”. His series of ads
that ran in a weekly local paper attracted filmgoers with the statement
“They’re coming” followed by similar ads warning citizens of the arrival
of mutants. These ads with no mention of who “they” were directed
people to seek shelter at the Brenden Theatre and Joe says, resulted in
“the third highest three day opening for a single theatre in the market
behind Spiderman and The Matrix Reloaded. This was creative marketing at
its best, and it worked. Congratulations, Joe!
And,
congratulations to ShoWest and it’s 30th Anniversary. This
convention was marked by a farewell and honor to outgoing Chief of the
Motion Picture Association of America, Jack Valenti, but welcomed a
promising year ahead in the movie industry. Even with higher priced
tickets, movies continue to be one of the most affordable, sought after
forms of entertainment. With evolution in technology creating a more
visually entertaining experience, ShoWest proves the future of movies is
alive and well, and again, very rewarding.
|
