Hey folks, Harry here... Now, I don't share my angry animator friend's feelings that an August 10th release kills OSMOSIS JONES' chances of making money... I disagree... Look at THE FUGITIVE, SIXTH SENSE, BLAIR WITCH PROJECT... Etc... They did well in that slot... and even this year, you have on August 3rd and August 10th films like RUSH HOUR 2 and JAY AND SILENT BOB STRIKE BACK hitting that same period.. and I know for a fact that RUSH HOUR 2 is not being considered as a 'dumped' film... they intend to make bazillions off that film.... and Miramax is hoping to make JAY AND SILENT BOB STRIKE BACK a real cross-over hit for Kevin Smith... and from what we've heard about the film... it has a chance at really cashing in. Keep your fingers crossed. But on OSMOSIS JONES, the real key is if they are able to get fast food tie-ins with something like BURGER KING or something... But if that isn't already in place... then it isn't likely to happen... and since the film is supposed to be EDGIER THAN THAT.... then that type of promotion isn't likely. But they need to start pushing it and defining what it is, cuz at this point... other than the few reports you've seen on AICN, DARK HORIZONS and COMING ATTRACTIONS... and that visual tour with the now defunct ROUGH CUT.... that's all we've seen or heard. But the key point is this... IF WB is dumping the film.... they are doing a great disservice to animation and their stockholders... This film, with Bill Murray and the Farrelly Bros... is very marketable... With Chris Rock... I tell ya, this thing could be marketed very very strongly... watch SHREK's ad campaign... how they convert star-power into film awareness... Very strong campaign, that's gonna pay off huge when the film hits... I just hope OSMOSIS JONES delivers the way I hear SHREK does.... that's the key!
Harry
I worked as an animator on Warner's Osmosis Jones, and it seems that the geniuses at Warners are going to pull an "Iron Giant' (another one I animated on) and not promote the film. Those S.O.B.'s told us that it was going to be the big Warner/AOL summer family film, that it was to recieve the full muscle of the studio; but alas, it is simply going to be dropped in the August 10th weekend and left to flounder like they let 'Giant'.
This is a slap in the face to the animation industry. Although its no "Iron Giant" (too many producers who think they were the directors on this one), it is a funny film with a great concept (cop movie inside the body). The reason they didn't promote Giant is because they felt in order to get people into the theaters to see a non-Disney animated film they'd basically have to spend the amount of money they estimated to film could generate, so they said fuck it and did thier lame half-assed promotion in LA to please the filmmakers....
Warner's can market this. They got the friggin Farrelly Brothers to direct Bill Murray in live-action (I'll admit its hard to get people into full 2D non animated Disney films, but this is 2D/live action from the 'guys that brought you Something About Mary'. Not only that, it's a PG-13 gross out teen comedy with Chris Rock and Brandy doing vocals and a soundtrack featuring Kidd Rock. They just let go the President of Feature Animation (Jean McCurdy) and have no projects on the horizon (unless you count doing secondary effects work on that piece of crap Scooby Doo and sequels to Space Jam. This all comes weeks after moving into the just built Feature Animation building (which is very empty). If this film fails that leaves only Disney and Dreamworks (Fox just closed shop).
WE NEED WARNER'S TO MAKE THE FILMS THE OTHER GUYS WON'T. DON'T THE EXECS KNOW THAT ANIMATION IS AN INVESTMENT? THAT WALT SPENT YEARS PROMOTING MICKEY MOUSE AND HIS NAME AS A BRAND OF FILMMAKING IN ORDER TO REACH SUCCESS. IF THEY STICK TO IT AND MAKE TO FRIGGIN' INVESTMENT AND KEEP MAKING ANIMATED FILMS FOR HALF OF WHAT DISNEY PAYS BY HIRING BRILLIANT STORYTELLERS THEN LETTING THEM MAKE THE FILMS THEY WERE HIRED TO MAKE (EX, BRAD BIRD) THEY'D BE ROLLING IN DOUGH! INSTEAD THEY'D RATHER PUT ALL THEIR MONEY INTO PROMOTING CRAP LIKE WILD WILD WEST AND DEEP BLUE SEA (both suberb examples of craft and storytelling.)
(deep breaths....)
OK, I'm calm now. THE FILM COMES OUT IN 4 MONTHS!!!!! They are just getting a trailer out now....LAME! Word has it the execs only greenlight the film so that they could have a working relationship with the Farrelly's so they'd sign onto do "The 3 Stooges" AOL stockholders beware: this is a company that has no qualms with shelling out 50 million to make the Farrelly's happy (all for a 3 stooges movie without the REAL 3 stooges....
Thanks for nothing Warner's. This is the 2nd time I worked my ass off to have you kill a good movie through lack of promotion (We won't include their Disney clone Quest for Camelot- don't rent it).
-very pissed off ex-Warner dude .
PS. I heard the trailer is going to be in front of Pokemon 3.....I bet they cut out all the PG-13 and made it as dumbed down as they could for the preschoolers. I'm moving back to Ohio to milk cows.
