Second Run General Chitchat

Discuss releases by Second Run and the films on them.
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MichaelB
Joined: Fri Aug 11, 2006 6:20 pm
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Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#251 Post by MichaelB » Sat Sep 13, 2014 2:40 pm

RobertB wrote:Better defined as selling more units in the shop. And bought at a higher price from the distributor.
...but costing considerably more to manufacture, which means that on the tiny print runs that Second Run typically puts out, it's much, much harder to break even, never mind make a profit.

And this is the problem.

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RobertB
Joined: Fri Jan 08, 2010 8:00 pm
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Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#252 Post by RobertB » Sat Sep 13, 2014 2:49 pm

And one day the sales of DVD will be too small to make a profit I fear. That day will probably come for Blu-ray as well, but I think that format will survive a few years longer. Based solely from what I am observing from one retailer, and not based in UK. So I could be wrong. But this is really getting a bit too far from what this thread should be about.

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EddieLarkin
Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2012 10:25 am

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#253 Post by EddieLarkin » Sat Sep 13, 2014 3:50 pm

My understanding is that the catch-22 Second Run are in is that they rely almost entirely on blind buys, and thus they have to price cheap, which would not be an option for a BD release. If it's any help, they should know that I and surely a few others are quite happy to and will regularly spend £15-£25 on a blind buy (and yes, that's on a pretty tight budget). The integrity of the label is what helps me decide whether to blind buy a film, not its price. And as a rule, a Blu-ray blind buy is for me always easier to make than a DVD blind buy. That's why I admit, slightly embarrassed, that I own more Twilight Time discs than I do Second Run, despite the fact they cost 3 times as much and that 99% of them were blind buys (indeed, basically everything I buy now is a blind buy).

Obviously I've no idea whether there are enough people out there who feel like me to make a BD release profitable for Second Run, but it's surely worth a Kickstarter experiment. I'd be first in line to pledge no matter the film or the price.

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Bikey
Joined: Wed Aug 17, 2005 4:09 am

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#254 Post by Bikey » Wed Sep 17, 2014 12:01 am

Very kind words... And certainly food for thought.
We'd be intrigued to know if these sentiments are widely shared by our many other friends and supporters.

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warren oates
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2012 12:16 pm

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#255 Post by warren oates » Wed Sep 17, 2014 1:39 am

I'd say I agree with Eddie about Blu-ray blind buying. I've blind bought plenty of Second Run titles on DVD, but Blu-ray -- especially for select titles like Marketa Lazarova or any of the Jancso or Weerasethakul films would have made it even easier to pull the trigger. Make them region free (when rights holders allow, of course) and it would become easier still.

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SpiderBaby
Joined: Wed Dec 15, 2010 6:34 pm

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#256 Post by SpiderBaby » Wed Sep 17, 2014 1:52 am

Would love to purchase blu-rays from Second Run, who has great taste in the selection of films they release. Hopefully if/when blu-ray releases occur, would love to see more Raya Martin releases, or maybe go back and upgrade some amazing titles like 'Birds, Orphans and Fools'. Would have a blu-ray customer here.

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A
Joined: Wed Jan 23, 2008 6:41 pm

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#257 Post by A » Wed Sep 17, 2014 9:36 am

Hmm, this is a difficult question for me. I have no problem blind-buying DVDs (do it all the time) and usually because the DVD is extremely cheap, or I trust the label. All my Second Run DVDs have been blind-buys and I never regretted paying "more" money for them.

Blu-ray is an entirely different thing. I buy Blu-ray's strictly because of the technical quality of the sound (if it's not a silent film) and picture presentation. So I'll never blind-buy a film on Blu-ray if I haven't checked numerous reviews of it online (and seen some screenshots). And if the original soundtrack isn't proper (meaning NOT an upmix or any such thing, but an as unfiltered an uncompressed mono - in most cases of 120 years of film history - as possible), the best picture quality usually can't convince me to buy it. I've seen beautifully restored special editions come out, with a ton of extras, and multiple language options, but the original soundtrack(s) of the film(s) the company had been given (and probably had to accept) wasn't acceptable for me - so I didn't buy it. And I'm glad I didn't (though everything else in some editions seemed pitch-perfect).

Thus, if the entire technical specs aren't up to my standards/expectations, I won't buy the Blu-ray. If they are, I also have no problem blind-buying expensive Blu-ray titles that I want to see, even if they cost considerably more than the DVD (would), and (would) always buy the Blu instead of the DVD - and I'd gladly support any such efforts by Second Run.

tomN245
Joined: Mon Jan 20, 2014 7:20 pm

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#258 Post by tomN245 » Thu Oct 23, 2014 12:36 pm

They should definitely do a Kickstarter for a blu-boxset. Make it limited to 3000 copies or so, and then watch the cash roll in. Then sell the movies in the box-set separately without a booklet. Its the easiest way to make the jump to blu, but yeah... could be risky. They have to adapt to the changing market somehow, especially seeing as dvds are rapidly devaluing. I wouldn't recommend selling the streaming rights of the Second Run films to netflix, that's for sure. It would devalue the dvds even more!

Definitely subscribe to a more emergent strategy and head into horizon 3 of the McKinsey's "Three Horizons of Growth" while protecting horizon 1. (In other words, take a risky, trial and error, method of strategy while protecting the core dvd business which helped start the company. It's just some bullsh*t I learnt in the business part of my degree that is surprisingly relevant).

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swo17
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Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#259 Post by swo17 » Thu Oct 23, 2014 1:02 pm

Yeah, there's no harm in doing a Kickstarter project. Just be upfront and realistic (or perhaps even conservative) about the costs of going Blu for a particular title. If the project is successful, the funds will be there. If not, no one's out anything.

caminoreal
Joined: Sat Dec 16, 2006 4:30 pm

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#260 Post by caminoreal » Thu Oct 23, 2014 5:26 pm

I am on a very tight budget but have, for the last couple of years, blind bought each new Second Run DVD. I like the price point and the quality of the releases.

I have just acquired, off a generous friend, a HD Television and have splurged on a blu-ray player. I have bought a select few discs but I have a policy of not upgrading everything I have on DVD.

If Second Run were to do blu-ray discs at £20+ I would be more choosy as to what I would buy and would, probably, end up buying less.

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EddieLarkin
Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2012 10:25 am

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#261 Post by EddieLarkin » Thu Oct 23, 2014 5:59 pm

caminoreal wrote:If Second Run were to do blu-ray discs at £20+ I would be more choosy as to what I would buy and would, probably, end up buying less.
I imagine the low priced DVDs would still be available even if they started doing some choice Blu-rays.
tomN245 wrote:They should definitely do a Kickstarter for a blu-boxset. Make it limited to 3000 copies or so, and then watch the cash roll in.
Twilight Time have trouble selling 3000 copies of studio fare in the much larger U.S. market. I'm not sure Second Run would expect to ever sell 3000 copies of a rarely seen Eastern European film in the comparatively tiny U.K. market. Something more like the Vinegar Syndrome model may be more suitable: do DVDs for everything, but a few times a year when a special title comes along, do a 1000 Limited Edition run of a Blu-ray as well (ideally this would be an even smaller amount but I get the impression 1000 copies is the financially viable minimum that can be pressed). That or just do a Kickstarter every time to get a few hundred pre-orders in.

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JAP
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Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#262 Post by JAP » Sat Dec 13, 2014 7:09 pm

Second Run wrote on their latest newsletter:
SPECIAL OFFER: To perhaps tempt you to experience some more of the diverse selection of great cinema on offer in the Second Run catalogue, we are offering our friends a special and exclusive, limited time 'Buy 2 Get 1 Free'-type of equivalent discount offer - when you buy any three titles (including Box Sets!) through the Second Run website simply add the code THIRDOFF at the checkout to receive 1/3rd off the total price of the titles ordered! This offer expires on 4th January 2015. (Please note that the Special Offer discount price excludes shipping prices for non-UK customers.)
Maybe not the best deal around but all titles are eligible and your money will be going straight to the publisher. I'm in!

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Bikey
Joined: Wed Aug 17, 2005 4:09 am

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#263 Post by Bikey » Wed Dec 17, 2014 7:50 am

Just got an early Christmas present!
Little White Lies magazine's 'Best 25 DVD and Blu-ray Releases of 2014' features FOUR of our titles in that list - Juraj Jakubisko's delirious BIRDS, ORPHANS AND FOOLS at #24, Shivendra Singh Dungarpur's passionate documentary CELLULOID MAN at #15, Andrzej Wajda's epic polemic MAN OF MARBLE at #8, and Raya Martin's unique INDEPENDENCIA at #4!

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What A Disgrace
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Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#264 Post by What A Disgrace » Sat Feb 07, 2015 8:56 pm

I have to ask.

What are spines 31, 47, 67 and 78?

Prickly
Joined: Wed Sep 01, 2010 6:20 pm
Location: London

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#265 Post by Prickly » Sun Feb 08, 2015 6:35 am

31 was listed years ago as 'The Girl from Hunan' which is still coming soon on their site.
47 ?
67 Goodbye, see You Tomorrow
78 Escape from the Liberty Cinema

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What A Disgrace
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Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#266 Post by What A Disgrace » Wed Feb 11, 2015 2:41 pm

You're right, the last two are box-set-only at the moment, so the website doesn't list them yet.

That just leaves 47. Eroica is number 46, so perhaps 47 is another Andrzej Munk film. Bad Luck is his next, so perhaps that is it?

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walsgrave
Joined: Sun May 13, 2012 9:56 am

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#267 Post by walsgrave » Wed Feb 11, 2015 7:34 pm

Purely speculation, but Agnès Varda's Kung Fu Master was originally mooted around 2010 and subsequently delayed (or cancelled?). Perhaps that release was intended for spine 47?

tomN245
Joined: Mon Jan 20, 2014 7:20 pm

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#268 Post by tomN245 » Fri Feb 13, 2015 8:29 pm

walsgrave wrote:Purely speculation, but Agnès Varda's Kung Fu Master was originally mooted around 2010 and subsequently delayed (or cancelled?). Perhaps that release was intended for spine 47?
Maybe Varda squashed the Distribution deal in her hands like those poor lorries...

Any chance of putting Interrogation back up on the shop?

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Bikey
Joined: Wed Aug 17, 2005 4:09 am

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#269 Post by Bikey » Fri Jul 24, 2015 5:26 am

We are currently experiencing problems with the checkout system on our website.
If you want to order anything, it's best to go direct to Amazon or your preferred web retailer.
We're working to resolve this ASAP.

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Bikey
Joined: Wed Aug 17, 2005 4:09 am

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#270 Post by Bikey » Thu Aug 06, 2015 10:05 am

Our website shop facility is now up and running again with a new checkout provider.
Apologies for the inconvenience and thanks for your patience!

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Bikey
Joined: Wed Aug 17, 2005 4:09 am

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#271 Post by Bikey » Mon Sep 07, 2015 5:16 am

This is wonderful - Little White Lies magazine have selected their 10 favourite Second Run releases.

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RossyG
Joined: Sat May 30, 2009 5:50 pm

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#272 Post by RossyG » Mon Sep 07, 2015 5:24 am

They include the dreary Blood but omit the brilliant Diamonds of the Night?

Weirdos!

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Lemmy Caution
Joined: Wed Mar 29, 2006 3:26 am
Location: East of Shanghai

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#273 Post by Lemmy Caution » Mon Sep 07, 2015 7:51 am

Yeah, my Top Ten 2nd Runners would be quite different. Though I think I've seen only about half the catalog.

I think these are great films everyone should see:
Mother Joan of the Angels
Marketa Lavarova
Night Train
The Cremator

Other very good releases:
The Ear
Larks on a String
Diamonds of the Night
Man of the Story
Valerie and Her Week of Wonders
And maybe Daisies for the final spot.

This exercise reminds me that I need to get Ikarie XB1.
And I have to catch up on the last dozen and a half releases.
But just got a hold of The Story of My Death.

2nd Run does a terrific job, releasing plenty of interesting and hard to see films.

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RossyG
Joined: Sat May 30, 2009 5:50 pm

Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#274 Post by RossyG » Mon Sep 07, 2015 8:21 am

I've not seen them all and I've got five on my to watch pile, but my top ten would be...

Man of Marble
Diamonds of the Night
Valerie and Her Week of Wonders
Shivers
Birds, Orphans and Fools
The Confrontation
My Way Home
Interrogation
In the Land of the Deaf
Szinbad

I would have included Celluloid Man, but omitted it as it had forced subs even when people were speaking perfectly legible English. A real distraction in an otherwise lovely film.

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What A Disgrace
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Re: Second Run General Chitchat

#275 Post by What A Disgrace » Mon Sep 07, 2015 8:31 am

My top 10 Second Run films would be something like...

1. Marketa Lazaroba
2. Red Psalm
3. Mother Joan of the Angels
4. The Round Up
5. Pictures of the Old World
6. Man of the Story
7. Man of Marble
8. Daisies
9. Our Beloved Month of August
10. Palms

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