#919
Post
by ryannichols7 » Fri Jan 27, 2023 9:21 pm
I want to plug the seriously wonderful listen that was the Indicator Cast that came out today, and thank Sam and John (who by the sounds of this interview, read this board as well as others) for participating in such a phenomenal interview. I usually don't like podcasts unless they're great interviews and this really was a top notch listen. I've said it many times before but I think Indicator do the best job of making stuff I know won't be appealing to me at all (like the Michael J. Murphy or Jean Rollin stuff) but man do they make it sound compelling. it's definitely really promising to hear them talk about the state of the label and the various directions it seems they'll be going in. that's one thing with Indicator I never have to worry about - I have lamented on here about other labels moving too far in one direction or the other. I think we collectively at the beginning of 2022 wondered what was going on about the more obscure British titles (a passion project for Sam) and if Indicator was heading too far in that direction. they answered back with a whole mixing bowl of titles and that seems to be how it's been since. they bring such a nice bout of variety that I know even if the horror/genre stuff isn't my thing, they will come around and announce a lineup like the March one. I just wonder if we'll see UHDs of non-genre titles, I know horror is what sells but in the interview they talk about how the upcoming UHDs are from Powerhouse restorations. curious what possibilities lie ahead, but those of us wishing for UHDs of the Sony/Universal titles may have to keep waiting (though if Dracula ends up being one, that's promising)
speculation wise, I believe it's clear they have deals with Paramount and MGM upcoming. Paramount is license-happy again after the brief spell where they cut down - this big slew of titles from Kino, slow trickle from Criterion, and now emerging bunch from Arrow (two months in a row they've announced US-only Paramount titles that are very Arrow Academy) seem to show me that moving forward they're going to be licensing more titles. I suspect Indicator will be jumping on this, and I personally would love to see a prospective Paramount Noir series - Imprint has been releasing a good chunk of big name directors (Wyler, Leisen) in their noir sets that I think would be perfect for Indicator to delve in on. and regarding MGM - I think all the speculation after the Amazon deal that the well would dry up continues to show it was all...well, speculation. Criterion, Arrow, Kino, and even Radiance (via Fun City) are licensing constantly from MGM. there's so many possibilities there that would obviously fit in with Powerhouse and I sort of really look forward to seeing if any of this transpires.
lastly, we all knew this was the case, but it warmed my heart when the duo talked about their love of boxsets and the desire to tell the story about a filmmaker or a period of time and that customers are way more willing to take a chance on purchasing something like this rather than a slew of individual releases. even further, they straight up dismissed "historical sales figures" as a metric by which they look at titles. a half-hearted treatment of a great movie that sold poorly should not mean that movie is kept out of the public realm - you just have to tell the story in a way that appeals to many. I may not think Otley, The Chalk Garden, or Georgy Girl (the latter my favorite of the three) were masterpieces, but the way Indicator curated each edition, they all happily sit on my shelf, able to tell a lovely story about each film. I wish every label would take their advice and creed here, but this is why I support their product as much as I do, and even wish I could more
