Carnivalesque celebrates Mardi Gras
INDIE FILM GUIDE: Documentary first title for filmmaker-focused company
By Cindy Spielvogel -- Video Business, 6/16/2008
JUNE 16 | INDIE FILM GUIDE: China mania is sweeping the DVD world this year, driven by interest in the country that will host the summer Olympics this August. From the theatrical release of Kung Fu Panda, which has its own subgroup of DVD imitators, to myriad travel documentaries and other programming related to the country, there will be no shortage of DVDs on China this year. One documentary has even become the impetus for the start of a new distribution company.
Mardi Gras: Made in China is the launch title for Carnivalesque Films, headed by president David Redmon and CEO Ashley Sabin. The company has already secured DVD distribution through Ryko FilmWorks.
East literally meets West in the documentary, which follows Mardi Gras beads from the streets of New Orleans back to their manufacturing roots in China and the eventual meeting of maker and wearer. Directed by Redmon, the film was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance. The DVD will be available July 29 (prebook July 4; $19.95).
Redmon and Sabin are independent filmmakers who believe they can help others navigate the film distribution waters. They plan to release four to six films per year, mostly from other filmmakers, such as Ry Russo-Young’s drama Orphans, which premiered at South by Southwest. Besides DVD distribution through Ryko, Redmon and Sabin plan to screen films in small venues such as arthouses and college campuses in addition to film festivals; music documentaries might get screenings in music stores.
Redmon believes other filmmakers are beginning to sign on with Carnivalesque because, as indie filmmakers themselves, he and Sabin handle projects with “dedication, tenacity and a great deal of care.” The company also is realistic with filmmakers. “We tell them we can’t release in more than 30 theaters, and we might sell only 900 to 1,200 on DVD,” Redmon says, adding optimistically, “but we might sell 5,000.”
