12/09/2006

The two leading European giants Odeon Cinemas and pay TV group BSkyB have teamed up to create Filmworks, a new UK film distribution company that will acquiring films directly from filmmakers (mostly smaller UK titles) and launch them in cinemas prior to their DVD and TV distribution.

The new joint venture, Odeon and Sky Filmworks will be headed by Tony Miller, former chief operating officer at production outfit Natural Nylon, owned by actors Jude Law and Ewan McGregor. The partners will initially acquire six titles per year for a theatrical distribution in Odeon and other cinema circuits, using both mother companies’ powerful marketing structures and resources to attract cinema goers. The titles will then be offered for DVD sale and rental, with Sky keeping all TV rights including VoD. The satellite group will use its movie broadband service Sky Movies By Broadband (launched last July) as well as Sky Box Office before premiering the films on Sky Movies.

"Sky and Odeon are both leaders in their field” said Sophie Turner Laing, deputy managing director of Sky channels and services. “Our combined knowledge and understanding of the customer will give films distributed by Filmworks exposure to an audience they might not have otherwise reached. Indeed, the huge success of Sky's innovative movie broadband download service underlines the shift in film viewing towards new delivery methods. Ownership of certain titles is therefore a logical step that gives us more ways to enhance the experience for our viewers across all platforms."

For Odeon -the number one cinema chain in the UK with 127 cinemas-, the partnership with Sky is a unique opportunity to get a share of revenues from ancillary media as explained by the company’s CEO Rupert Gavin: “The joint venture will enable Odeon to gain benefit for the first time from the value it creates in the theatrical window for product by having a financial share in the subsequent windows for films” he said.