When cinephile mensch Guillermo del Toro starts something, generally good things happen. Now, we probably can’t give all the credit to the Academy-Award-winning director of “The Shape Of Water.” Yet, ever since Warner Bros. and Turner Classics Movies shuttered FilmStruck—Netflix for film obsessives; an ambitious cinephile streaming service that housed ALL the Criterion Collection films, some CC films not yet released on DVD, the massive Warner Bros. Classics Archives, and a huge part of the TCM/Turner Classic Movies catalogue—cineastes rightfully mourned and del Toro has been beating the drum nonstop. A petition with more than 50,000 names has been signed and the “Hellboy” and “Pan’s Labyrinth” has been championing that petition ever since the day it started, leveraging his vast social media presence to bring attention to the “Keep FilmStruck Alive” campaign.
Now, I’m not sure who said it, but to paraphrase: If 100K subscribers paying a monthly fee couldn’t keep FilmStruck cost-effective, what are 50,000 signatures going to do? But del Toro and a band of elite, prestige filmmakers—Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Paul Thomas Anderson, Christopher Nolan, Sofia Coppola, Alfonso Cuaron, Leonardo DiCaprio, Edgar Wright and dozens more have appealed to Warner Bros Picture Group chairman Toby Emmerich to save FilmStruck and perhaps consider it an vital loss leader for film culture.
READ MORE: The FilmStruck Streaming Service Is Dead And With It Goes The Awesome Criterion Channel
FilmStruck shuttered late last month and is set to go dark at the end of November unless this appeal can deliver at least a temporary reprieve. Here’s the letter from the filmmakers and actors, many of whom have worked with Warner Bros. in the past and or WB would love to keep happy and working with them in the future (Nolan being one nearly lifelong WB-er).
Letter #1 via (Deadline)
Date: November 12, 2018 at 8:44:29 PM PST
To: Toby Emmerich
Subject: FilmStruck
Dear Toby,
We know that Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese have been in touch with you and Warners Media Group about the demise of FilmStruck and have urged you guys to keep it going.
While it was not your decision, we would like to loudly echo their sentiments. The FilmStruck service was (IS) the best streaming service for fans of cinema of all kinds: classic studio movies, independent cinema, international treasures. Without it, the landscape for film fans and students of cinema is especially bleak. There’s a reason there was a huge outpouring from artists and fans over it being shuttered, they were doing the Movie God’s work.
We know one of the reasons that it has been shut down is because of an upcoming Warners streaming service, but really FilmStruck shouldn’t be a conflict of interest. In this day and age where there are dozens of platforms, curation of content is really important, and FilmStruck was providing a service to both satisfy older fans of cinema and a younger generation of cineastes that will be making amazing movies long after we’re dead.
In an era of huge corporate acquisitions of cinema by communication companies- in a business that may render billions of dollars off a medium like cinema, we believe this is a gesture that is needed- a minuscule show of goodwill towards the preservation and accessibility of a tradition and a rich history that would benefit the public.
So we want to add our names to the petition started by Marty and Steven and want you (and Warners) to know that we feel equally strongly and would do anything to support the service being saved.
Yours,
Paul Thomas Anderson, Ana Lily Amirpour, James Brolin, Damien Chazelle, Alfonso Cuarón, Guillermo Del Toro, Leonardo DiCaprio, James Gray, Alejandro González Iñárritu, Bill Hader, Karyn Kusama, Barry Jenkins, Rian Johnson, Christopher McQuarrie, Reed Morano, Christopher Nolan and Emma Thomas, Gina Prince-Bythewood, Barbra Streisand, Edgar Wright
Letter #2 via Deadline
To whom it may concern at Turner and Warner Bros. Digital Networks:
Roger Ebert once said “the movies are like a machine that generates empathy. It lets you understand a little bit more about different hopes, aspirations, dreams, and fears. It helps us to identify with the people who are sharing this journey with us.”
No truer words.
Though we live in a world with increasing ways to view content, the range of content and the variety of storytellers has remained, sadly, limited. In its short two years of existence FilmStruck was a machine that generated empathy by curating not only classic Hollywood films, but by streaming and highlighting world cinema, cinema by female, traditionally disenfranchised, and LGBT filmmakers and storytellers. FilmStruck added a depth, breadth and richness to the viewing experience that had not previously been attempted, and may – fearfully – disappear permanently with FilmStruck’s demise.
We the undersigned respectfully ask Turner and Warner Bros. Digital Networks to please reconsider their plans for FilmStruck. While we understand that “business” has always been a part of “show business,” we would hope that if FilmStruck cannot be continued in its present form, it would be allowed to function until such a time as a suitable, and suitably robust, replacement can be launched.
We hope that Turner and Warner Bros. Digital Networks will pause to recognize what an extraordinary accomplishment FilmStruck is. Equally, we hope the powers that be will consider maintaining what has become a significant film site for true enthusiasts of the moving image.
Respectfully yours:
John Ridley, David Oyelowo, So Yong Kim, Rachel Morrison, Malcolm D Lee, Nicole Kassell ,Mark Johnson, Hank Corwin, Nicholas Britell, Scott Alexander, Larry Karaszewski, Glenn Ficarra, John Requa, Billy Ray, Eric Roth, Sofia Coppola, Lenny Abrahamson, Freida Pinto, Nina Jacobson, Luke Davies, Mira Nair, Lydia Dean Pilcher, Jason Hall, Graham Moore, Liz Hannah, Jay Cassidy, Jeremy Kleiner, Steve Golin, Susanne Bier, Elizabeth Cantillon, Brad Weston, Sam Taylor Johnson, Vidiots Foundation
Additional filmmakers are jumping in and lending their support at the moment on Twitter.
https://twitter.com/Variety/status/1058485306989539328
https://twitter.com/RealGDT/status/1060426906468675584
https://twitter.com/BarbraStreisand/status/1060704152077008896
https://twitter.com/leeunkrich/status/1062887050649554944
https://twitter.com/JuddApatow/status/1062888330914721792
https://twitter.com/MrPeytonReed/status/1062890608342196224
