Tag: film

Japanese-Based Indie Film Financier Wins New State Support

The Japanese film industry to date has been characterized as conservative, partly held back by a dated film financing system. However, with the news that The Development Bank of Japan has made investment into K2 pictures, one of their most notable indie film financiers, that could be set to change. Blake & Wang P.A. entertainment attorney Los Angeles, USA, Brandon Blake, looks at what this could mean for Japanese indies.
Brandon Blake- Entertainment lawyer
Brandon Blake

New Film Production Fund

Tokyo-based K2 Pictures is looking to launch a new production fund. So far, so regular business. What’s new, however, is the interest from The Development Bank of Japan, or DBJ. It seems there’s growing institutional confidence not only in K2 itself, but also the chances of shaking up Japan’s rather stagnant film financing framework.

DBJ will be investing 500 million yen, about $3.3M, in the new fund. Locally, it’s been called an “unprecedented show of support” for local independent film, especially with a strong list of blue-chip companies adding even modest amounts to the fund.

A Shift in Thinking

It seems that Japan’s most conservative sector of all- finance- is starting to see K2’s support of independent filmmaking as a viable approach. It’s an interesting development, given local cinema is dominated by careful franchises and the odd anime blockbuster. This leads to co-financing models headed by full studio consortia, with an added dash of broadcasters and publishers.

In short, something that not only makes it difficult for smaller filmmakers to compete but is also widely believed to stifle creative autonomy. K2 instead uses a profit-sharing model. This helps to lower the middlemen fees considerably, in turn making financing and production incentives (slightly) easier to access.

From its inception, announced at the 2024 Cannes, K2 has also managed to attract some of Japan’s most influential filmmakers, with names even the West will easily recognize, and also onboarded one of the country’s anime powerhouses. This will be one for independent filmmakers to watch.

Lionsgate Enters Digital Movies with New Launch

After parting ways with Starz and, by default, their largest streaming platform, Lionsgate is back, with a new digital movie network on offer. You could review entertainment lawyer at Blake & Wang P.A., Brandon Blake, fills us in on the details below
.Brandon Blake
Brandon Blake

DirecTV Debut

The new all-movie digital network will be used to give its extensive 20,000+ title library some extra (and lucrative) airtime. To be called MovieSphere Gold, it will see its debut on DirecTV, Sling Freestream, Friendly, and DishTV, with several other hosts lined up. To no one’s surprise, given the shifts in the streaming environment, it will be an ad-supported subscription service.

While there are plenty of movies on offer across the varied modern streaming sources, this will be the first dedicated solely to movie titles. Plus, of course, the fact that many of Lionsgate’s catalogue are not currently available through other streamers.

An Answer to Broadcasting?

Interestingly, with the recent spin-off of Starz and its linear assets, it seems that Lionsgate Studios is looking to replicate the TV broadcast model that worked so well for them, with a modern streaming twist to reinvent it. It’s not a bad bet, with digital broadcasting in this vein showing steady growth and even a little expansion. As the CEO noted, there are now 8 “diginets” using a similar setup among the Top 50 entertainment networks.

With the Lionsgate reputation and catalog to back it, MovieSphere Gold is an interesting exercise in reinventing old strategies. While they have no plans at present to move fully into a streaming platform framework, despite some solid TV assets under their belt as well, the remaining question is now how much subscriber uptake they will receive, as North American viewers become ever top-heavier on subscriptions. Will Lionsgate’s pull be enough to make it a success? Let’s hope to see it thrive.