Defamer: Bob Berney

Guilt, Blame and Other Wreckage From the Picturehouse/WIP Crash

STV — Fri, 09 May 2008 10:05:00 PDT

The eulogies are on following Thursday's twin killing of Picturehouse and Warner Independent Pictures by the executioners at Warner Bros. — or perhaps more accurately, by hooded, high-ranking Time Warner axeman Jeff Bewkes, to whom some today are attributing the death penalty that ended in nearly 75 lost jobs between the two mini-majors. While we still suspect that WIP's demise in cosmically linked to its acquisition of the poisonously atrocious Alan Ball film Towelhead (another blogger disagrees, citing Funny Games instead), at least a few other observers have more official diagnoses from the murder scene.

For starters, outgoing Picturehouse president Bob Berney told Variety that Warners' abdication of the art house is purely philosophical:

"Their decision was not to be in this business," he said. "It's not a reflection on me or Picturehouse. It's not their world."
Berney has no specific plans for a new job. "A lot of people want to do something — companies, investors. I am confident at the end of the day I will find something, but it needs to be a place that fits," he said. Berney added that he and several others from Picturehouse will be in Cannes as scheduled. WIP is sending a smaller contingent than originally planned.

This jibes with more of our suspicions from last week — that Berney wouldn't have shared control of a subsidiary shingle with WIP boss Polly Cohen (or anyone else for that matter) and he'd be on his own by next week's Cannes launch. Meanwhile, David Poland's got some of the best perspective on the matter so far, illustrating just what it takes for a "dependent" to succeed before later issuing a sober reality check to a mourning industry:

[A]m I genuinely sad for the good people of these two companies? Yes. Will I make some phone calls for a few of them when they write, looking for new jobs? Yes. But is losing two companies that put out less than 10 films a year and grossed less than $50 million a year total each on average, even with the financial backing - however lame - of major studios? Not a tragedy... just a reasonable business choice from businessmen who were not terribly smart or reasonable when they launched these divisions in the first place.

In other words: We may mourn, but the numbers don't. That's entertainment.

Breaking: WB Mothership Cuts Off Picturehouse and Warner Independent

STV — Thu, 08 May 2008 10:55:00 PDT

As first foreseen here last week, bad news rolled into Picturehouse HQ today in the form of a batch of pink slips. Warner Bros, is shuttering the art-house/indie/foreign distribution arm in the wake of its belt-tightening at Picturehouse's parent company New Line; we're a little more surprised, however, to read that Warners is also closing shop at Warner Independent Pictures. We knew Jeff Robinov and Alan Horn were unhappy with the boutique business, but Jesus. Picturehouse chief Bob Berney and WIP boss Polly Cohen, tagged for a possible (if implausible) power-sharing arrangement as recently as last week, are both being shown the door, as are both offices' staffs in New York and Los Angeles. We'll be following up later with word on that rumored independent venture of Berney's, but in the meantime, the full press release from Warner Bros. follows after the jump.

PICTUREHOUSE AND WARNER INDEPENDENT PICTURES TO CEASE OPERATIONS (May 8, 2008 - Burbank, CA) Picturehouse and Warner Independent Pictures will cease operations, it was announced today by Alan Horn, President & COO, Warner Bros.
"With New Line now a key part of Warner Bros., we're able to handle films across the entire spectrum of genres and budgets without overlapping production, marketing and distribution infrastructures," said Horn. "After much painstaking analysis, this was a difficult decision to make, but it reflects the reality of a changing marketplace and our need to prudently run our businesses with increased efficiencies. We're confident that the spirit of independent filmmaking and the opportunity to find and give a voice to new talent will continue to have a presence at Warner Bros."

Bob Berney has served as President, Picturehouse and Polly Cohen as President, Warner Independent Pictures. The management teams from both companies will be meeting in the weeks ahead with executives from the Warner Bros. Pictures Group to determine the status of projects in various stages of development and acquisition, as well as distribution of already-dated films.

"Working with Polly and her team at Warner Independent has been great for me personally and a valuable experience for the company," said Jeff Robinov, President, Warner Bros. Pictures Group. "I'd like to thank everyone at Warner Independent for their passion and dedication to independent films and filmmakers. They were involved with some very important films and helped further the talents and careers of a number of writers and directors, and between Warner Bros. Pictures and New Line, we'll continue to nurture those relationships and produce those types of films."

"Bob is an incredibly talented film executive and made Picturehouse an important player in the world of independent film in a relatively short time," said Horn. "I'm extremely grateful to Bob and the entire team at Picturehouse. Their accomplishments and the films they created speak volumes about their dedication to and understanding of the art of film."

Upcoming Picturehouse films include Mongol (June 6), Kit Kittredge: An American Girl (in limited release June 20; wide release on July 2) and The Women (September 12). Warner Independent's upcoming releases include Towelhead (August 8) and Slumdog Millionaire (in limited release starting November 7).

Two Months After Its Oscar Win, Could Picturehouse Be Closing Its Doors?

STV — Thu, 01 May 2008 14:51:58 PDT

A few notes kicked under the door at Defamer HQ hint that the end may be near for Picturehouse, the Oscar-winning art house shingle plunged into limbo in February after its parent company New Line was absorbed by the Warner Bros. mothership. We have yet to hear where company president Bob Berney will wind up, though a popular rumor has him sharing power at Warners' other struggling boutique outpost, Warner Independent Pictures, with current WIP boss Polly Cohen. We posit at least one more underdog alternative as well — plus a prognosis for the remaining Picturehouse output — after the jump.

Another whisper (and our own preference) has Berney starting fresh at a new company underwritten with hedge fund cash. The latter would suit him well with Cannes on the horizon and Warners' decreasing overall interest in the volatile indie marketplace; the studio would gladly get out anytime, but we hear they're willing to move ahead with Berney if he's interested. We doubt it, particularly as a co-president with Cohen; he's been calling his own shots forever (quite well, we should add) and would be too attractive a prospect to new money with fewer strings attached. And Berney could bring along the majority of his staff, who would likely take pink slips under the WIP scenario.

In any case, the Picturehouse calendar doesn't bode well for any kind of longevity. Despite Marion Cotillard's Oscar win for La Vie en Rose, the bitter disappointment that was Run Fat Boy Run casts a longer shadow over what's looking like a pallid 2008. Most notably, Warners is reportedly unhappy with the all-star remake of The Women set for this fall. A source tells us the B-thriller Amusement could go directly to DVD. Additionally, with so much of New Line's infrastructure — much of which supports Picturehouse's distribution efforts — to be stripped by the end of July, the worst-case scenario has Picturehouse closing out with the Abigail Breslin vehicle Kit Kittridge: An American Girl on July 2 and Warners cleaning up the rest from August on.

Did we miss anything? Are you hearing different? You know where to find us either way.