Twilight Time Discussion Thread

[Nimbus]

A question for ROclockCK from Twilight Time,

sir I would like to ask you about the price of your Blu-rays.

Given that your company creates no original new content for their releases, and does no restoration work on the film transfers (other than what Sony has already done), don't you feel that your product should be somewhat lower in price, more reflective of the effort you put in? For instance many fine products with new scans and new extra content are often released by studios at around the $26.00 mark.

Thank you for your time.

[PeterTHX]

Originally Posted by Nimbus

A question for ROclockCK from Twilight Time,

sir I would like to ask you about the price of your Blu-rays.

Given that your company creates no original new content for their releases, and does no restoration work on the film transfers (other than what Sony has already done), don't you feel that your product should be somewhat lower in price, more reflective of the effort you put in? For instance many fine products with new scans and new extra content are often released by studios at around the $26.00 mark.

Thank you for your time.

I can answer this one with a bit of common sense:

The studios have film and music divisions, and deep catalogs with hundreds if not thousands of titles, not to mention huge distribution channels and television/cable/satellite. If Twilight Time had all these resources (and income) this kind question would be relevant. Not to mention the studios receive a licensing fee from TT: a fee that stays the same if they sell 1 copy or all 3000.

Go to any major replicator, ask what they charge for a run of 3000 BD50s with packaging. Then license out a title from Fox or Sony. Author it.

Imagine you only sell 1000 of those: congratulations...you've now lost a bundle of money. Then someone comes along and is upset you charged $40 for it. I imagine you'd be a bit annoyed. Now multiply this question by the hundreds just in this thread. You start to wonder why you even bothered.

[Akijama]

Originally Posted by Nimbus

A question for ROclockCK from Twilight Time,

sir I would like to ask you about the price of your Blu-rays.

Is this sarcasm/joke?

[evoxturbo]

Any word on if NOTLD will have DTS-HD 5.1?

[JoeDeM]

Originally Posted by Akijama

Is this sarcasm/joke?

Maybe ROclockCK is secretly posting for TT

[AgentOrange]

Originally Posted by Nimbus

A question for ROclockCK from Twilight Time,

sir I would like to ask you about the price of your Blu-rays.

Given that your company creates no original new content for their releases, and does no restoration work on the film transfers (other than what Sony has already done), don't you feel that your product should be somewhat lower in price, more reflective of the effort you put in? For instance many fine products with new scans and new extra content are often released by studios at around the $26.00 mark.

Thank you for your time.

The reason they don't have more extras, is because the extras themselves would have to be licensed separately for above and beyond the cost of licensing the films themselves. I'm going to guess the answer is the same whether it's Olive Films, Image, or Twilight Time. They only license what they can afford to!!! In most cases this means they license nothing at all, especially when the disc is limited to 3000 units.

When they first announced what they were doing, I gave a huge amount of pushback for the prices. But they have since put out a few real gems that I'm happy to have despite being pricey at $30 or $35, even if barebones. So I've come to appreciate them a little. Rapture, Big Heat, Swamp Water, and These Magnificent Men and their Flying Machines... are all home-run releases to me that probably would have been ignored on blu-ray if not for Twilight Time picking them up. Instead of nothing on the format, we get bare-bones releases but with near perfect representation of the picture and audio. Night of the Living Dead is one I look at and say it should not be so "limited", but it's releases like that which "pay the bills". So you can either accept it and buy into what they are doing, or just move on if you don't feel the value proposition is there.

Now certainly they aren't giving us the same "value" that Criterion does with their releases. And for the most part Criterion digs even deeper with films lost or ignored to the US market, yet still packs them with background extras. Still, Twilight Time is at least producing some films onto the format that otherwise would not be seeing the light of day on blu-ray, or at best an outfit like Mill Creek or Echo Bridge would likely butcher them if they even bothered. That counts for something. I for one hope they keep it up, and bring us more completely forgotten gems like Rapture and Swamp Water.

[moviebuff75]

Received Steel Magnolias, and very happy. It looks as it did in 1989...good grain structure and colors.

[BJQ1972]

Originally Posted by Nimbus

A question for ROclockCK from Twilight Time,

sir I would like to ask you about the price of your Blu-rays.

Given that your company creates no original new content for their releases, and does no restoration work on the film transfers (other than what Sony has already done), don't you feel that your product should be somewhat lower in price, more reflective of the effort you put in? For instance many fine products with new scans and new extra content are often released by studios at around the $26.00 mark.

Thank you for your time.

You could always look back through the thread and see the replies to the countless questions on the same topic. The answer is simple - if you want to buy them, buy them, if you don't, don't.

[EddieLarkin]

Originally Posted by Nimbus

A question for ROclockCK from Twilight Time,

sir I would like to ask you about the price of your Blu-rays.

Given that your company creates no original new content for their releases, and does no restoration work on the film transfers (other than what Sony has already done), don't you feel that your product should be somewhat lower in price, more reflective of the effort you put in? For instance many fine products with new scans and new extra content are often released by studios at around the $26.00 mark.

Thank you for your time.

TT is in the business of putting out films that have fallen by the way side (The Egyptian, Rapture, Wayward Bus, Sound and the Fury) or films that would have never made it to Blu in the foreseeable future (Picnic, Swamp Water, Bite the Bullet, The Big Heat).

People who are only here for titles like Fright Night, NOLTD, Steel Magnolias or AGAIG are not TT's core market. I wouldn't be surprised if the decision to release these titles through TT was entirely at Sony's insistence, perhaps as a test of such films profitability on the format. It's telling that TT are not releasing any films of this nature from Fox.

You'll find few people complaining about having to pay premium prices for films like The Egyptian or Swamp Water. They understand that if there wasn't a market for the films at such prices, these films wouldn't be getting released either on the format, or in some cases, at all.

I can completely understand the negativity about the price point on the four "popular" films mentioned previously, but people need to keep in mind that the reason you're having to pay these prices has a lot more to do with Sony than anyone else. I highly doubt that Nick Redman or Brian Jamieson hold any of these films in particular high regard, or that they envisioned ever releasing them through the label when they started this venture.

If you don't like it, don't buy them. Instead write to Sony and complain about their lack of respect for their own catalogue, and their most dedicated customers. Maybe eventually they'll stop this behavior and allow TT to fill their release calender with films their core customers actually give a crap about.

[Nimbus]

Thank you for your thoughtful and interesting answers, but I would still like an answer from the company representative, who will best know the companies thoughts.

[oildude]

Originally Posted by Nimbus

Thank you for your thoughtful and interesting answers, but I would still like an answer from the company representative, who will best know the companies thoughts.

No company representatives here. Try TT's facebook page.

The answers you are getting here are.... as good as it gets

[Show spoiler]Rock, where are you? You have a fan!

[Seymour]

Originally Posted by EddieLarkin

People who are only here for titles like Fright Night, NOLTD, Steel Magnolias or AGAIG are not TT's core market. I wouldn't be surprised if the decision to release these titles through TT was entirely at Sony's insistence, perhaps as a test of such films profitability on the format. It's telling that TT are not releasing any films of this nature from Fox.

Next month Twilight Time is releasing Enemy Mine, a sci-fi film from 1985, and a Fox release. This shows that both companies are willing to give TT slightly more mainstream/recent titles.

[Twilight Time]

Originally Posted by Nimbus

Thank you for your thoughtful and interesting answers, but I would still like an answer from the company representative, who will best know the companies thoughts.

Dear Nimbus--thank you for your interest in TT releases. We do not have any representatives posting on our behalf at this site, or at any other site, as we simply don't have enough time to keep monitoring every thread. We are, after all, just a two man (and one woman) operation! As stated above, we do have a Facebook page, and we find it a very useful hub to centralize all frequently asked questions, and we do attempt to respond personally to most, if not all, enquiries posted there. I don't believe you even have to maintain an FB account to read our page, which contains a wealth of info on all the releases, but if you wish to comment on the page you will need to join FB if you haven't already done so. See you there, if you've a mind to join the TT circus.

Best,

Nick Redman

http://www.facebook.com/twilighttimemovies

[Banned User]

I'm not trying to rehash the same old TT arguments that make up the majority of posts in this thread or pick a side. If you can't stand the pricing I'd say instead of buying a TT title support someone like Olive Films who are releasing obscure titles at reasonable prices. Complaining about TT's prices is not going to change a thing.

Originally Posted by EddieLarkin

If you don't like it, don't buy them. Instead write to Sony and complain about their lack of respect for their own catalogue, and their most dedicated customers. Maybe eventually they'll stop this behavior and allow TT to fill their release calender with films their core customers actually give a crap about.

I support people complaining to Sony though. They invented the format and pushed it on people then have basically abandoned it when it comes to catalog titles.

[junyab]

I find it funny that one thinks TT should justify their price. Any company producing merchandise for sale to limited markets can (and should) charge the highest achievebale price and/or mark up. It's common business practice, and anyone that disapproves this should stick to shopping at Wal-Mart or move to a non-free market civilization.

If you dont like it, don't buy it - and for god's sake - don't complain about it and yet still buy it!

[DetroitSquirreL]

Originally Posted by junyab

I find it funny that one thinks TT should justify their price. Any company producing merchandise for sale to limited markets can (and should) charge the highest achievebale price and/or mark up. It's common business practice, and anyone that disapproves this should stick to shopping at Wal-Mart or move to a non-free market civilization.

If you dont like it, don't buy it - and for god's sake - don't complain about it and yet still buy it!

Quit complaining about the complainers

[Banned User]

Originally Posted by DetroitSquirreL

Quit complaining about the complainers

Stop complaining about people complaining about complainers Jeez!

[DetroitSquirreL]

Originally Posted by Banned User

Stop complaining about people complaining about complainers Jeez!

If everyone would stop complaining about the complainers complaining, then we wouldn't have any complaining.

[Scooter1836]

Originally Posted by Banned User

Stop complaining about people complaining about complainers Jeez!

Do you really need to be complaining about the complainers that are complaining about the complainers complaining

[ROclockCK]

Originally Posted by Nimbus

A question for ROclockCK from Twilight Time,

sir I would like to ask you about the price of your Blu-rays.

Given that your company creates no original new content for their releases, and does no restoration work on the film transfers (other than what Sony has already done), don't you feel that your product should be somewhat lower in price, more reflective of the effort you put in? For instance many fine products with new scans and new extra content are often released by studios at around the $26.00 mark.

Thank you for your time.

Sorry to disappoint you Nimbus, but I have no connection to Twilight Time other than just being an enthusiastic fan and collector. Out of the blue, Nick Redman did PM me a few times to thank me for my unsolicited support in the face of the sometimes wildly inaccurate criticism levelled at both this label and those who are fans of it, as has Brian Jamieson. But that's more a measure of their class than anything; I've always said what I had to say about TT regardless. I just think it's been a fascinating film journey so far and can't wait to see this month's releases, especially The Sound and the Fury (for years, I've loved Alex North's score, without ever having seen the source film).

As for your questions about TT's business model, others here have answered that as well or better than I could. However, I will take your mistaken assumption about my role with this company as a compliment. One could be associated with much worse.