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Night Shyamalan opposes quick DVD releases

LOS ANGELES: In comments with a distinct resonance for the Indian situation, Manoj Night Shyamalan, the India-born film-maker, says a move in the United States to eliminate the window between a film's theatre release and its debut on video would diminish the artistic integrity of movie-making. Part of what makes movies an art form is that they are viewed on a big screen with a big audience, he said in an interview to the Los Angeles Times.

"If I can't make movies for theatres, I don't want to make movies," the 35-year-old writer-director said. "I hope this is a very bad idea that goes away."

The proposal to release movies in theatres and on DVD simultaneously is the most pressing issue facing the exhibition industry today, with the discussion focusing on the need to increase studio revenues.

Shyamalan said a speech he made at the ShowEast convention in Orlando, Florida, on Thursday night, was intended to address "the human factor." He had said: "When I sit down next to you in a movie theatre, we get to share each other's point of view. We become part of a collective soul. That's the magic in the movies."

He was addressing some 800 theatre operators and suppliers. "Nobody has benefited more from DVD sales than me. I bought my house on DVD sales from The Sixth Sense," he said. "But take away my house. That's not why I do what I do." He added: "If this thing happens, you know the majority of your theatres are closing. It's going to crush you guys."

AP

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