Chat Transcript: 20th Century Fox on Home Theater Forum

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Chat Transcript: 20th Century Fox
on Home Theater Forum

The following is a complete transcript of the on-line chat with with Peter Staddon of 20th Century Fox Home Enterteinment, held on July 18th on The Home Theater Forum. This one's definitely a must read. Thanks to Ron Epstein and the staff the HTF for all their hard work, and for providing the transcript for all to read. Enjoy!

Subject: FOX HOME ENTERTAINMENT chat
Date: July 18, 2000
Session Start: Tue Jul 18 19:16:17 2000

[RonEpstein] Good Evening everyone. Big turnout. At this time.... We would like to welcome Peter Staddon of FOX HOME ENTERTAINMENT

[Peter_Staddon] Good evening everyone, or good morning for those in Europe.

[RonEpstein] Peter, what is your position with Fox

[Peter_Staddon] I'm the Senior VP of Marketing for Fox, I head up a team of people working on VHS and DVD rleases. I did a chat back in march, which unfortunately awoke my home theatre addiction.

[RonEpstein] Thanks for coming tonight.

[Peter_Staddon] my pleasure

[RonEpstein] There are a lot of people who wish to ask questions, so we will begin...

[MichaelSliger] There have been rumors that FOX is considering releasing DVDs of Chris Carter's other series "Millennium" and "Harsh Realm". Can you confirm that these titles are being considered and is there a chance of a release before the end of 2001?

[Peter_Staddon] We were very encouraged by the success of the X Files season 1 set, and are looking at other TV properties that we have. I think the first season of Millenium would be great, we are working up a list of products that we will be bringing out in 2001, Millenium is on that list but we have to make sure that everyone involved with it agrees to the direction we want to take.

[JasonSeaver] Any plas for Out To Sea? Not necessarily regarded as Lemmon & Matthau's best, but still a pretty enjoyable recent movie.

[Peter_Staddon] Not at this point, we are looking at how we bring out some of our deeper catalog titles, but at this time Out to Sea isn't on the list. Sorry!

[MatthewChmiel] Hello Peter, thanks for coming to the chat tonight. Anyway, my question is if we will see a DVD release of the 1981 film "Shock Treatment" anytime soon?

[Peter_Staddon] You know, I hate to admit it but I'm not familiar with that particular title, which is probably why it hasn't made it on to any release schedule. I'll get a copy pulled and check it out. Thanks for the recommendation.

[Ike] Hi, thanks again for coming. I was wondering if Barton Fink and Miller's Crossing would see a digital upgrade? It's prime time to do so, and might I say, the thought of a Coen commentary is great. I'd like to thank you for coming.

[Peter_Staddon] Look for both titles early in the first half of 2001. I agree that a commentary track would be great on these discs. I'm sure we can get something organized.

[hakan_powers] Thanks for coming tonight! Can you tell us anything about if/when we can expect COURAGE UNDER FIRE. Any word on possible features on Courage, preferably DTS?

[Peter_Staddon] Good morning ... ... expect it this December, anamorphic transfer -which looks great, DTS and DD5.1. It should be cool.

[Chad_Parks] Peter, thanks for being here! I wanted to know if you're considering "Better Off Dead" for release. Also any plans for "Two Girls and a Guy" (UNRATED), or "A Walk in the Clouds?"

[Peter_Staddon] Better off Dead is on deck for the first half of 2001, and A Walk in the Clouds will be coming out around Valentines Day next year. The cinematography on this film is wonderful and deserves a really good transfer.

[MikeSerrano] Any plans for Barry Levinson's 1992 film "Toys"? Robin Williams is great in this misunderstood fantasy/comedy and those bright, colorful scenes are crying out for an anamorphic transfer. ;)

[Peter_Staddon] We have no plans for this at this point in time, but it could happen next Christmas by then the installed base will be big enough for this title to work more economically.

[Robert_George] My question involves rental pricing of DVD. Rental pricing has been discussed from time to time for a couple of years. Warner has recently indicated they are going to move toward revenue sharing of DVD rentals to make up lost revenue from VHS while keeping the current pricing model for DVD at retail. Do you consider revenue sharing a viable alternative to rental pricing for DVD?

[Peter_Staddon] Hi Obi, thanks for asking the most difficult question of the evening!! I really don't want to comment on this topic in any detail. Thinking about it I don't want to get into this. The whole issue of rental pricing and revenue sharing is buzzing around like crazy. On one hand in order to grow the market at it's current rate we need to have a strong and attractive sell through business. On the other hand, studios are in effect losing revenue. I understand the difficulty of the question and we'll be watching developements. Thanks.

[JasenP] Peter, thank you for not only reading the forum but sharing your thoughts and "insider insight" on posted topics. I was curious, what is the status of Robert Altman's M*A*S*H and if it's in the works will it be the "PG" or "R" rated version? Are there personal favorites your anxious to see?

[Peter_Staddon] MASH is going to be a big release for us in 2001. We are looking at two different products on DVD. Firstly, a really special edition of the movie - it gets the full 5 star treatment. And secondly we are looking at bringing the TV Show out on DVD as well. The full details are still being worked out, but trust me if your a fan of MASH or Robert Altman in general you will not be disappointed.

[John_Berggren] Thanks again Peter...Regarding "X-men"... will there be plans for a double disc boxed set with a longer directors cut and commentary from participants as well as Stan Lee / Chris Claremont?

[Peter_Staddon] I was waiting to see who was going to ask this! Firstly, we are delighted at the way the film opened and we are looking to work with Bryan Singer on the DVD release. The real issue is time, we are crunching like crazy to get this done. I don't want to say what will be on the disc and what will not be on the disc until I've gone over it with Bryan - but trust me we will do it right rather than rush it out .

[Prentice_Cotham] Are there any plans for Ang Lee's The Ice Storm (since I'm preparing to purchase the Region 2 DVD)?

[Peter_Staddon] It will be released in the first half of 2001, so i guess it depends how desperate you are to see this movie! We don't have a firm date set yet, but it will not be this year. Thanks

[Steve_Simon] Hello Peter, I would personally like to thank you for a matter that you personally took care of for me, you did not have to do this for me, but this showed you are a class act, and really care about your customers, second could you give us some insight on DTS, and maybe some titles that will come with this fantastic 5.1 format? Also Any word on Star Wars DVD Release?

[Peter_Staddon] You know I can't talk about Star Wars !!! . . As far as DTS is concerned look for six or seven titles to come out this year - I've already mentioned Courage under Fire, add to that The Thin Red Line, The Siege and a couple of others that I still need to get signed off on before we can go public. All releases will have dd5.1 and DTS along with anamorphic transfers.

[SamTorres] Helpful hint that will get you sales, sales, SALES!: 2 Disc SEs of 'Home Alone 3' and 'Drive Me Crazy'...j/k-what I really wanted to know is if you have any plans on revisiting comedy titles like 'Office Space' and 'Big' with Anamorphic transfers and more extras...pleeeeease?.. oh and 'Cast Away' is coming out in December...do I sense an idea?...hehe..a 'BIG' idea??...

[Peter_Staddon] We are looking at ways to go back and produce anamorphic transfers on some of our old titles. Neither of the titles you mention are at the top of that list, and I've got to say that Big will be done a long time before Office Space. I guess a lot depends on the reaction we get to the reissue of anamorphic titles in December -if it works well we will probably speed up the process. PS: I didn't mention the word "Tank" at all - D'oh

[St_Clair] Peter, kudos on Fox's efforts of late. Previous home video versions of 'The Rocky Horror Picture Show' have a remixed soundtrack that even regular (not home theater enthusiast) fans feel is atrocious and pales in comparison to the original; even the additional mono tracks on these releases were mixdowns of these poorly doctored tracks. Can we expect to see inclusion of ORIGINAL version soundtracks on future video releases of films with original mono audio?

[Peter_Staddon] Rocky Horror is getting a great twin disc 25th anniversary release later this year. I believe the original mono tracks were used as well as a stereo mix and an audience participation track. I'll check on the exact specs and post something in the next couple of days.

[DanR] Peter, can you please update us on the status of the DVD release of POINT BREAK? Features, what month to expect it, etc?

[Peter_Staddon] Point Break will be coming out early next year along with Big Trouble in Little China. I don't want to put a month down at this time, and some of the features are still being finalised -it will be a single disc with some features on it - not a full blown special edition.

[SteffM] Good evening, Peter. My main concern: CLEOPATRA with Liz Taylor. Is it restored and ready? Thanx.

[Peter_Staddon] Cleopatra is a very special project for us as anyone who knows the history of this studio can appreciate. We are working on giving this the full blown 5 star treatment and are working with a number of people to make this a very special release. I don't want to put a date on it since we will release it when its finished and done properly, but we are looking for it in 2001. So far we've hit two 5 star titles I wonder if we'll get all four?

[SeanCullen] Are there any plans to release the Jeremy Priven comedy PCU on DVD?

[Peter_Staddon] PCU / Nerds are both on the release schedule for the first half of 2001.

[Aaron_B] Sorry if these have been asked but any plans for : The Ice Storm; Blood & Wine, The Legend of Hell House; Miller's Crossing or Buffy The Vampire Slayer (movie)?

[Peter_Staddon] The Ice Storm and Millers Crossing have been covered - both are coming out in the first half of 2001. No plans for Hell House or the Buffy Movie at this point - but that might change by Haloween 2001

[Tim_Wilson] Thanks for coming Peter. I was wondering what other 5-star collections or 2-disc sets can we look forward to? The Independence Day set was excellent!

[Peter_Staddon] I was wondering if you'd be able to guess the 5 Star discs.

[Tim_Wilson] No, just tell us :)

[Peter_Staddon] Cleopatra and MASH have already been covered, The French Connection will be another, but the final one will have to wait until nearer the date as I want to do something special with that release along the same lines as the ID4 screening.

[MartinB] Good evening Peter : In the name of all french canadians, THANK YOU so much for the support of french audio on almost all DVD releases in region 1. Question: Shall we get some day 5.1 digital french audio instead of 2.0 on new releases ?

[Peter_Staddon] It's a question of the bit budget on the discs, on some bigger releases as the volumes we sell in canada increases - I wouldn't rule it out but it takes up a fair bit of room. I guess we will probably try it on a title in 2001 and see what reaction we get to it.

[MartinB] Thanks...I can't wait for The Sound Of Music and The Rocky Horror Picture Show

[Chris_Maynard] Obi's Reviews wants to know if there is any word on That Thing You Do? The R2 is less than desirable. Thanks! (Robert's Evil Little Brother) Obi & I also would like to see Buffy The Vampire Slayer (movie)

[Peter_Staddon] Chris, that sub posting made me laugh so much I nearly spilled coffee over my keyboard! That thing That you Do will be out next year, along with a couple of our other music oriented releases. I don't want to give a date out yet. I hear you on Buffy - I want to get the Buffy TV series out first!

[Peter_Staddon] While we're waiting I wanted to thank the members of the forum for their support of Fox titles over the last quarter. Both ID4 and Fight club are performing terrifically and we are planning on keeping the quality of our releases as high as we can.

[Michael_Pakula] Hi Peter and Thanks for coming, I was just wondering if there Is there any plans for a Titan A.E Special Edition ?

[Peter_Staddon] As far as Titan AE first of all look for a spectacular Transfer. If you've seen the movie you'll appreciate how wonderful it can look - and it will. Secondly, look for a spectacular audio production - again if you've seen the film you'll appreciate how good the soundstage is. We are mapping out the bit budget on this title to see what extras we can put on but our overall priority is the best possible transfer and audio quality first, extras second.

[BrionLydon] Hey Peter, is there any plans on releasing a director's cut of Alien 3?

[Peter_Staddon] The short answer is no. The version that is out wil be the version available.

[DaveF] Hi Peter. What's the latest word on the Simpsons?

[Peter_Staddon] We are planning on bringing the first season out as a complete set early next year. The original date we had set has slipped a bit, but it will be out in the first half of the year. We are working with Matt Groenig and his team to make sure this is a lot of fun for Simpsons Fans, we will then release future seasons on a regular basis.

[Emil_Stoica] Hello Peter. First of all, kudos for the excellent work. It was a real pleasure to meet you and see the Fox Lot. Second, my question is about "Alien Nation" (movie and t.v. series). Any chance of these being released? Thanks for chatting with us tonight

[Peter_Staddon] One of the problems we have is trying to sort out the release schedule, not just for the next six months but for the next 18 months or so. We could release a lot of product over the next year and find ourselves in a position with nothing new to bring out in a copuple of years time. Alien Nation is on the list of products that we want to release but it does not have a release date set yet. Sorry I can't be more specific for you.

[ChrisG] Is there any chance of Russ Meyer and Roger Ebert's Beyond the Valley of the Dolls coming to DVD any time soon?

[Peter_Staddon] Depends on how you define soon ;)

[ChrisG] within the next year?

[Peter_Staddon] It will probably be coming out later in 2001, there is some interesting material surrounding this movie that we are tracking down. It will not be a 5 star but it will have some new material on it. More than that I can't say at this stage

[Don_Williams] Hi Peter. Is there any chance of seeing the WWI classic "The Blue Max" (1966) on DVD? Thanks for chatting tonight!

[Peter_Staddon] That's a great film. Yes there is a chance that it will be out on DVD, but not this year. There are a number of WWI & WWII movies that I think we could build a great promotion around.

[BruceW] Any plans for more double features in order of The Fly/Fly2 etc. with titles such as Predator/predator 2 or Hot Shots/Hot Shots 2? Thanks

[Peter_Staddon] The double features will be a regular release for us. Do not expect movies of the calibre of Predator to be in this series.

[BruceW] any specific titles?

[Peter_Staddon] The next wave will feature some classic movies such as In Like Flint / Our Man Flint. Other releases will be announced inthe next couple of months. Look for double features to hit probably twice a year with 2 or 3 discs per wave.

[Joel_C] With the success of the X-Men film, is there any chance the nifty FOX animated show will be released? Thanks for Fight Club, Abyss, ID4, Sound of Music, and Titus!

[Peter_Staddon] At the moment we are just crunching like hell on the theatrical release! The animated series isn't on the schedule at this time, maybe by the time the next Marvel movie comes out we'll be ready.

[JeffKleist] Hey Peter, thanks for everything! Any details on the Buffy box set for us? Thank you for everything you're doing!

[Peter_Staddon] I hate to say it, but I don't have those details other than the fact it will be a complete season. I can't comment on that :D

[JeffKleist] Oh yeah, and my guess for the last 5 star title is Episode 1 ;)

[Peter_Staddon] I can't comment on that :)

[AdnanSheikh] Just wanted to say thanks for everything you've been doing for us. Alas, JeffKleist asked my question. Just mark this as another fan anxious for a buffy set :)

[Peter_Staddon] thanks - it's coming!

[DavidSingleton] Thanks Peter, great news about M*A*S*H (the movie, and especially the series). Any chance of seeing Ralph Bakshi's Wizards within the next year or year and a half?

[Peter_Staddon] It's not planned at this stage, but I've been getting a number of people talking about this title. Maybe it's time to get a copy and look at it again. I'll just add it to the list of movies I don't have time to watch!! seriously, no plans at this stage, sorry.

[AndersRunestad] Welcome Peter, thanks for all the fine work you do. A title I would love to see is Brian DePalma's PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE. It would be an excellent title for Halloween 2001 (or any other time!).

[Peter_Staddon] This is an excellent title, and you're right it would make a great Halloween title - wouldn't it ;)

[Tim_Raffey] Peter, apparently you own the rights to distibution of Cemetery Man in the United States? Any chance of an uncut (105 minute, as opposed to the 99 minutes of the US tape and LD), 1.66:1 (windowboxed anamorphic if neccassary) DVD in the future? If not, please consider Anchor Bay as an option (I am trying to remember whether or not that's in your policy). Thanks. And if you haven't seen it, watch it. It's good fun.

[Peter_Staddon] I'm afraid you know a lot more about this title than I do :) It's not planned at this stage, sorry not to have more news at hand.

[Doug_Irving] Peter, thanks for your participation in the forum and your active interest in our requests. What are the chances of the 60s Batman tv series on dvd in season box sets a la X-Files? Or at least the movie? [POW!] [ZZAP!!] [OOOOOOFFFF!!] OK, I'm done.

[Peter_Staddon] As someone who grew up watching the 60's Batman series I would love to see it. There are some issues that need to be resolved before we can make it happen that I cannot go into here. Hopefully in 2001.

[JasonHughes] Now that you mention French Connection, how about part 2 also? Maybe along with a Franeknheimer commentary track as he seems to like doing them. Thanks for coming.

[Peter_Staddon] That will probably come out at the same time as the first series.

[David_Coleman] When will you expect to release a title such as The Five Heartbeats? And thanks for all your great releases!

[Peter_Staddon] The Five Heartbeats isn't pencilled in to the schedule yet, so there is no work being done on it at this stage. We'll get to it eventually.

[James_A] What do you think about the possibility of recent TV SHows on DVD ie Malcom in the Middle and Futurama? Also, thanks!

[Peter_Staddon] I think they would be great on DVD , there are some issues as far as timing is concerned. We have to wait for a certain amount of time after they have aired before we can release them to the home market. So don't expect them in the next year, but I think Futurama would be a great property to launch alongside the Simpsons.

[NickSo] Do you know anything about the future of the TV show Titus? Thanks for chatting :-)

[Peter_Staddon] Same applies to the answer I just gave for Futurama / Malcolm I know some people were confused by the release of Julie Taymor's Titus. I could only imagine what would happen if they ordered that thinking they were getting the TV product!!

[Matt_Birchall] Hi, Peter. Any plans for a new version of TRUE LIES? That's the only James Cameron movie I haven't bought on DVD yet--I'd love to have a new, well-deserved special edition. Thanks for being here tonight. FOX ROX! :)

[Peter_Staddon] There are a number of Lightstorm titles that we would like to revisit, True Lies is near the top of the list but it won't happen in the near future. It's a question of fitting the work into some very busy peoples schedule.

[DanHuey] Are there any plans to reissue "Poseidon Adventure" on DVD with anamorphic transfer and at LEAST a Dolby Surround track if not DTS or DD 5.1? Thanks!!

[Peter_Staddon] First the bad news: There are no plans at this stage Now the good news: I'd love to revisit the Towering Inferno and the Poseidon Adventure. So I guess it will happen but probably not until 2002.

[Doug_Irving] How about a reissue of the X-Files movie with anamorphic enhancement, like in region 2? Some have expressed an interest in DTS for this one. Care to comment?

[Peter_Staddon] X files will get a reissue with an anamorphic transfer dd5.1 and DTS later this year! Does that work for you?

[Rodneyk] What are some of the "classic" movies coming out before the end of the year?

[Peter_Staddon] How do you define classic?

[Peter_Staddon] Courage under fire is coming out. Wall Street is coming out.

[Rodneyk] pre-1970.

[Peter_Staddon] Dr Doolittle (1966) is coming out. That'll have to do for one question :)

[James_Luke] With Fox's receint committment to dts, will we see a steady release of titles, or here and there, once in a while? Thanks again for your involvement in the HTF:)

[Peter_Staddon] Again a lot depends on how many people buy them! (hint, hint) I'd look for DTS to be included on a number of bigger releases as the penetration of DTS equipment increases.

[CristianoLeal] Hi Peter, thanks for everything you guys are doing on the DVD front. I live in Brazil, and in the last few months there have been a bunch of releases here in anarmorphic, such as Die Hard 1 & 2 (yes, 16X9!) and even X-Files: Fight the Future. (16X9 too). The problem is that the menus that should have been well translated to Portuguese, are just terribly translated: In portuguese the verb for "To Play" is: "jogar" (to play a game) or "tocar" (to play a CD or DVD). In the Fox menus, we always read "Jogar". I wonder why? Worst yet, on the DVD of The X-Files Movie there are items written in English and Portuguese, changing languages in the middle of the phrase. Also, there are troubles with the audio: if you choose the portuguese dub track , the audio simply turns back to english, then back to portuguese again at 82:50min into the movie. At this same point , the subtitles just start showing, and then they disappear. These are terrible mistakes in the authoring of such a terrifice title. Looks like you guys are using a translator program to do this kind of work and the results are lousy to say the least. Believe me: brazilian consumers are getting really irritated with Fox here in Brazil. There have been lots of complaints here. Could you do something about this? I'd like you to address this issue please, if possible.

[Peter_Staddon] I am not responsible for any product released outside of North Amnerica

[CristianoLeal] Who is then? ] Could you get in contact with them?

[Peter_Staddon] But I understand the problems you have described and will make sure this is brought to the attention of those people who can fix the problem. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.

[MarkPfeiffer] I'm very pleased to see Fox Home Video going the 2 disc route for artier fare like "Titus". Is this a sign of more supplement-enriched DVDs from movies under the Fox Searchlight banner, particularly "The Ice Storm"? Thanks for coming, and thanks to the studio for turning out high quality products.

[Peter_Staddon] I think a lot depends on how the title lends itself to a special edition and how willing the talent is to work with us. Julie Taymor was wonderful to work with and her passion and vision helped us bring Titus out the way we did. I wouldn't expect it on Searchlight titles, but I wouldn't rule it out completely either.

[Scott_J] Any specs you can discuss on the season 1 set of The Simpsons? Or a release date?

[Peter_Staddon] I can't give you either of those at this time unfortunately, we are still working on the supplemental material. I understand the demand for this release and as soon as I can I will post information.

[JeffUlmer] Thanks again for Zardoz. What can we expect in the way of more sci-fi by year's end?

[Peter_Staddon] You'll be a happy camper next June

[JeffUlmer] OneMilloin Years BC perhaps, more two packs?

[Peter_Staddon] By years end there will not be a lot of classic sci fi, but there will be a few titles such as 1M BC / The Day the Earth Stood Still by mid 2001

[Derek_Germano] Hello Peter, thank you again for coming. Any chance of seeing deep catalog titles like The Lodger and Hangover Square on DVD or perhaps the Hammer titles that Fox still controls- namely One Million Years B.C., The Anniversary and The Nanny

[Peter_Staddon] 1M BC will be out next year, the otehr titles aren't planned yet. There's some great double feature potential in some of our film noir titles.

[MarshallBrewton] 'Evening, Peter! How difficult is it for those in the home entertainment division to justify special releases of movies that have generally tanked at the box office (such as the awesome DVD release of "Fight Club" -- and hopefully of Titan A.E. :) to those who control the bugdet allocation for DVD releases (or even to yourselves! :) ? Many thanks for your participation!

[Peter_Staddon] We control our own release strategy, so it comes down to whether or not we can produce an acceptable return on investment. A lot of peole speculated that we will be doing more on DVD now that Bill Mechanic is no longer at Fox and I've got to tell you that is not the case, Bill was a huge supporter of our division and I for one appreciated that enormously. We could not have done the work we have been doing recently without the full support of the Studio Chairman.

[erick] What is the status of "The Adventures Of Ford Fairlane" and any chance of Die Hard Trilogy in dts?

[Peter_Staddon] I've been suprised by the number of people asking for Ford Fairlane, I guess it has quite a strong core following. We may have to bump it up in the release schedule. As far as Die Hard is concerned, it will not be in the first wave of DTS titles. So we'll have to wait and see how things develop.

[AndresMunoz] Hi Peter. Any plans to release DVDs with DD5.1 and DTS tracks on the same disc? Something along the line of Universal's "The Bone Collector"?

[Peter_Staddon] All of our DTS titles will have DD5.1 as well

[brian_cook] Peter, any chance of revisiting The Commitments with a SE??

[Peter_Staddon] Probably some time next year, along with some other music oriented releases, I'm not sure what other material we will be able to find but it's on our list to revisit.

[Gary_Rhine] What would you consider your most innovative DVD for future release?

[Peter_Staddon] That's a good question and a tough one to answer. Rocky Horror is looking really good, Titan AE just looks awesome but that's not innovative - its just good:) There are a couple of titles being planned for early next year that should raise the bar a bit. But I don't want to announce them yet - sorry

[DanBrecher] thanks for being here Peter, and thanks for keeping my attention in the wee hours of the morning (4am). Bruce mentioned the movies above, but got no specific response to the titles, so I'll ask right out, Hot Shots movies. any plans?

[Peter_Staddon] Just for you, we'll release Hot Shots next year along with PCU and Nerds. And, since you stayed up until 4am, we'll even throw in Bachelor Party as well - how's that?

[Vern_Dias] Your comment about running out of titles in two years implies that you may not have any plans to release the early Scope films from 1954 to 1960. I, for one would really like to see titles like 7 Year Itch, River Of No Return, and all of the Scope films with Dolby Digital 4.0. I beleive that the early CinemaScope years were the golden years of the Fox catalog. I hope I am incorrect in my assumption.

[Peter_Staddon] You are incorrect in your assumption. Next year will see the release a number of CinemaScope films. Do you know what anniversary it is next year?

[RonEpstein] Hey Peter? What is PCU?

[Peter_Staddon] Its a frat house comedy - I can't remeber the cast off the top of my head.

[RonEpstein] Well, you have Fox's best comedies set for next year. Thanks.

[rik] Hi Peter, are there plans for a dts track on X-Men or Titan A.E. ?

[Peter_Staddon] Ttian AE we are looking at DTS but its not confirmed yet. X Men I don't want to comment on at this stage. I mentioned earlier that we are meeting with Bryan Singer to go over the DVD and its going to be a question of time rather than material.

[GregKrewet] Thank you. Is there any chance of the Sand Pebbles and I hope the pizza arrived.

[Peter_Staddon] I think there's more chance of the Sand Pebbles coming before my Pizza -it's got lost somewhere. Seriously we are talking with Robert Wise now about doing a commentary and it will be out next year. Its a great film.

[PeterMFitzgerald] Great news about 1 MILLION YEARS BC, Peter (I hope it's the uncut, 100-minute version, like the previous Fox laserdisc)! My easy (heh-heh) question: which of these 4 Fox catalog titles has the best chance of a DVD release in the next year: film noir classic NIGHT & THE CITY ('50, hey, team this up with THIEVES' HIGHWAY ('49)! Perfect double-feature DVD!), "Wild Bill" Wellman's western classic YELLOW SKY (1948).

[Peter_Staddon] I'm not sure any of them will make it but the film noir double feature stands the best chance.

[Doug_Irving] Peter will Fox reissue the Rogers & Hammerstein Musicals in anamorphically enhanced presentations on down the road?

[Peter_Staddon] I guess a lot will depend on how the reissue of anamorphic titles goes later this year. We are not planning to do so , but never say never...

[Charles_R] Thanks in advance. Could you break down the cost of creating a DVD.. 20% for Video, 10% for Audio, Extras, Marketing, etc?

[Peter_Staddon] It can vary a lot by title. Consider if a film needs restoration, or if an audio track needs to be remastered or if supplemental materials already exist or if they have to be created or if you have to buy out talent. The more I think about it the more complicated it's getting so I'd better stop!

[MikahCerucco] Peter, I don't know how much exposure you have to Closed Captioning/English Subtitling , but if Fox could consider doing it for the extras (at least some of them), it would really be a big treat to those who use them. Can you comment?

[Peter_Staddon] A lot depends on what the added materials are, if they are existing masters (eg documentaries ) we may well be able to use CC's . Some of the materials do not neccessarily lend themselves to CC's - but I take your point and will look at this for future releases.

[Tyler_Ruggeri] Fox owns one of my favorite films of all time (and most obscure), 1969's THE PRIME OF MISS JEAN BRODIE starring Maggie Smith. I would love to see this get a DVD release, even with minimal extras. I want it on DVD more than any other title. Any chance? She won Best Actress for the film as well as other awards, so it is pretty notable. It's on television a lot as well.

[Peter_Staddon] Maggie Smith was fantastic in this film, sometimes we overlook gems in our library this is one of them. There are no plans at this moment, but let me see if we can change that ;)

[Andrew] I'm excited to hear about the coming five-star release of both The Sound of Music and The French Connection! On the subject of Fox Best Picture winners, any plans for the 1933's Cavalcade?

[Peter_Staddon] No plans at this stage, this is a title that we are looking at the state of the materials on so I'm sure it wil eventually be released but not in the near future.

[Paul_Wu] Thanks for coming. Most of my questions have been covered. So what's a typical day/week like for you?

[Peter_Staddon] Hectic, too many meetings, but a lot of fun. We have a great team of people working here at Fox - people who care about film and I think that shows in some of the product we are bringing to market. But as for a typical Day - I guess there isn't such a thing.

[Shaun] Any info on the X-men animated series coming to DVD?

[Peter_Staddon] This was asked before, we are concentrating on the theatrical DVD at this point. The animated DVD could come out to coincide with the release of the next Marvel film.

[ChrisCaine] Could you please release these and if possible with isolated scores: 1. TOYS, 2. SMILLA'S SENSE OF SNOW, 3. NINE MONTHS. As a score fan as well, I have bought more DVDs (500+) in the last 7 months than all my soundtracks since 1992. Any or all would brighten up an overcast afternoon in crazy Fiji.

[Peter_Staddon] What time is it in Fiji?

[ChrisCaine] 3.38pm Wednesday

[Peter_Staddon] Nine Months is the only one of the titles you mentioned that is on the release schedule. I'll check into isolated scores - they are a underated feature.

[ChrisCaine] vinaka/thank you

[DustinD] Is there any chance of seeing any of the great contemporary Fox comedies on DVD soon, like Futurama, Family Guy, and Ally McBeal? I know Ally already made it on DVD, but season box sets would be nice. Thanks for your hard work!

[Peter_Staddon] Futurama and Family Guy will make it onto DVD eventually, as I mentioned in an earlier post we have to wait for a set amount of time after a series airs before we can release it. We are evaluating Ally Mcbeal 's performance and may well come back wiath a complete season at some point

[RonEpstein] Peter, give yourself a hand! Not only did you break a record tonight, but you also answered (as you promised you would), every single question! Where do we go from here?

[Peter_Staddon] I need to go and find that Pizza delivery boy!!

[RonEpstein] Is that a night? [Peter_Staddon] Lets call it quits for tonight if thats ok

[RonEpstein] Damn! I feel cheapskated :) Peter...What more can be said but Thank You.

[ParkerClack] sounds alright to me. Thank you so much for doing this with us again.

[Peter_Staddon] Thanks to Ron and Parker and Ned for putting on such a great chat and for running such a great forum.

[RonEpstein] I am sure you'll be back with us here again very soon

[Peter_Staddon] I'm sure, too

Session Close: Tue Jul 18 22:47:33

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