The Motion Picture Association of America and other entertainment industry groups are seeking a delay on approval of a futures exchange tied to box office receipts.

The Sherman Oaks-based MPAA and the other groups want more time to give their views to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which is scheduled to vote April 2 on the application from media Derivatives Inc.

The proposal from media Derivatives, and a second futures exchange application from Cantor Futures Exchange L.P. are based on faulty understanding of the film industry and creates a risk of rampant speculation and financial irresponsibility, the groups said in a letter to the commission.

Joining the MPAA in seeking a delay on approval for media Derivatives are the Directors Guild of America, the Independent Film and Television Alliance, the International Alliance of Theatrical and Stage Employees, and the National Association of Theater Owners.

The groups want more time to provide detailed and focused arguments for the commission and address issues such as whether any exchange infrastructure is capable of surveying the box office marketplace to detect and address potential market manipulation.

The Cantor Futures application is up for approval in May.

When the Method Fest Film Festival begins tonight (March 25) the event finds itself in the second step of its evolution to become what its organizers hope will one day be a national festival.

The poor economy, of course, has not been a help in making that transition.
Budget constraints have resulted in the cancellation of other festivals and Method Fest has struggled for a second year in the sponsorship department.

Still, festival Executive Director Don Franken keeps focused on the future and doing what is necessary to make Method Fest a national destination festival akin to Sundance in Park City, Utah and Tribeca in New York City that attracts national and even international coverage that filmmakers and sponsors can benefit from.

“There are things in the works,” Franken said.

After having been a local festival first in Burbank and then Calabasas, Method Fest is now a regional festival with screenings taking place at both the Calabasas Civic Center and the Regency Agoura Hills 8 Theatre.
Throughout that evolution the festival has never veered from its mission to showcase films with great acting.

Entries this year include performances by Anthony Hopkins, Pierce Brosnan, Susan Sarandon, Richard Dreyfus, and Bruce Dern, the recipient of the festival’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

Hiring an additional programmer resulted in Method Fest getting a few films that premiered at the Berlin Film Festival. As in past year, a number of U.S. and world premieres will take place at Method Fest.

“We worked harder and we ended up with more films to choose from,” Franken said.

The 7-day festival wouldn’t be possible without corporate sponsorship and like last year getting those has been a struggle. There is no airline sponsor for a second year in a row and no car dealerships took part as well.

One new sponsor is the Good Nite Inn in Calabasas, the host hotel.
The hotel is ideally located between the two screening locations in Calabasas and Agoura Hills, said General Manager Randall Boyd.

Whether it is the film festival, or any day-long event in the Valley area or into Malibu, guests want an inexpensive, clean place to stay, Boyd said.

“They just need a place to crash so it works out well for us,” Boyd added.
Post-screening parties take place from Woodland Hills to Agoura Hills, another example of the regional focus.

The festival will screen films in two theaters at the Regency as compared to the one from last year. There have also been more musical acts added for the parties, including some whose work is used in festival films.

A Canadian movie theater chain will complete in April its installation of digital 3D equipment made by a Burbank company.

At 43 screens, Guzzo Cinemas will have the largest number of 3D theater systems in North America from MasterImage 3D LLC.

Guzzo began installing the digital projectors in December and expects to be completed in April when one-third of its screenings will be in digital 3D. The chain has 11 theaters in the greater Montreal area.

The MasterImage equipment gives a high quality presentation and the single-use glasses are preferable to the chain having to clean and re-use glasses, said Vince Guzzo, executive vice president and chief operating officer.

“A big benefit of the MasterImage system is that it can be very easily moved and redeployed in different theaters along with the projection system in the weeks after a movie opens,” Guzzo said. “It doesn’t require us to call in a technician.”

The membership of the Visual Effects Society twice honored director James Cameron at its 8th annual awards show on Feb. 28 in Century City.

First were the six statuettes given to “Avatar,” Cameron’s sci-fi 3D mega-blockbuster grossing more than $2 billion in worldwide box office receipts

The second was in receiving the Encino-based society’s Lifetime Achievement Award for a body of work that has pushed the creative envelope in film effects, from the computer generated images in “The Abyss” and “Terminator Two: Judgment Day” to the 3D world of Pandora in “Avatar.”

While technological advances are replacing the effects used when he started his filmmaking career, Cameron placed a greater importance on the human element behind what he called ultimate magic.

“It’s the artist, the imagination and a sense of pioneering spirit that make visual effects work,” Cameron said backstage. “Computers don’t make visual effects; imagination does that.”

Society members around the world choose the award winners for their work in feature films, television, commercials and video games. For the second year, the VES paired with Autodesk to present a student award.

Ed Catmull, a co-founder of Pixar Animation Studios, received the Georges Melies Award for Pioneering for his groundbreaking work in computer graphics

Catmull helped set up three of the leading centers of in computer graphic research and at Pixar (now owned by Disney) oversaw 10 feature films, including that night’s nominee, “Up,” said presenter and visual effects artist Jim Morris.

“Under Ed’s watch each film has been a technical, artistic and financial success,” Morris said.

“Up” was the second big winner of the night coming away with three awards: Outstanding Animation in an Animated Feature Motion Picture; Outstanding Effects Animation in an Animated Feature Motion Picture; and Outstanding Animated Character in an Animated Feature Motion Picture.

From the first award presentation for use of models and miniatures in a feature film it was apparent that “Avatar” would dominate the proceedings.

The film had three nominations in one category – Outstanding Created Environment in a Feature Motion Picture – and ended the night with members of the effects team accepting the award for outstanding visual effects in a visual effects driven movie, considered to be the VES’s version of the Best Visual Effects category for the Oscars.

Only “District 9″ stood in the way of “Avatar” sweeping all of its nomination. The sci-fi thriller won the outstanding compositing award, a category in which “Avatar” had two nominations.

Mark Twain was famously quoted as saying,“The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated.” CEO Tama Holve of Willett Travel in Studio City has adapted this quote when she teaches her five students at the Willett Travel Academy, a small class she teaches to future agents making career switches if they give her a one-year comittment to the company. She tells them “the demise of the travel agency has been exaggerated.”

With the recession and the Internet people might be left wondering what are travel agencies doing these days to adapt to new technologies and how are they doing it?

They might be left wondering if the demise of the travel agency has been exaggerated. Holve says “they are alive and well.”

The industry has seen tremendous consolidation since the recession, including large numbers of mergers. According to a CNN report, the American Society of Travel Agents said there were 37,000 brick and mortar travel agencies which have been reduced now to 18,000 agencies as of August when many “merged or folded.” However, according to a CNN.com story that ran last August travel agents may be making a comeback. A Forrester study indicated that only 43 percent of travelers are enjoying their online booking experience while 57 percent do not.

This means people may be returning to the travel agent to figure out how to navigate their trip details on the Internet.

According to Holve travel agents are still in around, just in a different form. Their role has changed and adapted to fit the modern world and Economic situation. Local Travel agencies Willett Travel and Montrose Travel were interviewed about how the role of the travel agent has changed in a post-travel Web site era and how the role of the travel agent has changed since the recession.

Holve has been with Willett since 1978, owned the agency jointly started in 1987 and took over sole ownership about 10 years ago. In that time Holve said she saw in the early 90s the introduction of these Internet sites for booking. Holve said Willett specializes in “customized individual travel.” Holve said the customer base was so diversified she could not give a breakdown. However, she did say that entertainment , business and family travels were some of the demographics that they target.

“It was just really snuck up on us,” Holve said of the Expedia and Travelocity era. “I think it was something we were going along doing what we were doing and all of a sudden we realized we are not getting as many calls.”

Holve said they reacted to client demand, with some agencies and agents “reacting more quickly than others.

“It’s just knowing the years of experiences that many of us have.”

Lots of experience

Holve says travel agents can offer the knowledge of 60 professionals that share their clients experiences and personal experiences, and travel industry reviewers that they pay for.

“Then we have our vendors or our hotel representative whose job it is to sell the properties but more importantly to develop a relationship with them with us so that we can trust their advice,” Holve said. “ The representative or hotel sales representatives are the ones we have developed trust with through the years.”

The long-delayed Children’s Museum of Los Angeles has found a new life of sorts in Hollywood.

Never completed because of funding problems the stylish building out at the Hansen Dam in the east San Fernando Valley is now owned by the city and made available as a location for television and feature film shoots.

This and other empty properties – the Lincoln Heights Jail, for instance – are being marketed to production companies as part of an overall strategy to stem the loss of filming to other states.

A year ago the television drama “Bones” filmed at the museum for three days, and in December the David Fincher-helmed comedy-drama feature film “The Social Network,” about the founding of Facebook used the space for three days.

The museum and other city properties are available at virtually no cost to film although for the museum staff will be paid to open and close the building.

Empty buildings offer other benefits as well.

“They make great locations because you can work around the clock,” said Paul Audley, president of FilmLA, the nonprofit agency coordinating on-location filming. “It is one of the best things about the city’s offerings.”

The children’s museum had been located in downtown until 2000 until it closed for a lack of space. Fundraising then started for a new museum in the Lake View Terrace neighborhood that resulted in the 57,000-square-foot facility.

While raising money for the project was always a struggle, as time passed donor became more difficult to come by. The proposed completion date of 2007 came and went. Then the opening was delayed until 2009 and then again until 2010.

Delays only added to the cost, which was could not be met with the donations already raised. An estimated $2 million would be needed to operate the museum once it opened.

Bankruptcy

Finally, in April 2009, the museum declared bankruptcy having failed to raise the money needed to finish the building. That a major donor was being sued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission was of no help either.

City Councilman Richard Alarcon, whose district includes Lake View Terrace, said the goal is to have the building used as a museum. Because there is state money involved in the project, the city is working on getting the okay from Sacramento to extend the deadline of when the facility needs to be a functioning museum.

So in the interim production companies are welcome.

“There will be a period of time where the building will not have a specified use and therefore there is space available for filming,” Alarcon said.

Both the film office of the city’s parks and recreation department and FilmLA are getting the museum (and other city-owned sites) before location scouts. FilmLA will include the site in its LocoScout database.

It is just a part of a larger strategy embraced by the city to do more to keep film and television production in Southern California. According to statistics from FilmLA, on-location production for film, television and commercials decreased by 19 percent in 2009 when compared to the year before. The number of feature films filming on-location in the region in particular has dramatically dropped over the past 10 years. (Those numbers, however, do not include filming on soundstages.)

Considering the size and the emptiness of the museum building, Alarcon expressed surprise that it wasn’t used more often.

From his knowledge about children’s museums they are typically designed for traveling exhibits, which is why ample space is available to build sets, Audley said.

Alarcon is also working on creating a film commission that would market the city as place for filming.

THQ Inc. has chosen Southern Methodist University for the location of a video game lab to test how easy its games are to play.

With gaming standards rising and evolving, Agoura Hills-based THQ looks to keep the basic needs of gamers at the fore-front with user-friendly titles, company executives said.

“We are confident that our investment to expand THQ’s usability resources with the new will allow us to augment our track record of consistently delivering highly-rated titles with tried-and-tested playability,” said Danny Bilson, Executive Vice President, THQ Core Games.

The lab is expected to be fully open by the summer.

The company chose Southern Methodist for the school’s renowned graduate program in video game development and design. With the lab on campus students will meet with THQ executives for insight into the gaming industry.

“In return, THQ will be able to tap into 120 of the most serious, experienced gamers in the U.S. for testing, consultation and research,” said Peter Raad, executive director of The Guildhall, the university’s graduate video game program.

Technicolor has signed up the first movie theater chain to use its 3D on film process that will speed up the number of screens showing the format.

Bow Tie Cinemas, with theaters on the East Coast and in Colorado, will use the proprietary Technicolor lens at 25 out of 150 screens.

The first film to be made available in Technicolor 3D is “How to Train Your Dragon” from DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc on March 26.

With the rollout of digital projection equipment into movie theaters slowed by the credit crunch and recession, Technicolor stepped up with a process to show 3D films at a lower cost than digital.

The combination of the special lens fitting on a standard 35mm projector and the process to create the film prints will mean more screens to show the 3D films that Hollywood studios are now turning out a quick pace.

Walt Disney Studios brings “Alice in Wonderland” to theaters March 5, with the next 3D release being “Dragon” from DreamWorks Animation. Warner Bros. Pictures follows with “Clash of the Titans” in early April.

The release this month of the multi-DVD “Clint Eastwood: 35 Films 35 Years at Warner Bros.” is as much about the relationship between a movie studio and one of the top actor/directors working today as it is about the films contained inside its stylish box.

If Eastwood had never decided to make the Warner Bros. lot his primary movie-making home starting in the mid-1970s there would be no reason for Warner Home Video to expend the time and effort on this collection.

The freedom and flexibility afforded there has resulted in Eastwood creating memorable characters like “Dirty” Harry Callahan, an Oscar winner in “Unforgiven” and pursuing non-action and comedic roles while also given the opportunity to stay behind the camera as he did with “Mystic River” and “Letters from Iwo Jima.”

“He is comfortable here and never felt the need to go anyplace else,” said Jeff Baker, executive vice president and general manager of the home video division. “There is a lot of familiarity with the lot. There are certain locations that are particularly appealing to him.”

With DVD sales falling faster than bodies in an Eastwood western, does Warner Home Video feel lucky that attaching his name and mystique to such a large collection will resonate with consumers?

Yes, Baker concedes, DVD sales have declined but it is still a substantial business. People are buying less but find less expensive ways (i.e. renting) or watching the discs at home.

The “35 Films” box was created for a broad audience with a suggested retail price of $180. Amazon and Barnes & Noble, however, have priced the set below that amount for online sales. Select titles will be made available digitally.

The films themselves have not been improved picture-wise so the value add comes in having so many titles in one place (missing are films distributed by Universal and Paramount), a booklet written by film critic Richard Schickel, photos, never released letters from Eastwood to studio executives, and a 22-minute documentary on Eastwood’s career by Schickel (and counted as the 35th film).

The documentary includes Eastwood revisiting New York Street on the Burbank lot where he shot scenes for “Bird,” reminiscing while looking at some of the 20,000 costumes from his films still in storage, explaining how a diner scene was filmed for “Million Dollar Baby,” and playing the piano on the scoring stage named for him.

In the 18 months since the idea of the box set was first raised, Eastwood had made two films and was in post-production on a third, “Gran Torino.” So finding the time to interview him in Burbank and at his homes in Carmel and Los Angeles proved difficult, Baker said.

A longer version of the documentary will be screened this month at a benefit for the film program at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art at which Eastwood will appear. Warner Bros. is still deciding on how to make that version available to the public, Baker said.

Even with the confines of 22 minutes, Schickel is able to get to the heart of the relationship between Eastwood and Warner Bros.

Just as it is rare for an athlete to commit to a single team for a career, so it is with actors and studios in Hollywood, Baker said.

At Warner Bros., Eastwood hasn’t had to be preoccupied with the business side of the industry and could concentrate on being an actor and filmmaker.

“Today loyalty is rare, especially for a particular company to have an association with a particular entertainer for so many years,” Baker said. “In that sense he is unique.”

Making Those DVDs

Warner Bros. entered into a long-term contract to receive DVD and Blu-ray disc replication services from Technicolor.

The deal is expected to start generating revenue in the third quarter.

Combining the expertise at Warner Bros. in creating entertainment properties and technologies related to them with Technicolor’s track record of technological innovation creates opportunity for both companies, Technicolor CEO Frederic Rose said.

Marketing 3D Films

Rodin Marketing in Sherman Oaks was brought in by Technicolor to create a branding campaign for its 3D on film process.

Targeted at theater owners, the campaign emphasizes two main points – affordability and quality, said the firm’s owner, Steve Rodin.

The affordability message has been distilled in the tagline of “3D for Everyone” and features a large fist reminiscent of what would be seen in 1930s propaganda posters clenching a pair of 3D glasses.

Independent and small theater owners are being told that they, too, can get in on the popularity of 3D films.

“It is not just about the multiplex owners who can afford whatever they want,” Rodin said.

The quality angle is that Technicolor’s 3D on film process, which involves the use of a special lens attached to a standard 35mm projector, is practically indistinguishable from digitally projected 3D films.

Rodin’s firm and Technicolor did collaborate on the campaign but the entertainment tech company did not give specifics on what the final images should look like. There were other ideas tossed around before Rodin and his staff settled on the large fist, which they didn’t think was going to fly.

“This was a fun approach and exciting project to work on,” Rodin said.

Adult Behavior

The Free Speech Coalition announced the winners of two awards recognizing adult film companies for their business practices.

Girlfriend Films received the Leadership Award and CorbinFisher.com. received the Award of Excellence.

Girlfriend Films was recognized for its long history of fair businesses practices and philanthropy.

Anti-piracy measures implemented in response to declining sales resulted in more than 20,000 URLs being taken down that were infringing on the company’s material. In addition, the company donates a portion of its revenues to area charities.

CorbinFisher.com was recognized for its policy of fair and ethical treatment of its models that has been adopted by other adult studios. The company has also donated to various charities over the years and its employees are encouraged to donate time and resource to charities and nonprofits.

Ray Vega knows how to work a room. When he walks into Casa Vega restaurant in Sherman Oaks, a Valley landmark since 1958, he jovially moves from table to table, flirting, greeting newcomers and ribbing some of his long-time customers.

It’s not uncommon for the 75-year-old restaurateur to spontaneously buy a round of drinks for a table. And the dimly lit Mexican food establishment, located on the corner of Fulton Avenue and Ventura Boulevard, has a loyal following among the Hollywood elite, and more.

“One of the most important things that has contributed to our success is that it’s not about what the (Vega) family likes, but it’s about what customers like,” said Ray Vega, adding fans of the restaurant visit time and again because they know what to expect.

Words of wisdom indeed for daughter Christina Vega-Fowler, age 32, who’s taking over the daily operations of Casa Vega.

Groomed from a young age for such a transition, she is attempting to modernize the restaurant while preserving its past and presence. And since nobody can ever replace Ray, she often looks to him as a mentor and source of inspiration.

“It’s important to stay true to what you know and who you are, no matter what trends may come and go,” said Christina Vega-Fowler. “We have a recipe that works.”

A family business

Ray’s parents owned a restaurant on Olvera Street in downtown Los Angeles. But they sold it because of stringent liquor laws in the area, and re-opened in Hollywood. The latter venture never took off and his parents eventually had to shut the doors.

Ray, who grew up in the business and studied restaurant management, launched Casa Vega in 1956. His father worked the bar, mother waited tables, and Ray oversaw the whole operation. They moved to the current location a couple years later to meet demand.

Business was slow at first, but then a few Hollywood big shots stumbled on the restaurant – one of very few in Sherman Oaks at the time, said Ray.

“They helped direct studio people to Casa Vega and every year it got a little better,” he said. “We also started serving dinner until 1 a.m. and keeping the bar open til 2 a.m. to cater to the studio crowd.”

In fact, the restaurant keeps its ambiance notably dark to cater to celebrities who can slip in and out without being noticed. Gov. Schwarzenegger, the late Marlon Brando, and Kim Kardashian are a few celebs known to have frequented Casa Vega.

Vega eventually moved to Las Vegas and started Vega Enterprises, which included a wholesale business, bar and concessions business, food service, and marketing arm. He maintained ownership of the restaurant and visited once a week.

Christina cut her teeth at Vega Enterprises. “I grew up in Vega Enterprises and started filing for the company and working there every summer and during breaks from school,” said Christina, who also earned a degree in business administration and economics.

She returned to Sherman Oaks in 2000 and started working with Casa Vega. Ray sold his Las Vegas businesses and returned to California with his wife in 2002. He started running the restaurant with Christine, with the goal of “retiring” and letting her take over.

“My dad has pretty much taught me everything,” said Christina.

Catalyst for change

Christina has encouraged the restaurant to modernize by adding more vegetarian items to the menu, doing away with trans fats, creating low calorie margaritas, making the menu and other signage easier to read, and setting up a new accounting department.

She is also planning a re-model of the restaurant.

“A lot goes into every decision,” said Christina, a mother of three and married to a local attorney, adding the challenge is preserving the essence of the restaurant, not turning long-time customers off, and planning for the business’ long-term viability.

She scrapped one re-modeling plan that would have added enough space for 40 new tables, because it would have changed the ambiance too much. Casa Vega’s eventual re-model will be on the Bravo television show “Flipping Out,” she said.

Christina and her father are also considering opening additional Casa Vega restaurants, and/or franchising. “But it has to be right,” she said. “I never want to rush or just do it to do it. What I’ve learned from dad is to be modest in your business decisions.”

Ray only works a couple days a week now and gives Christina the freedom to pursue new ideas for the restaurant and make mistakes along the way. He said his daughter runs the restaurant by the book, by treating customers and long-time employees right.

“The keys to running a successful restaurant are having quality ingredients, knowing your employees and saying thank you to your customers not once but four times,” said Ray. “It’s all about team.” Some employees have worked at Casa Vega for decades, he added.

Christina said she has also learned her work ethic from Ray.

“Dad never stops working,” she said. “I think when you are raised like that you are like that. He’ll be here forever.” And Ray admits he’s not likely to give up mingling with customers any time soon. “My working less just means my wife gets two dates a week.”