This Cannes Festival and film market have been the slowest in memory.  The slump in dvd sales, coupled with a very soft box office last fall, have led even deep pocketed Art House distributors like Sony Classics, to be very conservative in with their acquisitions.  In fact, for the first time ever, Sony Classics, as an article in Variety reveals, is leaving Cannes without acquiring even one title.

I am only slightly surprised by this news.  Things have gotten very tough and the subsequent need for outstanding, unique films that might catch art house audiences' attention has rendered many decent films as "nice," but not neccessary, especially at the prices many of their sales agents are demanding.

The business is in a huge transition unlike any I have seen before.  No one is sure how it will all shake out.  In the meantime, the economy is soft to say the least and audiences just aren't going to art house and independent films like they did in years past.  So what's a specialty distributor to do?  Obviously they'd rather keep their money in their pocket than lose it on another mediocre release they overpay for at Cannes.

There is a great opportunity here for American filmmakers to fill the gaps.  New technology allows any skilled team of filmmakers to create a movie that looks and sounds great, at a fraction of what that cost even five years ago.  The challenge is to come up with engaging stories, be they dramas, comedies, or whatever, that will resonate with audiences who have a lot of other ways to spend their descretionary dollars besides going to the movies, or renting them on dvd.

These films could be sold for much less than the current European and Asian films, or pseudo American Independents, cost.  It would be a win win situation for everyone.  The question is, who are the American filmmakers that will seize this opportunity and make these films?

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