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| September 17, 2004 ›

The Coolest Imprint Alive Right This Second. Pt 1


The Legend Of Leigh Bowery.Charles Atlas. Palm Pictures DVD

If you love images (and a love of fashion is often times the by-product of the adoration of pure image) then there are certain visuals that can change your way of seeing, if not your way of thinking. As such, you have not truly lived in your contemporary visual culture until you have seen the images of Leigh Bowery dancing in a head-to-toe polyester sheath, writhing as if his dancing was an escape act.
You have not lived the first emerging visuals of the 21st century until you've seen Ursula Andress recline majestically while wearing a crystal head dress in Matthew Barney's Cremaster opus. These DVD's and more ( notably the must collect Director's Label video series featuring the work of Spike Jonz, Chris Cunnigham and Michel Gondry) are part of the amazing library being compiled at a very audacious media company called Palm Pictures. This company is at the forefront of the DVD revolution that puts the kind of esoteric work that was usually restricted to the fashion world's image making elite in the hands of the general public. These are the filmic references that are becoming a truer reflection of today's image culture than the retro impulses that feed most mainstream magazines . MDC was more than happy to catch up with Palm Pictures's Ed Rivadavia, Head of Digital Marketing Services for the scoop on this potent media imprint.

1.Ed, Could you give a little background on Palm Pictures.And also elaborate on your role there.

Palm Pictures was started in 1998 by Island Records founder and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Chris Blackwell, following his sale of Island to Polygram. Looking to expand beyond music industry boundaries, CB shaped Palm into an independent multi-media company which distributes innovative music and film projects, with a particular focus on the DVD format.

Breaking that down some more, we're involved with films for both theatrical and DVD release, music documentaries, anime (Manga - www.manga.com - which we just sold, actually), print (RES Magazine, also promoter of the yearly, world-roving RES Fest - www.res.com & www.resfest.com), Palm Music a record label (www.palmpictures.com - a fully functioning record label reposponsible for a wide range of releases from the likes of downtempo act Zero 7, world music superstars Baaba Maal and Gigi, British chanteuse Martina Topley-Bird, rock icons Sparks, and new alternative talent like Earlimart and Moving Units), and various web properties, including music on demand mainstay Epitonic (www.epitonic.com) and the award winning Sputnik7 (www.sputnik7.com). Palm music owned Rykodisc for a few years, but that was spun off three years ago.

My role at Palm as Head of Digital Marketing Services involves all of the above areas in one way or another. Mostly, I market and promote all theatrical, DVD and music releases to major web destinations (MSN, Real Networks, AOL, Yahoo!, MTV.com, etc.) and independent entertainment/music/film websites alike, distributing digital assets such as ecards, trailer streams and mp3s to offer consumers samples of our products. I also manage all of our digital download initiatives (Apple iTunes, Napster, MusicMatch, etc.), coordinate the creation of websites, ecards and other assets cited above, and maintain our various websites.

2.Why select these film properties? Its an incredibly eclectic selection. What's the uniting idea?

Palm is very much the result of Chris Blackwell's vision - that is to always operate slightly to the side of the mainstream. It's this philosophy which allowed him to discover and sign artists like Bob Marley, U2 and Melissa Etheridge during his years with Island, and which now results in our working such an eclectic roster of films, documentaries and music artists. I suppose the unifying idea is still very much the Bob Marley credo of ONE LOVE, but, really, the slightly left, or outside the mainstream philosophy aplies as well.

3. Who do you see as that ideal customer buying the product?

Palm's ideal consumer - like Palm - is eclectic and open-minded by nature and always looking for something new. Over the years, we have discovered that, more so than limiting ourselves to specific niches or styles, it's that very willingness to experiment and take chances, that has gained Palm so many loyal customers. Most of these don't always know WHAT to expect from Palm, only that they'll be pleasantly surprised - whatever it is.

4. Is your company distribution only? Are there plans to go into actual film production?

There have been discussions of producing our own projects now and then, but as far as I know, nothing concrete at this juncture. I believe we own a few development rights that have yet to be moved on. But even if and when this move takes place, we'll probably remain focused on acquisitions - at least for the short term.

The Coolest Imprint Alive Right This Second Pt 2


Cremaster 3.The Order. Matthew Barney. Palm Pictures DVD

5a.Are there plans for more Director Series videos after Chris Cunningham, Michel Gondry and Spike Jonze.

Yes, we are deep into negotiations with 4 directors right now (including Mark Romanek and Jonathan Glazer) with a projected Spring 2005 release. In the meantime, the original 3 will be packaged as a box set for late October.

5b. How did those 3 end up being the first trio.

As the story goes, Spike Jonze had been wanting to compile his work onto a DVD for some time and, about a year previous, Palm had issued a similar release entitled Hype Williams - the Videos. Somehow, someway, Spike or Palm approached each other and it was Spike who roped in his friends Chris Cunningham and Michel Gondry and convinced them to start the so-called Directors Label imprint.

5c. What kind of negotiations does it involve to get the rights from so many different artists and record companies?

Damn, that's one for my lawyers, but I can tell you they're pretty hellish negotiations because they of course involve so many artists, labels and other people. I think that's the big reason why no one had taken the time to compile releases like the Directors Label before. Negotiations are insanely time-consuming and complicated, but ultimately, well worth it, obviously. This has also been the case with the next batch of releases, but we'll get them done eventually.

6. How do you convince a blue chip artist like Matthew Barney to allow Plam Pictures to be the outlet for his film work.

That's the beauty of Palm's philosophy - we don't have to. Artists have come to realize that Palm can provide a unique outlet for their work - no matter how niche-oriented - and we are approached by the artists themselves as often as the other way around.

6B. Are there plans for more work from fine artists (Vanessa Beecroft, Douglas Gordon, etc)

We are always looking to do so, yes, particularly under our Arthouse imprint. Current and upcoming releases in this arena include The Legend of Leigh Bowery (www.legendofleighbowery.com) and How to Draw a Bunny - about reclusive New York artist Ray Johnson: (www.howtodrawabunny.com).

7.What kind of future work is Palm Pictures are looking to distribute?

Other than our separation from Manga anime, Palm intends to carry on much as we have been, with cutting edge music and film releases, including new albums by Earlimart (www.earlimartmusic.com), Gigi and Moving Units (www.movingunits.net), a third installment in the KCRW Sounds Eclectic series (http://sitelet.sputnik7.com/sitelet/kcrw/launch ), feature films like Reconstruction, Time of the Wolf, 6ixtynin9, Last Life in the Universe, Bright Future, documentaries like Tom Dowd & the Language of Music (www.thelanguageofmusic.com) and the Sundance award winning Dig! (www.digthemovie.com), and the next stash of directors label DVDs, of course.

Brilliant! I'd put good money on Palm Pictures as being the very best boutique multi-media house in the biz right this second.

Thank you