A pic of the young 'Michael Myers' in the Halloween remake.

Posted by Tim on March 29, 2007

Wisconsin Underground Horror/Exploitation Film Festival 2007…CANCELLED!

Posted by Tim on March 29, 2007

EVENT CANCELLED!
It is with deep regret that I must announce that the Wisconsin Underground Horror/Exploitation Film Festival 2007, scheduled for April 28th, 2007 at the Orpheum Theatre, State St. Madison, WI has been cancelled. This is due to the fact that new management at the theatre has requested us at the festival to pay a $500.00 fee to reserve the room, which we already had reserved through the previous management at no cost to us. In December, when I first contacted the Orpheum about the event, we went forward with the previous theatre manager under the agreement that in return for allowing us to use the Stage Door theatre for the day of April 28th, the theatre would get us a projector to use for screening films from DVD, a hotel room for Mr. Rebane, and just someone to be at the bar so patrons could order cocktails. In return for all of this, the theatre would keep ALL of the gate (every penny made from ticket sales, which they were to name the price) plus any money generated through liquor or food sales. We went forward on our planning on this information. I spoke with the old management at least twice a week about where our planning was, never going forward on anything unless it was cleared by them first. I was then informed last month that the manager I had been dealing with was leaving, and someone new was taking over. From my first contact with this new management, it was clear to all of us that this person did not want to do the event, was not hip on allowing us to use the theatre for the day, and was looking for us to pay for a venue that we were never asked to pay for when the event was scheduled. The old management and I did the event on a handshake deal (note to everyone—never, NEVER do anything on a handshake deal anymore, always get everything in writing, even if you “trust” the person you’re dealing with) that was more of a “you scratch my back, I scratch yours”. I have no doubts that if the old management had stayed in place, this event would be happening. After being almost completely ignored by the new management for almost a month, I then received the following e mail dated Tues, 2/13/07 This weekend I finally had a meeting with the owner of the Orpheum regarding the festival. He was very confused as to why we’d commit to the expenses of an event. We don’t have the ability to “blindly” hold events that require US to invest in them. As of 1/15/07 every booking is required to have a deposit. When people come to us with an event they are both putting down a deposit on the date and supplying EVERYTHING that they need to run the event. We happily supply staff for the door and the bar. With your proposal, you are asking that we invest close to $500 in staff, projection, and lodging as well as give up our valuable screen time with films that are already booked and under contract. This is not an agreeable expense for the Orpheum. What we need to continue with this date is to get $500 to hold the room and cover potential loss of income for the Orpheum as well as a contract for the rental. April 28th is quickly becoming a highly requested date and we have offers from several bands that are more then happy to pay the $500 deposit, ask for no expenses, and guarantee $1000 in liquor sales. If the deposit is not an option and you still need us to cover expenses then you can not hold the event at the Orpheum and will need to look for a new venue. (current managment) Directing Manager Orpheum Theatre I responded back asking if we were willing to pick up the costs of Mr. Rebane’s expenses, the projection equipment, and all of the other costs that we have already been paying for, if it would be possible to continue on the agreement we had (which was, give us the theatre, you keep all of the gate and food/liquor sales) I received this back dated 2/14/07 Cory, I wasn’t trying to tell you that the event is cancelled..just that a deposit needs to be paid to hold and confirm the date. I’m still giving you the opportunity to come down to the Orpheum and drop off a check so I’m protected for the date. The Orpheum is not in the position to promote or pay for events that previous management booked (without contract or deposit). We simply can’t afford to gamble on events. The last time Charlie Band appeared at the Orpheum attendance was so poor they had to give away tickets on the street and we didn’t book the event again. The last day of the Bill Rebane film festival there was barely anyone in attendance. If we have the same turnout for this event we stand to lose money on a Saturday night. When a projector costs $280 for the weekend from Full Compass, the cheapest room downtown is $90, and a manager/projectionist is $70 the costs start to add up. Someone also has to be responsible for Bill Rebane’s travels (hotel, maybe food?), plus pick-up and drop-off of the projector, and all of the sudden it becomes a multi-day event with expenses throughout the weekend. As the Orpheum moves on from the (previous theatre manager’s) era I’ve become committed to only making safe, sound business decisions that are no risk. I hope that you can see that through my experiences at the Orpheum I have a reason to not feel comfortable committing resources to the WI Underground Film Festival. As I stated earlier, I’m still holding the date for you and you can bring in $500 to confirm the date. From there we can discuss contract details and expenses. (current management) Directing Manager Orpheum Theatre So, no, he wasn’t telling me that the event was cancelled, he was just telling me that unless I cough up $500.00 (that I just don’t have to piss away) that he wasn’t going to hold up the previous management’s deal with me, and wasn’t going to reserve the theatre for us. This event was never a cash grab for us, this event was done out of our love for horror and exploitation, and the underground filmmakers who are keeping the true spirit alive. That’s the reason we were only asking for $5.00 per submission. This was only meant to cover our out of pocket expenses, such as the PO Box, the posters, the promotion, etc. Which, so far, we haven’t even come close to covering the PO Box, much less anything else. Myself, and the other organizers are losing a substantial amount of money on this event now that the Orpheum Theatre’s management has decided to back out of their end of the deal. The most irritating part is that the new management states “anything booked as of 1/15/07 requires a deposit”. Our event has been booked since early December, so I don’t know why our previous agreement isn’t being held up. Long story short, if you submitted a film to us, we will be returning your entry fee. We won’t be able to return the film, unless you really want/need it back. If I send back all of the films, I’m going to be holding the “Cory is homeless due to the fact he was unable to break even on the Wisconsin Underground Film Fest” fest. Give me a month, and if you haven’t received your money back from your submissions, shoot me off an e mail at LAN_EMAIL_SUBS and I’ll make sure you get it right away. Where does Wisconsin Underground go from here? We are going to keep our myspace, and our website as a forum for all of the great films and filmmakers we got to know over the course of the last few months. I will be in contact with everyone about what I can do to help them out in any way I can. I started the event at the Orpheum as a way to support the underground horror film fans, and I’m going to continue to do that in any way I can. I apologize for our vendors, to Charles Band, to Bill Rebane, but especially to the filmmakers who sent us their blood, guts, brains, and tears in the hopes that they could have their work showcased on the big screen at a horror festival. I can’t tell you how sorry I am that this event went south as fast as it did, but I just want all of you to know, the event was set up squarely, we proceeded in a manner that was sufficient for the management of the Orpheum Theatre at the time, but now we have been backed into a corner that we cannot gt out of. I mean, we’d have to get 100 entries just to pay for the theatre, not to mention our other costs (Rebane’s hotel, projection equipment, posters, etc). I will be contacting everyone I was dealing with individually in the next week or so, but if you have any questions or concerns, feel free to e mail me, or you can log on to www.orpheumtheatre.net and speak to them if you wish. I can’t thank all of you enough, and I can’t apologize enough. All the best, and continued success to all of you, Cory-Wisconsin Underground Visit us online at www.geocities.com/wisconsinunderground.