April 18, 2006 Filmmakers and Others Petition Against Smithsonian's Showtime Deal By LORNE MANLY NY Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/18/arts/television/18smit.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&pagewanted=print As the recent coupling between the Smithsonian Institution and Showtime Networks continues to roil the documentary film world, more than 215 filmmakers, television executives and academics have signed a letter demanding that the Smithsonian, a publicly financed museum, not only reveal financial details of the joint venture but also abandon it. The signers of the letter, delivered yesterday to a Smithsonian official, include the filmmakers Michael Moore ("Fahrenheit 9/11"), R. J. Cutler ("The War Room") and Alex Gibney ("Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room"); the actress and writer Anna Deavere Smith ("Twilight: Los Angeles"); the law professor Lawrence Lessig; and Jacoba Atlas, a senior PBS executive. The uproar was set off last month when Showtime and the Smithsonian announced the creation of Smithsonian Networks, a joint venture for original television programming on scientific, cultural and historical subjects whose first service would be an on-demand cable channel beginning this December. As part of the deal, Smithsonian Networks was to get the right of first refusal on commercial documentaries that relied significantly on the museum's archives, curators or scientists. The underfinanced Smithsonian has argued that while the agreement might restrict some commercial filmmakers from selling their handiwork elsewhere, it would affect only a limited number of projects. A Smithsonian official has said that incidental use a lone interview with a staff member or a few minutes displaying the riches of the Smithsonian collections would not mandate offering that particular project to Showtime. But the idea of a public institution's granting preferential treatment to a commercial entity has alarmed many in the documentary and academic worlds, who worry that the venture will discourage independent filmmakers from taking their projects to other outlets or from putting their work on the Internet on a noncommercial basis. The letter states that it is a troubling prospect to require independent filmmakers, video bloggers, historians or educators who make nonincidental use of the Smithsonian's collections or staff to offer their projects commercially to "this new business venture." Such a requirement, the letter says, is "an anticompetitive practice that is extremely troubling." Put together by the Center for American Progress, a liberal research organization, the letter was sent to Lawrence M. Small, secretary of the Smithsonian.. "Closing off one of the most important collections of source materials and limiting access to staff," the letter adds, "will have a chilling effect on creativity, will create disincentives for digitization of the collections for access by all Americans, and violates the mission and purpose of the Smithsonian Institution." Also angering the letter writers is the secrecy about the contract details, which the Smithsonian has declined to publicize for competitive reasons. "It just doesn't seem to be the way a public trust should operate," said Carl Malamud, a senior fellow and chief technology officer for the Center for American Progress, who has spearheaded the letter-writing campaign and a Freedom of Information Act request for contract details. The letter writers also demand that the Smithsonian hold public hearings before it undertakes any similar efforts in the future. Similar letters were also delivered yesterday to about 50 senators and members of the House of Representatives who have a say in the Smithsonian's operations. The Smithsonian said it would honor the Showtime contract. "We understand the filmmakers' concerns, because they feel they will be cut out of the national collections, but that's just not true," said Linda St. Thomas, a Smithsonian spokeswoman. Of the thousands of requests the Smithsonian receives each year, the vast majority will still be approved. The agreement affects just filming for broadcast not for research or educational materials and then only if Smithsonian elements make up a large part of the program. If a curator got 30 minutes of screen time in a hourlong program, for example, that would qualify the project for the Showtime deal, but if the time were only 5 minutes, the filmmaker would not be bound by the agreement, Ms. St. Thomas said. Mr. Malamud said he and the other signers understood the Smithsonian's financial problems, but said other ways could be found to balance the public interest with the need to bring in revenue. "I believe there are other ways to raise money," Mr. Malamud said. That is why, when he handed over the letter to a Smithsonian official yesterday, he signed up for a partner-level membership. The cost: $225. ================================ George Antunes, Political Science Dept University of Houston; Houston, TX 77204 Voice: 713-743-3923 Fax: 713-743-3927 antunes at uh dot edu Reply with a "Thank you" if you liked this post. _____________________________ MEDIANEWS mailing list [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
