Le Prince: Our Philosophy
Introduction
Le Prince is a start up based in London, UK, named after film pioneer, Louis Le Prince, who is said to be the true father of cinema. An inspired artist and innovator, Louis Le Prince began working on creating
‘moving pictures’ in as early as 1886, five years before Thomas Edison screened his first motion picture. Later, Le Prince disappeared before he was able to publicly unveil his creation to the world. In support of this mysterious inventor, our business: Le Prince, is his namesake. It felt fitting to align ourselves with the conception of cinema.
Le Prince was established to help solve various issues within the cinema industry, as it stands today. We are a solution three years in the making, drawing on insider industry knowledge from both the film and tech business worlds. The people behind our innovations are passionate: consultants, working professionals and audiences – it has been a collaboration of knowledge, and a true devotion to cinema at the heart of it all, that has bound us in our mission. Our primary aims in this mission are: to help independent filmmakers bring their films to a wider audience, to help audiences see a wider range of films, and to help exhibitors and distributors to increase their profits, thereby keeping cinema growing and developing.
Le Prince’s founder, Pourya Babalou, has always felt the pull of the big screen experience: ‘a dark underground cinema in Tehran is where I fell in love with cinema. It was the only cinema in the country that screened international films, and there were very few available. As someone who knew that great films existed, but found they were out of reach, when I arrived in the UK I realised this wasn’t an issue unique to my experience back home, but was a wider problem with cinema. This is why bringing great films to audiences has been my life mission. I have been living in the UK for nearly a decade now, and I’m still hungry for the magic of the big screen, but now it’s not bureaucratic strictures that prevent me from seeing more diverse films, it’s the limits of the film distribution process.’
It has been said that traditional modes of theatrical distribution aren’t yet up to speed with audiences, so we have developed two tools to make the distribution and marketing of films, particularly independent ones, easier and more cost effective. Our first tool is the self-distribution platform for filmmakers, which we will be launching in April, 2024. This will enable filmmakers, exhibitors and distributors to manage distribution processes such as negotiations, programming and film delivery, in easier and cheaper ways, whilst still maintaining legal control over their films and growing their profits. The second tool is all about discoverability, using machine learning and data analysis to invite audiences to participate in the scheduling of their cinemas via an app. This tool will give distributors and exhibitors real time information about the likelihood of success for a film in any given cinema, at any given time, thereby allowing them to take educated risks, and give audiences more choice in the films that they watch on screen. It is the combination of these two tools that will alter the current state of the industry, making way for further innovation and a new system of change.
With box office admissions dwindling, cinemas closing, and strikes shutting down production, there is plenty to be concerned about within the industry. At Le Prince we believe that cinema is far too important to lose, and we hope that you see its value too. In a post-pandemic world, we have seen how resilient cinema is, and most importantly, how vital it is for our culture. In a world in which we can often feel disconnected, coming together to share in that collective experience provides unparalleled magic. We believe there could be a great revival of cinema in the near future, but this can only happen if there is a change of mindset within the industry, and we can only achieve that together.
The State of the Cinema Industry
Since the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been a significant reduction in cinema attendance, and even in 2023, the summer of ‘Barbenheimer’, admissions and profits are projected to be lower than any other year before 2020. It is concerning to see this drop off, despite the industry’s best efforts to recover, with the release of blockbusters such as Top Gun: Maverick in 2022, momentarily keeping cinemas afloat. However, it is these tentpole releases that could be considered part of the problem, or rather, how they are prioritised, with ‘sequelitis’ leading to audience fatigue and a decrease in cinema admissions.
Over the past decade, we have seen a lot of commentary on the ‘death of cinema.’ Some have argued that the art of storytelling is disappearing from the big screen and giving way to CG heavy, blockbuster movies, purely conceived to make money. It is true that franchise films, sequels, prequels and remakes have taken over cinemas. On a list of the top performing 50 films of the last decade, less than 5 of those films were original concepts. Independent film has unsurprisingly been greatly affected as a result. In a report commissioned by the BFI, who were greatly alarmed by the decline of independent film, they state that ‘the threats […] are indeed considerable and concerning.’ They predict that ‘with a projected sector revenue gap of £100m a year, rising costs and an economy that is still recovering post-Covid, it is likely that solutions will need to be multifaceted and inventive.’ All of this means that not only is independent film suffering greatly, meaning less diverse and unique voices are being shared, but the range of films being shown in mainstream cinemas is dwindling. As cinemas continue to make less money, they are less likely to take risks on smaller films and as a result, audiences are given less choice, filmmakers aren’t getting their films seen on the big screen and cinema as a whole is affected.
When there was more variety in cinemas, with most releases being mid-budget films, audiences who enjoyed going to the cinema went often, and saw a wide range of films, but that reality has changed. The rate of cinema visits per person has been dropping since 2003. Adjusted for inflation, revenue and box office in the UK has dropped as well, with the majority of profits going to the top distributors. Each time cinemas schedule a film, they are taking a risk and hoping for the best returns. So what is the solution? We believe that a data driven approach, to find out exactly what people want to watch and where, is part of the answer.
The traditional release window, during which time a film could not be released onto DVD, or onto an online platform or streaming service, has collapsed over the past few years, greatly affecting trade. Prior to Covid-19, very few cinema operators would negotiate terms with distributors that allowed them to show films before this exclusivity window had finished. Traditionally, the release window for a theatrical film would have been three months, meaning cinemas would be able to capitalise on the release of the film before it left their screens. Now, streaming services often release their films at the same time they are in cinemas, leaving exhibitors out of pocket.
Streaming services’ rising popularity coincided with the complete disappearance of DVD sales which also made up a large part of a film’s revenue. Nurturing the culture that creates original films is very important and should be the main focus of national film organisations, but currently most of the money in the industry goes towards producing films with brand recognition from existing intellectual property. This directly harms the cinema industry and the wider culture. In order to allow new stories to be financed, this lost revenue from the sale of DVDs needs to be supplemented by a brand-new revenue stream, which is the reason Le Prince has been established. We want to stop this negative feedback loop and restore originality and vitality into mainstream cinema culture.
The Future of Cinema: Le Prince
Imagine you’re scrolling, looking for a film to watch. You search by genre, you check a star rating, you read a review, you seek the opinion of a friend. You are a discerning film lover, searching for their next watch. But you’re not using a TV remote, or a trackpad on a laptop, you’re on the go, looking at an app designed to bring the cinema to you. You are sent a personalised offer to see a classic film you’ve been wanting to watch on the big screen for years, at a cinema around the corner. You purchase the ticket at a reduced price, walk over and soon you are sitting in that familiar red velvet seat, ready to experience.
This is what Le Prince is offering audiences.
What we are offering cinemas is the opportunity to fill seats, to increase admissions and restore that foyer buzz. By utilising the tools Le Prince has to offer, cinemas will have more opportunities to sell out screenings and fill seats during those quieter moments throughout the week. Cinemas will be able to reach every corner of the auditorium, to find the right audiences for the right films.
What we are offering filmmakers is the chance to show their films on the big screen, to share their unique voice with audiences, and therefore positively contribute not only to the film industry, but to our culture as a whole. By utilising the tools Le Prince has to offer, filmmakers will be able to self-distribute their films and get them straight into cinemas, bypassing a lengthy distribution process.
What we are offering distributors, is a way to connect with exhibitors and filmmakers, that will save them time and money. By creating a platform to seamlessly reach contacts in the industry, an automatic negotiation tool, and business at their fingertips, this not only directly benefits distributors, but the industry as a whole, as working together is the only way we can enact change.
So, how can Le Prince make all of this happen for audiences, cinemas, filmmakers and distributors? As previously mentioned, we have developed two tools that hold the power to positively change cinema.
The first is a self-distribution platform, Cine Controller, and the second, a social media app, Le Prince. These two platforms work seamlessly together to connect film operators to their audience, enabling more diverse, profitable and flexible programming that benefits all.
The Cine Controller platform is all about connectivity, it acts as a bridge between cinemas and filmmakers, and connects them both with distributors, for ease of communication. It offers independent filmmakers a chance to share their vision with audiences, cinemas to offer a more diverse line-up of films, and distributors with streamlining tools to save resources. Cine Controller also assists each professional user with film marketing, providing a hub for marketing materials to be uploaded, for easy and quick use, meaning cinemas, distributors and filmmakers can capitalise on their releases.
The Le Prince app is all about discoverability, a social platform specifically built around the experience of going to the cinema. Combining the social aspects of platforms such as Letterboxd, the encyclopaedic nature of platforms such as IMDb and the excitement of short form content as seen on TikTok, we have created an app that is built for the modern cinema goer. We then combined those features with a cinema ticket purchasing app that gamifies the process of booking screenings, where users are incentivised to interact with cinemas in exchange for receiving personalised offers, cheaper tickets and last minute deals, benefitting both the consumer and the businesses behind the scenes.
The app is able to offer these personalised deals through machine learning and data driven algorithms that don’t require additional manpower, keeping labour costs down. We want to emphasise here that these tools aren’t meant to replace employees, but to work in conjunction with them, to help them to make the most of their cinemas. Le Prince is able to identify times that cinemas are near empty, and find the best way to fill seats in real time by offering one-off screenings, creating a new system of distribution for smaller releases, such as independent films, classic films and previous releases. Where cinemas are accepting a lower admission price with these deals, their margins are still high enough to capitalise on these screenings, and with increased attendance comes further opportunities for retail, ensuring profits. With this tool, we could find the demand, even if it is small, and provide the opportunity for one-off screenings that both fulfil audiences’ needs, and fill seats.
At Le Prince, we are excited about the future of cinema, and we hope you are too. In order for change to happen, to secure this future, we need to all come together as a community. Unified in our mission to save cinema, we can work together in harmony to ensure these uncertain times end, and a new era can begin. Like Louis Le Prince, innovator and artist, we believe in the moving image and we don’t want its legacy to disappear before it has begun. What we are offering at Le Prince is the key to ensuring positive, lasting change in the cinema industry.
We believe that film is for everyone and that it has the power to change lives, which is why we’re committed to the growth of the cinema industry today. Please join us on this venture as we redefine the way films are distributed and enjoyed.