Being Weird Is Good For Business - Just Ask MUBI & A24
Humans are weird. That might just be our super power.
It's Thursday, June 19th. Here's what's happening.
🍿 The Big Picture
Writers and creatives in the movie business are wise to be nervous about the state of the industry. Rapidly advancing technology is causing massive disruption in nearly every phase of the business: development, creation, production, distribution, exhibition. You name it, it's changing.
AI is the driver behind most of this change, and it’s certainly at the root of much of the anxiety. Can robots come up with an entertaining, convincing story that can sell to the masses? Probably. Just look at all the AI-generated slop people watch mindlessly on their phones. But the unique strangeness that humans possess is what makes stories truly compelling.
It’s the style, heart, and passion that come from a real person—you can feel that as a moviegoer. And it just can't be faked. To connect, you have to add a touch of the weird, the strangeness, the uniqueness that makes human beings human.
No one is doing this better than MUBI and A24 right now. When you think of strange stories, or just stories that are out of the ordinary, these companies immediately come to mind. MUBI was recently valued at $1 billion, and A24 at $3.5 billion. Being different, or just “thinking different,” as Steve Jobs would say, is what makes us human. And that’s our secret weapon.
🎥 Extra Coverage
As expected, the auction for David Lynch's movie gear was a huge success. Prices easily topped estimates. His director's chair sold for 91K, and his script for the never-made Ronnie Rocket fetched $195,000. (Juliens Auctions)
Speaking of Lynch, the auteur's longtime producer Sabrina Sutherland says that an unreleased mini-series project was the "Probably the best thing he ever did. It was a culmination of a lot of things. We worked on this for over two years in terms of writing". (Deadline)
New York Times reporter Aric Toler tracked down the original photograph that was used for the final shot of The Shining. (Air Mail)
Artificial intelligence is disrupting Madison Avenue, as brands, execs, agencies and streamers all nervously try to predict how tech will change their business. (Hollywood Reporter)
📈 Movie Stock Index
Market Close: Wednesday, June 18th, 2025 (HOLIDAY)
Markets closed today - observance of Juneteenth
Total Value: $106,537.77
Today's Change: -$488.67 (-0.46%)
Total Gain/Loss (Since 05/12/25): $6,537.75 (6.54%)
Disclaimer: The MovieNewsPro Stock Index is a virtual index - there are no actual funds invested. Sector index total value dollar amounts are based on an initial hypothetical investment of $100,000 on May 12th, 2025. We are not licensed investment advisors and our information should not be used as investment advice. Invest wisely.
🏆 Film Festivals
Bentonville Film Festival, US - June 16-22
Doc Edge Film Festival, New Zealand - June 18-July 31
Frameline San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival, US - June 18-28
Oakville Film Festival, Canada - June 18-25
Raindance Film Festival, UK - June 18-27
Sheffield DocFest, UK - June 18-23
Nepal America International Film Festival, US - June 19-22
Brussels International Film Festival, Belgium - June 20-28
Kimolos International Film Festival, Greece - June 21-25
Mediterrane Film Festival, Malta - June 21-29
London Screenings, UK - June 23-25
Sunny Side Of The Doc, France - June 23-26
Biarritz Film Festival Nouvelles Vagues, France - June 24-29
Docs Ireland, Ireland - June 24-29
Palm Springs ShortFest, US - June 24-30
Nantucket Film Festival, US - June 25-30
Oak Cliff Film Festival, US - June 26-29
FilmFest Munich, Germany - June 27-July 6
📺 Watch This Tonight
Black Panther (2018)
Directed by Ryan Coogler
The style, the story, the action and the performance - Black Panther has everything you need and then some. The best Marvel movie? Discuss!
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Disclaimer/Transparency
MovieNewsPro is a film industry news monitoring service. All stories have been previously reported elsewhere and are not exclusive stories to MNP. All information is believed to be accurate at the time of reporting. MovieNewsPro uses a full array of technology to gather information, including machine learning, automation and artificial intelligence throughout its business monitoring, editing and reporting process.
