For the last few weeks of the year, I’m going through stories I saved, but never posted. Today stories from April 2009:

* Here was an early story on the big box office of 2009. We all know how the year turned out, but there are some interesting tidbits in the MPAA report offered by Dan Glickman:

[National Association of Theater Owners president John Fithian] noted that it may have been a blessing in disguise that the major studios released 27 fewer pictures in 2008 — 162 vs. 188 in 2007. He said it’s a trend that should continue since it allows films more room to breathe at the B.O.

At the same time, Fithian said he recently canvassed studios to see how much they intend to cut back in the future. He said only two anticipate a leaner release slate but did not disclose which two studios.

This is not a friendly trend to writers as fewer movies released probably translates into fewer movies in development. But this next note boggles the mind:

Also during his address, Glickman had a message for President Obama as the commander-in-chief flew to Europe for the G-20 Economic Summit: Fight to keep international markets open. He said Hollywood provides more than 50% of the films that play at the international box office.

Glickman also said there’s a perception problem in Washington that the film biz is all about fattening studios. He said it’s not, and that the movie industry generates jobs for thousands of middle-class workers, supports the exhibition industry and stimulates local economies.

In January, Republican lawmakers successfully removed a provision from the stimulus bill that would have provided studios with certain tax incentives, arguing that if the box office was doing so well, Hollywood didn’t need any aid.

Glickman said he will continue to fight to have those incentives included in upcoming legislation.

Behemoth banks, investment companies, oil industries, and the like seem to have zero problem convincing Congress to allow them to keep intact, even grow tax incentives while making record profits. But evidently not Hwood. Perhaps the community’s embrace of Obama led to payback from Repubs. But wait – don’t the Democrats control Congress?

* The LA Times had this story re Iron Man 2:

Hell hath no fury like an actor scorned.

Anyone who’s talked to Terrence Howard recently knows that the actor is still fighting mad six months after being replaced in the upcoming “Iron Man 2.”

“It was a very, very bad choice,” fumed Howard, who played Iron Man’s Army buddy Lt. Col. James “Rhodey” Rhodes in the first film, to Parade magazine about Marvel Studios’ decision to reboot the part with Don Cheadle in the role. “You don’t make $800 million and then try and shake everyone down. That’s not nice,” he said to MTV News, exaggerating the film’s worldwide box-office gross by a mere $200 million. “It was the surprise of a lifetime,” he told NPR. “There was no explanation. The contract just . . . up and vanished.”

I’m sure there’s another side to the story, but Howard’s contention — “You don’t make $800 million and then try and shake everyone down” — sounds pretty par for the course in Hwood.

* I almost missed this news item, but it may have the biggest influence on the way movies are marketed and distributed in the upcoming decades:

As of April 16, YouTube has made a major move into the long-form content arena. The video sharing site, which previously dabbled in showing assorted TV shows and docs amongst its primarily user-generated libraries, now streams a significantly expanded amount of full-length television shows and movies under its “Shows” tab, putting it in direct competition with Hulu and similar sites.

Strategic Partner Manager Graham Bennett explains that there were a variety of factors involved in YouTube’s decision to bolster its full-length catalog, but primary among them was the need to respond to demand from users.

“The demand has shifted,” he says. “User demand has moved from wanting primarily short, [user-created] videos to … full-length television shows and feature films.”

Various partners that YouTube is working with include big names like MGM, Lionsgate Films, PBS, Sony Pictures, CBS Corp., Discovery, National Geographic, The Documentary Channel, Mondo Media, and the BBC, as well as independent partners like SnagFilms, firstlookstudios and IndieFlix. Docus to be found on YouTube include Morgan Spurlock’s Super Size Me, Werner Herzog’s My Best Fiend, and Dan Cox’s Running With Arnold. Some of the factual shows available include episodes of NOVA, Dirty Jobs, Jon & Kate Plus Eight, and LA Ink.

It also appears that YouTube will be offering an HD VOD (Video On Demand) service which could allow filmmakers to distribute movies digitally, thereby bypassing a theatrical run. Because YouTube is so ubiquitous, it also serves as a built-in BWOM (by-word-of-mouth) marketing platform. Could be a huge boon to indie filmmakers and create the possibility of a truly sustainable business model.

* And finally a nice catch with this video interview: Jonathan Levine, writer & director of The Wackness and Warren Etheredge: