Picturehouse (company)

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For the British cinema chain, see Picturehouse Cinemas.
Picturehouse
TypePrivate
IndustryEntertainment
Founded
  • 2005 (original company)
  • 2013 (revived studio)
FoundersBob Berney
Defunct2008 (original company)
SuccessorLibrary:
New Line Cinema (original)
HeadquartersLos Angeles, California, United States
Key people
Bob Berney (CEO)
Jeanne R. Berney (COO)
ParentTime Warner (2005–2008)
Independent (2013–present)
WebsitePicturehouse.com

Picturehouse is an American independent entertainment company owned by CEO Bob Berney and COO Jeanne R. Berney. Based in Los Angeles, the company specializes in film marketing and distribution, both in the U.S. and internationally. Its releases have included Nimród Antal’s Metallica Through the Never, a live performance/action thriller hybrid film which opened with an exclusive IMAX run and was a Grammy Award nominee for Best Music Film, and Adam Wingard’s Sundance Film Festival selection The Guest, an Independent Spirit Award nominee starring Dan Stevens.[1]

In September 2021, Picturehouse announced that it will release Becoming Cousteau, a documentary that uses previously unseen archival footage to chronicle the life and career of the adventurous oceanographer and filmmaker Jacques-Yves Cousteau, who coinvented scuba diving and foretold the impact of pollution on climate change. Directed by Liz Garbus, the film was released on October 22, 2021.[2][3]

In August 2020 the company released Fatima, directed by Marco Pontecorvo and starring Joaquim de Almeida, Goran Visnjic, Harvey Keitel and Sônia Braga. The film tells the story of a 10-year-old shepherd, Lúcia dos Santos, and her two young cousins, Francisco and Jacinta Marto, who report having seen apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Fátima, Portugal, circa 1917. Their revelations inspire believers but anger officials of both the Catholic Church and the secular government, who try to force them to recant their story. As word of their prophecy spreads, tens of thousands of religious pilgrims flock to the site to witness what became known as the Miracle of the Sun.[4]

History[]

Formed by Bob Berney in 2005, Picturehouse was a joint venture created by Time Warner subsidiaries, New Line Cinema and HBO Films to acquire, produce and distribute independent films.[5] Berney, who guided the acquisition, marketing and distribution of My Big Fat Greek Wedding and The Passion of the Christ, among other notable releases, ran the company from its inception.[6]

Over the next two years Picturehouse released features such as Robert Altman’s A Prairie Home Companion, starring Meryl Streep and Lily Tomlin; Guillermo del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth, which was acquired at script stage and went on to earn six Academy Award nominations and wins in three categories; La Vie En Rose, which garnered Marion Cotillard an Academy Award for Best Actress; and Sergei Bodrov’s Genghis Khan biopic Mongol, a nominee for Best Foreign Language Film.[7]

In 2008 Time Warner's consolidation resulted in Warner Bros. exiting the independent business to concentrate on big-budget “tentpole” releases. This prompted the closure of marketing and distribution operations at both New Line Cinema and Picturehouse, costing 70 employees their jobs.[8]

In 2013 Berney and his wife Jeanne acquired the Picturehouse logo and trademark from Warner Bros. and relaunched the label as an independent theatrical distribution company.[9] Initial releases included Adriana Trigiani’s Big Stone Gap, starring Ashley Judd, and Christian Keller’s Gloria, with Sofía Espinosa.

Filmography[]

2000s[]

Original seal, distributed by New Line Home Entertainment and HBO Video (now Warner Bros. Home Entertainment)

Release Date Title
July 22, 2005 Last Days
September 16, 2005 The Thing About My Folks
October 19, 2005 Ushpizin
January 27, 2006 Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story
April 14, 2006 The Notorious Bettie Page
June 9, 2006 A Prairie Home Companion
November 9, 2006 Who the *$&% Is Jackson Pollock?
November 10, 2006 Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus
December 29, 2006 Pan's Labyrinth
March 9, 2007 Starter for 10
June 1, 2007 Gracie
June 8, 2007 La Vie En Rose
August 3, 2007 El Cantante
August 10, 2007 Rocket Science
August 17, 2007 The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters
September 14, 2007 Silk
January 11, 2008 The Orphanage
February 8, 2008 Wild West Comedy Show: 30 Days & 30 Nights – Hollywood to the Heartland
February 29, 2008 The Fox and the Child
March 28, 2008 Run, Fatboy, Run
June 6, 2008 Mongol
July 2, 2008 Kit Kittredge: An American Girl
September 12, 2008 The Women
January 20, 2009 Amusement

2010s[]

Revived seal, distributed by Universal Pictures Home Entertainment

Release Date Title
October 4, 2013 Metallica: Through the Never
September 17, 2014 The Guest
July 17, 2015 Gloria
October 9, 2015 Big Stone Gap

2020s[]

Release Date Title Notes
August 28, 2020 Fatima
October 22, 2021 Becoming Cousteau

NOTE: All films now distributed by Studio Distribution Services, LLC. a joint venture between UPHE and WBHE.

References[]

  1. ^ Cunningham, Todd (September 25, 2013). "'Metallica Through the Never' Rocks the Rebirth of Indie Picturehouse". The Wrap. Retrieved 2020-04-27.
  2. ^ Thompson, Anne (September 1, 2021). "NatGeo Unveils Four Documentaries at Telluride, from 'Fauci' to 'Becoming Cousteau'". IndieWire. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
  3. ^ Hammond, Pete (September 1, 2021). "Nat Geo Documentary Films Set To Dominate Telluride Film Festival; 'Fauci', 'The Rescue', 'Becoming Cousteau' And More To Premiere". Deadline. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
  4. ^ Fleming, Mike (October 28, 2019). "Bob & Jeanne Berney Reopen PictureHouse With North American Rights Deal For 'Fatima'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 2020-04-27.
  5. ^ Thompson, Anne (March 4, 2008). "Warner Bros. shape shifts". Variety. Retrieved 2009-08-04.
  6. ^ Hirschberg, Lynn (December 19, 2004). "The Distribution Artist". The New York Times. Retrieved 2020-04-27.
  7. ^ McIntyre, Gina (February 6, 2007). "Del Toro's 'Labyrinth' gains Oscar momentum". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2020-04-27.
  8. ^ Hayes, Dade; McNary, Dave (May 8, 2008). "Picturehouse, WIP close shop". Variety. Retrieved 2009-08-04.
  9. ^ Fleming, Mike (January 15, 2013). "The Berneys are Back with Picturehouse, and Now They've got Metallica". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 2013-01-15.

External links[]

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