Shameful.
Eric Parkinson, CEO of Indie distributor Hannover House wrote the following message on
Facebook today, pleading, begging for someone to take notice of his company's coming of age drug movie
Twelve, directed by
Joel Schmaucher;
Twelve opens at theaters next Friday, and this is my last shot at driving up the films ranking and score on the Internet Movie Database site. Just by CLICKING on the link below, you will help drive up the films popularity ranking. And ifyoure registered, you can even VOTE for the film (up to TEN stars!) You can only vote once, but you can click repeatedly. The reason this is important is that many media and broadcasters refer to the films ranking on IMDB to decide whether or not to do coverage!
Starring an unusual cast of
Chace Crawford, Kiefer Sutherland, 50 Cent, Emma Roberts, Rory Culkin and
Ellen Barkin - Schmaucher's adaptation of Nick McDonnell's novel has zero buzz, and obviously Parkinson is having a last minute panic of just how badly it's going to perform next week. All dignity goes out of the window when you are starring at a stone-cold bomb. And hey, I guess it worked as everyone knows about this flick now. Parkinson defended his actions to Mike Fleming;
"Every studio and PR firm knows it and engages in stealth searching to elevate rank of films and stars... The only difference is that Hannover House is completely honest and upfront about it. If all the other studios are stuffing the ballot box (so-to-speak), anyone who doesnt do the same will have what appears to be a `low popularity ranking. Its very hard for an indie studio to compete against the major releases. They outspend us ten-fold and outmaneuver us at every turn. Internet outreach teams are engaged to do countless Google and key-word searches and relentlessly pound IMDB to elevate a films ranking. Hannover House doesnt have that sort of money or resources, but we do recognize whats happening, and are not afraid to shine light on this truth.