All the dish on 'Duma'

Pic will open on 40 screens in Los Angeles on Sept. 30

By PAMELA MCCLINTOCK

Family film 'Duma' has been embraced by critics but shunned by audiences.

Ballard

How do you market a family film that families have shunned but critics have embraced?

The creative forces behind the Carroll Ballard-helmed "Duma" will be sitting down today with Warner Bros. Pictures' publicity and marketing execs to discuss the L.A. campaign for the pic. The film will open on 40 screens in Los Angeles on Sept. 30.

Warner Bros. had two test runs. In the spring, the pic ran in Sacramento, San Antonio and Phoenix. In August, it ran in Chicago. Box office was pretty dismal -- studio won't release figures -- and Ballard, whose pics include "The Black Stallion" and "Fly Away Home," claims the studio was ready to bury the film until execs read the critical bouquets.

Warner Bros. Pictures head of domestic distribution Dan Fellman countered that the studio hasn't deserted "Duma."

"We rallied the troops and said let's go into Los Angeles and see if we can get the movie rolling," Fellman said.

At a time when marketing is becoming ever more important for films, the "Duma" flap goes beyond the fate of one $12 million movie. It raises questions about the audience for family films, the relations between filmmakers and marketing mavens -- and the power of the critics.

Ballard said he wishes Warners would have turned it over to Warner Independent, which had success this summer platforming "March of the Penguins."

He and the "Duma" producers -- including the WB-based John Wells -- have been making noise. Their weapon: a short stack of positive reviews.

Ballard said he isn't afraid to keep speaking up: "I figure my career is toast anyway if the film doesn't make it."

But Gaylord Films' Hunt Lowry, a "Duma" producer, agreed with Fellman that Warners hasn't given up. Warners and Gaylord each put up $6 million to finance the film.

"Duma," starring Alex Michaeletos and Hope Davis, will play at theaters including the ArcLight, the Bridge and AMC Century City 14.

Warners is currently planning only print ads, not any on TV or radio -- unusual for a top market like L.A., and Ballard is questioning Warners' willingness "to pour real money" into promoting the adventure story about an African boy and his pet cheetah.

"In all fairness, 'Duma' is a very difficult film to market," Ballard said. "It deserves some real finesse. They ended up selling it like 'Flipper' or 9 million other kiddie animal movies. It's not."

Ballard said Warners is looking to guarantee ancillary revenues for "Duma," adding that the film is going into L.A. because Warner Bros. needs the movie to play on 100 screens to fulfill an international TV sales agreement. ("Duma" has played on 60-61 screens, counting Chicago and the test runs this spring.)

Fellman said that if he was simply trying to fulfill some sales agreement, he would book "Duma" in a smaller, much cheaper market.

"It's another approach to try and let the public know about this movie. Hopefully, we'll have a good engagement and find a media plan that can work across the country," he said.

Despite crusaders lamenting bad taste in films and espousing G-rated offerings, family fare has often had a hard time at the box office (though many of the pics recoup handsomely on DVD).

Ballard said Warners got the jitters after the animal-themed "Two Brothers," released by Universal in the U.S., tanked at the box office last summer. "Duma" was pushed back from October to the spring, when it was test screened in Sacramento, Phoenix and San Antonio, and earned positive notices.

After that, the "Duma" folks began screening the film for critics across the country, most of whom made remarks in their reviews about Warners burying the project.

"I doubt Warners is trying to make me happy," Ballard said. "My assessment is they are trying not to be the bad guys. I don't think they were prepared for the reviews."

This spring, Warners did go into Phoenix, San Antonio and Sacramento with an aggressive TV campaign in hopes of luring families and generating a strong gross. The results, however, were not favorable, and Ballard said the studio should have gone with a limited release to begin with, just as Warner Independent did with March of the Penguins."

Twenty-five years ago, United Artists -- caught up in the disastrous "Heaven's Gate" production -- shelved Ballard's "Black Stallion." Francis Ford Coppola intervened, and the movie went on to become a hit.