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Friday
30Oct2009

Miramax President Leaves Amid Massive Layoffs

DateFriday, October 30, 2009 at 6:01PM
Disney shrunk Miramax at the beginning of October, getting rid of about 75% of the work force. It wasn't a major studio with thousands of employees, but 75% is pretty much a work stoppage. Hard for 20-odd employees to really run a competitive shop in the movie business these days.

Perhaps that's what Miramax president Daniel Battsek thought, as well. He's leaving the company, which is being shuttled across the country from New York to Burbank.

"With the change in direction at Miramax, we have reached a mutual agreement with Daniel Battsek that he will leave his post as president, effective January 2010," said newly minted Disney chairman Richard Ross in a statement. "During his 18 years of service, he has brought some very prestigious and award-winning films to the studio from Calendar Girls to The Queen to No Country for Old Men. We wish Daniel the very best on his future endeavors."

I've been wished the very best on my future endeavors; it lessens the sting of a swift boot in the ass about as much as you'd expect.

We speculated at the time the cuts were announced that this could be the final gasp for Miramax, the company most individually identifiable with the rise of independent film in the United States through the 1990s. This decade, however, has seen the departure of Harvey and Bob Weinstein, who also took their Dimension Films to their new eponymous company, and a smaller, more sporadically influential role on the world stage.

The Hollywood Reporter indicates that it's not clear if Battsek will be replaced at Miramax, which will now only release three movies a year. But hey, at least Disney will still market and distribute those three flicks! How generous of Mickey Mouse.

Of course, Miramax wouldn't be the first boutique label to shut its doors if Disney does keep gradually slipping arsenic into its drinking water. Baby brands Fox Atomic, Paramount Vantage, Picturehouse, and Warner Independent have all gone away in the past two years, but none of those had anything close to the reputation Miramax formed over the years.

AuthorColin Boyd | | in , , | Print ArticlePrint Article | | Comment1 Comment |

Reader Comments (1)

I wrote some pretty good hate mail to FREE FM after they gave you the boot, if that makes you feel any better.

Saturday, October 31, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterChris

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