A very cute dog, with floppy ears and light brown fur, named Indy, walks with his refined snout from one room to another of the forest house, perhaps haunted, of his master’s grandfather. He is a pale, shy guy, devoured by illness. The dog, a Nova Scotian retriever for purists, barks and panics. He wants to save him. This is the starting point of this crazy horror film, shot from the dog’s point of view, which has been amusing and fascinating social networks for several weeks.
In X, images of Indy abound, with a sweet and innocent look, amidst favorable reviews of the film. “Both a horror reel and a tribute to man’s best friend, good boy It is a unique experience from which we do not come out completely unscathed since everything is very emotional. A confusing, moving and above all shocking film,” says DarkSideReviews for example in
Outside of social media, Indy hit the red carpet at the SXSW festival in Austin last March, becoming the new darling of American independent cinema in the process.
CNC temporary visa
Given the enthusiasm of Internet users, its French station, the streaming platform dedicated to horror cinema Shadowz, decided to release it in 230 French theaters (UGC, CGR, Kinépolis, Pathé, independents, etc.) for 48 hours, from October 10 to 11. A few thousand tickets have already been reserved. good boy It will then go online on October 31, Halloween night, on the Shadowz portal.
“We had already thought about implementing this system when we discovered the film at the beginning of summer and acquired the French rights, but there, with the commotion that followed the broadcast of the trailer, the theatrical release was essential,” explains Aurélien Zimmermann, programmer and editorial director of Shadowz, interviewed by BFMTV.com.
To do this, Shadowz requested a 48-hour temporary visa from the CNC to exploit it in cinema, in less than 500 prints – this system caused controversy last year when the documentary Kaizen of Inoxtag, benefiting from this precious sesame, had far exceeded the limit number of rooms. Then he surrounded himself with CGR Eventos, specialized in this type of event sessions.
“Don’t exhaust the movie”
For Shadowz, the advantage of this visa is threefold: to create an event, to reach a wider audience, “without exhausting the film too quickly, which remains very independent”, and therefore quite confidential, says Aurélien Zimmermann, and to avoid the hassle of media chronology. “We are not at all against the chronology of the media, it is very important for the functioning of the industry, but it would have forced us to wait seventeen months to broadcast good boy on our platform,” he continues.
This type of express launch is also much easier, faster, and less expensive to set up than a traditional launch. Shadowz essentially promoted the film on social media, saving themselves a vast and expensive physical poster campaign.
Aurélien Zimmermann adds that the 48-hour release allows the platform to limit piracy risks, given that good boy streaming releases in October in the United States.
Strong concept
However, will the results live up to expectations? “Although it is an independent film, shot with few resources, good boy “It has a very strong concept, accompanied by very beautiful photography,” says Aurélien Zimmermann immediately. Its director Ben Leonberg shot this feature film with his own dog, during 400 days spread over three years. “And this, to follow the rhythm of the animal,” says the Shadowz programmer.
The filmmaker even played the role of the teacher during filming to give his dog confidence. This character, not visible on screen, was later dubbed by another actor. Ben Leonberg also surrounded himself with a very small team, his wife being the producer, to shoot this film at the height of a dog. Bold.
Source: BFM TV
