Yes, what is it? ... What you got?

Greetings, Ghostwatchers!

Seeing as we're still getting quite a few messages coming in via social media pertaining to the return of Behind the Curtains on DVD, download, or some other medium ('8 Track' still being the rank outsider), it finally seems time for as best an update that can be mustered, re the current status of the doc.

 

You might recall, in October, the @Ghostwatch Twitter account ran a poll enquiring as to the preferred medium for the doc to return, after selling out... ooh, ages ago, now. 'Blu-ray' won the vote with 44%, and we immediately looked into setting up an Indiegogo campaign to help make this happen. Despite some rousing support, the crowdsource/pre-order came up a bit short of the minimum required, so we took a moment to pause and rewind...

Subsequently, a downloadable version has also been under consideration for a while now, though depending on the requirements of suitable platforms, would likely necessitate a bit of additional post-work, prior to uploading. Despite the doc being a professionally-made production, this is actually trickier than it sounds - largely due to the film being, picture-locked.

Most encouragingly, at least one British-based Broadcasting Corporation has very recently taken a quick look into acquiring the piece, albeit not committing to do so at this time, but with the hopeful caveat that a deal could be considered in tandem with a potential repeat television screening of the original special drama. The overall likelihood of this transpiring may very well depend on whether or not you consider yourself an optimist, but it certainly seems as though this may finally be within the realms of possibility, at least.

And so, we are left with a decision to make. A reissue on DVD is possible. Though, it would pretty-much be exactly the same as the last issue. No new Special Features, just the doc, maybe not even in a conventional DVD case. Again, there are reasons for this, least of all due to budget, but also how the Exemption Certificate has changed over the years. As I understand, anything released as an 'E' prior to these recent changes can still be reissued. Though, as certain new criteria are briefly touched-upon by our speakers during its 90 min run-time, any substantial changes to the presentation (including extra content) would likely require a formal classification from the BBFC, which is rather expensive. And there's arguably little point in pursuing that, unless this is the full-blown, proper Special Edition so many have been waiting for, for so long. As per the aforementioned crowdsource figures, all in, a BtC SE would roughly cost somewhere in the region of £15-20K. And the thing is, I like central heating.

TLDR; does anybody have any suggestions for us, in most effectively bringing back the doc?

You don't need to Shine to know how proud I am of the film, and its reception. It has been a complete joy #TeamEfforting with you Ghostwatchers on the project, and I hope it shall continue to be of some use, both academically and entertainmentally, for many years to come.

As I'm sure a great many followers of the project are already aware, the film does tend to play rather well with audiences at festivals, and we have been honoured to screen BtC at some unforgettably terrific venues, over the years... though, not the one which asked for fifty-odd quid up-front, before impersonally rejecting, right at the last minute. That said, future screenings are still something we'd be interested in considering, so if your event is looking for a true-blue, total Indie feature in the near future, drop us a line! With the doc currently unavailable to pick up, this could prove a nice opportunity for those still waiting to check it out, in the meantime.

Hope that all makes sense! The next stage of the adventure will be greatly influenced by yourselves. Do please share the word, and your thoughts, which are always welcome.

And until next time... try not to have sleepless nights.