5 minute read
OAS BACK IN THEATERS
Todd Huffman, interviewing Bruce Brown for Huffman’s The Motocross Files series, in 2007.
ON ANY SUNDAY HEADED BACK TO THEATERS!
Limited nationwide engagements this fall… just what Bruce Brown would have wanted
By Mitch Boehm
Editor’s Note: Aside from a couple of small anniversary showings over the years, it’s been 50 years since On Any Sunday has been seen in bigscreen movie theaters as it was during 1971. Fortunately, thanks to producer Todd Huffman (The Motocross Files, The John Penton Story, etc.), Bruce Brown Films, Gathr Films and Bayview Entertainment, you’ll be able to see motorcycling’s favorite movie the way OAS creator Bruce Brown intended — on the big screen. And not only that, the movie you’ll see will be better than ever, having undergone a digital remastering process that’ll make the images and scenes cleaner and more colorful than ever. We recently sat down with filmmaker Todd Huffman to get the scoop.
American Motorcyclist: You’ve produced a lot of motorcycle- and racing-oriented movies and videos over the years. How influential was On Any Sunday to your own career path?
Todd Huffman: Well, like most of the millions of kids and adults affected by the film when it came out in 1971 — I watched it twice, back-to-back as an 8- or 9-year-old at the Empire Theatre in Placerville, California — we were inspired to ride BMX because motorcycles were out of reach financially and racing was frowned upon for safety reasons. I did get to race motocross a handful of times, but BMX became my “thing,” and I became a professional BMX racer in 1980 and
worked for the “Godfather of BMX” Scot Breithaupt of SE Racing. Fast-forward 40 years and we’re doing films, videos and TV shows about motorcycles. Even had the honor and privilege to interview Bruce Brown in 2007 for our TV series The Motocross Files.
AM: So, what’s the story with this new version of the movie? What’s different about it?
TH: From what I’ve heard from Alex Mecl at Bruce Brown Films, he and his team had been thinking about the 50th anniversary and what would be the best way to celebrate and honor Bruce’s wonderful work. They decided last year to have the film completely re-color-graded, fixing scratches and other blemishes, and then remixed the audio and soundtrack in 5.1 surround sound, to remaster everything in HD. They didn’t change or add anything, just made what was there better. I’ve seen about five minutes in side-by-side comparison and it’s very noticeable and improved. I can’t wait to experience seeing it on a big screen this fall!
AM: How did the idea to re-launch On Any Sunday in movie theaters, just as it happened back in 1971, come about?
TH: We had some success with our movie PENTON: The John Penton Story in 2014 with Gathr Films’ Theatrical On Demand system, with about 100 screenings. We learned how it works for a passionate, niche market and how to tie it in to retailers, clubs, etc. I started thinking about the On Any Sunday anniversary well over a year ago and how the Gathr Films system would work even better with this movie. Little did I know that Bruce Brown Films was working on an enhanced version for streaming and DVD/Blu-ray.
So, I got the right folks to have a conversation about this, and that took a while. But once they understood what I wanted to do with Gathr Films it was a no-brainer for the simple fact they understood that this is what Bruce would have wanted — for folks to see the film again on the big screen. We did the licensing agreement with Bayview Entertainment, which owns the theatrical and public screening rights, and with Bruce Brown Films for sponsorship and merchandising rights.
AM: So how will this all work? Which theaters, which cities, etc?
TH: Through Gathr Films’ website, motorcycle dealers, clubs, racers and regular enthusiasts will be able to sign up beginning July 1, 2021, to be an On Any Sunday Movie Captain and host a screening in their town this fall beginning in October. This program will be available in almost all the major theater chains nationwide, like AMC, Cinemark and others, plus independents.
The Movie Captains will be able to
select a theater based on their zip code and then a date, which will be a Monday or Wednesday because those are slow days for theaters showing regular Hollywood fare. With this, they’ll get a link to their screening and their “tipping point” of ticket reservations before the screening will be “booked.” Usually the tipping point will be a small amount, like 50-75 tickets depending on the theater and the market. It’ll be lower in smaller markets compared to LA or Manhattan. With this link the Movie Captain can then start rallying their friends and friends of friends on social media, email blasts, etc. to have folks reserve tickets. No money is taken by Gathr until the screening “tips” and the minimum is reached. Once the screening has tipped then the sky’s the limit on how many tickets can be sold, and the theater will keep bumping up the screening to bigger theaters. We had many screenings for PENTON that started off in a hundredseater and ended up in the biggest 500+ seat theater in the complex. It’s really neat how it works. Movie Captains can even make money on the screenings through Gathr Films.
AM: Will there be events surrounding the limited showings? Bike shows, dealer involvement, legends sightings, etc.
TH: Yeah, that’s the idea. We want motorcycle dealers to have open houses, BBQs, ride-to-the-theater meet-ups, etc. We already have commitments from guys that were in the film and other legends to be available for appearances at dealers and screenings. Guys like Mert Lawwill, Dave Aldana, Keith Mashburn, Jeff Ward, Ricky Johnson and Bruce’s son, the Dust to Glory Director Dana Brown have all said they will make themselves available if people want them to come to their screening for autographs, pictures, Q&A session after the film, etc. It will be cool for those fans that get to experience this, too!
Overall, we’re excited and honored to bring On Any Sunday to the big screen once again this fall. We’ll encourage older fans to take younger people who have never seen the film on the big screen or never at all. If you think about it, most motorcycle enthusiasts under the age of 55 have never seen the film on the big screen in a modern theater environment. Crappy VHS copies, DVDs or YouTube versions are all they have seen.
We have opportunities for companies to associate themselves with the film and brand through sponsorships. Interested parties can contact me at todd@pdmtv.com.
For more information visit OnAnySundayat50.com, or find them on Facebook, Instagram and more.
