Trimark Pictures

Trimark Pictures
Industry Film studio
Fate Merged with Lionsgate
Successor Lions Gate Entertainment
Founded June 23, 1985
Defunct March 12, 2000
Key people
 Mark Amin
Parent Vidmark, Inc. (1985–1995)
Trimark Holdings Inc. (1995–2001)
Divisions Trimark Interactive[1]

Trimark Pictures Inc. (also referred to as Trimark) was a production company that specialized in the production and distribution of television and home video motion pictures.[2] The company was formed in 1985 by Mark Amin as Vidmark Entertainment with Vidmark Inc. (later Trimark Holdings Inc.) established as the holding company.[3] As a small studio, Trimark produced and released theatrical, independent, television and home video motion pictures. In 1994 the company formed Trimark Interactive.

Among the company's many releases are Peter Jackson's 1992 film Dead Alive, which they chose to release theatrically due to Jackson's possessing a following.[4] They are well known for releasing films considered to be controversial for the time period, as in the case with the 1999 film Better Than Chocolate, as some newspapers refused to carry advertisements for the film that featured the word "lesbian" as part of a critic blurb.[5]

Background

Vidmark Entertainment first became involved with motion picture production in 1988, when its founders and investors provided financing for the feature Demonwarp. Demonwarp was produced by Richard L. Albert through his advertising company Design Projects, Inc., which was Vidmark's and many other home video and independent film distributors' advertising company.[6] Demonwarp was shot on 35mm film, and starred George Kennedy, but only cost $250,000 to make. Coming from a marketing background, producer Rick Albert convinced Mark Amin that if the film's budget was limited to the minimum baseline sales that Vidmark could make with any film released on videocassette in the United States, then the motion picture would have to be profitable. Since the original investors in Vidmark also invested in and owned the 20/20 Video chain of stores, they could accurately project what the minimum sales would be. The projections proved true, and adding to the robust U.S. home video sales, international sales, cable and free television sales, Demonwarp earned many multiples of its original budget. Mark Amin served as executive producer, and during production of Demonwarp he decided to raise money by a public offering of Vidmark, to form Trimark.

Trimark picked up its first film, Warlock, a 1989 film starring Julian Sands which was a major theatrical hit with fans of such films. Trimark eventually made the sequel Warlock: The Armageddon in 1994. Trimark also saw success in other familiar film series the studio produced and distributed. Leprechaun, released in 1993 starring a young Jennifer Aniston and Warwick Davis as the sinister leprechaun grossed over $10 million during its theatrical run. One theatrical sequel and four direct to video sequels eventually followed.

Other Trimark productions included The Dentist, a major hit on HBO, Return of the Living Dead III and Pinocchio's Revenge. Trimark also specialized in made-for-television features, which included the dramatic Eve's Bayou, starring Samuel L. Jackson, which received critical acclaim. Trimark also released Stephen King's Storm of the Century, a miniseries.

In 2000, Trimark merged with Lions Gate Entertainment in which Amin became the single largest shareholder. In 2001, Mark Amin founded Sobini Films where he currently serves as the CEO.

List of distributed movies

Theatrical

Release Date Title Notes
May 12, 1989 Going Overboard
December 1, 1989 Warlock
July 14, 1990 Solar Crisis
September 29, 1990 Backstreet Dreams
May 1991 Servants of Twilight
June 13, 1991 Kickboxer 2 theatrical distribution only
October 18, 1991 Dolly Dearest
October 21, 1991 Whore
November 15, 1991 And You Thought Your Parents Were Weird
January 31, 1992 Into the Sun
May 20, 1992 The Psychic USA distribution only
January 8, 1993 Leprechaun
February 12, 1993 Dead Alive USA Distribution only
September 24, 1993 Warlock: The Armageddon
October 8, 1993 Deadfall
October 29, 1993 Return of the Living Dead 3 limited release
February 1, 1994 Silent Tongue
April 8, 1994 Leprechaun 2
May 13, 1994 Trading Mom
November 23, 1994 Love and a .45
December 5, 1994 The Stoned Age
April 21, 1995 Swimming with Sharks
June 15, 1995 The Invisible Kid
August 11, 1995 A Kid in King Arthur's Court co-production with Walt Disney Pictures
October 4, 1995 Kicking and Screaming
October 27, 1995 The Doom Generation USA distribution only
October 28, 1995 Frank and Jesse
February 10, 1996 Evolver co-production with A Band Apart
August 1996 Crimetime
October 18, 1996 The Dentist
January 16, 1997 Meet Wally Sparks
February 28, 1997 Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love
September 10, 1997 First Love, Last Rites
November 7, 1997 Eve's Bayou
January 16, 1998 Star Kid
January 24, 1998 The Curve
March 13, 1998 Chairman of the Board
July 24, 1998 Billy's Hollywood Screen Kiss
August 21, 1998 Carnival of Souls limited release
September 11, 1998 Cube
September 18, 1998 Trance / The Eternal retitled for DVD release
October 7, 1998 Slam
December 11, 1998 The Dentist 2
December 30, 1998 Another Day in Paradise
February 14, 1999 Better Than Chocolate
February 18, 2000 Sinbad: Beyond the Veil of Mists
March 3, 2000 Beautiful People
April 28, 2000 The Last September
May 12, 2000 Held Up
July 11, 2000 History Is Made at Night
January 2001 Skipped Parts

Direct-to-video

Release Date Title Notes
November 2, 1994 Dangerous Touch
June 27, 1995 Leprechaun 3
March 12, 1996 True Crime
September 3, 1996 Sometimes They Come Back... Again
February 25, 1997 Leprechaun 4: In Space
July 28, 1998 A Kid in Aladdin's Palace
April 27, 1999 King Cobra
September 7, 1999 Sometimes They Come Back... for More
October 12, 1999 Warlock III: The End of Innocence
December 27, 1999 Turbulence 2: Fear of Flying
March 28, 2000 Leprechaun in the Hood
May 23, 2000 Cord
March 13, 2001 Killer Bud
June 26, 2001 Blood Surf

References

  1. ↑ "MobyGames Profile-Trimark Interactive".
  2. ↑ Jeffrey, Don (May 30, 1992). "Vidmark reports strong sales in 3rd qtr, but profits down, a third, are weak". Billboard (p 51). Retrieved 21 April 2014.
  3. ↑ Levison, Louise (2013). Filmmakers and Financing: Business Plans for Independents. Focal Press. p. 120. ISBN 9780240820996.
  4. ↑ Konow, Peter (2012). Reel Terror: The Scary, Bloody, Gory, Hundred-Year History of Classic Horror Films. St. Martin's Griffin. p. 479. ISBN 9780312668839.
  5. ↑ Jenni Olson, Bruce Vilanch (2004). The Queer Movie Poster Book. Chronicle Books. p. 122. ISBN 9780811842617.
  6. ↑ "Internet Movie Database".
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