2018 has been an interesting year for Netflix. On the one hand, the service is growing at an impressive rate, spending its way into relevancy. The streamer is also making headway into the awards discussion with a selection of films that seems to be its strongest slate of contenders ever. However, on the other hand, there are upset Academy members, a recent spat with the Cannes Film Festival, and now, the Italian film distribution community has taken a stand against the streaming service. So yeah, 2018 has been a bit of a mixed bag for Netflix.
Deadline is reporting that the Italian Culture Minister, with the support of every major Italian film distribution association, has followed through with his previous threats and enacted a new decree that will force Netflix to show its films in theaters for no less than 105 days before debuting them on the streaming service.
Italian Culture Minister Alberto Bonisoli said, “I am going to sign the decree that regulates the windows on the basis that films will have to be first distributed in theaters and after this on all platforms. I think it’s important to ensure that those who run a cinema are reassured in being able to program films without these being available simultaneously on other platforms.”
This rule follows Netflix’s controversial distribution of the Italian film “On My Skin.” The film premiered at this year’s Venice Film Festival in August and was released in cinemas in September, day and date with the streaming service launch of the film. This new rule echoes a similar rule in France that says that a film that is shown in French cinemas can’t be added to a streaming service for 36 months after its debut. Obviously, the Italian rule is much less severe, but the effect could be the same.
You see, that French law is the basis for Netflix’s fight with the Cannes Film Festival. Cannes says that any film that is shown at the festival, in competition, has to also have a theatrical distribution in France. Netflix is opposed to that, as they don’t want to wait three years to show their films on their streaming service. Therefore, Netflix pulled all its films from Cannes consideration.
READ MORE: Netflix May Have Lost The Cannes Battle But Got Sweet Revenge In Venice
This fight led Netflix to send a bulk of its highly-anticipated fall film lineup to the Venice Film Festival, which instantly shot the Italian event to the top of the film festival hierarchy. However, if Venice forces Netflix to launch their films in Italian cinemas for 105 days before the streaming release, it could be a sticking point for future festivals.
We’ll just have to see how Netflix approaches its festival plans in 2019 to see the true effect of these new rules.
