Tugg celebrates first year

The co-heads of the theatrical event enabler that launched officially at SXSW last year also announced they had created an enhanced website to provide more effective communication between event promoters and attendees.

The library has corralled films from major studios, specialty distributors and independent film-makers spanning silent era classics like The General to more recent hits like The Princess Bride and Oscar nominee Beasts Of The Southern Wild. 

Tugg’s network of participating exhibitors includes Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, AMC Theatres, Bow Tie Cinemas, Cinemark Theatres, Goodrich Quality Cinemas, Rave Cinemas and Regal Cinemas, as well as regional and independent cinemas across the country.

Gonda and Gonzalez said that in the past year Tugg has enabled 180 different films to screen in more than 300 cities in 48 US states.

Director Dan Hayes said Tugg enabled him to reach nationwide audiences with Honor Flight, one of the service’s first films, “to watch our film as it is meant to been seen – a shared experience among moviegoers in the theatre.” Hayes added: “The film distribution landscape is changing and Tugg is at the forefront of technology in this field.”

Somewhere Between director Linda Knowlton said “[A]s a smaller film, our limited distribution was wonderfully augmented by Tugg’s ability to bring the film to mainstream theatres in cities and towns that were out of our reach.”

SXSW 2012 selections Iron Sky and Fat Kid Rules The World are other examples of popular titles embraced by film-makers and local audiences through Tugg.

The service has also fostered a class of regional promoters such as Randy Berler in Torrance, California, who has championed Headhunters, Holy Motors and Rust And Bone, among others, and Miami-based Marc Ferman, whose screenings have highlighted The Goonies, Robocop and a recent double feature of Mike Judge’s Office Space and Idiocracy.

“Over the past year, we’ve seen an immense range of local influencers using Tugg to share films they care about with their communities,” said Gonda and Gonzalez. “From cinephiles to social activists, church pastors to police departments, people from all walks of life have found in Tugg a platform that empowers them to create theatrical experiences around the films that matter to them. We’re excited to build on the success of this past year and expand our theatrical offerings in 2013.”