Releaselog

Piracy isn’t THAT bad and they know it

Posted on 14.11.2007 at 03:50 in Offtopic, Tech News by Martin

I received a very pleasant mail today. My inbox is usually full of stupid cease & desist messages from various antipiracy organizations, but it’s mails like this one which make you happy. It’s good to see that some people realize that internet piracy isn’t just evil…

To Whom It May Concern:

My name is Eric D. Wilkinson and I am the producer of a small independent film called “Jerome Bixby’s The Man From Earth” (our review).

I am sending you this email after realizing that our website has had nearly 23,000 hits in the last 12 days, much of it coming from your website. In addition, our trailer, both on the www.manfromearth.com site and other sites like YouTube, MySpace and AOL has been watched nearly 20,000 times AND what’s most impressive is our ranking on IMDb went from being the 11,235th most popular movie, to the 5th most popular movie in 2 weeks (we are also the #1 independent film on IMDb & the #1 science fiction film on IMDb). How did this all happen? Two words: Torrent / File Sharing sites (well, four words and a slash).

More specifically, RLSLOG.net. Our independent movie had next to no advertising budget and very little going for it until somebody ripped one of the DVD screeners and put the movie online for all to download. After that happened, people were watching it and started posting mostly all positive reviews on IMDb, Amazon and other places. Most of the feedback from everyone who has downloaded “The Man From Earth” has been overwhelmingly positive. People like our movie and are talking about it, all thanks to piracy on the net!

Am I upset… surprisingly no. Thanks to everyone who has downloaded this torrrent and watched the film, our awareness level is through the roof. For that I say, “THANK YOU”!

What you guys have done here is nothing short of amazing. In the future, I will not complain about file sharing. YOU HAVE HELPED PUT THIS LITTLE MOVIE ON THE MAP!!!! When I make my next picture, I just may upload the movie on the net myself!

This guy really deserves support from the file shareing community! You can support producers of The Man From Earth by buying the retail DVD, which should be available in the US stores from tomorrow.

Update: Proof for the non believers:

With so many scams on the internet these days it is not entirely surprising that some may jump to conclusions about the legitimacy of this whole ordeal. Well for one I can tell you he does indeed check out as legitimate. Here are some reasons:

  1. his comment IP matches his comcast ISP when a whois query is initiated
  2. his email is the same on his myspace page and he references in his rlslog comments
  3. he recently added more proof with an image of himself with the rlslog.net website

Recently his new myspace message confirms. Also the Director, Richard Schenkman gives his backup that both of the men have “discussed the matter quite extensively before reaching out to the download community.” But their whole idea behind ‘going public’ was to “pull a Radiohead… to reach out to the online community and say, “If you downloaded this movie and liked it, please buy the DVD; and if you can’t buy the DVD where you live, please send us some money.”

Eric: Here’s is a picture I took of myself five minutes ago in front of my computer screen while logged into rlslog.net.

Comments (334)

Feel free to post your Piracy isn’t THAT bad and they know it torrent, subtitles, samples, free download, quality, NFO, Rapidshare, crack, serial, requirements or whatever-related comments here. Don't be rude (permban), use only English, don't go offtopic and read FAQ before asking a question. Owners of this website aren't responsible for content of comments.
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  1. Ole
    November 13th, 2007 | 17:57

    What a fantastic story!
    I’ve never heard of this movie before, and have never seen it running in the cinema or for sale on DVD here in Norway. But after searching the movie’s title in Norwegian sites only, I found a forum thread where people discuss it (started the day it was posted here on RLSLOG!!), and not surprisingly, every one of the posters think it’s a beautiful and fantastic movie, and recommends others to watch it.

    I have yet to see this movie, but since I haven’t seen it available in Norway, I’ll download it and watch it on Friday. As good as this movie sounds, I think it would be a success on commercial cinemas and DVD if it was advertised better.

    Congratulations & thanks, both to everyone involved with the film, and to RLSLOG!

  2. karma police
    November 13th, 2007 | 17:58

    free advertising - can’t be bad :D

  3. The Original Geek
    November 13th, 2007 | 17:59

    Mr Wilkinson

    You’ve made an excellent film. I will buy the DVD.

    And yes, awarness even through piracy equals success in the film industry. If you can’t get it seen then you can’t make the next film.

  4. Edina
    November 13th, 2007 | 17:59

    Hey that’s great!!! Thanks for sharing. In the spirit of ’sharing’ I hope you don’t mind, I’ve used the email on my blog. Feel free to check it out at http://www.lceaalumni.net/site/content/blogcategory/31/44/ under the title ‘Piracy Can Be Beneficial Too’. Thanks again and great job!!

  5. Jixx
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:00

    I’d love to see that movie on local tv.
    maybe I’ll just ask some tv stations when it will be on. :)

  6. Eric D. Wilkinson
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:07

    We, the filmmakers behind “Jerome Bixby’s The Man From Earth” understand that this is a film many sci-fi fans just couldn’t wait until 11/13/07 to see. And we especially understand that if you live outside the United States, you’ve had absolutely no way of knowing when this film might be coming to your local cinema, video store, or TV… if ever! Indeed, all international rights to the movie are still available.

    And as a result you may have downloaded the film from one of the many torrent (or other) sites available. Chances are, you paid nothing to do so. But please understand that we are just some independent filmmakers who put everything we had into our little movie, and you really hurt us directly when you downloaded the movie illegally.

    Judging from the postings at IMDB.com, we see that the vast majority of you quite like the film; many of you even love the film and have watched it repeatedly.

    We made this movie with a great deal of love, sacrifice and effort on a low budget. But as low as the budget was, it was still a LOT of money to us, as well as to the people who trusted us with their investment to go ahead and make such an unusual, even controversial film.

    So we are making an unusual request… asking you to return the love, if you will:

    Please visit www.PayPal.com, and make some sort of payment for the enjoyment our movie brought you. It could be fifty cents, it could be fifty dollars. Perhaps you feel the average weekly video store rental is a fair amount. Whatever it is, it might be small to you, but if every single person who downloaded the movie — heck, if only the people who LIKED the movie — paid a few dollars, would certainly help get us to breakeven. Just go to PayPal and click on “send money” (you don’t even need to have an account). The address to use is ewilkinson100@comcast.net.

    Shortly we hope to also have a link at our main site, www.manfromearth.com. Either way, the money will go DIRECTLY to the people who actually made the movie. And who knows… if we ever do break even on “Jerome Bixby’s The Man From Earth”, maybe we can go make another intelligent, thought-provoking film.

    Thank you very, very much for your consideration.

    Sincerely,

    Eric D. Wilkinson - Producer & Richard Schenkman - Producer / Director

  7. Chunky
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:07

    Fantastic little sci-fi movie, glad to know people are watching it.

  8. Zep
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:13

    Or of course you could just be somebody who has set up an email address with the name E Wilkinson in it and you are trying to scam donations from people?

    I’m such an optimist.

    Martin - does this email address match up to the one emailed to you originally?

  9. Manfrommother'swomb
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:14

    @106

    LOL, what a scammer

  10. Zep
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:16

    The more I read it the more I’m sure it’s a fake - otherwise the guy changed his tune pretty quickly!

  11. Eric D. Wilkinson
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:19

    By the way, I SWEAR to you this is REAL. I am Eric D. Wilkinson and I did send that message. I have to give credit where credit is due. Our rating on IMDb skyrocketed the same time as traffic poured into our www.manfromearth.com website. When we looked at the data. Much of the traffic was coming from rlslog.net. This is why I contacted Martin.

    I was pissed when I saw google alert after google alert seeing the film I just spent the last 3 years of my life working on showing up on torrent sites. But when I saw that many of you were embracing this little movie and really raising our profile online, I realized that this may not be such a bad thing after all.

    PLEASE, IF YOU CAN

  12. jkbklj
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:21

    if you search for the adress at google, the manfromearth site shows up, but of course, wait until its approved..

  13. Eric D. Wilkinson
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:22

    Martin, if you email me again, I will send you my phone number and we can talk. I will be happy to do whatever I have to do to prove my identity. Man From Earth, LLC (the company I set up to make the movie) is based in New Jersey. I would be happy to provide you with whatever info you need.

    Thanks.

    Eric

  14. Thanos
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:27

    I hope that we are turning a corner. Piracy laws need to get under control. It’s so nice to see appreciation for all the exposure youtube and torrents do for the industry. A word about ‘The Man From Earth’ I enjoyed the movie especially their conversation about religion and Jesus. A tremendous effort, kudos to producer Eric Wilkinson and company.

  15. Roflcer of the Lawl
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:29

    “When I make my next picture, I just may upload the movie on the net myself!”

    Haha nice.

  16. Cremo
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:32

    ‘im gonna buy it when its out’ was the first thing i thought when finished watching it. great movie btw :)

    i somehow feel happy now ;)

  17. smooth
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:34

    i like his last words :P
    When I make my next picture, I just may upload the movie on the net myself!
    :P

  18. Zep
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:36

    Scammity scamolo.

  19. David
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:49

    It’s awesome to read things like this.
    “And they KNOW it”

  20. UncertainGod
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:49

    Will download this film and give it a watch, if it’s any good I’ll grab the DVD same as I do for all films/TV shows.

  21. scudie
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:49

    I was one of the people who downloaded and watched this movie, and afterwards went to the website as well. I thought it was a very clever movie with an interesting premise and some subtle acting. Kudos to the producer for having written such a letter to rlslog. Funny thing is, he is aware of the phenomenon!! Most producers either underestimate or overestimate the effect of piracy (Prince!).

    That said, i’ll never be able to pay the producer for this movie. I am in India, and only the most brainless and action oriented foreign movies are brought to screen by distributors here. I’m glad i’m a pirate :)

  22. American
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:50

    Martin,

    You’re a lying like p4ki kunt, go stick ur tiny c0ck in Desi’s anus after putting it first in Mr.x’s mouth.

  23. awesome
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:51

    Wow, what a stand up guy. I know nothing about the movie, but will purchase it now regardless simply to support someone WITH A BRAIN IN THEIR HEAD in the movie industry. Props to Releaselog and the dude who sent the email.

  24. thenameless
    November 13th, 2007 | 18:56

    I havent watched it myself, but i took a look at the webpage for the movie and it seemed interesting enough to purcase or watch. The first email may be real but all the posts afterwards asking for money to paypal seem fake. The website has no mention of the movie being spread via internet and no link to donate

  25. Richard Schenkman
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:04

    This thread is fascinating to read… I’m jumping in here because several people have questioned whether a) the posting from Eric Wilkinson is genuine (that is, genuinely from the same guy who produced the movie) and b) is he putting up some kind of scam, asking for money via a PayPal account.

    My name is Richard Schenkman, and I directed the movie, as well as co-producing it with Eric. I can assure you that the Eric who made the posting is my partner. I can also tell you that we discussed the matter quite extensively before reaching out to the download community.

    Our feeling is simply this: while it’s lovely to be the subject of all sorts of online buzz, it sure didn’t do much to help “Snakes on a Plane”. The fact is that we put a lot of our own money into this movie, and convinced a number of friends and family to do the same. Despite a US Domestic DVD deal, we are nowhere near breakeven on the movie. Below 50%, if you want to know the truth.

    It seems that more than 2000 people have downloaded the film, and the vast majority (I’d say 85-90%) seem to like or love the movie.

    Most of these people live outside the US, and so the DVD is not officially for sale in their country, and frankly we have no idea when it will be. Same goes for any sort of TV sale.

    So we had the idea (truth be told, my wife had the idea) to pull a Radiohead… to reach out to the online community and say, “If you downloaded this movie and liked it, please buy the DVD; and if you can’t buy the DVD where you live, please send us some money.”

    It seems only fair, and I can tell you, as an independent filmmaker, that the only way we can make MORE interesting, different, intelligent movies is if we don’t lose our shirts on this one!

    thanks very much… and here’s the email address if you feel like sending in your offering via PayPal: EWilkinson100@comcast.net.

    Sincerely,
    Richard Schenkman

  26. ben
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:06

    nice ill watch this movie tonight then. cant keep up with all the releases lol.

  27. sweetdude
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:07

    sweet

  28. Eric D. Wilkinson
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:08

    Here’s your proof I am Eric D. Wilkinson:

    http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=146843614&blogID=328230543

    Its a link to the official Man From Earth MySpace page / Blog. I put up a photo of me taken 6 months ago and right below it, a photo of me taken in front of my computer screen logged into rlslog.net.

    Its Eric D. Wilkinson! Producer - The Man From Earth!

  29. kale
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:18

    I’d say that’s proof right there!

    Kudos to Eric and Richard (if you don’t mind me calling you that) for taking this step. It’d would’ve been understandable if you’d just got pissed off that your blood, sweat and tears was out there for free on the net.

    Truth is I’d never heard of, and being in the UK was never likely to ever hear of your movie. Now I have, I’m downloading and I will send you a few bucks. That is money you’d never have seen from me otherwise as small movies such as yours have a hard time getting your name heard.

    If the movie is any good, and the premise is right up my alley so I’m hopeful, then the old “tell 10 friends” word of mouth will be in effect. I’m only too happy to spread the word about a good little movie, made by guys who recognise the potential of filesharing rather than taking a Draconian approach, and deserve to be rewarded with the chance to make more movies in future.

    Hope to see more Wilkinson/Schenkman productions soon. On the big screen, as well as on rlslog ;)

  30. Mr. X staff member
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:19

    i want rlslog.net to be put on the ’special thanks’ on the next movie this cool guy makes.

  31. tvgetsdull
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:20

    great for small film companies to get attention because they have nothing to lose. Small software companies have a much bigger problem with piracy stealing their income. It’s called piracy for a reason.

    I used to be all for downloading everything until my cousin’s company had to start putting ad-ware in their software just to cover the cost of development, thanks to people like us (me included :))

  32. Milo
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:25

    First of all, piracy isn’t the reason his film got noticed. It was advertisement. More specifically: adverts by rlslog.net. You basically gave him free advertisement on a site that has many visitors. So why the “piracy isn’t THAT bad”? Piracy has nothing to do with it, other than you are one.

  33. Eric D. Wilkinson
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:25

    One last post before I head out to Wal-Mart here in Jersey and buy up copies of my own movie…

    Thanks again for all of your support. Please go to our IMDb page and keep posting:

  34. Exaltation
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:25

    “They” want me to go and see the movie in the cinema and then buy it on DVD… Well, i don’t think so. I will download it, watch it and then maybe i’ll buy the DVD. “They” should be happy we want to see “their” movies…

  35. Markstar
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:27

    Very nice. Downloaded the movie, loved the concept (and execution), especially since I’m an atheist and my girlfriend is pretty religious.

    Anyways, will donate a few bucks right away.

    Greets from Germany! :)
    Markstar

  36. Milo
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:27

    Exaltation: Maybe you should be happy there are movies to be seen?

  37. LeFF
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:28

    Whoa! I really liked the Idea of the film, and even thou the action was taking place mainly in one room You’ve managed not only to get my attention, but to drag me into this! It’s great! It’s like “The Negotiator’ (also had action rolled mainly in one room) but way better! - There’s no shooting, only discussion which takes You in. I’m impressed. Good luck with the next one! Hope to see it soon and I’ll probably go with martins suggestion and buy the dvd as soon as it comes out :]

  38. LeFF
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:30

    Plus hope noone will take this wrong and THEY wont shut rlslog down :P

  39. jack white
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:32

    its not piracy thats the problem, the problem is the big fat profit making companies who have created the system where by if they dont get involved your movie probably wont stand a chance. i say change the whole system and get rid of the fat greedy middlemen who are price fixing and basically taking us all for a ride and overcharging us for our dvds and games. me personally will not buy a game until iv downloaded it and really like it, 95% of the games iv downloaded i wouldent have bought anyway, even at half the price.

  40. Gotbannedcosofname
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:32

    Look guys IT’S REAL!!!!!!!!!

    Why don’t any of you actually check for yourselves before calling people scammers?

    Go to www.themanfromearth.com, from there navigate to the various other sites that are used to promote this, there’s even a “Myspace” page where all of the details are.

    If you all continue to act so stupidly and irresponsibly in the face of such brave and innovative actions by Eric and Richard, who have been the only movie industry representatives who have actually given us WHAT WE HAVE BEEN BIATCHING ABOUT.. then quite frankly this bold experiment will be doomed to fail, and you will be unable to blame ANYONE but yourselves.

    For once pull your collective heads out of you butts, and REPRESENT!

    Bought it and pp’d.. do the same… or you ARE all just leechers.

  41. foxer
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:33

    nice to hear things like these :P Its good that he was honest and I will be definately buying this film. and i wish him good luck on his future films.

  42. Gotbannedcosofname
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:34

    the actually website is www.manfromearth.com my fault for the mistpye.. just go do it.

  43. Tom
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:35

    Don’t forget that when this hits the cinemas and stores people will read IMDB, see all the comments and rating and go and see it, when without all our comments and ratings they maybe wouldn’t have gone, so extra revenue will be made because of us.

  44. Milo
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:44

    Tom: Yes, you are heroes. It’s like a car thief saying: “you know, we only steal Mercedes, and as of lately their sales has gone up cause it’s been reported in the media that we only steal Mercedes. Therefor, we are heroes”. Moron.

  45. wickido
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:45

    How cool is that ;)

  46. Gotbannedcosofname
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:45

    You’re only a “hero” if you cough up some cash.

  47. Markstar
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:47

    @141: There is nothing wrong with being suspicious about an individual who posts a request to send him money to a PayPal account and then gives his PayPal address. If you have any brains at all you are very careful when it comes to sending your money to people who you’ve never met and have no idea if they are legit.

    The “proofs” all came afterwards (and may still be a clever ruse), so it’s just natural to question any posters identity. ;) I bet that if Eric D. Wilkinson had made the picture with him being on rslog first, nobody would have called him a scammer (though some may still find it weired that the producer asks to send “him” the money instead of an (semi-)official account).

  48. cypher101
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:50

    Will Buy.

  49. jxr6274
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:51

    Everyone,

    I checked out the homepage and there was a ilnk to his myspace page and all the comments that were posted here WERE posted there and the picture of him on RLSLOG.net. looks real to me. but im still going to wait until the link is on the homepage to donate.. thanks RLSLOG STAFF for the time and effort you guys/girls put in not to make my day suck!!

  50. rushn1
    November 13th, 2007 | 19:59

    Thats Great news!-Finally something positive!im gonnancheck it out!Thankx RLS Log+STAFF!!!!!!!!!

  51. Blaze
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:01

    When I think about it, I much rather want the DVD of movies I really like, so I hope it will come out here sooner or later. Not that the Paypal stuff is a bad thing, it just feels better to have the DVD in my collection :D

  52. .Truth
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:12

    This is indeed very awesome news. In fact, if it wasn’t for rlslog, I would not have heard of this movie at all. Heck, I’ma just download it and watch it later on, and if I enjoyed it, I’d be glad to actually give some money to the producers of this film, Eric and Richard.

    Also, I am very glad that Eric and Richard aren’t like any other film producers who get worked up the moment they find their work being shared on torrent sites. The PayPal solution you guys thought up of is indeed very smart, and awesome.

    This is indeed great news for everyone.

  53. Christian staff member
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:13

    Wow, interesting.. Nothing more to say.. I’m still impressed.

  54. PINBALLWIZ
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:15

    fake or not , i sent him the price of a movie ticket here in canada , him and his production company deserve it!!!!

  55. JohnGoodie
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:15

    They should link to the torrent from their website and put a paypal link for donations like radiohead did….but better

  56. Anonymouzor
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:17

    Words (Letters) didnt manage to come out, so ill just say i support this thread/post/article ;)

  57. Outsidemywindow
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:18

    If you enjoyed The TV series The Other limits, you will love this movie.
    This movie may have had a lower budget, but I still recognized most of the actors.

  58. bluepants
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:20

    I’m going to buy retail DVD because this guy thanked pirates. Not gonna donate via paypal though, lol.

  59. Gotbannedcosofname
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:21

    @ Markstar..148

    The proof was all there it just had to be looked for, before posted unwarranted comments.

    I looked AND found, then commented.. how hard is that?

  60. jitter
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:26

    This is by far one of the best movies this year. I downloaded it, watched it and enjoyed it. I won’t buy it, because I don’t have any use for a redundant DVD case and a disc. I don’t even have a DVD player.

    Excuse me for being paranoid about giving my money away, but I share Markstars skepticism about the validity of this donation bid. That said I will consider donating some eventually (Not today) because the producers / crew etc deserve compensation for their efforts and incentive to keep making more movies.
    Unlike 90% of movies from Hollywood, which are degenerative crap.

  61. Eric the Midget
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:27

    So I don’t understand, do the actors and production people all work for free on independent movies just for the publicity of giving the movie away online?

    I thought that guy from Greatest American Hero would have been an established actor by now and could demand a lot of money for his roles.

  62. Darth Arcon
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:28

    Loved the movie, this is awesome, and it is rather sad that this thread has more posts than the original movie thread…

  63. %
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:32

    This is great news, congratulations Mr. Eric Wilkinson, especially for one major reason:

    I downloaded this movie a few days ago and enjoyed it very much. Great work on the movie :)

  64. Morfar
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:33

    i might just get this dvd for myself and some family members, would like to support the creators:)

  65. TupaC
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:35

    Man when I got some money I send to Mr. Eric Wilkinson for this movie and for this post in this page.For real this is really nice job, no offence Mr. Eric Wilkinson but here in my town I don’t have stories with movie.

    Thanks to all.

  66. costa200
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:37

    I hope you don’t forget this when you start to collect those millions. I find that most indies are cool with sharing until they are millionaires and then they want to sue everybody and their mother…

  67. Dakn
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:40

    Finally someone that noticed the benefits of piracy. I’m downloading this atm (come catch me MPAA) and if it’s as great as it seems I’ll try to get my hands on a DVD for sure, even if I’m from US:)

  68. Michael
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:43

    After reading this I’m going to download this and if I like it I’m gonna send some money to the creators! I’m from Europe and I don’t know if the DVD ever comes here. Piracy isn’t bad after all some people would say now. But honestly I think that piracy has NOT been the problem ever, I mean it doesn’t hurt the sales at all! Look at hollywood movies - if the movie is good then the sales are good as well. The only important thing here is the quality of the product.

  69. Richard Schenkman
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:44

    I love this thread! What a fascinating online conversation.

    To answer the questions about money:

    The movie cost money to make. We paid the crew, we rented equipment, we paid the actors, bought food, etc etc. While it’s true that EVERYBODY involved in the movie worked for pennie on the dollar, it still added up to quite a lot of money (just a piece of HD mastering tape, for example, costs over $200 to buy; a portable bathroom costs $1500 a week to rent).

    Thanks to the advance from Starz/Anchor Bay, we recouped just under 50% of the cost of the film. That leaves us with quite a large amount to go.

    If you send money to the PayPal account, it goes into our general account, from which we make payments to investors, actors, and crew members — all of whom have a piece of the movie!

    I hope that answers the question—
    Richard

  70. Rimaxdk
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:44

    Just made a payment via paypal for this film.
    Would buy the dvd but it probably won’t ever get released in Denmark.

  71. GnoStiC
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:51

    this reminded me of a msg from a director on imdb board.

    as a reply to critics to his film, he just asked;
    “where did you get my movie? even i don’t have the post-production version”

    :)

  72. EmperorAtahualpa
    November 13th, 2007 | 20:57

    Whoa, this dude Eric Wilkinson is a cool guy! Props for him!

  73. Morfar
    November 13th, 2007 | 21:05

    Watching it now, i recognize some of the actors, they aint bad at all, looks promising :)

  74. Gaius
    November 13th, 2007 | 21:06

    This is a rather fortunate instance by which I’m happy for the producers of that film, but you guys have to understand that most people who come to rlslog are not going to buy anything after they “obtain” it. I know there’s a lot of kids reading this site and I hope that they understand that when they grow up, they should pay for things in order to keep the market going. Without the dollars from non-pirates, we wouldn’t be getting all this free entertainment being churned out and distributed via the pirate networks. So, remember to go to the cinemas, buy a software you can’t do without, and keep doing your part with whatever money you can spare to keep the market going.

  75. nOObs
    November 13th, 2007 | 21:12

    TBH i buy it if i like it

    this is a good idea for low budget films, prob wont catch on with the big boys like.

    Am sure it’ll take the director up a few notches though

  76. Peter Griffin
    November 13th, 2007 | 21:17

    P2P a boost for the movieindustry :D

    The guy who send the mail deserves a statue for not being like ‘the rest’!

  77. Jixx
    November 13th, 2007 | 21:30

    hahahaha, way more than 150 comments but not nearly 80diggs.
    the readers suck man!

  78. Michael Collins
    November 13th, 2007 | 21:31

    Maybe the industry should consider providing screeners for the torrent community…

  79. emok1d
    November 13th, 2007 | 21:32

    That was fantastic :)

  80. hikaricore
    November 13th, 2007 | 21:37

    fantastic ^_^

  81. Bless.Em.With.A.Shotgun.Blast
    November 13th, 2007 | 21:40

    This is cool cause I like to watch a movie for free before I buy to make sure it is good. If I like the movie enough I will buy it at the store even itf it isnt on sell for a lower price.

  82. Kwagsch
    November 13th, 2007 | 21:43

    I haven’t watched the movie yet, but I will buy it just because he supports file sharing. When the movie hits South Africa… I’ll be one of the first to buy it, just to support them!

  83. Yamma
    November 13th, 2007 | 21:57

    Would be fun to see how much money they can recieve on paypal now for a week or 2. :-)
    If the real concept for the scene, that if u like something, pay for it and support the producers.
    And now we can more or less pay anything just to support them.
    Well, as many other in this comment, I will download the movie to see what all the fuzz is all about. :-) And maybe send some money if its nice stuff.

  84. yourmother
    November 13th, 2007 | 21:57

    awesome :) and what an awesome movie!

  85. f00laid
    November 13th, 2007 | 21:58

    good job man! and yay for people who are/were interested in that movie! Groups like VoMiT definitely help out films that normally wouldn’t get much viewing due to the lack of “big stars” and advertising. wohoo

  86. QuadrupelQ
    November 13th, 2007 | 22:08

    So ONE e-mail from a unknown and very small producer means that piracy isn’t bad at all…right… Too bad thousands of them complain about it and give money to organisations like the RIAA, that sort of negates your reasoning doesn’t it. Martin, your ignorance amazes me again. When a thousands of these people come knocking on your door saying “thank you” and making the same statement, then you have enough ‘data’ to support that piracy helps to sell movies/music/programs/games.

    If you want to believe in UFO’s you’ll eventually start seeing them.

  87. yourmother
    November 13th, 2007 | 22:10

    i would love to have this movie in my dvd collection.

    Paypaled and kudos to Richard and Eric + the rest of
    the crew and actors for making such a great film.

  88. Martin
    November 13th, 2007 | 22:11

    Wow, that’s pretty cool. I just watched the movie last night in bed. It was low budget but the actors really carried it off (I’m not surprise: it had a awesome cast). Presently, I can’t buy the DVD and I wasn’t really planning to but just because of this producer, I’m going to buy myself a copy when it’s released over here.

    Good work Eric, you just got another guy buying your films DVD.

  89. lev400
    November 13th, 2007 | 22:16

    Well done Eric D. Wilkinson! Someone who is embracing the internet and p2p and not trying to fight it. I may watch his film now. After all, I’ve allready downloaded it!

  90. T
    November 13th, 2007 | 22:21

    Wow this is great news and really interesting. I haven’t seen this film yet but from all the poitive comments about the film, I am now going to buy this dvd and watch it!

    Thanks rlslog.net and finally some one from the industry realising what is possible with the support from us, online users.

  91. Morfar
    November 13th, 2007 | 22:29

    I just finished Watching the movie, and my personal thoughts is, Its brilliant, very original and nice storyline, it somewhat resembles K-PAX but in NO way would i call it a ‘ripoff’ or stolen ideas, this is a beautiful movie, very well directed. I also believe this have potential to be a TV series for a few seasons, get this movie some more advertising, and it will go far, I know for sure if i see it anywhere here in norway i will pick it up, Congratulations Eric D. Wilkinson, on this most excellent movie, and a shout out to everyone involved in the creation of it, Thats my two cents, Thanks.

  92. Vizulize
    November 13th, 2007 | 22:30

    @7

    Most of those indiependent artists, regardless the field they participate in, have nothing to fear. On the contrary…they put their name and work into anyone’s awareness.

    Even Radiohead understood this simple fact. They managed to earn a fortune just by “selling” 160Kbps files, before their cd even appeared on the selfs. That way they promoted their work and gained hundreds of pounds as well.

    They lost a fortune mate!!

  93. dredd1
    November 13th, 2007 | 22:37

    What an interesting premise. A well written screenplay,i read the comment on Releaselog from this films producer.Piracy Can Be Beneficial Too!!.Tony Todd is excellent, well worth the download.Congratulations & thanks, both to everyone involved with the film, and to RLSLOG!

    Mr Wilkinson

    You’ve made an excellent film. I will buy the DVD.

  94. Vend1a
    November 13th, 2007 | 22:43

    this is just a confirmation of what i was just saying :))

  95. Markstar
    November 13th, 2007 | 22:58

    @160: Hmm, but it’s nowhere to be seen on the www.manfromearth.com and how come the blog entry with the pictures is only ~15 minutes earlier (6:49 on 2007/11/13) than his post here (7:08)? And sorry, you can’t expect people to surf around forever just to see if a person is legit - well, at least not in cases like these. ;)

    @163: Why is it sad? While I consider this movie a great piece of art, the different opinions about the impact of P2P on the entertainment business have been around for ages and each side produces new “studies” all the time. So it is only natural that this is a very hot topic among the “affected” people. ;)

    The real sad thing about this in my humble opinion is that all of this is probably not going to change the way studios overreact to P2P networks. In their greed, they are paying politicians to pass laws that cumber the freedom of the people to do what they want with the things they have purchased. Moreover, they show again and again that the larger the company, the slower it is capable of adapting to new situations.
    So instead of profiting from the endless capabilities that the Internet provides, they make it more difficult for you (interesting recent story related to that: http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20071107-major-league-baseballs-drm-change-strikes-out-with-fans.html) and you might actually end up being punished when you’re buying something legitimately.
    As I’ve mentioned before, I’m from Germany and every since I spent a year as an exchange student in the US, I have watched (and read) pretty much everything in the original language.
    So, while I do own a legit DVD of “Seven”, I still downloaded a copy via eMule because in Germany, I could not find the DVD with an English audio track and I simply wasn’t willing to purchase a 2nd copy in form of a more expensive UK import. Furthermore, while I do own all three Matrix movies, I still ripped the first one to be able to have it on my server so I can watch it whenever I feel like it (and without the forced subtitles). There are countless other reasons why the current system just doesn’t cut it any more in todays day and age and they have been discussed endlessly all over the Net.

    Is it going to change? I hope so, but I don’t believe it until I see it. Does the industry lose money because of piracy? Nope. Because if you can’t download it, you wait for a friend to lend it to you. If nobody has it, you rent it ($1 where I live) or you get it at the library. And if all else fails, you simply wait for it until it’s on TV. Each step makes it more inconvenient for the user and the studios gain is marginal at best.
    It should also be mentioned that at the end of the day, most people, even in industrialized countries, don’t have that much extra money in their wallets to afford $10 for DVDs or visits to the movie theater, at least not on a regular basis. The average person has less spending power (

  96. Markstar
    November 13th, 2007 | 22:59

    The average person has less spending power (

  97. jow
    November 13th, 2007 | 22:59

    awesome. i’ll grab that movie right now. :)

  98. Markstar
    November 13th, 2007 | 23:01

    And again (it seems the text input cannot handle a “

  99. Markstar
    November 13th, 2007 | 23:08

    Grr. You can’t use a “less than” sign. Last try:
    The average person has less spending power (I hope that’s the right word) than 20 years ago. Things have gotten a lot more expansive but the income has not risen by the same factor. Therefore, things like DVDs, visits to movie theaters or swimming pools, etc. are the first things to cut back on.

    Should you pay for things? Definitely! Is downloading a movie stealing? No.
    Does one letter from a producer make P2P a good thing? No.
    Does the studios constant whining about lost income make piracy bad? No!
    Does the fact that millions of people use P2P and this accounts for about 90% of all web traffic say something about the feasibility of the entertainment business’ business model? I think so. :)

  100. Al
    November 13th, 2007 | 23:29

    Wow.. this makes me feel so much better about downloading illegal copyrighted movies… thanks… defiantly gonna download this movie.

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