Comments (334)

201. tucker
     November 13th, 2007 | 23:32

     good for you Eric D. Wilkinson! you have my support!

202. SaYonaRa
     November 13th, 2007 | 23:36

     I too downloaded this movie after seeing it up on nzbmatrix and following the IMDB links and youtube trailer (sry RSLOG). I even helped bump up the rating on IMDB I might add.

     And Eric, thanks for this gem amongst a plethora of Hollywood crap. After watching it and being blown away I recommended it to various people, all of whom enjoyed this as much as I did. Needless to say I will be purchasing this movie and it’s going into my ‘favorites’ collection.

     I hope the attention opens the doors to future projects; which i will be eagerly anticipating - Kudos to you and thanks again.

203. dan
     November 13th, 2007 | 23:40

     i have watched this film and i showed it to my friend.he liked it and i loved it.awesome film awesome site

204. ever9
     November 13th, 2007 | 23:41

     SPEECHLESS. GUess ima have to buy that as well.

     rlslog.net just made my effin’ day.

205. ABCDesi
     November 13th, 2007 | 23:51

     Eric is in fact the man from earth. An unique person, with a very unique perspective.

     I’m going to watch it tonight. And to be totally honest, I haven’t been this excited about any movie in a while.

206. gonzales
     November 13th, 2007 | 23:53

     x)

207. Steve
     November 14th, 2007 | 00:12

     It’s a good movie. It isn’t for those who are into non-thinking movies like Transformers or Saw1-4. It’s a no-budget movie that tells quite litterally a story of someone’s life if they didn’t die. Even the use of flashbacks were not needed.

     I think it’s great that this producer got an adrenalin shot from the download community even if it was not a legit source. I’d like to think his career will jump into notoriety from this but not come back to bite us on the 4ss when the big times come ala Metallica, who rose up from demo tapes and handouts to assaulting their fans who downloaded their music later in career life.

     Good for you Eric. I want to see more from you even if it means going to a theater to see it the way all movies should be enjoyed.

208. Frostii
     November 14th, 2007 | 00:30

     Eric.
     I just wanted to say that I’m really impressed that you can give some kind words to the Rlslog.net family/community.
     Simple a genuine bloke.

     Best of luck !

209. romat
     November 14th, 2007 | 00:53

     Eric’s letter got my attention and I just watched the film. A very captivating movie, almost brilliant.

     I will admit taking fewer trips to the cinema since starting to download. But then I was taking many fewer anyway.

210. Not Stupid
     November 14th, 2007 | 01:02

     Eric, thanks for the email regarding us “pirates”. I haven’t seen your movie but will now. And I will buy it when it comes out, just because of your thoughts on file sharing. Keep Hollywood straight.

211. Trell
     November 14th, 2007 | 01:11

     Markstar. I do get your skepticism. But what do you want the guy to do before you finally concede that he’s the real deal? Turn up on your doorstep with his birth certificate & a signed affidavit signed by his mother, the president and the pope? Or would you just say that any papers could be fake, and you can do wonders with plastic surgery? There comes a point where you’ve just got to say ‘OK, he’s supplied sufficient proof’

     As to everyone who felt good at forcing a struggling independent film company into ‘doing a Radiohead’, I disagree. The ‘Thank You’ that Eric supplied was not from the short-term result of us downloading the film, but from the buzz generated on IMDB, and the increased recognition, publicity and kudos. There is no better advertising than word of mouth, and Rslog provided that. Given the choice, I’m sure that everyone involved in the film would sooner have not seen it released on the internet.

     However, the positives from both the Radiohead album and the gracious attitudes displayed by the producer & director are a boon to us, and are also a thorn in the side to the film & music industries. It’s about time that the big corporations, whose focus seems to be less and less on spreading great films and music to the world, and more and more on grabbing all the intellectual property they can, and creating lawsuits left, right & centre. When they do have to make music & films, they seem to plump for prefab reality star boybands/image-focused MTV dias, or yet another formulaic sequel to an action blockbuster/rubbish remake of a tired old horror flick) - This is not how it’s supposed to be at all!

     What people like Eric, and Radiohead are doing has the potential to completely undermine the big corporations in the long-term. Yes, people are saying Radiohead’s plan backfired, but look at the furore it caused, and look at the attention that the album has been getting! (On top of that, it’s a bloody good album!). In the long run, Radiohead will easily recoup their losses. Best of all, they still retain their intellectual property, and don’t get short-changed by record labels’ overheads (production, promotion, printing, distribution etc.). Whoever was sneering at Radiohead & calling their experiment a failure is probably only focussed on the short-term financial figure, and can’t see the bigger picture.

     Same thing with The Man From Earth. Only difference is that while Radiohead planned to freely distribute their album, the film was originally intended to sell. If other independent companies see The Man From Earth succeed in the long term, then maybe they might follow suit. However, if we all act like selfish brats, downloading anything we want without paying a single penny, then acting suspicious whenever someone involved says ‘Sure! Download & watch the film. It’s fine, but please help us make the film a success & either donate, or buy the DVD’, all that we’ll end up doing is giving the film & music industries more fuel for their ‘P2P is ruining it for the hard working filmmakers/musicians’ argument.

     Think about it…

212. ergo
     November 14th, 2007 | 01:26

     i hope this will be a trend that others will follow

213. lee welton
     November 14th, 2007 | 01:31

     @Trell

     I think some people may be losing sight of what the file sharing community is all about. Hasnt it always been about sharing digital media, whether it is music, movies or software, with other users who don\’t have that media yet?

     Is this shared media supposed to be made available with the obligation that if you like it, then you pay for it? If so, then whole idea of file sharing just becomes a cheaper distribution system for the digital media creators.

     If I have to pay for the media whether I acquire it from a store or I acquire it online, then that would seriously decrease the popularity of file sharing.

214. Anonymous
     November 14th, 2007 | 01:40

     the simple solution would have been to meet back in 20 years and see if he aged or not…

215. PINBALLWIZZZARD
     November 14th, 2007 | 01:49

     just got done watching movie,AWESOME!!!
     KUDO`S TO RLSLOG STAFF
     AND TO PRODUCER Eric D. Wilkinson AND TO Director, Richard Schenkman good to see something ORIGINAL in sci-fi genre not the usual drivel that has come out from hollywood as of late………

216. Richard Schenkman
     November 14th, 2007 | 01:56

     But Lee Welton, having said that, at some point the bottom simply falls out. If people can’t make their money back, they can’t continue to fund independent films, and then the only material available will either be home-made YouTube clips or “Transformers III”. It’s only right to step up and support artists, if you possibly can.

     In the case of musical artists, while you may download their music, you can still buy tickets to see them live — the “free” download supports the other part of their business (although of course they’d like to sell some CD’s, too).

     But with a movie, there are the theatrical rights, the video rights, the digital rights, and the TV rights, and that’s about it. Small films don’t tend to get theatrical releases, or sell to TV, so that leaves video and digital. And nobody seems to know yet how to make money from digital.

     I don’t believe in filing lawsuits all over the place, but there has to be some middle ground. Downloaders can’t take the attitude that “it should all be free” because then how does it get made? I mean, really! People work for a living, even writers, directors, and actors. Sure, it’s fun, challenging work, but if it’s how you expect to make your living, then you need to be paid for your work. That’s what the Writers Guild of America strik is all about. The studios want to sell, and re-sell, and re-sell artists’ work and never pay for it again, and the artists are saying, “No, that’s not fair.”

     I don’t mean to rant. I’m just saying, there has to be a middle ground. That’s why we’ve come forward and said, “Okay, fair enough, you downloaded the movie. If you liked it, please either buy our DVD or send us some money.” A number of people have indeed already sent in a respectable amount of money and we are honored and touched by this display.

217. Someone Noone
     November 14th, 2007 | 02:04

     Downloading content from the ‘net and having the option to pay for it is the same as buying something that is fully returnable and refundable regardless of how much it has been used.

     I have bought each and every piece of art (music, movies, even some prints of pictures) and software that deeply impressed me and/or had significant usefulness. I will continue doing so because I feel good about doing so. AND I like to have things in their original, intended format and quality, because it’s an important part of the overall entity/creation in question.

     I believe it is only fair for all intellectual properties to be made *freely* available like this, with profits stemming from people’s appreciation (in form of ca$h).

     You might wonder what will happen to those being insufficiently appreciated both in thought and money…
     Well, the governments should exert funds for the development and creation of art and utility software. Just take all that money going into weapons R&D and use it for something good and actually useful! We have quite enough of efficient kill methods, techniques and means as it is now…

218. Alfred
     November 14th, 2007 | 02:13

     @Someone Noone

     “…the governments should exert funds for the development and creation of art and utility software.”

     Ummmmmm….no.

219. Eric D. Wilkinson
     November 14th, 2007 | 02:23

     If anyone here is in the United States, PLEASE go to Wal-Mart & pick up the DVD. We really need to do well there. I think it’s at $14.44 (below cost). Please if you are in the US try to pick it up there. Thanks again for all of your support.

220. Shiny
     November 14th, 2007 | 03:22

     I’m outside the US so i cant pick up the DVD but i did paypal some $$$. Hope it helps.

221. 1241 A.D.
     November 14th, 2007 | 03:23

     Its the year 1241, mid europe.
     In this time, artists…or…lets call them…”bards” are traveling arount with Instruments and other equippment, trying to amuse the normal townspeople and hope to get some coins for the next meal. All was fine, every artist got what he deserves, depending on the quality & concept of his work.

     Some year around 2000~:
     Something went terrible wrong. Artists and the Industry behind them are trying to sell everything they make. Quality is not a point that is choosen & rated by the people with the amount they pay. They have to pay even if they dont get what they wanted(Bad movie, concert canceled or changed, Software with tons of bugs or just not usable&unstable, music that is no music,…). Thanx to the great efforts of big marketing companys, people are bombarde with great commercials, advertising prints and other ways of getting attention for a bad product.

     It is now 2007:
     IMHO “That’s one small step for man… one… giant leap for mankind.” that Eric D. Wilkinson & Richard Schenkman are doing. I dont remember any situation like this in the history of the Internet. They say it like the nice bards in tights back in 1241, “Pay what you want, just pay a little for listening”.

     Eric D. Wilkinson & Richard Schenkman, I wish you the best going for this movie and hope to “see” you soon again.

     Greetings from germany & sorry for my bad english…3am here

     P.S.: paypal underway, sorry no Wal-Mart here

222. ilyas
     November 14th, 2007 | 03:27

     dude…
     u rock!

223. Faceless
     November 14th, 2007 | 03:27

     Very good movie

224. innocent_ba$tard
     November 14th, 2007 | 03:30

     all i can say.. amazing

225. Jingle Jangle
     November 14th, 2007 | 03:40

     @Eric

     Sorry, I can’t buy the DVD. It’s available for free on the Internet, so I’ll just download it and not pay you a cent. Like 99% of the other people who are downloading stuff. Kiss our asses all you like, it won’t translate into more sales. Pirates care only about one thing: themselves.

     Edit: Someone knows how to kill the vibe…

226. Shiny
     November 14th, 2007 | 03:43

     If i and the other rlslog staff were being a pirates for ourselfs we wouldnt be running this website for you guys for free…

227. n3o
     November 14th, 2007 | 03:49

     I have no words……

228. Jacky
     November 14th, 2007 | 03:54

     I have donated a little too,beause this movie is not sold well at my store.I have only make 200 copies and only 90 are sold.

229. Roofy
     November 14th, 2007 | 04:01

     do ypou mind not reposting the same thing?

230. innocent_ba$tard
     November 14th, 2007 | 04:19

     dugg!

231. Apollo Gist
     November 14th, 2007 | 04:29

     Eric -

     I hope you don’t take these last few crappy comments to heart (226, 229, etc…) These boards are filled with immature little punks talking all sorts of negative BS and generally being the a$$h0l3es they wouldn’t dare be face to face… Of all the topics i’ve read the comments to, this one is BY FAR the most positive and free of petty, posturing BS

     Best of luck on your next production

232. Spunk
     November 14th, 2007 | 04:38

     woohoo! that’s just plain orgasmic!

233. Alex
     November 14th, 2007 | 04:44

     @Apollo Gist

     The problem with this method of gaining popularity and publicity is that it is not a sustainable business model. If producers were to release their productions to the internet before theatrical releases, they would risk losing large parts of their potential audience.

     And as Hollywood has said for some time now, a large part of the movie going experience is to see the movie on the big screen. Downloading a movie and watching it on a PC screen isnt even close.

234. Jingle Jangle
     November 14th, 2007 | 04:46

     @Shiny

     Sorry to “kill the vibe”, but I had to inject some reality into this love-fest. The reason rlslog.net is run is to MAKE MONEY. You make money from the various ads here, and no, I don’t buy the fact that the ads are “just here to pay for the server”. Unless you’re running multiple supercomputer-type servers, you’re easily making more money than your costs based on your traffic and the types of ads you serve here.

     @Other whiners

     Let’s look at the facts. This guy loves the publicity his movie is getting, but he’s just being short sighted. Sure, this movie might get lots of cred and even some sales, but when he next goes to make a big-buck picture to actually earn some decent money, he’ll be kicking himself for encouraging all of us for downloading his stuff.

     If I paid for all the movies I’ve downloaded I’d be broke. So would most of you. We download movies because we don’t wanna pay for them not because we’re “trying before we buy”. Don’t give me that BS.

     Giving stuff away for free is not a longterm business model, and if that reality upsets some people then wind me up and call me Jesus, but I just hate to see so much crap flying around in these comments… let’s call a spade a spade, OK>??

235. Eric D. Wilkinson
     November 14th, 2007 | 04:51

     Apollo:

     Its all good. I understand that not everyone will like the flick (or me for that matter). Thanks for looking out.

     Eric

236. jxr6274
     November 14th, 2007 | 04:58

     Great movie, I live in the states and am going to purchase asap and I will tell many others to do the same… guys isn’t this what we want?? lets support these filmmakers for all the hard work and maybe they wont be the only people to see a “return”

237. Mr. X
     November 14th, 2007 | 05:03

     Eric/Richard: don’t be tricked into replying to troll’s comments . it is impossible to satisfy them no matter what you do.

238. Eric D. Wilkinson
     November 14th, 2007 | 05:11

     Mr. X - No problem

     Jxr6724 - Thanks so much. Wal Mart brought in the most copies I’d go there. And please - go over to the IMDb message board: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0756683/

     Rate the flick and share your thoughts. Thanks.

239. essequemodeia
     November 14th, 2007 | 05:13

     Less ego stroking and more illegal downloads, please.

240. JoshuaMH1
     November 14th, 2007 | 05:41

     How come every time I visit a page on this website, it jumps to the bottom of the page.

     Anyone else experiencing this?

241. R4in X
     November 14th, 2007 | 05:41

     This is the first comment I write about anything here. I just love this story and even if I haven’t seen the movie yet (which I definately will!) I must give my 2 cents to Mr Wilkinson and his team!

     First of all: Its a fantastic and brave attitute not to fight “pirates” but to try to make use of this public awareness. Unlike radiohead, who did this just for some PR your step seemed to be fully honest which is why guys like you really deserve our support.

     May I also suggest you some points to drastically improve your online sales:

     1.) On the beginning and end of each trailer you release notice your website and paypal address and ask nicely for support.

     2.) Wrap a free (as in freedom!) Torrent-Client together
     with the torrent-file of your movie directly on your website. So people only have to click a single file and the movie will start downloading. This should only take minutes… and even people that are no geeks will be able to get the file.

     3.) The Movie in 2.) should contain 1.) of course

     4.) Relax and watch your earnings grow in peaceful coexistence with pirates

     Making your movie DRM-free for download on your website like this would be a really big and brave step for the content industry. Who needs cinemas and expensive retailer-contracts when you can get the attention of literally millions of people virtually for free and almost instantly? The idea that people in Bangladesh, Zaire or Mongolia could watch my movie within hours from now would make me feel really proud. People that would have otherwise never even heard of your work could now be turned into paying customers - or at least into people that spread the word about a fantastic movie

     Think about it…. its risky but I truly believe that this is the next logical step to do now.

     Good luck & best wishes for your future projects,
     r4inx

242. krono
     November 14th, 2007 | 05:53

     woah, eric sure looks like bon jovi in that photo!

     jokes aside, good stuff man. riaa get an early christmas present :p

243. Steely
     November 14th, 2007 | 06:20

     Sounds like the revolution is getting a roll on

     Steely

244. Dav
     November 14th, 2007 | 06:29

     Hi, i think this is the first time this happend, nice movie to watch:)
     and next time you make a movie, put it on the net to watch it live on the net! ill will pay 3 dollar for eatch movie:)

245. gHoul
     November 14th, 2007 | 06:42

     I haven’t even downloaded it… but from all the comments I’ll be visiting my local WallMart here in SoCal tomorrow to pick it up!

     I have a local band and released our first studio album on Demonoid.com (R.I.P.) it made the front page and got spread to Oink and other sites… had thousands of downloads, and from it we have recived a lot of paying fans getting CD/Shirts ect. we have no label to spread our music… the recording costs were over $2,000 mastering was $1,000 shirts we spent about $900 (I sold my WoW account to pay for them) in the end from all this online exposure we got a label now backing our next album! I’ll release the singles for free online but we still might have to charge for the full album

     myspace.com/vale

246. Markstar
     November 14th, 2007 | 07:18

     @212 (Trell): I had already accepted this as the real deal with my first post (#136) and went to PayPal at this point. If you wrote the first paragraph in regards to #196, you should probably also read the comments that I was reacting to. My point was not that I didn’t believe them, it was that I could understand someone’s skepticism if only a name and a PayPal account is supplied (which it was when some people used words like “scammers” etc and before Eric posted a link to his myspace blog).

     Anyways, I decided to give $4 - I think that’s fair considering that I still hope to purchase the DVD when it’s available here (and I usually wait until the prices have dropped a little so I rarely end up spending more than $14).

247. Rogue
     November 14th, 2007 | 07:24

     I just finished watching ‘The Man From Earth’ and I must say, it’s a damn masterpiece. I have read so many good reviews about it that I just had to see it and now that I have, I am buying it on DVD. This movie is worthy and is a lot better than most of the crap Hollywood has been shoving down our throats.

     Congratulations guys on creating such a wonderful film! I hope my purchase of three copies helps you out and I look forward to your next film!

248. Tim
     November 14th, 2007 | 07:35

     Good on him, file sharing is really a great way to get out to the masses

249. releaselog rocks
     November 14th, 2007 | 08:00

     you rock dude

250. Richard Schenkman
     November 14th, 2007 | 08:06

     to R4inx post #242 — I wish I knew what the heck you were talking about, with the downloading, “wrap a free torrent client together”… sorry! This is Greek to me. But they sound like very exciting ideas. Perhaps at some point you or someone else can explain to us exactly what you mean and/or how to execute it and we can look into that. We’d probably have to upgrade our web site, though.

251. Mike
     November 14th, 2007 | 08:37

     guys, I passed this movie once it was released by domino and is a cheap film. i will download it and if I like it, for real, ill drop some euros via paypal

     peace

252. sycko
     November 14th, 2007 | 09:06

     Props to the director i will buy this movie for support..
     Viva Piracy

253. who cares?
     November 14th, 2007 | 09:06

     Mmm… i never tougth i would read something like this and here we are, finally someone that sees piracy in a different way, i have not seen the movie but now im pretty sure im going to buy it.

     Peace

254. Buddah
     November 14th, 2007 | 10:23

     Remember how the two Jhons (carmack & romero)
     The started giving out stuff for free at the begining. and manny of us liked it, some liked it so much that they was sending them money.

     now? THE ARE F**KING rich

255. Raptor
     November 14th, 2007 | 10:40

     Wow most number of comments I have ever seen on a post.

256. shaka zulu
     November 14th, 2007 | 11:18

     This is been done before, so i don’t get all the fuzz about it here, but it’s still awesome moviemakers do this. I hope more and more will use this as a channel to promote their work. It would be nice to see this kind of ‘market’ making the now-existing market disappear because the honesty system is simply better. People will pay less, but more people will buy and the money will go to the people who deserve it, not the big shots.

     Good luck on future projects:)
     Enjoyed the movie, will consider buying it:)

257. theRedPress
     November 14th, 2007 | 11:25

     I’d go over to walmart and buy it but I don’t possess any money to do that with. My music isn’t selling…I do the “bard” thing, give it away, hope for donations after. Only, I’m not getting any donations and the coffee house I play at doesn’t pay except in free drinks.

     Anyhow, when you’re done giving Eric your donations for his film … jump on over and listen to free music, read free stories, download or request any songs and I’ll give them to you for free.

     www.myspace.com/novellice
     www.novellice.com/theRedPress/
     http://thepiratebay.org/user/theRedPress

     And thar you go. You can donate if you like, or don’t. Wee jumping on the “Radiohead” bandwagon (or rather not because I’ve been doing this for the last three years :p)

258. Ralfenstein
     November 14th, 2007 | 11:56

     This article made my day. I’m glad to see that even the people behind the products are finally realizing what downloading their products really does for them.
     I live in a small country and watch a lot of movies and listen to a lot of music, but the information that i get from the papers and other media are only about the i.e. top ten music albums (like that sad little thing called Britney) and only about the most watched movies. So far i have found at least 50 music albums that nobody hasn’t even heard of but like me when i introduced them to my friends aswell they also fell in love with them and ordered them. Same goes for the movies. The mass movies don’t need our support if they have hundreds of millions to spend on a movie wich the public will be viewing in the theaters only because the special effects.

     Anyway… i hate the word pirate and piracy. I associate it with the cheap copyed stuff that are being sold on the black market in countries like thailand and russia. Piracy to me is making money with other peoples products (if you download a movie and sell it to someone then this applies to you aswell). While most of us just download stuff for ourselves and have not made a dime with these on the contratry we have just gave the products more publicity -> more buying customers.

259. Chunky
     November 14th, 2007 | 12:13

     #246 gHoul :

     You mentioned how much you spent on stuff but forgot to mention how much the spiffy emo haircuts were.

     

260. Kevin
     November 14th, 2007 | 12:26

     This is awesome despite all the people downloading it, now that there is ace positive comments around the net more people who don’t have time, or simply don’t know how, to download it will buy it in an instant.

261. billy boy
     November 14th, 2007 | 12:52

     Richard and Eric,

     When you release your next movie put a torrent link and a paypal link on the site and spread the word like this and you will have another popular movie. You said that getting tv rights is difficult, well after all the reviews, good comments and sales this should now be easier.

     Hopefully if this works, and you do make money off it, another small company can get a good film out there using the same method and we may be seeing the future model of film distribution starting for a lot of Indie films. Of course the film still has to be good

     Good Luck

262. flipz
     November 14th, 2007 | 15:28

     A film producer creates the conditions for making movies. The producer initiates, coordinates, supervises and controls matters such as fundraising, hiring key personnel, and arranging for distributors. The producer is involved throughout all phases of the filmmaking process from development to completion of a project.

     An executive producer of a motion picture is typically a producer who is sometimes involved in creative or technical aspects of production. This person generally handles business issues, and may also be a financier of a film.

     Whatever the case may be for this guy, it doesn’t matter. This whole ordeal only strengthens the fact that p2p downloading of the movie made it popular and is now looking like the film will be successful.

     Three cheers for RLSLOG and the torrent network!

263. kale
     November 14th, 2007 | 16:01

     Eric and Richard

     if you’re still reading this, how about an update after the week. you can tell us how well you’ve sold and how it compares to the money you’ve raised via paypal. i’m interested to know the ratio of DVD:Torrent sales. don’t expect you to put up figures, but an idea of the balance would be great.

     Thanks and good luck.

264. souljaboy
     November 14th, 2007 | 16:53

     yahh

     went and scored this at walmart this morning

265. R4in X
     November 14th, 2007 | 18:50

     @Richard Schenkman (Post 251)
     Considering “R4inx post #242″

     Sure, im more than willing to assist you on this for free. Just contact me using dTs7JPnkkfdjBZB2@spambox.us

     Best wishes,
     r4inx

266. Richard Schenkman
     November 14th, 2007 | 18:53

     Hello…. It’s now 9:51am in Los Angeles. Here’s an update:

     Yesterday’s first-day DVD numbers were good. Not a grand-slam, but hardly a failure. Apparently they were considered good-to-very-good for a small science fiction movie without big stars or a pre-sold title.

     But the only way we can hang on in stores through the all-important holiday season is if people really head out and buy the DVD this week.

     So if anyone is considering buying the DVD…now’s the time! Wal-Mart stores (NOT online!) and Circuit City probably have the best prices brick-and-mortar, and Amazon has the best price online. And by the way — you might as well find the cheapest price you can, because any future return to us (the filmmakers) is only based on the wholesale price anyhow.

     As for PayPal… more than 22 people from all over the world made payments in the first few hours, ranging from just a few US dollars to over one hundred! It’s a very impressive start, and we appreciate the response very much, both as a statement of support, and as a practical matter of additional income.

     So, what’s next?

     Well, if you want to support the film (and filmmakers like us), we’d love for you to buy the DVD (heck, buy two and give one to your mom)… and of course it’d be teriffic if people who can’t buy the DVD send a few dollars to the PayPal address… but also very important is to keep the IMDB postings coming. If people keep visiting the movie’s IMDB page and making posts, we’ll stay in their MovieMeter top ten, which does bring a lot of attention to the film. If we can stay in the top ten, or even move up from #6, the mainstream press might start paying attention to the film, and things could really open up for us.

     In fact, if any of you have contacts in the mainstream press, please let them know about this film and this story. This goes for Americans a well as those who live outside the US. We want this movie to come out in every country!

     Once again, thank you so much for your ongoing support. Eric and I appreciate it so, so much.

267. alpha
     November 14th, 2007 | 19:48

     Congrats to the makers and the actors of this great movie. You created a true piece of art.

268. Bobble
     November 14th, 2007 | 20:32

     Buying my copy today, absolutely brilliant film.

     Have you ever thought about having filming’s at colleges? I know my university would love to host your film.

269. Ken Erik
     November 14th, 2007 | 20:37

     Fantastic Eric D. Wilkinson!

     The funny thing is that i read all about this in the Norwegian newspaper first..
     *Sorry RLSlog* smile!
     So i had 2 come here and read for my self…

     I have not DL this yet, but now i sure will.
     Concerning the rating at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0756683
     This is what my kind of people say about it:

     “omg WhAT AN AWSOME FILME, just watched it and it is one of few movies that made me enter another reality. The end is dolorous and painfull but still a great end

     9.7/10″

     and
     “I watched this movie last night and it was awsome! This proves that you can make a great movie without thousands of explosions and hot chicks running around.

     Another movie that is similar and also awsome is K-PAX.

     9,5/10
     ”

     This movie is for sure one i will grabb an original copy of..

     This is history friends..

     Cheers from

     Norway

270. BrotherJustin
     November 14th, 2007 | 23:43

     @222 (1241 A.D.)

     You made the best post on here. Very entertaining. I must say, I completely agree. We as consumers have to take a blind leap of faith when it comes to music, movies and books. Entertainment is the one industry where NO ONE is guaranteed satisfaction. Money is tight for a lot of people these days, and after you’ve been burned so many times by paying for mediocre (or worse) product you feel somewhat justified in downloading. I, as many on here do, use downloading as a way to “try before you buy.” If I like something I show my support by purchasing a DVD, going to a concert, buying the t-shirt or whatever. What I pay should match my enjoyment level. Why do they charge $19.99 for Citizen Kane and the same for a crapfest like Hot Rod? Would you pay $45,000 for a Kia? Hell no. For that money I better have a three-point star in a circle on my hood.

271. hump
     November 15th, 2007 | 03:37

     I honestly don’t know where the last few hours of my life went. It has been a very VERY long time since I’ve been mesmerized by a movie like this. Absolutely BRILLIANT!!

     This movie isn’t shown where I live. I could order the DVD from the states or Paypal a donation. But lets be honest, I’m a Uni student on uni student’s budget. I simply can’t afford it.

     So is it a total loss? Are you robbed? No entirely. I’ll spread the word to family/friends/forums/imdb. Others who might not have ever heard of it might pay to see/buy it. In the future when I come across these same director/actors/writers/producers on another movie, and assuming I am in a financially sound place, I’ll pay to watch/but it.

     I like to think p2p is a phase in my life (struggling student). Of course I prefer the big screen.

     But I digress.

     Thank you for restoring my faith in human creativity and imagination.

272. Eric D. Wilkinson
     November 15th, 2007 | 04:53

     Sorry I’ve been quiet all day. I had to get some work done. Just read all of the new posts. You guys are great! I’ll check in again later.

273. grimman
     November 15th, 2007 | 09:29

     I liked the movie, and thanks to this I might just end up buying it. Smooth move!

274. spar
     November 15th, 2007 | 12:02

     Awesome.

     I actually downloaded this and watched it a week ago, usually, I dont watch movies where people talk, yes only talk, for 90 minutes but this was very do-able.

     Gave it a 7 or 8, just cause of the story (i know its a book), but still, it didnt come over as ridiculous.

     Great stuff for a company like that.

275. ME
     November 15th, 2007 | 13:56

     http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=WuMRZZIOTdE
     Click me please i want some free publicity as well

276. Jay
     November 15th, 2007 | 15:50

     Love it!!!!

277. Peter Rock
     November 16th, 2007 | 01:55

     My understanding is that the film is still All Rights Reserved so it is illegal for me to download and share it regardless of how the producer or director feels.

     Is there an official notice giving permission to download and share? How about releasing the movie under a CC license if sharing is what is desired?

     Sounds like a great movie. I hope I see it one day.

278. FEI
     November 16th, 2007 | 04:23

     YES! That’s what file sharing is for, sharing with the community and friends. Not Stealing!

     If I see a movie I download that I like, I’ll recommend my friends to go watch it in the cinema or I’ll go watch it again in the cinema, and when the DVD is out, I’ll go buy the DVD to keep in my collection. I’ll also give it a good review on the internet.

     For those who download and don’t go buy the DVD, we’ll have to forgive them because not everyone can afford everything they want!

     For those who download and convert to DVDs to sell, to make a profit! Those real pirates out there… then that is STEALING! And sometimes the profit from pirating DVDs goes to organised crime such as terrorism, human trafficking, and planning larger scams!

     Do not buy pirated DVDs, you indirectly sponsor organised crime!

     The law should put a blind eye on downloads as it really indirectly push the market. But should hit hard on those who make a profit out of it.

     I have always been preaching this:

     Pirated DVDs = Guilty! Stealing! DO NOT BUY!
     BT Downloads = Not Guilty! Forgive!

279. Eric D. Wilkinson
     November 16th, 2007 | 05:44

     WHASUP, rls log! Thought I would drop by with an update.

     I am overwhelmed by the wonderful things everyone has been saying about our film. RLSlog is my new favorite site. The support has been nothing short of phenomenal and this whole experience has been amazing. Please keep posting. I LOVE the debates and arguments, comments and reviews.

     If you live here in the US, JEROME BIXBY’S THE MAN FROM EARTH is now available on DVD (Wal-Mart, select Circuit City & Best Buy stores, J & R Music World, FYE, Barnes & Noble and to rent at Hollywood / Movie Gallery).

     Per many of your requests, we have updated the www.manfromearth.com website with a “direct link button” on the top left hand corner.

     PLEASE KEEP POSTING! I don’t sleep anymore. All I do is come here (and imdb) and read!!!

     Thanks again.

280. rattack15
     November 16th, 2007 | 17:56

     I will buy that movie when it comes out on DVD purely due to the positive reaction of the producer/director.

281. someone
     November 17th, 2007 | 02:40

     Unlike a lot of people here, I don’t think sharing your movie on the web gets you more attention and positive reviews all by itself.
     The reason why this is working so well for them on imdb is not “filesharing”, it’s the quality of the movie.

     We, the so called “pirates”, only gave this movie a chance in todays world where adverts tells you what you should like or dislike.
     We’re not thieves in the first place, we’re only bored of paying for something we don’t even like. Of course there will always be people wanting to download for free and who will never pay, but be honest, that does not make “lost sales”. They would rather not watch it than pay.

     But there are also a lot (and I mean *a lot*) of movie lovers who use filesharing because it provides them with an easy access to everything, fast, in the quality they want, without having to pay ten times for the same thing.
     And without adding DRM to their movie, which is the way hollywood use to say to its customer “we don’t trust you, thieves”. We use filesharing because it’s more convenient, but we are all willing to pay for good products.

     It may sounds good, but it’s also a trap: we are willing to pay for GOOD products. If we watch a movie and dislike it, we won’t pay.
     Even worse from your point of view, if we watch a movie we dislike, we will slash it in the back. You’ve seen what a +++ rating on imdb can do, i let you imagine what a — rating would do.

     In other word, it’s all good for the consummer who get better product (i use “product” since that also applies to music for exemple), with no big-drm-brother, it allows the creator to make money from us instead of fighting us and getting tons of reviews, but it also disallow him to make a cheap poor quality one that we can see a lot these day.

     I would love to read reaction to this from either Eric or Richard, to see if they do understand the full implication of the “digital age”. An age where consummers get back the power to say what is good and what’s not. It worked like that in the past, but is today’s industry ready to go back to this model, with cost rising so much ?

     Btw: I agree with the guy saying a torrent pack on your website would help a lot.
     You wouldn’t have to upgrade anything: find a free-to-share bittorent client on the web (we thieves like to share for free ;), find a good torrent on a public tracker (the pirate bay or mininova for exemples), and write a nice txt explaining to people how to pay a few bucks if they like it, and to feel free to comment.
     Put all these things in a zip file. Give that zip on your website. You don’t host the movie, we the thieves do it for you
     If you have any technical question about this you could ocntact the upper guys who proposed it, or the rlslog staff maybe for advice, or even me at bobbydoh-at-gmail-dot-com

     But before you do any of this, you better check your legal rights to do so, because even if you own your movie, I’m afraid your contract with walmart, or theaters or whoever might disallow you to do so.

282. Goobimama
     November 17th, 2007 | 13:32

     This is an amazing movie! Gotta watch it!

283. woonie
     November 17th, 2007 | 14:53

     yes indeed this is one of the merits of file-sharing sites. It’s a really good form of advertisement for such independent musicians/film producers.

284. aissa
     November 17th, 2007 | 19:14

     i m from Morocco a thousands of miles from America , if it wasn’t for file sharing i wouldn’t appreciated watching this master-piece
     i think a cult movie is born…..

285. Markstar
     November 17th, 2007 | 20:10

     @282 (someone): Nice post!

     “The reason why this is working so well for them on imdb is not “filesharing”, it’s the quality of the movie.”

     I disagree and would say that it is the combination of both, especially in this case, and you have actually provided some of the reasons for that yourself. As you have said, while a good movie thrives thanks to a positive word of mouth, a bad one would utterly fail in the file sharing community and almost nobody would donate anything.

     However, P2P is not only a good way to spread the word but obviously also a good way for people to check the movie out. The ability to quickly reach a larger audience is an essential part of the snowball-effect, even more today than a couple of years ago (eg. look at the earnings from movie theaters, for example, which nowadays largely consist of the first 1-2 weeks. Now, even the biggest blockbusters stay on top very few weeks whereas in the good old days, movies would stay for months (iirc Star Wars was still running in some movie theaters when the next one came out)).
     Futhermore, I, for example, hate going to the movie theater (too expansive, no breaks if I g2g, more comfortable couch, as many refills as I want, whenever I want (and more variety, too), no need to drive somewhere, better sound at home, etc.) and of course you also reach the people who are simply not able to watch the film other than getting it through the Internet (besides independent movies, this also applies to the Asian market, where a lot of interesting movies are made but which would go by pretty much unnoticed if you couldn’t get them via P2P). And by the time the movie is out on DVD, most of the “buzz” is gone (if it was there in the first place) and I doubt you reach nearly as many people as you would have at the beginning with P2P.

     P.S.: We all know that we are not thieves. Quite the opposite: When I look around, even though most people I know use P2P (mostly university students), they still feel uncomfortable doing it. Not because they are afraid to get caught, but because they would like to reward the people who made the content instead of paying for some crap (here in Germany you have to pay $25 a month just for owning a TV, even if it is not plugged it and you don’t use it to watch any channels).

286. Blaster
     November 17th, 2007 | 20:24

     Cool i dont know about all you guys but if i like something i download i always buy it if i can i wonder if the anti piracy guys now that its quite common to download the the stuff first then buy it? Jerome Bixby’s The Man From Earth has already been ordered should arrive in a few days

287. Richard Schenkman
     November 18th, 2007 | 01:38

     Great post, 282! Thanks!

     Several people have suggested that we have a “one click to download” button at our website, and I think it’s a great idea.

     There are a couple of issues to work through first, however:

     1) There would need to be some sort of IP filter because Starz/Anchor Bay has the digital download rights in the US as well as the DVD rights. Granted, I don’t know exactly what, if anything, they’re doing to exploit those rights, but they DO have the download rights and so there can be no download available inside the US outside of what they do.

     2) We’re still trying to sell the international rights. While I’m sure some people would be willing to pay right then and there for a digital download, based on the donations that have come in so far to the PayPal site it seems hard to believe the total could ever come close to what we really need to earn from foreign sales.

     By selling the video, TV, and yes, download rights to distributors in each country or region, hopefully we will finally earn back enough money to break even on the film. As I wrote in an earlier post, the domestic rights didn’t even get us half-way there.

     I’m very excited about the possibilities of a “pay what you think is fair” download system, but without many, many more people willing to do so than we’ve currently seen, we’d have no hope of ever breaking even on the movie!

     I’m very open to suggestions!
     thanks–
     Richard

288. Eric D. Wilkinson
     November 18th, 2007 | 05:38

     Yeah… What he said!

289. Eric D. Wilkinson
     November 18th, 2007 | 05:43

     By the way, if you haven’t gone to IMDb and rated the movie, reviews the movie or posted comments, PLEASE DO SO. I really think we have a shot of moving into the top 3 tomorrow night. That would be really cool. Please head over to:

     http://imdb.com/title/tt0756683/board

     and post. Thanks!

290. Man from Finland
     November 18th, 2007 | 09:59

     Wow, this movie was so awesome that I even registered to the IMDB and gave this movie 10/10!

     Dear mr. Eric D. Wilkinson: If your movie comes to shops in Finland, I will buy it.

     To me being a pirate is a great way to find out things worth being purchased.

291. Quidam
     November 18th, 2007 | 14:47

     I have a Blockbuster account for pretty much just this reason.
     Most of the movies I torrent I end up getting from Blockbuster so I can see the extras, or just to watch it again because I’ve deleted it.

     Most of the torrenting I do is to get content that I can’t buy/rent due to availability.

     I just added this one to my queue.

292. U1
     November 18th, 2007 | 15:05

     File sharing helps in many ways, Eric D. Wilkinson i would just like to say i enjoyed your movie very much, its very very interesting, i will surely buy it when its out and add to my collection, its one of those ones i could watch over, i also passed it onto family and friends who very much enjoyed the movie too, good luck and can’t wait until your next movie.

     Regards

293. jack white
     November 18th, 2007 | 22:18

     thats how viewing our media should be. first download it, then watch it and if you like it then buy the dvd, if you cant afford the dvd then send them as much as you can afford. it should be cheaper as your not paying anything for the packaging and nothing for importing it, so you cut out the middleman and thus make the product as affordable as possible.

     piracy isnt killing the music, movie scene. its the greedy bast*rd profiteers who are ruining it.

294. Alex
     November 19th, 2007 | 00:15

     @jack white

     Totally agree! I also think this system should be expanded to restaurants. First, order your food, then eat it, and if you like it then buy it, if you cant afford the full meal, then just leave them as much as you can afford.

     The greedy profiteers that run restaurants are ruining that scene for everyone.

295. 1241 A.D.
     November 19th, 2007 | 01:40

     @BrotherJustin: Thanx that finally someone got the point in my bad english

     Somehow….some sort of “respect” was growing in me for Richard & Eric so I wait for the DVD to get released in “The Old World” and buy it. If your film starts here(maybe in Cinemas?) I will start my full supporting power right away to give you the best support from a single person, teasing it on my community Site(not that big…~1800 people/Month) I run, even some commercial banners (if allowed).

     I just can simply say again: Thanx for doing it that way.

296. Who?
     November 19th, 2007 | 02:27

     Such a great movie and one that I probably would never have heard of, or seen if it wasn’t for p2p.

     Great to see support for filesharing, I myself download music simply to hear if it is any good, I always buy the CD if it is worthy of £10 of my hard-earned cash.

     Eric D. Wilkinson - brilliant movie, thought provoking and challenging dialogue, my girlfriend and I are both scientists and we were fascinated.

     Like everyone else has said, support this genuine guy and buy the DVD.

297. aftermath
     November 19th, 2007 | 19:41

     I liked the movie. Hope they make more of those kinds of movies. It’s really interesting although the whole movie took place only in 1 place.

298. Myrdek
     November 20th, 2007 | 13:33

     I finished downloading this movie yesterday and was totally blown away! I just ordered it after finding it on Amazon.ca and posted the first review there.

     The producer shouldn’t be worried about profit because this movie will become a classic, I’m certain of it. It might take a couple of years before the fanbase becomes big enough but it will happen.

     Word to mouth, or keyboard to keyboard will do it’s job

299. Eric D. Wilkinson
     November 20th, 2007 | 16:12

     Thanks, Myrdek.

     I’m posting this to Thank you guys again for your support (and to be the 300 POST, Woooo!). The postings and reviews are still coming fast and furious on IMDb. Although we dropped a little to #22 on the MOVIEmeter, that is still WAY higher than I ever though we would get. Please keep letting us know what you think, if you havent already. We have our first “fan” built website (that’s so effin’ cool) at www.themanfromearth.com AND we have created a title page at the official “Jerome Bixby’s The Man From Earth” website at www.manfromearth.com to keep you updated on the latest. Many people have requested we post the song “Forever” (from the end of the movie during the credits). We should have it up later today as a free mp3 download for all to share (WITH NO DRM, ENJOY!).

     Thanks again. Please keep posting.

     Eric D. Wilkinson
     Producer
     Jerome Bixby’s The Man From Earth

300. kale
     November 20th, 2007 | 17:12

     congrats again to all involved. i hope to see more from you guys in future!

     i see you’re currently rated at 8.5/10. you’re not in the IMDB Top 250, but i guess that’s only because you need a certain amount of votes to qualify, but right now you’re rating alongside the likes of Lawrence of Arabia, The Matrix, Taxi Driver, Vertigo, It’s A Wonderful Life and Apocalypse Now!

     and better than Chinatown, The Shining, Reservoir Dogs, Raging Bull and Terminator 2!

     Not bad going, guys!

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