Kickstarter

Thanks to everyone for the flood of support!

Any additional funds raised will go 100% to the production of the film. We have already added a trip to Toronto. Anything else that comes in will enable us to add pick-up trips and also cover post-production costs that we had assumed we would pay out of pocket.

Our sincere thanks to everyone who believes in this project.

The introduction of home video had a massive impact on culture, business, and the development of media. The film-going public had unprecedented control over their viewing schedule, burgeoning filmmakers had inexpensive tools with which to create, and a new business was formed that expanded the reach of an already exploding industry. Videotape redefined the way modern society interacts with media. REWIND THIS! aims to be the definitive account of the home video revolution and a showcase of its continuing legacy.

WHERE WE'VE BEEN

We have already shot over 60 hours of footage in Dallas, Austin, Seattle, Los Angeles, New York, and several other cities in the US. We've conducted interviews in the offices of former employees of small scale film companies like Cannon, Vestron, Wizard, Troma, and IVE. We have also gone to great lengths to contact a variety of noteworthy filmmakers who emerged from the SOV (shot on video) era as well as directors who witnessed the transition from the theatrical market to the video store. We've been to all of the major North American rental chains both new and old. We've investigated how the change in media accessibility has affected society by discussing the matter with experts on this development, such as Frederick Wasser, author of "Veni Vidi Video: The Hollywood Empire and the VCR". Our preliminary interviews and research have revealed a powerful sense of nostalgia in a cross-section of the video generation.  For a large segment of the populace VHS calls to mind late-night sleepovers, romantic epochs, and countless unnameable guilty pleasures. We are interviewing collectors with thousands of tapes who continue to spend money building their libraries. REWIND THIS! will cover every aspect of the video story, from box art to the format wars.

WHERE WE'RE GOING

We are 90% completed with production. We have one remaining trip to Japan, where we hope to cover the creation of home video technology, as well as the extremely unique direct-to-video market that exists there. We also have some post-production expenses to get the film ready to screen for audiences (website design, errors & omissions insurance, etc...).

We have been working on this project for almost 2 years. It is a labor of love by a small team of filmmakers whose lives were forever changed by the advent of home video. While having strong individual personalities and different production roles, the team behind REWIND THIS! is bonded by a mutual obsession with the totality of cinema, from the universally lauded to the shamefully ignored. A true independent film, there have been no corporate or private investors involved with the production thus far. This campaign is the final step in bringing the film to completion.

Keep in touch:
Website
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REWARDS

"Rewind This!" poster by Stephanie Vanelli. 9x13

"Rewind This!" handmade charm.

"Vietnam War Movie Memorial" print by Tim Doyle. 18x24

"VHS Bed" by Kayla Kromer. Includes twin-size inflatable mattress, fitted VHS sheet and flat sheet cover, both with printed designs.

"Push the Button" by Tim Kerr. Framed. Tempera Paint on paper. 20x26

"VHS to the Max" by Rob Rough. Bleach on black denim fabric. 28x39