Janus Films studio logo is present on many Criterion DVDs and Blu-rays.  I've always thought that when present, they were the US distributor of the film and really didn't have anything to do with the DVD/Blu-ray production.  However, many profiles of Criterion Collection have Janus Films in the DVD Distributing Studio slot.  Can this be correct?

Quoting kosvines:

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According to Wikipedia, Janus Films is a theatrical distributor, and have licensed some of their films to Criterion. Seems like Janus Films buys foreign films for US distribution. So they're not a production company, since they have no involvement in any film productions.

Yes, so that means Janus Films needs to go in the first regular studio slot as the theatrical distributing studio for US locality and not in the DVD distributing studio slots.

Quoting hal9g:

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Janus Films was not involved in the original theatrical releases of any of the films in The Criterion Collection.  The first field in the Studios field is for the company responsible for the original theatrical release.

Where do you see this in the rules (bold by me)?

The rules state

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Studios
List the Studios in the following priority.

    * Theatrical Release Studio(s)
    * Production Company(s)

I take this to mean Theatrical Releasing Studio in the locality of the DVD.  For that, for most of the films in The Criterion Collection, Janus Films was the theatrical releasing studio in the US.

For example on their main page, they have the following for the movie, House.  They sure sound like a theatrical releasing studio rather than a DVD distributor.

Quote:

HOUSE

Coming soon to theater near you: Nobuhiko Obayashi's 1977 psychedelic horror classic House, which will be receiving its first-ever U.S. release. Click here for more on the film, including playdates, press notes, stills, and our new poster.

Quoting xradman:

Quote:

The rules state

Quote:
Studios
List the Studios in the following priority.

    * Theatrical Release Studio(s)
    * Production Company(s)

I take this to mean Theatrical Releasing Studio in the locality of the DVD.

I don't, to be honest. This would imply a wide variety of Theatrical Releasing Studios across localities, and that's not what I have encountered. Moreover, what is (erroneously) called "Production Year" in DVDP (in fact: the theatrical release year) also refers to a film's original theatrical release (which usually equals the release in the film's CoO). And IMHO it would not make sense if Production Year would refer to one theatrical release and Studios to another one.

Edit: here's an example. Alfred Hitchcock's "The 39 Steps" (1935, UK as CoO) usually has Gaumont-British Pictures (UK-based, obviously) listed as Studio, not Janus Films, even though Janus did the theatrical (re-)release in the US.

Quoting dee1959jay:

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I don't, to be honest. This would imply a wide variety of Theatrical Releasing Studios across localities, and that's not what I have encountered. Moreover, what is (erroneously) called "Production Year" in DVDP (in fact: the theatrical release year) also refers to a film's original theatrical release (which usually equals the release in the film's CoO). And IMHO it would not make sense if Production Year would refer to one theatrical release and Studios to another one.

Let me ask you a question then.  What is the proper theatrical releasing studio for US DVD profile of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon?  This was a HK/China production, and by your logic, should have EDKO Films as the theatrical releasing studio.  My US DVD profile has Sony Pictures Classics as the theatrical releasing studio (top position in the studio credit).

Quoting hal9g:

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Quoting xradman:

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I take this to mean Theatrical Releasing Studio in the locality of the DVD.  For that, for most of the films in The Criterion Collection, Janus Films was the theatrical releasing studio in the US.

Janus had nothing to do with the Theatrical Release of any of The Criterion Collection films.  Their only role was in the distribution of the DVDs.

They may be the theatrical release company for other films, but not The Criterion Collection.

You are absolutely wrong on this.  I don't know about all the films, but like in the example I gave, they are the theatrical distributor in the US for House.  House is also being released as a Criterion Blu-ray on October 26, 2010.

Janus Films Play dates for House

Amazon listing for House

Janus might very well be the domestic theatrical distributor for some foreign films in the USA, but we generally never list local theatrical distributors, only the original distributor in the country of origin. I can't see any other place for them than media company, where unfortunately pretty much anything that's printed on the cover goes.

And if some other profiles have been entered wrong, doesn't mean that Criterion releases should also be entered wrong. That's just faulty logic.

Quoting KinoNiki:

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Janus might very well be the domestic theatrical distibutor for some foreign films, but we generally never list local theatrical distributors, only the original distributor in the country of origin.

I don't know about any other regions, but that certainly isn't true for R1 US.

Ponyo was released in Japan by Toho Company, in the US by Disney.  The theatrical release studio for the R1 profile is Disney, not Toho Company.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was released in China by EDKO Film. in the US by Sony Pictures Classics.  The theatrical release studio for the R1 profile is Sony, not EDKO Film.

The Fifth Element was released in France by Gaumont Buena Vista International, in the US by Columbia Pictures.  The theatrical release studio for the R1 profile is Columbia, not GBVI.