If you are interested in screening or purchasing a film and you don’t hear back quickly from Jem, please contact the appropriate distributor listed below. Thank you.
A note re formats: although almost all of the films were shot on film, all are distributed on video or dvd, with the exception of BENJAMIN SMOKE, which can (occasionally) be made available on 16mm. INSTRUMENT, BENJAMIN SMOKE, and BUILDING A BROKEN MOUSETRAP are available as ‘official’ dvd releases. Some other titles may be available on dvd-r through Video Data Bank. Someday, Jem will release more films on dvd, but that day is not yet here.
VIDEO DATA BANK has most of Jem’s works. They deal primarily with institutional venues that wish to rent or buy work for classrooms, libraries, festivals, and other public exhibition. They will also sell some titles to individuals (for home use only).
Video Data Bank (www.vdb.org)
c/o S.A.I.C.
112 S. Michigan Ave.
Chicago, IL 60603
Fax: 312.541.8073
Tel: 312.345.3550, 800 634-8544
Email: info@vdb.org
In Europe most of the short films and CHAIN are also distributed,
for institutional use only, by:
LUX:
18 Shacklewell Lane
London E8 2EZ, United Kingdom
Tel: + 44 (0)20 7503 3980
Fax: + 44 (0)20 7503 1606
Email: info@lux.org.ukwww.lux.org.uk
www.lux.org.uk
see ‘collection’, then ‘online catalogue,’
or go directly to:
www.lux.org.uk/catalogue/index.html
and search alphabetically under ‘C’
Additional Distributors:
If you are interested in CHAIN for festivals, broadcast, or institutional use, please leave a message through this site first. If you don’t hear right back, contact Video Data Bank or Lux.
CHAIN is not yet out on dvd. We hope to release it later this year.
INSTRUMENT and BENJAMIN SMOKE are available on dvd through:
DISCHORD RECORDS (www.dischord.com)
3819 Beecher St. NW
Washington, D.C. 20007-1802, USA
Email: info@dischord.com
(703) 351-7507
For home use, INSTRUMENT can be ordered for $16, U.S. postage paid. Comes with an accompanying 16 page booklet, 2 extra short films: GLUE MAN, and LITTLE FLAGS, and 3 live Fugazi performances.
For public screenings, contact Dischord, VDB, or Lux.
The BENJAMIN SMOKE dvd has 45 minutes of extra material, including:
CAT POWER LIVE: FROM FUR CITY (2002, 16mm, 4:30)
THE FOXX AND LITTLE VIC
Vic Chesnutt with T.Griffin and Catherine McRae (2001, 16mm, 6:30) GEORGIA THIEF
Smoke at the Clermont Lounge, Atlanta (2002, Super 8, 5:15 min.)
The BUILDING A BROKEN MOUSETRAP dvd is available via Touch and Go Records in the U.S. and through the Ex in Europe.
To order in the U.S., call Touch and Go Record’s toll free mailorder (US Only) 1-800-3-TOUCHU
Or, ask for it at your local underground record store.
In Europe, go to:
http://www.theex.nl/shop.htm
It is listed under ‘Various.’
A Note re downloads, youtube, Bit-torrent sites, etc.
While we can understand why people would view and post films on the internet that are otherwise unavailable, these versions are often sub-par in quality, poorly excerpted, put up in the wrong formats, etc. This is unfortunate, to say the least.
Please contact Jem through this site before you post his work on the net. In the case of readily available films, please support an independent filmmaker and his independent distributors by buying or renting the films. It will look much better, and it will help Jem and these organizations keep doing their work. Please be thoughtful.
(Netflix, by the way, generally pays no royalties to filmmakers).