Michael Cieply: Participant Sank When Everyone Jumped In
deadline.comAt first, I was shocked by the news that Participant Media was dying. Such an appealing company. Smart. Mindful. Vibrant. Forward-thinking.
The producer of intelligent films like Spotlight and Green Book, with a distinctly progressive message. How could this be? Then it finally hit me.
Whatever else may have happened—announcing the shutdown, proprietor Jeff Skoll cited “revolutionary” changes in the entertainment business—Participant went under, I believe, because most of high-end Hollywood jumped into the company’s basically sound but modestly sized boat.
The purpose-film niche was swamped. It’s almost hard to remember that 20 years ago, when Participant was founded, the notion of a self-consciously message-oriented, activist film company was actually novel.
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