The life and times of Long Island clam-diggers

Variety writes, "HDNet Films, the hi-def feature production arm of and Mark Cuban's 2929 Entertainment, has greenlit the period piece `Diggers,' starring Paul Rudd, Ken Marino, Josh Hamilton, Ron Eldard, Maura Tierney, Lauren Ambrose and Sarah Paulson." The story is about two-generations of Hamptons clam-diggers, set in the 1970s. It'll be released simultaneously to theaters, cable, and on DVD.

While theater chains other than Landmark (owned by Mark Cuban and his pal Todd Wagner) have chafed at showing films released this way, Cuban mentioned to me last month in an interview that he'd offer an incentive to other theater chains, cutting them in on one percent of the DVD revenues.

"That’s a new revenue stream that they never got before," Cuban said. "That’s found money. In essence, theatrical has become as much promotion for DVD and other exploitations, and the theatres aren’t rewarded for that."