Tag: NFTs

Advent Entertainment Launching Security Token for Consumer Profit Participation in Content

Advent Entertainment, a film and entertainment funding company, has launched the Advent Token, what it bills as the first digital security that opens the door for investors to participate in potential upside in future Hollywood movies, television shows and video games created by Advent Entertainment.

It will officially launch on Oct. 24, 2022.

Advent Token will be listed on INX ONE, “the world’s first and only fully regulated, end-to-end platform for listing and trading both SEC-registered security tokens and cryptocurrencies,” according to Advent.

“We all grew up with icons like Stan Lee. Can you imagine profiting from the characters he created? Advent Token allows you to join in the potential profits of Hollywood productions,” said Lee Baker, CEO of Advent Entertainment. “But our goal is so much more than potential future profits. Through next-generation technology, we aim to create a worldwide community which immerses creators and fans into film, television, music, and games using augmented reality, virtual reality, cryptocurrencies, digital securities, NFTs, the metaverse and Web 3. Join in production and creation. Bridge the gap between the digital world and the real world. See superheroes, speed-of-light jets, intelligent robots, and World War II fighter planes in the lobbies of theaters, at shopping malls, in restaurants and in your homes. Experience the movie and so much more.”

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The team of Advent includes Academy Award winner Keith Merrill and is led by Lee Baker and Jarom Sidwell, who have worked on projects such as Avatar, Avengers, Spider-Man, Race to Witch Mountain, as well as with Stan Lee. Advent joined forces with DIMA, known for its work on Oscar-winning Parasite and “Squid Game,” and Golden Loop Group, which runs a cryptocurrency wallet (GLG Wallet) and coin and is working with K-Pop, K-NFT and K-Comics. They are currently producing a television series called “Advent,” which is about the rise of artificial intelligence to save humanity. Consumers can join the production through the Advent Robots NFT collection, consisting of 11,111 unique robots based on the television series.

“We are very excited to offer the Advent Entertainment security token on INX ONE. They deliver to investors around the world an opportunity to invest in the entertainment sector on the ground floor,” said Shy Datika, CEO of INX, in a statement. “Advent is led by an extremely talented team with a solid track record of success, with some incredible names assigned to the issuance. Democratizing alternative investment opportunities is what INX does best and we look forward to the opening of the raise.” 

The Advent team has created a slate of film and television projects and plans to use security tokens, cryptocurrencies, NFTs, the metaverse, video games, augmented reality, and virtual reality to enhance consumer participation in the projects from start to finish.

“The plan is to see superheroes, animated characters, speed-of-light jets, intelligent robots, and World War II fighter planes in the lobbies of theaters and in your own home,” according to an Advent press release.

Lionsgate Launching ‘Saw’ Movie-Themed Immersive Games

Lionsgate Oct. 18 announced it has expanded its partnership with Autograph, the web3 brand co-founded by Tampa Bay Buccaneers QB Tom Brady, for a new collaboration with Internet Game to launch three “Saw” movie-themed immersive games based on encrypted blockchain technology and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

Since the first Saw movie release in 2003, the macabre survivalist horror franchise has grossed more than $1 billion at the global box office. Lionsgate and Twisted Pictures will release the next “Saw” movie theatrically on Oct. 27, 2023.

To play, users must purchase a Saw Games Pass on any of the following three marketplaces: GameStop NFT, Magic Eden, and Internet Game. Passes can be purchased during the public sale on Oct. 24, at 12 p.m. ET. An early window sale will begin on Oct. 21, on GameStop NFT, where a limited number of passes will be available for purchase.

The passes will grant users access to three “Saw”-themed mini-games: Acid Bath, Blood Bucket and Incinerator on the Internet Game platform. The games will take place over three separate days: Halloween (Oct. 31), Nov. 2 and Nov. 4. The metadata of the Games Passes will update for each game to reflect each player’s performance.

Players who “survive” all three games have the opportunity to win prizes, including a combination of “Saw” NFTs and blue chip NFTs. Prizes include an on-set tour of the next “Saw” film, a Mutant Ape NFT, a winner having their name appear in the next Saw film, a trip to the new Saw: The Experience in London, and a Doodles NFT, among other prizes.

“Working with Autograph over the last year has allowed us to give fans the chance to interact with the Saw franchise like never before,” Jenefer Brown, EVP and head of global products and experiences at Lionsgate, said in a statement. “In bringing Internet Game on board as a partner, we’re able to deepen engagement through gamified NFTs that allow fans to become a part of the Saw franchise in a new experience-driven way.”

Twisted Pictures’ co-founders Mark Burg and Oren Koules said expanding the Saw movie franchise to new consumers through interactive gaming is an exciting proposition.

“Our partnership with Lionsgate and Autograph is perfectly timed to engage Saw’s global fan base in exciting new ways, while introducing the franchise to a whole new audience,” they said.

Dillon Rosenblatt, CEO and co-founder of Autograph, said the expanded partnership gives the movie franchise’s fans access to gamified digital collectibles and in-person experiences.

“This collaboration, the mini-games, and the unique prizes will enrich horror fans’ experiences and bring multiple communities closer to their favorite film franchise in a new and exciting way,” Rosenblatt said.

GameStop Launches NFT Marketplace

GameStop July 11 announced the launch of a marketplace to allow gamers, creators, collectors and other consumers to buy, sell and trade non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

The video game retailer’s NFT marketplace is a non-custodial, Ethereum Layer 2-based marketplace that enables parties to own their digital assets, which are represented and secured on the blockchain.

The NFT market revolves around collectibles, including digital artwork, sports cards and similar artifacts that can create market value based on consumer interest.

The marketplace, which can be accessed at https://nft.gamestop.com, allows parties to connect to their own digital asset wallets such as the recently launched GameStop Wallet. Over time, the marketplace will expand functionality to encompass additional categories such as Web3 gaming, more creators and other Ethereum environments, according to GameStop.

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GameStop, which most-recently posted a $147.5 million quarterly loss, is looking to transform from a legacy packaged-media retailer to digital and streaming gaming.

New NFTs of Anthony Hopkins Feature ‘Zero Contact’ Available

Vuele has announced two mass consumer drops of the feature film NFT Zero Contact, offering two different choices of NFT bundles to collect and trade on the platform. 

Vuele.io will allow consumers to purchase the “Exclusive Edition” NFT bundle for $59 on Feb. 22 and  the “Collector’s Edition” NFT bundle for $25 on Feb. 28.

There are 2,500 bundles of the Zero Contact “Exclusive Edition” NFT, which includes the feature film, a making-of featurette, a signed poster, and three randomly generated character trading cards. There are 25,000 bundles of the Zero Contact “Collector’s Edition” NFT, which includes both the feature film and poster (not signed).

Vuele’s soft launch in September 2021 offered collectors eleven NFT drops through OpenSea, bringing in revenue of more than six figures, according to the company.

Launched in 2021, Vuele, created by Enderby Entertainment and CurrencyWorks Inc.,is the first direct-to-consumer, full-length feature film viewing and distribution platform delivering feature films and digital collectible entertainment content as NFTs. Users will be able to become owners of exclusive limited-edition film and collector NFT content which they can watch, collect, sell and trade on the Vuele.io platform.

“We are seeing a lot of areas in entertainment exploring uses for NFTs and Blockchain, with Vuele we’re focused on engaging a fan base in a new distribution model, not to compete with the existing model but as an alternative,” said the film’s producer-director Rick Dugdale, co-founder of Vuele and CEO of Enderby Entertainment. “This is a new revenue stream similar to the way streaming created one or further back when studios were taking back catalogue titles and creating DVD box sets with bonus features. NFTs offer the consumer that same type of exclusive access and collectibility.”

To purchase the Zero Contact NFT bundles, viewers can create their Vuele account on Vuele.io and purchase with a credit card or crypto currency by connecting their digital wallet.

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Produced in 17 different countries entirely virtually during the pandemic, Zero Contact follows five characters based all over the world, connected only by their devotion to the late founder and tech titan Finley Hart (Anthony Hopkins, The Father). They are forced to work together to shut down Hart’s most secret invention, a machine that is either the solution to mankind’s problems or the end of life on Earth. 

Lionsgate’s Grindstone Acquires Non-NFT North American Distribution Rights to ‘Zero Contact’

Liongate’s Grindstone Entertainment Group has acquired non-NFT (non-fungible token) North American distribution rights to Enderby Entertainment’s Zero Contact, a thriller released as the first NFT (non-fungible token) feature film for Vuele.

Grindstone will release the film in May after the NFT window.

Zero Contact follows five characters located all over the world, connected only by their devotion to the late founder and tech titan Finley Hart played by Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins (The Father). The characters are forced to work together to shut down Hart’s most secret invention, a machine that is either the solution to mankind’s problems or the end of life on earth. The cast includes Aleks Paunovic (“Hawkeye”) Chris Brochu (Soul Surfer, Recon) and Rukiya Bernard  (“Yellowjackets”) and Adrian Holmes (“Bel-Air”). 

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Enderby Entertainment went into production in December on back-to-back sequels for the franchise, filming in Antarctica as the first Hollywood film ever to shoot on the continent. The production will continue to shoot in 13 countries around the world, including Bolivia, Peru, Sweden, Turkey, Egypt, Malaysia and France. 

“We’re continuing to explore a new distribution model that includes an NFT window for feature films, and even more meaningful to partner once again with Lionsgate and Grindstone to release Zero Contact in this unique way,” said Enderby CEO and director Rick Dugdale in a statement. “After our launch on Vuele, we are continuing to break barriers with this franchise as we are the first production to film in Antarctica.”

“Zero Contact is a mysterious, twisty thriller that will keep audiences guessing until the very end,” said Barry Brooker, president and CEO of Grindstone Entertainment Group, in a statement. “Featuring a powerhouse performance by Anthony Hopkins, we are confident that Zero Contact will keep moviegoers on the edge of their seats.”

CES Panel: Opportunity Abounds With Entertainment-Related NFTs

Some of the hot terms at CES 2022 are crypto, blockchain and NFTs (non-fungible tokens or one-of-a-kind digital assets).

In the entertainment space, NFTs are digital collectibles stored on a blockchain that can be everything from artwork to GIFs to social experiences to video content such as movies.

Speakers Jan. 5 on the “Creator Economy in the Context of Crypto” panel at CES discussed the opportunities in the space.

“From a Fox perspective, we see this as the future of media, a future form of content distribution,” said Scott Greenberg, CEO of Blockchain Creative Labs. The business and creative unit was launched last year by Fox Entertainment and its animation arm Bento Box Entertainment (“Bob’s Burgers,” “The Great North”) to provide content creators, IP owners and advertising partners end-to-end blockchain computer ecosystem solutions to build, launch, manage and sell NFT content and experiences, and fungible tokens, as well as digital goods and assets. Blockchain Creative Labs launched NFTs with Fox’s popular show “The Masked Singer.”

Scott Greenberg

“We’re also looking at launching TV shows this way,” he said, noting the upcoming launch of “Krapopolis,” created by Dan Harmon (“Rick and Morty”), will be the first ever animated series curated entirely on the blockchain. The series will have a dedicated marketplace that will curate and sell digital goods, ranging from NFTs of one-of-a-kind character and background art and GIFs to tokens that provide exclusive social experiences to engage and reward superfans.

Scott Zanghellini

Also on the panel was Scott Zanghellini, head of new revenue at WWE, which has partnered with Blockchain Creative Labs. Last April, WWE launched its first NFT with drops (releases of unique digital products) around its star The Undertaker. WWE followed up this summer with a drop for star John Cena. He noted that the WWE knows what its fans like via engagement at events, on social media, on YouTube and at other contact points.

“In terms of … putting out NFTs, we also know what the fan wants,” he said.

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Zanghellini said the WWE is looking to use its talent, its “super sauce,” to educate consumers who may not be as sophisticated or familiar with NFTs as early adopters.

“We can have the superstars of WWE explain to their fans, the way John Madden explained football … how to buy an NFT, how to engage, why it’s a value,” Greenberg added.

Blockchain Creative Labs is looking at a wide range of distribution models.

“We think there’s a huge opportunity for television shows and movies to be financed and distributed using Web 3 and the blockchain,” he said.

AMC Theatres Launches Branded ‘I Own AMC’ NFTs

On the heels of the popular launch of Spider-Man: No Way Home-themed nonfungible tokens (NFTs), AMC Theatres Dec. 6 announced a second NFT to all AMC Investor Connect members, to be delivered by the Worldwide Asset eXchange (WAX).

NFTs have become a potentially lucrative means for owners of intellectual property to sell virtual crypto currency-based trading cards to fans that can fluctuate in value like shares of stock.

The Spider-Man themed NFT was the first ever issued in significant quantity by a theatrical exhibitor, and the AMC Investor Connect “I Own AMC” NFT will be the second, according to the exhibitor.

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“After our first NFT met with enthusiasm earlier this week, there was no doubt we would embark on issuing another NFT,” CEO Adam Aron said in a statement. “I can say with certainty there will be more NFTs in AMC’s future.”

Indeed, since accepting most forms of crypto currency for online ticket purchases earlier this year, AMC has now embraced the world of self-promoting NFTs as way of rewarding loyal moviegoers, turned “investors” in the company.

“Building on the demand from our first AMC launch, WAX continues to trailblaze in innovation by introducing a unique NFT membership program,” added William Quigley, co-founder of WAX. “Through our continued partnership with AMC, we will offer NFTs that unlock real-world experiences.”

AMC Theatres CEO: ‘We Broke the Internet’ Selling ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Movie NFTs

AMC Theatres’ website almost crashed Sunday (Nov. 28) when it began offering advanced tickets to Sony Pictures’ pandemic-delayed Spider-Man: No Way Home, now debuting in theaters on Dec. 17.

Driving the slowdown was AMC’s first foray into the non-fungible token (NFT) market. Specifically, the nation’s largest exhibitor, beginning Nov. 28, tweeted it would offer the first-ever NFTs surrounding the “Spider-Man” movie franchise to the first 86,000 AMC Stubs Premiere, AMC Stubs A-List, and AMC Investor Connect members who bought advanced tickets online.

The announcement triggered an influx of online traffic, causing a surge as customers tried to get their hands on the unique digital artwork, or NFTs, that can be traded like shares of stock.

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“It’s like we broke the internet,” CEO Adam Aron told Fox Business Network’s “The Claman Countdown.” “My tweets in the last 24 hours have been read three-and-a-half million times. The traffic we had to our website and mobile app last night were the highest that AMC has ever seen.”

Adam said AMC worked with Sony and blockchain expert WAX to come up with 100 different NFTs around No Way Home. The strategy worked as AMC sold more tickets Sunday night than it has ever sold in an overnight shift before.

“We’re talking massive surges above normal,” Aron said.

When asked if No Way Home would be the chain’s highest-grossing release, Aron said the title is currently locked in a battle with the 2018 Marvel Studios’ release Avengers: Endgame, a title that grossed nearly $2.8 billion in ticket sales, including $858 million domestically.

“It’s really close,” he said. “The point is, [No Way Home] is a really big movie. It’s going to be a really big movie. And we sold a tremendous number of tickets.”

Cinedigm Selling Horror-Based ‘Bloody Disgusting’ NFT Trading Cards

Cinedigm Oct. 26 announced it would be releasing a series of NFT-based trading cards branded as “Bloody Disgusting Blood Packs.” Los Angeles-based Cinedigm is partnering with Dark Arts Emporium to commission horror artists Luke Chueh, Chet Zar, Rick Dienzo, Wes Benscoter, Jeremy Cross and Jim Evans (also known as T.A.Z.) to create original paintings based on their favorite death scenes from horror movies.

The first 13 cards, which will utilize a distinctive horror and gore aesthetic, constitute the Gallery Edition of the “Kill Scenes” series. In celebration of Halloween, for the 6 Nights, 6 Hours and 6 minutes prior to Oct. 31 night, the collectible NFTs will be sold on an online auction.

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The Non-Fungible Tokens (NFT) movement has seen an increase in media interest. The tokens are unique digital files that are stored on the Ethereum blockchain, which allows the verification, ownership and provenance of these digital files to third parties.

Cinedigm is also offering new subscribers to the subscription-based service Screambox a trading card from the Standard Edition series. New subs will receive one art-based NFT collectible trading card that has been specifically designed to generate a limited number of random unique variations.

New subscribers to Screambox during the Halloween promotion receive a URL for the NFT marketplace where they will be able to redeem their card.

“The acquisition of Bloody Disgusting and Screambox has placed us in a unique position to enter the market for horror-based entertainment as well as horror collectibles,” Tony Huidor, chief technology and product officer at Cinedigm, said in a statement.

Huidor said the Bloody Disgusting trading cards represents Cinedigm’s first step in exploiting the distributor’s brands and expanding its business monetization via new technology.

“Being a horror fan goes hand in hand with collecting,” added Tom Owen, co-founder of Bloody Disgusting. “We’re rabid collectors of all things horror, and NFTs are an exciting new space with endless possibilities.”

NFT Offering for Anthony Hopkins Film ‘Zero Contact’ Tallies Nearly $100,000

Global NFT (non-fungible token) distribution and viewing platform Vuele grossed nearly six figures with the feature film Zero Contact, according to the company.

Vuele brought in 32.86267 ETH (Ether cryptocurrency) or $93,435 with the release of 11 NFT “drops” of the thriller starring Oscar-winner Anthony Hopkins. The “Platinum Edition” NFT drop alone sold for 20 ETH ($56,860).

Zero Contact is the first feature film NFT distributed by Vuele.

The “NFT drops mark an incredible new step for the feature film distribution industry as well as film collecting and fan engagement,” according to a company press release.

“In just these few short days, we’ve seen a community form around our film, enhanced fan engagement, and also proved a new revenue stream in the industry. We think this is groundbreaking,” Rick Dugdale, co-founder of Vuele and director-producer of the film, said in a statement. “Our goal was to earn the respect of the NFT space in order for us to create staying power and help blaze a new path for filmmakers. Not only is this now a proven distribution model, but we will be able to create new film financing structures moving forward.”

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Each winning NFT allows the lucky winner to be edited into the film with a personal Zero Contact shoot and edit. In addition, each winner receives signed digital artwork of the film poster, the “making of” the film, Crypto Generative Art by REMO x Dcsan and a Vuele “Golden Ticket.” The “Platinum” one of one winner also receives a walk-on role in the Zero Contact Universe.