News Release
IN DISTRIBUTOR ACQUISITION
Distributor Passion River withholds hundreds of thousands
of dollars from indie filmmakers
“We played straight with Allen Chou. Allen Chou didn’t play straight with us,” said producer John Wehrheim (The Edge of Paradise). “We lost a lot of money doing business with him, but more than the money—what a waste of time! Allen didn’t even have the courtesy to let me know he was pulling up stakes, folding his tent, and disappearing over the horizon. I got the news over the coconut wireless.”
While filmmakers report Passion River failed to meet their mandated reporting requirements for years, the distributor began fully withholding account statements and payments beginning in the Fall of 2022.
Yet throughout 2022, Passion River continued to sign new filmmakers, set release dates for these films as late as December, and pitch films to platforms.
“Passion River is not the first, or last, film company to go out of business. But the lack of transparency, failed reporting and missed payments simultaneous to continued recoupment off filmmakers’ backs is egregiously unethical,” says Emmy- and Peabody-winning and Oscar-nominated producer Amy Hobby (The Last Laugh).
On January 31st, 2023 some, but not all, of the filmmakers received their first notice of a transition from Josh Levin, former Head of Sales & Acquisitions at Passion River and now Vice President of Sales at BayView. In a mass email, he informed the filmmakers that “…Passion River lost the ability to meet its obligations and has sold the majority of its assets to Bay View Entertainment, LLC. BayView is a venerable, much larger distributor with an outstanding 20+ year reputation in film distribution.”
On March 14, 2023, select filmmakers were put in touch with Peter Castro, Vice President of BayView. Mr. Castro informed the filmmakers that BayView had acquired the “assets, but not the liabilities” of Passion River, and therefore were not responsible for any outstanding payments owed by Passion River. They asked filmmakers to sign new distribution contracts, with terms that did not match previous Passion River agreements. Mr. Castro informed the majority of the filmmakers that BayView was unable to retrieve any money that Passion River owed them prior to Q4 2022, meaning that Passion River would retain the entirety of the sales, retaining hundreds of thousands in revenue from hundreds of films.
“Right now, our film is on cable TV, Paramount+, and other streamers worldwide—and we still have yet to see over 70% of those sales owed to us,” said director Alex Liu (A Sexplanation). “Being an independent filmmaker is hard enough—yet entrusting our life’s work to someone who didn’t have the decency to tell us about their intent to sell the business as we were spending thousands on marketing out of our own pockets—it’s a harrowing testament to the sheer insensitivity this industry harbors towards the artists who make it all possible.”
Other filmmakers say they were left completely in the dark—never having been contacted by BayView or Passion River regarding the transition.
“If Allen Chou had notified us we would at least have had some idea of where things were at—instead we were left to seek out and navigate the truth of this situation on our own,” said producer Megan Dirksen (Selfless).
Communication from Passion River quickly dwindled to nonexistent. Chou ignored multiple requests to audit Passion River’s financials due to missed payments, violating his contracts with filmmakers.
“Communication dropped off as the years went on,” said filmmaker Jacob Bricca (Finding Tatanka). “Finally, after repeated attempts to get a reply, I got a statement in January 2023 that I was owed over $1400. I have yet to receive the money, and their offices have gone dark. All voice mailboxes are full, emails go unreturned, and posts to social media sites go unanswered. I sent a certified letter to their New Jersey address alleging breach of contract and demanding payment and have not received a reply. I have never seen a penny from Passion River.”
For months, the only communication from Chou about the sale was a press release, in which he stated: “It’s exciting to watch BayView persist in our goal of supporting talented filmmakers and releasing impactful films for communities.” Passion River’s website remained active, along with their social media profiles. Films no longer signed with Passion River also remained on the site. Mr. Chou remains the owner and publisher of Video Librarian.
Without communication from Mr. Chou or the team at Passion River, most filmmakers could not move their films to new distributors, as they required written confirmation that Passion River no longer retained any rights. Numerous emails and calls went unanswered.
Eventually, 33 filmmakers wrote a joint letter to Chou requesting confirmation that the rights to their films had reverted back to them. It was only after this group effort that Chou sent a letter confirming this—over 12 weeks after the acquisition—keeping them from making any future sales.
“This has been a horrible experience where we as filmmakers have been disrespected and disregarded by all involved,” said director Kim Laureen (Selfless).
A majority of the films in Passion River’s catalog are independent social issue documentaries, whose low budget, self-financed productions were made with passion to connect audiences with stories not covered in mainstream film and television.
“The implosion of Passion River should be a warning sign to all independent filmmakers of the fragile and broken state of our industry, and the imperative to build new distribution models, with layers of transparency and accountability to ensure this never happens to any filmmaker or project again,” said filmmaker Lance Kramer (City of Trees).
“We face far too many obstacles as it is in this business. To then be so blatantly taken advantage of by people who claim they ‘empower filmmakers’ and hold teaching positions at major universities is an indictment of the predatory nature of this industry. The one silver lining in this situation has been getting to know passionate, talented filmmakers who have an orientation towards justice and a knack for activism.” said director Pat Murphy (Psychedelia).
Director Kim Laureen (Selfless): “I signed with Passion River in 2020. Since day one I have had to chase reports and payments and have received neither since mid-2022. I was never notified of Passion River closing or BayView taking over until I reached out on the internet to find an article and then connected with other filmmakers who were also in the dark. This has been a horrible experience where we as filmmakers have been disrespected and disregarded by all involved.”
Director Jacob Bricca (Finding Tatanka): “I first signed with Passion River in early 2017 following the release of my feature documentary Finding Tatanka. They were responsive at first, informing me of sales they had made and giving me regular statements showing that I was slowly paying off the charges associated with creating the DVD and distributing the film. This communication dropped off as the years went on. I finally contacted them again in mid 2022. These inquiries went unanswered. Finally, after repeated attempts to get a reply, I got a statement in January 2023 that I was owed over $1400. I have yet to receive the money, and their offices have gone dark. All voice mailboxes are full, emails go unreturned, and posts to social media sites go unanswered. I sent a certified letter to their New Jersey address alleging breach of contract and demanding payment and have not received a reply. I have never seen a penny from Passion River.”
Director John Wehrheim (The Edge of Paradise): “We played straight with Allen Chou. Allen Chou didn’t play straight with us. We signed The Edge of Paradise with Passion River in 2019. Payments were always late. We had to hound them. Eventually, Allen stopped paying. We lost a lot of money doing business with him, but more than the money—what a waste of time! Allen didn’t even have the courtesy to let me know he was pulling up stakes, folding his tent, and disappearing over the horizon. I got the news over the coconut wireless.”
Director Pat Murphy (Psychedelia): “I spent 10 years making my documentary, and overcame all sorts of odds to do so. I trusted Passion River with my baby. When a streaming platform approached me directly about licensing my film, I brought Passion River into the conversation in a good faith effort to honor our partnership. They returned the favor by withholding my payment during this shady deal with Bay View. We face far too many obstacles as it is in this business. To then be blatantly taken advantage of by people who claim they ‘empower filmmakers’ and hold teaching positions at major universities is an indictment of the predatory nature of this industry. The one silver lining in this situation has been getting to know passionate, talented filmmakers who have an orientation towards justice and a knack for activism.”
Producer Amy Hobby (The Last Laugh) and Co-Founder Distribution Advocates:
This story points to ongoing systemic failures and inequities in distribution of independent content. As a Co-Founder of Distribution Advocates, I was excited to see filmmakers building community and fighting for their rights in the face of this grossly unethical situation.
Producer Lance Kramer (City of Trees) and co-founder of Meridian Hill Pictures:
“The implosion of Passion River should be a warning sign to all independent filmmakers of the fragile and broken state of our industry, and the imperative to build new distribution models, with layers of transparency and accountability to ensure this never happens to any filmmaker or project again.”
