DivX Hosts Free Film Screening of Before the Music Dies

SAN DIEGO - DivX will host a screening of Before the Music Dies, a documentary that reveals the darker side of the music industry at UCSD’s Price Center in La Jolla. Admission is free and the event is open to the public.

Filmmakers Andrew Shapter and Joel Rasmussen take viewers behind the scenes with Erykah Badu, Branford Marsalis, Questlove, Elvis Costello, Bonnie Raitt, Dave Matthews and several other well known and independent musicians to uncover the real nature of the music business. Examining the lack of innovation in the music industry today, the filmmakers question whether great musical legends like Bob Dylan or Ray Charles would make it in today’s homogenous entertainment landscape. On the positive side, the film explores the ways in which technology and the Internet are being utilized by independent musicians seeking an alternative to traditional distribution.

“Consumers can no longer depend on the record industry to choose what music is good and what music is bad,” said Shapter, filmmaker from Before the Music Dies. "Rallying with companies such as DivX, who are passionate about building a high-quality media experience for consumers, will show huge corporations that audiences demand the right to have a voice in the content they consume.”

Content from the film is also available for viewing and download on DivX Stage6, a high-quality digital video community. Content creators like Shapter and Rasmussen can leverage Stage6 to communicate directly with audiences who demand better media. Stage6 delivers a high-quality video experience, and allows content creators to interact directly with their fans and engage them further with bonus content like trailers and special interviews.

“Before the Music Dies personifies the independent spirit of artists taking it into their own hands to create meaningful content for their fans,” said Darrius Thompson, CXO, Community and Internet, DivX, Inc. “And it speaks to the reasons we built Stage6—as a place for content creators to share their work with a global community of users looking to discover new and interesting content they may not find anywhere else.”