Neither in business nor in cinema, these days, do we expect the long game to be played. Both seek a fast turnover and a near-immediate return on investments. That makes it doubly surprising that John Malkovich‘s new film, sponsored and produced by Louis XIII cognac, went directly to the vault, unseen. It is scheduled for release in 2115.
Marketing gimmick? Sure. The obvious tie-in is that “100 Years” is both the film’s title and is the age of at least some of the brandy blended in Louis XIII (bottles of which currently fetch around $3000). The film itself may 
or may not be a vast exercise in product placement (trailers released thus far suggest that, but it’s not even clear that the footage we’re seeing is part of the completed film).
Lacking any expectation of ever seeing the final product, we’ll withhold judgement as to whether this is a film to be taken seriously, or an expensive commercial for expensive booze. Either way, and granting the gimmicky-ness, you have to admire the ingenuity, not to mention the patience.
In 2011, research firm Bloomburg BNA asked about three hundred CEOs and CFOs if they were willing to make an investment that would make their companies more profitable and sustainable in the long term, but would cause them to slightly miss their next quarterly earnings projections. Eighty percent said they would not. Long-term thinking is completely alien in the current business environment. Even a “business cycle”—roughly six years—is too long. Business planning is now nothing more or less than the maximization of profits, and it is measured only in weeks and months.
None of this is to say that producer Louis XIII, director Robert Rodriguez, or writer/co-star John Malkovich have ushered in any new paradigms in business or film-making. At worst, they’ve done something a little different, a little unexpected. In business, and in film-making, that’s to be admired but it hardly guarantees success.
On the other hand, maybe they’ve gone completely against the grain as to how films get made, and products get sold. Success might still be elusive, but you can argue that it’s a little more deserved.
“100 Years: The Movie You Will Never See” is not coming soon to a theater near you. Best we’ll be getting this century are these handful of gorgeous glimpses. Behold:
