Direct-to-video

A movie that is released **direct-to-video** (also known as **made-for-video**, **straight-to-video**, more recently, **straight-to-DVD**) is one which has been released to the public on home video formats (historically VHS) before or without being released in movie theaters or broadcast on television. The term is also at times used as an insulting term for sequels of movies that are not expected to have financial success.

## Reasons for releasing direct-to-video

Direct-to-video releases can occur for several reasons. Often a production studio will develop a TV show or movie which is not generally released for several possible reasons: poor quality, lack of support from a TV network, controversial nature, or a simple lack of general public interest. Studios, limited in the annual number of movies they grant cinematic releases to, may choose to pull the completed movie from the theaters, or never exhibit it in theaters at all. Studios then recover some of their losses through video sales and rentals.

In the case of a TV show, low ratings may cause a studio to cancel the show, possibly after having filmed an entire season and aired some episodes. If the show has a considerable fanbase, the studio may release unaired episodes on video to recover losses. _Clerks: The Animated Series_ and _Firefly_ are examples of cancelled shows which were successful cult hits on DVD. Occasionally outstanding DVD sales may revive a cancelled show, as in the case of _Family Guy_.Originally cancelled in 2004,the series was revived in 2005 due partly to its excellent DVD sales.

Direct-to-video releases have historically carried a stigma of lower technical or artistic quality. Some studio movies released direct-to-video are movies which have been completed but were never released. This delay often occurs when a studio doubts a movie's commercial prospects would justify a full cinema release, or because its "release window" has closed. A release window refers to a timely trend or personality, and missing that window of opportunity means a movie, possibly rushed into production, failed to release before the trend faded. In movie industry slang such movies are referred to as having been "vaulted."

There is a positive side to direct-to-video releases. They have become something of a lifeline for independent filmmakers and smaller companies.

Direct-to-video releases can be done for movies which cannot be shown theatrically due to controversial content, or because the cost involved in a theatrical release is beyond the releasing company. Almost all pornographic movies are released direct-to-video.

Animated sequels and movie-length episodes of animated series are also often released in this fashion. The Walt Disney Company began making sequels of most of its animated movies for video release beginning with _The Return of Jafar_ (the sequel to _Aladdin_) in 1994. Universal Studios also began their long line of _The Land Before Time_ sequels that same year. In 2005, Fox released _Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story_ for DVD and Universal Media Disc.

## Direct-to-video movies screened theatrically

Once in a while, a studio that makes a movie that was prepared as a direct-to-video movie  releases it theatrically at the last minute due to the success of another movie with a similar subject matter or an ultimate studio decision. _Doug's 1st Movie_ is an example of this, quickly changed from a DTV to a theatrical release due to the surprise success of _The Rugrats Movie_.

## Television spin-offs

Television spin-offs are animated or live action television series or made for TV movies which contain either characters or theme elements from an older series or movie (Clerks: The Animated Series, Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventures). While the most common examples of a television spin off are animated series there are also live action examples (Robocop: Prime Directive)

Some _SpongeBob SquarePants_ DVD volumes contain episodes not yet aired in the United States. Certain special episodes of Pokémon were released directly on video such as Pikachu’s Winter Vacation. Some Disney Channel shows, such as _That's So Raven_, _The Suite Life of Zack and Cody_, _Phil of the Future_, and _Lilo & Stitch: The Series_ have also had direct-to-video episodes.

## Direct-to-DVD market

As the DVD format replaced the videocassette, companies have released movies in DVD format rather than VHS, causing the term "direct-to-DVD" to replace "direct-to-video" in some instances. However, the word "video" does not necessarily refer to VHS cassettes. The new term used is DVDP ("**DVD P**remiere"). Such movies can cost as much as $20 million (about a third of the average cost of a Hollywood release) and feature actors like John Travolta and Steven Seagal. Salaries for such actors range from $2 to $4 million (Van Damme) to $4.5 to $10 million (Seagal). According to _Variety_, _American Pie: Band Camp_ sold a million copies in one week, despite retaining only two actors from the original trilogy.

DVD Premieres have become a substantial source of revenue for movie studios. Studios realized that DVDP movies can be shot on a smaller budget, allowing studios larger profits with the combined revenues of home video sales and rentals, in addition to licensing movies for television and for distribution abroad (where some DVDP movies do see theatrical releases).

Distributing DVDPs is not only for larger Hollywood studios. Several companies, such as The Asylum, MTI Home Video, and York Entertainment distribute DVDPs almost exclusively. The budgets for movies distributed by these companies are smaller than those of ones distributed by a larger studio, but these companies are still able to profit off their sales.

## Japan

In Japan, the direct-to-video movement carries different connotations, being a niche product rather than a fallback medium. Despite having lower budgets than features intended for theater release, Japanese direct-to-video productions are rarely marred by the poor storyline and lower quality production often associated with the DTV market in the US. So-called **V-Cinema** has more respect from the public, and affection from movie directors for the greater creative freedoms the medium allows. DTV releases are subject to fewer restrictions.

In the case of anime, this is called **Original Video Animation** (**OVA** or **OAV**), and their production values usually fall between those of television series and movies. They are often used to tell stories too short to fill a full TV season, and were common in the early 1990s. Sometimes OVAs get enough interest to justify commissioning a full television series, like _Tenchi Muyo!_, _One Piece_, and _El Hazard_.

With the advent of the 13-episode season format, OVAs are less common now. The majority of OVAs released  are usually continuations or reworkings of recently completed TV series. For instance, the DVD release of a TV series might include a bonus episode that was never broadcast, as a sales hook.

## Other websites

- Website about direct-to-video films
- Movie critic on the future of Direct-to-DVD