| Industry | Film studio |
|---|---|
| Fate | Closed |
| Successor | Lions Gate Entertainment |
| Founded | 1985 |
| Defunct | 2000 |
| Key people | Mark Amin |
| Parent | Vidmark Entertainment (1985-1995) Trimark Holdings Inc. (1995-2001) |
| Subsidiaries | Trimark Interactive[1] |
Trimark Pictures Inc., was a production company formed by Mark Amin in 1985 and was the parent company of Trimark Holdings Inc. (formerly Vidmark Entertainment), Trimark Pictures specialized as a small studio, producing and distributing theatrical, independent, television and home video motion pictures.
Vidmark Entertainment first became involved with motion picture production in 1988, when its founders and investors provided financing for the feature Demonwarp. Demonwarp was produced by Richard L. Albert through his advertising company Design Projects, Inc., which was Vidmark's and many other home video and independent film distributors' advertising company.[2] Demonwarp was shot on 35mm film, and starred George Kennedy, but only cost $250,000 to make. Coming from a marketing background, producer Rick Albert convinced Mark Amin that if the film's budget was limited to the minimum baseline sales that Vidmark could make with any horror film released on videocassette in the United States, then the motion picture would have to be profitable. Since the original investors in Vidmark also invested in and owned the 20/20 Video chain of stores, they could accurately project what the minimum sales would be. The projections proved true, and adding to the robust U.S. home video sales, international sales, cable and free television sales, Demonwarp earned many multiples of its original budget. Mark Amin served as executive producer, and during production of Demonwarp he decided to raise money by a public offering of Vidmark, to form Trimark.
Trimark picked up Warlock, a 1989 horror/fantasy film starring Julian Sands which was a major theatrical hit with fans of the horror genre. Trimark eventually made the sequel Warlock: The Armageddon in 1994. Trimark also saw success in other familiar horror series the studio produced and distributed. Leprechaun, released in 1993 starring a young Jennifer Aniston and Warwick Davis as the sinister leprechaun grossed over $10 million dollars during its theatrical run. One theatrical sequel and four direct to video sequels eventually followed.
Other Trimark Productions familiar to the horror genre included The Dentist, a major hit on HBO, Return of the Living Dead III and Pinocchio's Revenge. Trimark also specialized in made-for-television features, which included the dramatic Eve's Bayou, starring Samuel L. Jackson, which received critical acclaim. Trimark also released Stephen King's Storm of the Century, a miniseries.
In 2000, Trimark merged with Lionsgate in which Amin became the single largest shareholder. In 2001, Mark Amin founded Sobini Films where he currently serves as the CEO.