Behind the Scenes with Eureka!

When it comes to home entertainment, few names carry the weight of Eureka! We recently caught up with Head of Production Jacob Milligan and Producer Craig Ian Mann to talk all things disc.

Speaking with the Eureka team, it becomes very clear that precision and dedication to detail are paramount. Every release is a planned masterpiece, and the team champions cinema in a way that feels timeless and forward-looking.

Behind every classic they put out, there is a meticulous production story. Let’s discover some of them…

Head of Production: Jacob Milligan

Hi Jacob, thank you so much for agreeing to chat with us. I know you must have an extremely busy schedule, so we really do appreciate it.

Q1. How do you maintain your high standard for restorations while balancing budgets and time restraints?

A1: We generally don’t restore films ourselves, with some exceptions. We did recently restore Martyrs in 4K for our upcoming UHD release, which we’re really proud of. We largely work with studios, archives, and film libraries to release their existing masters on disc, and we look at contributing to restoration when the opportunity arises and it’s the right title for us. But that does mean we usually receive masters ready to go, which allows us to put as much time as possible into the production process. We’re also a relatively small team—even compared to some of the other boutique labels—so there’s a lot of multi-tasking involved. Craig and I work closely together to get the best result.

Q2. What is the thought process that goes into deciding what gets certain treatment for release? Is it down to commercial viability or personal passion?

A2: What we release is always led by personal passion first and foremost. There’s often someone in the company who champions a particular project (whether that’s an individual film, licensing a group of titles from a particular studio, or pursuing a particular national cinema). From there it’s really a matter of budgets and compromise. As much as we’d love to release some films that we deeply care about, you do have to consider what the market for them is and how that translates into licensing arrangements and other financial considerations. But generally, if we like a film and it’s available, we’ll do what we can to make it work.

Q3. Can you shed some light on your collaboration processes with restoration labs, licensors, and subtitlers?

A3: We often work with licensors who are in the process of restoring new titles, as was the case with some of our recent German releases from CCC Film—the Mabuse Lives! and Terror in the Fog box sets. Really, that’s just a process of keeping in touch and ensuring that restorations are coming along in the right timeframe and everything’s looking good with the masters. In terms of working with licensors, that really depends on which licensor you’re working with. When working with major studios, there are often permissions to be cleared and extras that need to be looked at and approved, but that’s not always the case with smaller licensors. As for subtitlers, that also varies from project to project. We have a number of people who we work with and trust with translations in various languages, who will often revise existing subs or translate from scratch. Then either Craig or I (or, often, both of us) will go through the final file and format it to our house style for release.

Q4. Has this process changed due to leaps in technology?

A4: Technology has definitely helped with keeping an eye on restorations when you’re working on a project that involves the creation of a new master. We’re now at a point where a lab can send you a sample from a new restoration in the highest possible quality, and you can review it on the same day. There was a time when you would have to physically travel to a lab to see how a restoration was going (and we might still choose to do that in the final stages), but now we can keep an eye on things remotely and in a reasonable timeframe, given the huge file sizes involved.

Q5. Is quality control the most overlooked part of production? Are there other areas people might not realise?

A5: Quality control represents a huge amount of what we do, and it’s one of the hardest and most time-consuming parts of our job. By the time you get to the QC stage, you have often spent months with a film (and its associated special features), and by that point you’re intimately familiar with every detail. So QC requires us to take a step back and look at everything with fresh eyes, but at the same time look closer than ever to ensure you’re catching the tiniest details.

It’s a shared job. Craig QCs all of the written elements (booklets, packaging) and I QC everything on the disc, but there are a number of releases—particularly bigger projects with more budget—where we also bring in an external consultant. You’ll sometimes see Esteban Medaglia of QC Boutique (who works very closely with David Mackenzie of Fidelity in Motion) listed on our releases. Esteban’s always a huge help and a pleasure to work with.

Yes, QC is a huge job—it involves combing through every single element of a release in the closest possible detail to catch everything.

Producer: Craig Ian Mann

Hiya Craig. Many thanks for chatting with us today.

Q1. How do you see the producer's role in the world of boutique physical media?

A1: Especially when you’re working with a boutique label like Eureka, I think the producer’s job is to put together the best possible package to accompany and contextualise a given film (or set of films). Ideally, I want any physical release of a film to be something like a museum in a box—the movie is at the centre, but you’re also being provided with all of the contextual information you need to understand that film’s production, its themes, its legacy, and its impact.

I think that’s especially important when dealing with films that might not be so well known in anglophone markets (I’m thinking of our recent releases of East German cinema through DEFA, for example). But that’s how I try to approach everything, from the more obscure material to a studio release like Tank Girl.

And in relation to Eureka especially, there are expectations attached to the Masters of Cinema series. Someone buying an MoC release is expecting that level of detail, and we do our very best to deliver it.

 

Q2. How does that compare with traditional film or TV production?

A2: I can only speak to documentary production, but producing a feature documentary project is certainly a very different prospect to producing a Blu-ray disc. They’re very different in terms of what actually needs to be done and the timescales involved. But in broad strokes, they’re basically the same—both jobs are about spinning a million plates at once and making sure that none of them fall and smash. It’s all about managing the moving parts and making sure it all comes together in the end.

Q3. When planning a release, do you consider what currently has buzz, or do you adhere to what fits the Eureka brand?

A3: Really, I think it differs from release to release. It’s all about what’s right for the film. So if we’re releasing a relatively modern film and we can reach the people who were involved in making it, it’s always a high priority to see if we can organise a contribution from them. For example, the first thing on my to-do list when producing The Secret of NIMH was to secure an interview with Don Bluth—especially as we were inducting him into the Masters of Cinema series with that title.

After that, it’s a matter of thinking about what contextual detail someone picking up the disc might want or need, and how the extras can serve that. We’ll look to include expert commentary in the form of audio commentaries, interviews, video essays, and booklet content—all put together by people with deep knowledge of the film we’re working on—and provide as much archival material as we can. With the DEFA releases, for example, I’ve really enjoyed digging into the DEFA/PROGRESS Film archives to pull out newsreels, animated shorts, and other archival content for inclusion. That way, anyone sitting down with one of those packages gets a broad understanding of what media culture in East Germany was like. So it all comes down to what best serves that particular release.

Q4. When shaping the extras, do you have an army of journalists and experts for your essays at the ready, or do you prefer to work with a trusted few?

A4: This is a careful balancing act. There are certainly people I enjoy working with who consistently provide us with excellent contributions, and I have a long list of contacts I’ll consider when their expertise matches a release. But when you’re looking for the expert (who might be a journalist, academic, or filmmaker) on a particular film or topic, you don’t always have an existing connection. We try to ensure that all contributors have clear knowledge and expertise in relation to the film or films they’re covering.

That means when we move into new areas (and again, DEFA is a good example), we might end up hiring an entire roster of people who have never contributed to a Blu-ray before. On other releases, we’re more likely to approach names you’d recognise. It differs project by project. One thing I’d add is that we’re always keen to find new voices—we’re always looking for new contributors. It’s important to keep things fresh.

Questions for Both Jacob and Craig

Q1. What do you think sets Eureka apart from other boutique labels?

A1 [CIM]: Historically, I think Eureka always had more of a focus on world cinema than other labels. That was initially something associated with the Masters of Cinema series, and it has continued with the expansion into East Asian cinema with a lot of the Eureka Classics titles in more recent years. I think that focus on a broad range of interesting world cinema still sets Eureka apart, even in a market now populated by many more labels than when Eureka first moved into DVD and Blu-ray.

We still have a really strong focus on East Asian cinema, and recently we’ve renewed our interest in German cinema, which is one of Eureka’s foundations. I’m thinking of the German Expressionist films Eureka released even back in the VHS days—Nosferatu, Metropolis, M, Mabuse and so on.

A1 [JM]: I agree. Before I worked with Eureka, I most closely associated the label with German cinema and silent cinema—and I think we’re still building on that legacy. In terms of German cinema, we’ve been expanding our range with our recent CCC Film box sets, our DEFA releases, and the Sirk in Germany collection. We’re still very interested in silent cinema—we recently released Jean Epstein’s Finis Terrae, and we’re really proud of our recent Laurel and Hardy sets, too.

I also think we’re one of the leaders in terms of bringing films that have never been available in the UK to home video. That’s the case with a lot of the East Asian films we release and the DEFA titles, but also with something like Larry Cohen’s The Ambulance, which is one of his best films but also one of his most obscure. It’s great to bring those under-seen and under-appreciated films to our audience.

Q2. How do your roles complement each other from the start to the finish of a project?

A2 [CIM]: Jacob and I work really collaboratively. There are some things I do consistently (I commission and edit all of our essays, for example) and things that Jacob does consistently (the end of the production process, where everything is prepared for authoring, is all Jacob). Another example is packaging: Jacob prepares all of it, and then it’s my job to proof and approve it before it goes off for manufacturing.

In terms of who takes the lead on a release, that varies project by project—sometimes it’s driven by who has the most passion for a film, and sometimes just by who has more time and resources. But we complement each other in a lot of ways. I used to be an academic and I’m a writer, so anything to do with the written word (our synopsis copy, booklets, subtitles) comes to me, and I think I have a good knack for finding new contributors in areas where our existing contacts don’t have the necessary expertise. Jacob’s incredibly technically minded and an excellent audio and video editor.

We both have vast networks—some overlapping, some completely different—to draw on for creating extras, and we both have our interests in terms of national cinemas, genres, or particular films we know a lot about. So every release is a team effort between us and the talented people we work with regularly—people like Jon Robertson, Robert Nevitt, Jonathan Zaurin, and Luke Ryan, who shoot and/or edit a lot of content for us. It’s an incredibly collaborative process.

Q3. Can you share a story from behind the scenes where things turned out very differently than you expected?

A3 [JM]: I can’t think of a specific example where something ended up wildly different to what we had planned, but a huge part of being a producer is being able to pivot if things don’t work out the way you thought they would. Being adaptable is hugely important, and having a wide network of people to draw upon if needed. We’re always very happy with the final product, but sometimes you arrive at it in ways you hadn’t expected.

Q4. Do you see Eureka adapting as the industry and audience changes, or do you think that it may not change so much?

A4 [CIM]: I think our recent German releases are a good example. Eureka has already released most of the highlights of German Expressionist cinema in the silent period, so now we’re digging deeper into German film history and concentrating on areas we haven’t covered before—for example, popular genre films that never made it to disc in the UK, or East German rather than West German cinema. There definitely seems to be a dedicated audience for a broader range of German cinema. For me, it’s about continually expanding on our strengths.

A4 [JM]: There’s always room for improvement, but I think one of the reasons for Eureka’s longevity is our consistency. We broadly continue to do things the way we always have, but we’re always expanding the range of releases we offer—moving into new areas or expanding on themes we’re already known for.

Q5. Where do you see physical media in the next five years, and how do you plan to stay relevant?

A5 [JM]: Interest in physical media has its ebbs and flows, and I think we’re currently in a period where people are really interested in being able to hold the things they love in their hands. The simple answer is: for as long as people keep buying our stuff, we’ll keep making it. We love what we do, and we’ll continue to do it for as long as we can.