Picturehouse, Warner Independent Pictures to Shut Down; Where Art Thou, Amusement?

Warner Brothers has announced that it will be closing down its two artsy, independent arms: Picturehouse and Warner Independent Pictures. The two had been responsible for some recent acclaimed horror fare, with Picturehouse releasing The Orphanage in December 2007 and WIP putting out the Funny Games remake earlier this year. According to The Hollywood Reporter, both units were prepared to delve further into the horror and "genre" fields, but the acquisition of New Line, already a genre stalwart, made their efforts superfluous.

One noteworthy genre film that has long been slated for release by Picturehouse is Amusement. Before the big announcement, it had already been delayed from this spring to at least this fall, and although there's no official word on the film's fate, there are rumors that it might just go straight to video. Too bad, but better DVD than never.

Sources: The Hollywood Reporter, Defamer.com