It closed in late September 2010 after laying off its staff and selling the rights to its last remaining title, The Tree of Life, to Fox Searchlight Pictures.
"[8] According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune's Colin Covert in 2010, "the company aims to reflect the refined taste and integrity that characterize Pohlad's film productions... [Its] staff of 26 in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago [works on] crafting the ads, selecting the theaters and weighing factors as diverse as opening-week weather, the TV sports schedule and the target audience's bedtime.
[10] Prior to Apparition's founding, Berney and Pohlad picked up British period drama Bright Star during the 2009 Cannes Film Festival.
[13] A later project, The Runaways, was distributed on behalf of River Road Entertainment,[14] while 2008 Australian import The Square was picked up in January 2010 thanks to Berney's interest in director Nash Edgerton's companion short film Spider.
Although the company suspended its operations as a result of Berney's departure,[3] Pohlad vowed to remain committed to Apparition's upkeep while a successor was being sought.
[5] "Though Berney said little about why he left," wrote The Wrap's Sharon Waxman, "it seems clear that he felt his hands were tied by the pursestring decisions of his boss Pohlad.
[2] On September 26, 2010, Apparition went out of business when Pohlad sold off the distribution rights to Terrence Malick's The Tree of Life to Fox Searchlight Pictures.
[2] Tree was part of the company's launch slate and initially intended for late 2009,[4] but eventually found release in 2011 after several years of prolonged post-production.
River Road's political bio-drama Fair Game[9] (once considered under the Apparition banner)[7] moved to Summit Entertainment,[23] while Samuel Goldwyn Films took over as SPWA's distribution partner for Jake Scott's Welcome to the Rileys.
[24] Berney also wanted to pick up the Alex Gibney documentary Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer during its Tribeca Film Festival appearance; after Pohlad "balked at [the idea]", Apparition's release was eventually called off.