Julianne Moore: 'A movie never looks the same on TV'

Oscar winning-actress Julianne Moore has criticised the trend for releasing films simultaneously in cinemas and to on demand services to watch at home.

Speaking during a panel on independent film at CinemaCon, Moore said: "A movie never looks the same on television."

The actress said she was "disappointed" when a film was released that way, adding: "We work very hard as creators in creating a theatrical experience."

Moore also said making independent films had boosted her career.

"Working in the indie space has helped my career longevity. All of my successes - including my Oscar - sprung from these teeny tiny movies," she said, according to Variety.

Moore won the best actress Oscar this year for her portrayal of a professor with early-onset Alzheimer's in Still Alice.

It cost just $5m (£3.3m) to make, but the actress - who was also at CinemaCon in Las Vegas to promote the next Hunger Games film - said it was not possible to survive on independent cinema alone.

"The great parts are not going to come to you on a silver platter. You need a commercial profile so that investors will invest in something smaller that I'm in.

"You can't make a living doing just indie films."

She added that independent cinema was "highly highly personal - that's why people support it", compared to major studios who create "a product".

"Hollywood isn't in the business of creating parts for actors. They're in the business of creating product. It's about making a package," she said.

Moore said the long awards season could be a huge help to indie films: "I always say it's a great way to celebrate terrific work."

She was joined on the panel of The Independent Game: Based on a True Story by Sony Pictures Classics co-president Tom Bernard, who said there were more cinemas playing indie films "than ever before".

Several indie studios have used video-on-demand (VOD) services to release their films on the same day it is released on DVD and in cinemas.

Sony recently used VOD to release The Interview, after a group of hackers with links to North Korea threatened terrorism against cinemas that showed it.

The film company said in January it had managed to make more than $40m (£26.4m) through offering the film via on-demand services, according to Fortune.