Hi Doug.  Your site is kick-ass.  When I grow up I’m going to have one just like it.  My question for your wise counsel: my independent film, which was mostly shunned by festival programmers for being “too light,” and then was handled briefly by a sales rep who went belly up in the latest financial meltdown, has attracted the interest of an online distributor that is one of the top two most reputable such organizations.  They are asking for a six month exclusive window, are promising a nice launch with splash promos, and tie-ins with a major market, where they are a presence.  Please give me your thoughts about what you would look for in any deal of this kind, I know you’ve been through this circus ride a couple of times.

Yeah, I know that circus ride well.  My feature Entry Level was considered “too light” by some festival programmers.  Often, I think that’s indie film code for, “a film that audiences will actually enjoy.”

Before I mention what I’d look for in an online release deal, I want to mention that there are probably three routes open to a filmmaker at your stage of the game.  Depending on your film, these are the options you could consider:

Go big

If you’re burdened with a lot of extra money, you could remedy the situation pretty easily by hiring a publicist and/or film rep to try to give your film a higher profile.  I’ve seen a number of indie films that garnered the acceptance and publicity they needed largely because someone had the funds to buy some attention early on in the game. (continue reading…)

Want to watch Full Disclosure for free? Someone's pirating it on YouTube...if you can stand the quality.

I’m very interested in the future of in online distribution for independent films, so I’m trying a quick experiment. (This experiment isn’t pure science.  It has the potential benefit of clearing out a box of DVDs under my desk.  But mostly, it’s science.)

The other day I found a pirated version of Full Disclosure on YouTube.  It’s a really bad version shot with a camcorder off Italian television.  The sound is horrible, as is the image, (on the plus side, however, there are Italian subtitles!).  YouTube has a procedure for removing pirated content, but it’s arduous and I don’t have the time at the moment.  Besides, it’s the free availability of this pirated version that makes the experiment possible.  So for the moment, I’m going to leave it there.

There’s this theory going around that people pirate what they like but can’t buy when, how, or in the format they wish to.  Mostly, this theory comes from people trying to justify their illegal downloading of content, but it also comes from some really smart folks who think a lot about all things digital, like my friend Fred Chong Rutherford.  Personally, I have my doubts about this, theory, but hell, the only thing I know for sure is that I don’t know everything.  So I’m going to try an experiment. (continue reading…)

From my guest blog on IndieFlix.

Excerpt from 6 Ways to Make People Watch Your Movie – Part 2: Make Them Laugh.

We filmmakers need to get people excited about our films.  Rather than hoping to stumble across a successful marketing approach for a film, it’s better to plan one from the very start–ideally before you commit to making the film–and tweak it based on what really gets people to pay to watch movies.  “6 Ways” is about those things that motivate someone to say, “I’ve got to see that!”

So how do movies like Napoleon Dynamite or The Hangover rocket from obscurity to national reknown in the blink of an eye.  Is it the big stars?  The special effects?  The action scenes?   Actually, it turns out these movies are really, really funny.

From my IndieFlix guest-blog.  Read the rest.

From my IndieFlix blog

Excerpt from 6 Ways to Make People Watch Your Movie.

…So from the very start, we need to think about why people would watch our movies.  Well, why do people watch any movies?  If you look at films that have found audiences, it looks like there are about six basic motivators that are effective to get people to watch your film.  Studio films are well aware of them and use them constantly and usually in combination.  Indie filmmakers need to think about them just as much—maybe more, since we don’t have huge advertising budgets to cram our movies down people’s throats.  And indies should be aware that while the basic motivators for generating audience interest are the same whatever the movie, how we take advantage of these methods could be very different.

From my IndieFlix guest-blog.  Read the rest.

A post from my IndieFlix blog

Excerpt from From Fade In to Cash Out.

…My IndieFlix blog is about how independent filmmakers can develop their stories, make their films, build an audience, and recoup money to finance their lives and future films.  This is the only model that sustains film and filmmakers.  As a guy who’s been through the distribution wringer a few times now, I know that it’s not just finishing your film, or even getting a deal that matters, what really counts is figuring out how to turn the films into revenue to keep the cycle going.

From my IndieFlix guest blog.  Read the rest.