“20 Tips for Strategizing Festivals & Distribution Today”

From IndieWire:

For an independent filmmaker, the prospects for distribution can seem daunting, if not downright depressing. Many studios have shuttered their specialty divisions, getting into the big festivals gets more difficult each year, and new media offer increasing competition for consumers’ attention. But for the panelists at “Ask the Experts: Strategizing Film Fests and Distribution Today,” an indieWIRE event sponsored by HSBC last week, the collapse of old models and the emergence of new media mean there are more opportunities than ever before. As Rick Allen, CEO of SnagFilms told the crowd, “There are no more rules.”

Held at HSBC’s New York headquarters on Aug. 11, “Ask the Experts” brought together leading independent film executives, festival programmers and filmmakers to offer their advice to a packed conference room of 150 filmmakers and industry professionals. 

During part one, dubbed Strategizing Film Festivals, panelists included Jeff Abramson (formerly of Gen Art), Matt Dentler (Cinetic Rights Management), Sandi DuBowski (filmmaker), Marian Koltai-Levine (PMK-BNC), Rose Kuo (Film Society of Lincoln Center), Mynette Louie (producer) and Debra Zimmerman (Women Make Movies). Meanwhile in the second session, called Strategizing Distribution Today, the participants were Rick Allen (SnagFilms), Tom Bernard (Sony Pictures Classics), Arianna Bocco, (IFC Entertainment), Josh Braun (Submarine), Sebastien Chesneau (Rezo), Ira Deutchman (Emerging Pictures), and Tom Quinn (Magnolia Pictures).

While recognizing that every filmmaker dreams of making a splash at Sundance, followed by a lucrative theatrical run, nearly every panelist emphasized the need for filmmakers to be realistic. Planning, forming alliances and exploiting every available distribution channel are key for filmmakers who not only want to reach bigger audiences but perhaps, heaven forbid, even turn a profit.

Here are the 20 tips:

1. Don’t go to a festival expecting to be a huge underdog hit.
2. Know what you’re doing when you submit a rough cut.
3. Don’t do anything fancy with your festival submissions (and read the fine print).
4. Know the fests you’re submitting to and plan accordingly.
5. Smaller festivals may allow for more access to important people.
6. Turn movies into movements.
7. Use festival programmers to your advantage.
8. Strategize around the personality of the festival.
9. Submit early.
10. Other filmmakers are your friend.
11. You don’t need to go to festivals looking to be acquired.
12. Don’t put your own money into your film.
13. Be aware of what your movie is.
14. You must have a goal to make your money back.
15. Find the best home for your film.
16. Be clever.
17. Knowledge is power.
18. Go to sales agents early in the process.
19. Hold onto your international rights.
20. Don’t limit your distribution search to theatrical.

The article elaborates on each of the 20 tips, so definitely worth a read if you’re interested in producing an indie film. For the rest, go here.