Friday, January 22, 2010

What I learned - distribution, part 1

Have you heard about the "new hybrid distribution model" for films?  I hear you cry.  A quick tutorial from my beginners POV:  in the olden days (like 12 months ago, ok, maybe 24 months), it seems that you finished a film, put it out to distribution companies hoping that someone would sign you.  And either you signed and then had THEM do all the work FOR YOU - for a (smallish) cut of the profits or you went into the corner without a distribution deal and cried.   The pros to this approach:  you where done with your film. The con: you where done with your film.  So far so good.

Now, if you have a narrative film I think that's still a pretty good model, since they tend to need a theatrical or TV release.   However if you have a documentary with a social message, then maybe you want to make sure it gets seen by the right people - those who care about your topic, or even better, those who don't - YET. Are you with me?

A few years back and with the help of the interweb, sorry I mean the internet, artists, filmmakers, producers and the like where able to reach their fans, friends and followers directly.  And all of a sudden giving away all your rights to ONE company seemed insane.  Add to that a lousy economy and a hugely risk adverse studio and distribution community and BINGO - the new hybrid distribution model.  DIY distribution (do-it-yourself - for those of you who are acronym-challenged - me included).

Today, thanks to the internet and social networking you can do it all yourself.  That is:  IF: you have the upfront money, never need to sleep, have no family and love abuse.

For now I leave you with two books that are an absolute must read if you are self-distributing or considering it:

For ANYTHING self-distributed:  "Fans, Friends & Followers", by Scott Kirshner - very inspiring and informative.

If you are self-distributing a film:  "Think Outside the Box Office", by Jon Reiss - very detailed and as far I can tell, timely.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Just for fun - Samaden, Engadin Valley, Switzerland

Rainy, yucky days like today I like to remind myself where I'm from and how lucky I am to have both worlds - fantastic, fast and insane New York and beautiful, serene and quiet Engadine.  This is December 2009.

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

What I learned - the abstract stuff

What is most important? Other than a budget?

Time: lots a time, to think, read, to 'let it rest', to 'talk it out', let it simmer and tweak it. Or maybe: access. I always hear that access is the single most important thing in doc film making - an unique story and access to that story - personally I would also add relevance to that list. In my experience I would say "access" can be replaced with "stubborn perseverance". It worked in this case. Oh, and a whole truck load of luck.

A really thick skin (best a fur) is essential too -especially after you've finished the darn thing and put it out into the world. There is fine line between good advice and some one's opinion. One you accept and make changes the other you listen to (agreed or not) but leave it at that.

What I learned - 1

As we (that's mostly me and my 250 DVD's of Abraham's Children on the shelve behind me) wait for the film fesetival circuit to kick in, it's hard to think of anything intelligent to blog about that also has relevance to this blog.

So I figured I could start with an inventory of what I learned in the past two years, producing and directing Abraham's Children and share some insight in pre-production, production and post production of a doc feature. In no particular order.

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Managing all that interesting stuff...

http://alltop.com/ - a magazine rack for all your favorite blogs and websites.... not that I'll have the time to follow them all - and curling up on a Sunday evening on the sofa with a laptop is not my idea of cosy. Call me old fashioned, but I like paper in hand.

Friday, January 8, 2010

Happy New Year and New Mischief for 2010

Topic: American Muslim Leadership. Who speaks up and advocates or American Muslims? Muslims NEED a voice - who is this voice, where is this voice and what does it say?