Distribution : Since the topic is Distribution, I thought there would be info on how to get distribution. by Joe Becker

Tommy Kendrick posted some useful information. Thank you Tommy.

Hey Joe, Here is some research (NYU) I found on the VOD topic for indie film distribution platforms. It has more on their traffic – hits, unique viewers, downloads, etc. Hope this helps, talk later. Geni :-) HERE IT IS: http://cri.nyu.edu/toolbox/quickcompare.php

One way, and I know it sounds weird, is to find distributors on the web. Contact them and ask them if you can send them your film or DVD. They are all looking for product to sell. Know where your film stands and find a distributor that distributes what you have made. In short, just ask.

That's good. another way is to contact them and ask them what they want, and then go make that. thanks for your response. good info

Hi Joe, we get sent submissions every other day. We exhibit at film markets and meet filmmakers there too. The ones that take the time and effort to show up at a market, like AFM, and book a meeting with us, we do prioritize. If you're coming to AFM in November be sure to look us up. We are in Loews 329. Looking forward.

Sorry, didn't make it to AFM this year.

AFM is only for the big movies?

Hey Joe, not sure if you're aware but there are been various classes and webinars on how to get distribution of all kinds on Stage 32. Make sure you check out the classes and webinars, because they are taught by the execs actually working in the industry. Pretty cool and super helpful.

I mention above that Tommy Kendrick gave us some good info, but I don't see a comment from him here now. wonder what happened. Thanks for your input, Shannon. I will check that out.

I and my parnters created a website called indyoh.com its an online film market. if you sign in as a producer you can upload your film to the market side and the system sends out an email to distributors let them know a new film is available on the market. You also have the option to self distribute on our Video on demand player which is the face of our site.. This lets you build the sales of your movie and attract more buyers on the market side. Have a look. let me know if you have any questions at all. im happy to answer them. andrew@indyoh.com

Joe – Do you have a finished & ready-to-go project? I’ve had films picked up at some of the more prestigious festivals and I know distributors who regularly prowl the festivals looking for product. I had a short picked up last week at a festival and I know of three films picked up by one of the larger distributors at that same festival. That’s the best “how to” info I have.

I have helped develop and directed the first of 'The Original Film Show' which we are launching on the 26th November of this year. We are showcasing independent films from features to shorts so your films can be seen by a lot more people and appreciated more in the film community. If you are interested on getting your film showcased then please email me at: rebeccarichardson@guvnormedia.co.uk and I will get back in contact with you to discuss details. I will say now that there is NO cost involved on your behalf. Furthermore if you're interested in watching UK filmmakers work, look on our website for the up and coming films, news and more info about what we do and the team http://guvnorfilms.com

May I ask a question about distribution please? So the film has to already be filmed and ready for distribution..It can't just be a trailor correct?

Peggy – there are always exceptions to everything, but generally your film must be finished in order to get picked up for distribution. If you put a trailer before completion of your film – it’s very useful in acquiring funding. A post production trailer is helpful in the marketing of your finished film.

it can go either way. many films get distribution up front in order to help attract investors. if you have distribution, you're far more likely to make money with your film. if you make a film hoping to get distribution later, you may never make the sale, and never make any money. one of the best ways to get distribution is to approach the distribution company before you write your script. ask them what they're looking for. if they say they want a family friendly film with a well known actor and animals, give them babe, not the expendables, and you'll be alright.

you do not need a finished film to get distribution. The best way to get a low budget, or your first film distributed is to first write and create a film that has mass appeal including overseas. You need to make sure your project's story, characters, etc work across borders. Then THE NUMBER ONE most import item to see your film is a POSTER.. a Professionally created POSTER. use a company that has a reputation for creating great movie posters.. This will cost you between $3K and $5K and it's worth every penny. The next thing you need is a well written script and one-sheet. With these three items. ASSUMING you have a solid story that is commercial, you can find an AGENT. Once you have an agent you can start the process of PRE-SALES. Pre sales occurs at Film MARKETS not at Film FESTIVALS. Film markets such as AFM, Berlin, Toronto, Cannes, etc. Getting distribution is all about making a film that will have a broad audience. You need to start at the writing to get a film distributed... BUT you do NOT need a finished film to get distribution. For example we pre-sold our $50K film "Subconscious" for almost $200K BEFORE we shot a single scene. So don't give up! Its hard and you have to understand that you're "precious film, project, story, idea" may not be the right one to get started with... But if you make a couple of good, low budget commercial projects, and get them distributed, you'll be in a much better place to get that "special" project distributed in the future.

Thanks a lot...very helpful

Georgia thank you for your reply but, now i need to know how you did it. What steps did you take toward getting your 50k film pre-sold for 200k before you shot a single scene. What was the process? Please.

we wrote a commercial script, one that we felt distributors wanted... ( not one I wanted to do but one that would sell ) We created a really solid poster with a professional poster company. Compiled a solid one-sheet and took it to a number of agents that sell films. We had a number of offers and selected a well know reputable agent from the selection. We gave the agent an extra 5% over what they asked for so that they had more "skin" in the game and they took it to the American Film Market, the Berlin Film Market, the Cannes Film Market and the Toronto Film Market.. we sold to an number of countries at each market via our agent and we sold to Lionsgate for North American distribution.

Avoid sales agents and content aggregation companies that are not actual distributors. Festival exposure helps. Submit completed screeners directly to distributors who distribute films like yours - be REALISTIC in what you have ( failure to do this accounts for many non-deals ) . Offers do not get better they get worse unless you have a Sundance hit. If the film is a few years old you are generally out of luck. Do not assume a broader release is a better deal... exposure matters but it's very easy to sign a deal that gets you huge exposure and zero money ever.

Thanks Georgia that's really really helpful!

Ok Royce thanks

Why can't we distribute our films ourselves? Distributors are notorious thieves. Not all of them, only about 96%.

sure. you can "4-wall" your movie. you have 2 basic choices. 1. Toss it on Vimeo or some other site and cross your fingers. or 2. You make that great commercial film. You make a great poster, you set up a really nice simple website, you raise about $50K for promotion and marketing. you go out on the road to about 15 major locations, rent a theater for one night's screening, blog and social media the hell out of the 1 night screening so that you essentially break even but generate press, media, and interest in your film in that area. Do interviews on radio and local TV, push the film locally with flyers, handouts etc. You can "WRAP" an RV and set up outside the theater in a location in town, drive around everyday, visit college and military bass, malls etc for 5 days PRIOR to the screening day promote and sell DVDs and SWAG. All this time pounding social media. Get your SWAG and DVDs and Digital downloads sold from your website the whole time! Repeat this in about 15 locations around the country. THEN, that all those statistics, sales, and media stories to Netflix, Itunes, Vimeo, Hulu, etc and do a deal since you've got a sales history and have screenings under your belt. Hopefully you'll do well. But this is a years worth of work and even if you break even in the cost of the screenings ( around $5k on average for a good theater for a night )...it will still cost you around $50K ( my guess based on research and past history of these types of campaigns ) it could well be more or less depending on your available assets. Most studios and higher end indie studios, as well as distributors spend a lot more.. from ( as a reference number ) the budget for marketing and promotion can equal the budget of for making the movie.

developing a distribution system takes time. if you want to start a distribution company, and become a part of the 4%, that's a great idea. I don't have the money to self-distribute to theaters. I could fairly easily set up a website and distribute my own films online. as a matter of fact, I'm working on something like that for some video content. but I want to make major motion pictures that are seen on big screens across America and maybe overseas. I'm not sure how to do that, or if I'd have time to find out, much less implement it. I'm too busy making content to work on that.

Self Distribute. OK- everyone has said that for over a decade. Cool.. Where's your traffic come from ?

yup! What Royce said... Sure feel free to self distribute... but it's either going to cost a lot of money and/or time and the real question is how much profit will your project make? You may think distributors and agents are the blood sucking vampires of the business, but i'd rather give them there 10% to 25% and actually MAKE some money so I can repay investors, give them a decent ROI and still have money in my pocket for the next gig.

Amen Georgian!!!But why not do both?

you can self distribute or sell the rights to a distributor for any given region. You can't do both. When you sign on with a Sales agent / Distribution deal, once the rights are sold for a period of time.. you cannot show the film, rent the film, put the film on line, or do anything else until the rights window has expired. You can of course self distribute in one country and sell the right to a distributor for another.

for example we signed an agent to sell the distribution rights for our last film. They sold the North American rights to Lionsgate for us, and sold the rights for a large number of foreign countries to various distributors with licenses for their specific region ... so for the next 5 years They own the rights to the movie. On a different project i'm doing we're going to distribute internationally through an agent.. but we may self distribute in the US because we believe we have a built in client base of about 5 million buys/rents because we have a specific set of actors / and a band signed on to the project that have existing fan bases in the US. We'll sell all the other countries through my agent.

So Georgian I remember you telling me you sold without having to film any of it first. So what exactly did you sell the script? and you mentioned that you took a poster and a one page......forgive me for my ignorance but, I am trying to learn what I don't know....was the one page a one page synopsis?

After the 5 years will you be the owner again?

one page or one sheet - do a google search of images for "one sheet" ... also: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_sheet

oh... yes after 5 years we can go another round, do it ourselves, or the distributor and ( for a fee ) pick up another 5 years.

so it was a one sheet poster and the script is what the agency used to pitch the film???

the MOST important item in pre-sales is the POSTER... then the one sheet, then the script, and then ( if you have one ) a trailer.

story boards help. even if it's just a few panels. you're trying to sell your movie. wow 'em. if you don't have a poster, a trailer, story boards, a killer synopsis... why should they be interested? you can't always have all of those things. but the more you have the better. they have to get excited about the project, or they're not going to buy

Distributors don't pay.

funny... our's did.

Mind if a distributor chimes in? (ducking all the flying objects). Georgia is right, your one-sheet is the most important element. Its the poster on one side and a synopsis, etc, on the back. Next I'd say trailer, but it better be SOLID or it will make things worse. Script? For signing with a Sales Agent, maybe, but not for actual sales (they won't send it to any of their buyers). They won't read it... and any Sales Agent that is looking out for your well being, will reject your script just like any other agent or production company if you send it to them cold... so don't. I don't know how many times just in the last few weeks I've had to respond with the old "unsolicited screenplays" line. Wait until they request it or submit it via your lawyer/agent. The reason for the art and trailer is that distributors want to know HOW they are going to sell it (not what, but how). Make them imagine the release, the DVD case, the marketing plan, and then they turn that into estimated sales (in their mind) and then they hopefully commit to presales. That said, it doesn't equate to dollars up front. If you are lucky... and i mean lucky... you'll see 10% of those committed dollars before you actually deliver the film, but it can help you secure your funding. Also, if your sales agent isn't securing presales for you but still give you a Letter of Interest/Intent (LOI), it is just that, guys. A letter of interest... they can still reject the film when you complete it. Same on those presales too... so don't take it casual on making/finishing your movie. Everyone can still back out. It might not seem fair, but it happens all the time.

and there ya go. ^^^

Jon is experienced in these matters. he's got some successful films out and works directly with distributors. listen to what he has to say

Actually, Jon is a distributor and sales agent. ;) http://variety.com/2014/film/news/katie-mcgrath-leading-lady-freestyle-1...