Distribution

When Vimeo pivoted away from catering to filmmakers a few years ago, it made me nervous. (I’m a “Plus” subscriber that uses the service to share edits with clients.) At that time, Vimeo started pushing is OTT services more. Some of your favorite streaming apps are probably running on Vimeo tech — Criterion Channel, Dropout TV, Troma Now.

In any case, the thought has crossed my mind that if I were to ever start my own channel, I’d probably build it on Vimeo OTT.

Now they’ve been sold to Bending Spoons, and the new boss fired a huge amount of Vimeo employees.

How will this shake out? Will Vimeo pivot again or be sold for parts? If you pay for Vimeo like I do, you might consider other options for the future.

Here’s the article from Slate:

https://slate.com/technology/2026/01/vimeo-layoffs-youtube-video-internet.html

Good afternoon creatives and peers.

Can anyone help me with any information you have about securing distribution for a short film? Your expertise is highly appreciated.

Hey, guys.

I know it's weird, me posting in Distribution, but this is a deeply personal project of mine. My greatest challenge so far comes not as a writer, but as an aficionado of anime and an ambassador of the obscure. As some of you know, I adore classic anime from the 1970s and 1980s, particularly the adaptations of the works of Leiji Matsumoto - "Galaxy Express 999", "Queen Millennia", "Space Pirate Captain Harlock" and "Space Battleship Yamato". I love the Leijiverse because of its strong writing and deeply introspective and philosophical themes.

My challenge, my goal, is to find a way to get the 1982 "Queen Millennia" anime movie (not the TV series, which is already out on Blu-ray) a wide release (outside of Japan, it's only been released in Italy, France, Germany and Spain). I don't care if I have to guarantee an English-language dub for it (I prefer subtitles), I'm willing to do whatever it takes to see this film get unearthed from obscurity, because I believe it's one that deserves to be seen. I came to know about the movie thanks to part of its soundtrack featuring in the 1986 Michael Mann film "Manhunter", and I've been on a one-man mission to make the "Queen Millennia" movie well-known ever since.

I know what you're thinking: who gives a smeg about a 40+ year-old animated film? Let me tell you: stranger things have happened - the 1991 Studio Ghibli flick "Only Yesterday" eventually got an English-language release, the "Virtua Fighter" anime series, despite being less-than-well-received on transmission (but well received enough to get a cult following), got a Blu-ray release some years back (with the first season featuring both English and Japanese audio tracks, and the little-seen-outside-of-Japan second season being in Japanese), and even "Miami Vice", with its complicated musical licensing deals, eventually got DVD and Blu-ray releases, so don't tell me that this can't be done. There's no such thing as "can't", not for me.

I've been able to get a list of the rightsholders for the movie - production rights, distribution rights, soundtrack rights - but I have no idea where the hell to begin. I know the film's obscurity is largely in part due to the theme song, which plays at the end of the movie, but I'm not sure how to conduct myself in this manner. I've started writing a letter to the party involved, and I've set up a Discord server known as the "Queen Millennia Legacy Project". Any advice would be appreciated.

S. P.

Our Kickstarter to create a horror film with Mickey Rourke just went live!

Check it out and let me know what you think!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/rooksproductions/dark-spot?ref=proj...

hi, can anyone advise me of any approved cinema theatres in LA or New York that take short films for Oscar accreditation runs. has anyone done this and can advise me?

it can be 4WD or other and I also wondered if any other members want to bundle their shorts with mine to share costs or a feature doing this where I can front run and obviously also share costs proportionally.

it has to not be released elsewhere and shown within 45 days of release. so I am looking for March onwards.

Thanks.

Jane

Hey Distribution Lounge,

There’s a big industry chess match happening right now that’s worth paying attention to, especially if you care about where films and series will actually land over the next few years.

According to Deadline, Paramount has officially escalated its fight with Warner Bros. Discovery, filing a lawsuit in Delaware and signaling a full-on proxy fight in an effort to derail WBD’s proposed deal with Netflix.

Here’s the short version: Paramount wants to buy all of WBD outright at $30 per share, all cash. WBD’s board has rejected that multiple times in favor of a deal with Netflix that values the company at about $27.75 per share, paid in a mix of cash and Netflix stock. That Netflix deal would split WBD in two, with its studio and streaming assets going to Netflix and its linear TV business spun off into a new public company.

Paramount is now pushing back hard. They’re suing to force WBD to disclose more details about how it valued the Netflix deal, arguing shareholders don’t have enough information to decide whether it’s actually better than Paramount’s offer. They’re also preparing to nominate their own slate of directors at WBD’s 2026 annual meeting and proposing governance changes that would require shareholder approval for any breakup of WBD’s networks.

Both the Paramount and Netflix deals still need regulatory approval and could take a year or more to resolve. Add political uncertainty on top of that, and the whole situation becomes even murkier.

Why this matters beyond corporate headlines: this is another clear signal that the distribution landscape is being reshaped in real time. Legacy studios are being carved up. Streamers are picking and choosing assets rather than buying entire ecosystems. Governance battles and shareholder pressure are now directly influencing which platforms survive and what kinds of content they’re willing to invest in.

For producers and filmmakers, that instability trickles down fast. It affects acquisition strategies, deal structures, rights retention, and which buyers are likely to exist by the time your project is ready.

You can read the full article here if you want to dig into the details:

https://deadline.com/2026/01/paramount-proxy-fight-lawsuit-warner-bros-n...

Curious how everyone here is thinking about this. As consolidation keeps accelerating and platforms restructure themselves, how are you approaching distribution strategy? Are you leaning toward streamers, indie paths, or trying to build flexibility into your plans so you are not dependent on any single outcome?

Amazon Fire TV is rolling out a new Alexa+ feature that lets viewers jump directly to any scene in a film simply by describing it, even if you don’t mention the movie title at all.

Read more here: https://deadline.com/2025/12/amazon-fire-tv-jump-to-scene-voice-feature-...

This new “Jump to Scene” function spans tens of thousands of scenes across thousands of movies on Prime Video and will eventually expand to TV series. Viewers can say something as specific as:

“Jump to the scene when John McClane says ‘come out to the coast, we’ll get together, have a few laughs,’” or “Jump to the boulder chase scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark,” and Alexa+ will take them right there, using AI models trained to recognize visual cues, captions, characters, and plot beats.

One of the biggest advantages of streaming and home entertainment tech is the accessibility and ease it creates for viewers of all kinds, especially those with mobility or accessibility limitations. This update pushes that convenience even further.

Which begs the question:

If you could have any new tech feature added to the streaming platforms you use most, what would it be? (Accessibility tools, smarter search, creator-focused features, interactive options, new viewing modes — anything goes.)

Curious to hear what innovations you think would move the needle.

“It’s a real opportunity to talk to people and build cinema with an audience that’s eager for ideas, to open up, to talk, to be part of a conversation,” says [Finn] Halligan, ahead of this year’s festival, which will play 111 films in the port city of Jeddah from December 4-13.”

This sounds like an exciting development for Saudi Arabia’s film industry. The aim is to build a film culture and not just a once a year festival event. Whilst the programme is limited due to the size of the venue, I can see this growing and opening up the market to European films, as foreign language entrants.

What are your thoughts about this?

https://www.screendaily.com/interviews/red-seas-finn-halligan-and-antoin...?

Like half the world, I sat on the couch with a bottle of French red wine and devoured the final episode of Stranger Things on Netflix.

The Duffer Brothers did not disappoint.

Since New Year's Eve, my social media platforms are almost exclusively discussions about Stranger Things. It's not just the end of a series, it's a reminder of the end of the 80s. Everything, from the character arcs to the music choices were perfection, except maybe Linda Hamilton's character. She had no back story, no character, and the story really didn't need her, but I digress.

While half the world mourns one of the greatest series ever made, Stranger Things also reminds of one of the greatest marketing and distribution campaigns ever made. While most of us will never have the same budget, we can still find nuggets to improvise and turn our own projects into bronze, if not silver.

Stranger Things S5’s Marketing is a masterclass in Netflix’s Global Campaign Strategy:

https://florafountain.medium.com/stranger-things-s5s-marketing-is-a-mast...

Las Vegas New Year's Eve drone show:

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/-FPeSrNGL3M

How Stranger Things Turned Branding ‘Upside Down’:

https://digitalmarketinginstitute.com/blog/stranger-things-season-3-has-...

Farewell Hawkins: How Target, Google and more brands are sending off ‘Stranger Things’:

https://www.campaignlive.com/article/farewell-hawkins-target-google-bran...

Reddit thread re Season 5:

https://www.reddit.com/r/StrangerThings/comments/1q0rtc2/season_5_series...

Netflix Crashes as ‘Stranger Things’ Finale Premieres, Second Time This Season:

https://variety.com/2025/tv/news/netflix-down-crashes-stranger-things-fi...

Hey Distribution Lounge,

This is a major shift in how one of the industry’s most historic events will be distributed.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced a new media partnership that will move the Oscars from broadcast television to YouTube beginning in 2029, ending ABC’s 52-year run as the ceremony’s home.

ABC will continue airing the show through the 100th Academy Awards in 2028. Starting in 2029, YouTube will hold exclusive global rights through 2033. The ceremony will stream live and free worldwide on YouTube, with YouTube TV acting as the U.S. pay-TV option.

What’s especially notable is that this deal goes far beyond Oscars night itself. YouTube will become the Academy’s primary distribution platform for year-round programming, including nomination announcements, red carpet coverage, the Governors Awards, the Student Academy Awards, the Scientific and Technical Awards, filmmaker interviews, podcasts, and educational initiatives.

According to Academy leadership, the goal is expanded global access and deeper engagement at a time when linear TV audiences continue to shrink. Nielsen data shows Oscars viewership has dropped by more than half over the past decade, despite a modest rebound in recent years.

From a distribution perspective, this feels like a clear turning point. A legacy awards institution is prioritizing global reach, free access, and digital-first engagement over traditional broadcast exclusivity. It raises big questions about how prestige, monetization, audience measurement, and cultural impact will evolve when theatrical film culture fully intersects with platform-based distribution.

Curious to hear your thoughts.

Does this move reinvigorate the Oscars by meeting audiences where they already are, or does it fundamentally change how we experience and value the ceremony? What do you think this signals for the future of live events, awards shows, and film distribution as a whole?

Not sure where to put this - I think this is the most appropriate lounge.

What are your thoughts? Mine: Broadcast television must converge with streaming to survive at all.

https://deadline.com/2025/12/oscars-move-youtube-tv-rights-1236651363/

Seeking distribution for my short film, called Dragon Tamer. Any suggestions? Let me know if you enjoy the film, and have any opportunities for distribution!! Thx