Introduce Yourself : Welcome To All The New Members by Milt Barlow

Well its back to introduce yourself or in my case reintroduce yourself ! RB has created such a great family at Stage 32 and if your new then you will love it. I have had great support from Stage 32 members. After a year in development on January 1 we launched First Rites Films which is an 'incubator/portal' for new and developing filmmakers to share and show their work - features ,shorts.music videos,student films. Its ticking along nicely and we have uncovered some great product. In todays world in some ways it has never been easier for filmmakers to realise their dreams in a cost affective digital way and yet and in others ways it seems to me is that it is as hard as pre digital. My speciality for 30 years has been distribution and I think we are currently in a state of 'what the' ??? Studios seem only interested in tent pole comic book CGI blockbusters that are about as memorable as the last Big Mac you ate , the DVD business is in the toilet and heading further south every day, TV is in a state of flux and SVOD is growing nicely but has not caught up with the decline in DVD revenues. Now it would be easy for us all to just take to our beds and pull the covers over our heads ! BUT through all this maelstrom of change I do believe that exciting and innovative stories will always find a way to rise to the top and find their rightful place. New filmmakers will continue to break through all the noise and clutter of our crazy digital world and emerge as the new stars of tomorrow. The old adage of 'no one knows anything' continues to ring true in our industry. Sites like Stage 32 help us all to have our peers support and share. Enjoy the weekend . Milt www.firstritesfilms.com