How to Find International Partners and Distribution for Your Diverse Film and TV Projects + 2 Script Downloads
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Webinar hosted by: Sidney Chiu
Production Manager at FINDING MR RIGHT
With a focus on films with international appeal, Sidney Chiu’s producing credits include LOVE JACKED a Canada South African romantic comedy co-production starring Amber West and Keith David – winner of the Best Narrative Feature at the Pan African Film Festival (Los Angeles) 2018. COCONUT HERO, a Canada German coproduction with Six Island Productions and UFA Fiction directed by Florian Cossen and Lola nominated, winner of the Best Film in Focus at the Zurich Film Festival in 2015, BANG BANG BABY starring Jane Levy and Peter Stormare for Scythia Films winner of the Claude Jutra Award at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2015. Sidney was also the Production Manager on the Mandarin romantic comedy FINDING MR. RIGHT, which grossed over $80 million. THREE DAYS IN HAVANA starring Gil Bellows directed by Tony Pantages and Gil Bellows, shot in Havana Cuba with E1 distributing in Canada. Sidney’s first produced feature entitled A NIGHT FOR DYING TIGERS written/directed by Terry Miles premiered at TIFF in 2012. Full Bio »
Webinar Summary
Learn how you can tell authentic, diverse, and inclusive stories from international producer Sidney Chiu who credits include the film FINDING MR RIGHT, which grossed over $80 million.
Audiences worldwide crave authentic depictions of culture and diversity on screen, and the entertainment industry is working hard to catch up with the demand. This has created a huge opportunity for diverse creators in the marketplace.
If you want to learn about this incredibly important movement in entertainment, this is the webinar for you.
In this exclusive Stage 32 webinar, international producer Sidney Chu who has produced coproductions with Canada, Germany, South Africa and China, will cover what diverse filmmaking is, how to tell these stories with your authentic voice, and how to find the right partners for funding and distribution.
To teach this important course, we've brought in acclaimed international producer Sidney Chiu. His work has been seen around the world, including LOVE JACKED, FINDING MR. RIGHT, and THREE DAYS IN HAVANA and led coproductions around the globe.
Sidney will share his years of experiences through case studies of LOVE JACKED and FINDING MR. RIGHT, showing you how to create diverse content when you’re working without diverse creatives and how to highlight your team’s authentic voice.
You’ll cover how to navigate cultural biases with funding and distribution, create a festival strategy to maximize your project’s potential, and gain access to global networks and markets.
By the end of this webinar, you’ll know how to apply the principles of authentic diverse filmmaking to your stories and engage audiences worldwide. Don’t miss out on this chance to get a behind-the-scenes look at how diverse and non english language content gets produced and distributed from a producer with vast worldwide success.
Praise for Sidney's Previous Courses
"I would have been happy for this course to have gone on for days. Sidney is a very talented lecturer. I couldn't be more grateful." -- Attendee Canadian Independent Screen Fund Webinar
What You'll Learn
How to find coproduction partners and distributors for your diverse TV and film projects in the international market.
The Evolution of Diverse Storytelling
- Then vs. Now
- The audience appetite
The Balance Between Authenticity and Marketability
- The keys to staying true to an authentic voice but creating something that is marketable
- 3 questions to assess if your project is marketable
Content Creation
- Are your characters and plots truly diverse or diverse light?
- Common mistakes creatives make it creating diverse stories
- The kinds of stories distributors are looking for and what has been overdone
- Understanding the importance of the team
- The challenge of creating diverse talent without diverse creatives
Finding the Right Partners, Distribution & Audience
- How to research partners and companies that are the best fit
- Festival strategy to maximize benefits of diversity targeted festivals to help distribution
- Finding the right distribution partners and streamers for non-english language and diversity led projects
- Working with streamers and new global divisions
- How to navigate cultural biases when it comes to funding and distribution?
- How to gain access to markets and networks that traditionally have been a barrier for diverse filmmakers.
Case Studies
- Sidney will walk though case studies of FINDING MR. RIGHT and LOVE JACKED to illustrate 2 different ways of telling diverse narratives and the success and challenges of each romantic comedy.
Q&A with Sidney
About Your Instructor
Sidney Chiu
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