Planning The Best Festival Strategy For Your Film
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Webinar hosted by: Jon Reiss
Filmmaker, Author, Speaker, and Consultant
Jon Reiss is an author and media strategist who helps filmmakers and companies navigate the new distribution and marketing landscape. He has worked with and consulted for Paramount Pictures, Screen Australia, Film Independent, Creative Scotland, The South Australian Film Corporation and numerous film schools and festivals to devise ways to educate and help independent filmmakers in the new economic landscape. He has conducted his Think Outside The Box Office Master Classes in over five continents and is the year-round distribution and marketing lab leader at the IFP Filmmaker Labs. Named one of “10 Digital Directors to Watch” by Daily Variety, Jon Reiss is also critically acclaimed filmmaker whose experience releasing his feature Bomb It with a hybrid strategy was the inspiration for writing Think Outside the Box Office: The Ultimate Guide to Film Distribution and Marketing in the Digital Era (TOTBO), the first step-by-step guide for filmmakers to distribute and market their films. He also co-wrote Selling Your Film Without Selling Your Soul and Selling Your Film Outside the US. He also teaches at the Film Directing Program at Cal Arts. Jon's previous documentary feature film was Better Living Through Circuitry, a startling, humorous and entertaining glimpse into the exploding rave culture featuring such acts as the Crystal Method, Roni Size, and Moby, among others. Reiss’ first film, Cleopatra’s Second Husband, is a dark psychological drama. As an award-winning music video director, Reiss has directed videos for Nine Inch Nails, The Black Crowes, Danzig, Slayer, and the Kottonmouth Kings. His short films have screened at festivals throughout the world. Jon Reiss’ early credits also include four hour-long documentaries concerning the notorious performance group Survival Research Laboratories. All were included on a compilation DVD 10 Years of Robotic Mayhem released Summer 2004. Reiss got his start in filmmaking at Target Video, a San Francisco based alternative video company where he covered much of the West Coast punk explosion. Full Bio »
Webinar Summary
Learn directly from Jon Reiss, a distribution and marketing specialist who's worked with Paramount Pictures, Screen Australia, Film Independent, and is the year-round distribution and marketing lab leader at the IFP Filmmaker Labs.
There are thousands of film festivals around the world – and tens of thousands of filmmakers trying to get into them. So what to do with your film? Jon Reiss wrote Think Outside the Box Office and has advised hundreds of filmmakers on their festival and distribution strategy. In this webinar you will learn how to create a film festival strategy for your specific film, how to use festivals to benefit the release of your film, how to be smart once you have been accepted into a festival and make each festival work for your film and career.
This webinar will cover the essentials that all filmmakers need to consider in order to create a festival strategy for your film.
What You'll Learn
We will breaking down a specific list of A-List, 2nd Tier, Regional & Niche Festivals
Creating a Film Festival Strategy:
- Why do you need to know what your goals are and who the audience is for your film.
- What festivals should you be applying to and why.
- Different tiers of film festivals.
- Dos and Don’ts of applying.
- Should you apply to all kinds of festivals at the same time?
- When to apply to film festivals.
- Understanding the cycle of the film festival circuit.
Film Festivals and The Distribution of Your Film
- What types of films do film festivals help in release?
- What types of films do film festivals not help in release?
- Outside of top festivals can I make sales at film festivals?
- How do film festivals work within the structure of the release of your film?
- Will festivals pay me to play my film?
If You Are Accepted Now What?
- Do you need a publicist?
- Do you need a sales agent?
- What kind of materials to prepare?
- What to ask for of the festival.
How can you best take advantage of a film festival?
- Sales and publicity.
- Collecting assets.
- What kind of assets.?
- Should you go to every festival?
What if I didn’t get into any film festivals – what do I do?
Q&A session with Jon!
About Your Instructor
Jon Reiss
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Reviews Average Rating: 4.5 out of 5
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Adriano Ferreri Good info for filmmakers new to festivals. I personally have submitted to festival in the past so I have some knowledge on the subject already. However, i did pick up some great info on the inner workings of festivals plus some good strategy tips. Thanks! -
Gershom Hyldreth Very good info
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