Distribution

Glen Reynolds is a producer's rep who knows a ton of things. I've never met him, but we have messaged before.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-BkCYcdmzaM

https://www.circusroadfilms.com/

Thank you, David! Very helpful. I'm contacting Glen right now. :-)

Hi Maureen! we have a great webinar on how to find and work with sales agents: https://www.stage32.com/education?p=8944942088499

And there's always imdbpro! Look up similar films and track down all people who worked on the distribution. You might be able to find some names, but it does require scouring

Hey everyone, thanks for the suggestions. David Santo nailed it. I just need a consultant at this point and I had a meeting with Glen Reynolds today. The service he provides is very comprehensive and will give me the info I need for now. :-)

I dont think I've ever seen one of his films, Geoff Hall. But I'll definitely be checking them out now!

Great scene, Geoff Hall! The slow build up, the woman's creepy walk, the suspense.

Ashley Renee Smith thanks Ashley. Pulse is definitely worth a watch!

Maurice Vaughan yes, the woman's creepy walk. It was filmed backwards to give it that strange movement. Big note to self there, for future reference.

Thanks, I look forward to looking at more of these.

Wow, Debbie Elicksen! 1B hours a day! I'm thinking about getting YouTube TV again. I like their category of sports, movies, and shows. I haven't watched any YouTube Originals, but I wanna check those out. YouTube and TikTok are huge opportunities for producers and directors to distribute their movies and shows.

I’ve been thinking about this a lot recently. I’m wondering what your thoughts are on taking a feature film to YouTube via direct upload vs submission for distribution as a YouTube original ?

Vega Montanez I love that. Why not? Google owns the universe, so YouTube provides lots of opportunities. Stream the movie through YouTube Movies, have a livestream screening launch with cast interviews, create behind the scenes shorts -- the marketing ideas are endless, and advertising isn't too expensive to push a video.

Vega Montanez TubeBuddy is a good companion to producing content on YouTube to optimize videos and measure their reach. I have just started using it, as recommended by one of the most popular YouTube educators: Roberto Blake.

There are a few companies out there that claim to do all that stuff, but instead they want you to pay 10k or more for them to pitch your project. I do not know anything about this particular company, but have heard mixed feelings from filmmakers. I'd go on Facebook, and check out some of the groups about distributors and ask. You'll probably get flooded with the answers you need.

I haven’t looked into them for any kind of funding yet, however I did recently submit a film for distribution. I haven’t heard back but it was only a few days ago.

I will say, for better or worst, the form on their website was broken and wouldn’t let me submit through their submission page. it’s always a bit of a yellow flag for me when a core part of a website doesn’t work properly. I ended up emailing my submission with the feedback, I’ll keep you updated as things play out.

Vega Montanez no matter who you sign with, make sure you have a short term (2 years or less), and no marketing fees / or any fees to prep your film (all bs) and all other fees are preapproved. Most important, ask other filmmakers their experience with whichever company you are considering. Best wishes to you!

I guess my only thought here is maybe we need a more separation within the word Edgy. some of the films that were referenced in the article, in my opinion, go a bit over what I consider edgy, which may just be a difference in perspective.

For billion dollar companies perspective is equivalent to bottom line, so although I don’t like what it sounds like is happening, from a business stance it makes sense.

I guess ultimately in short what is Edgy?

Vega Montanez yeah, I see what you mean Vega. Edgy seems to be a definitive term, but it’s actually quite vague when you try and define it. Maybe it’s like a metaphor. Once you try and dissect it, it just falls apart? When I think of edgy I think of a film like Oskar Roehler’s Atomised. It focuses on those at the margins of society; people who in this way are part of a non-conformist narrative on the edge of reality. So maybe for me, edgy means stories which don’t comply to characters in mainstream culture, but are marginalised and therefore form a different narrative than we expect.

There you go, that my two cents worth!

not really! I love how Hollywood is now an “option” but not the only option! no real barriers to entry - anything is attainable — anyone with a dream, talent and idea can play! I luv it here!

Debbie Elicksen There's a part in the article that says, "The U.S. has long been known as the great arbiter of “bigger is better.” But being risk-averse, given current economic conditions and industry trends back home (Disney, Paramount Global, Amazon MGM, and others are currently undergoing layoffs), may, says one U.S. buyer, 'no longer mean getting a massive star or big director — it means costing less.'"

I heard the same thing recently. Maybe more than once. It's becoming more about lower budgets and it's becoming harder to greenlight movies that have big-name stars attached. Glad to hear that's not the case internationally (like it says in the article, "Yet, internationally, the mandate seems to be business as usual, at least where theatrical is concerned"). It might be time to write my big international movie idea.

Fran Harris I love what you said there, Fran. The more the market grows globally, the less we need to think of ‘Hollywood’ as the only option; bust or boom. As filmmakers we need to have a global worldview and understand the marketplace. Even as a screenwriter, you have to know where the market is for your project.

And I would add, that it’s thanks to Stage32, that I have rediscovered my passion for being a Producer. It’s now not a burden to carry, but a joy to hold; to shape and to form.

Debbie Elicksen what the audiences crave is spectacle and not humdrum realities. My ‘blockbuster’ syndicated series, is filed on my to-do list. I wrote the first ten pages of the opening story and then other duties took over, but it’s there waiting to be brought to life!

Hollywood or bust is over and shouldn’t be in our vocabulary. It gives us so much hope to know that there are strange new marketplaces for us to boldly go in to!

Geoff Hall got a documentary about addiction I was hired to. And next month, working with a writer from Indiana to film his short film. How about yourself?

Stephen Folker hi Stephen, that all sounds exciting. Well done.

Seeing Rachel, my sex trafficking film, has been given a new lease of life. The script/project excited people at Cannes last year and this gave the project a little impetus. Then early this year, we were thrilled to welcome Sandra Isabel Correia as an Executive Producer and we’ve moved into that wonderful thing called the development phase.

We are now working together to form a finance strategy and Sandra’s vision and expertise is teaching me many things about the business side of our industry. Exciting times, but as we know, this phase is a slow process!

It's a pleasure to work with you Geoff Hall , and I believe we can all learn from one another. I am quite excited about "Seeing Rachel," and I know that strategy is everything. It is an honor for me to be Executive Producer of Seeing Rachel and to be on board.

Sandra Isabel Correia it’s thanks to this community, that I found you. I’m learning so much from you and can feel the energy rising for this project. Thank you, Sandra!

You are welcome Geoff Hall :))

I don't mind ads if I get to watch movies for free, Pidge Jobst. I'm gonna check out Mometu.com and ""Gods2."

I didn't know music biopics did those kinds of box office numbers, Nick Phillips. $51.5MM opening for "One Love," $910MM globally for "Bohemian Rhapsody," etc.

A great read for sure. This is an incredibly important part of the process, and filmmakers need guidance like this!

Very cool Stephen A. O'Hearn. Hope some Stage 32ers in the area take you up on that.

Interested in seeing what happens with this lawsuit and how it'll affect Amazon Prime and other streamers if Amazon Prime subscribers win, Debbie Elicksen.

It is complete bs Amazon is doing this. Everyone is getting so greedy nowadays. Only getting worse.