YOU MUST FIND A DIFFERENT WAY TO REACH YOUR AUDIENCE.
Today I spent several hours doing marketing. You know, that fun stuff where you try to find a nice mix of self-promotion and information so that recipients don’t immediately tune out.
As an indie filmmaker, the team of ME, it’s important to manage these tasks as if one were in production, on set, directing. It’s tough, and tedious — it can even be boring if one repeats the same mundane tasks over and over again. But when a filmmaker is in the process of assembling a team he/she do everything he possible can on his/her own. This is particularly true when money (i.e. the budget) is almost nonexistent.
Most people don’t know this about me but I come from a long and deep history working for public relations companies. Porter Novelli. Ketchum. Dennis Davidson. Fischer & Partners. I know the value of PR. This history is joined with my experience with the Internet and social media (mixed with a dash of SEO). I’ve always written my own press releases. I’ve always sought after new and inventive ways to promote the work I’ve completed.
However, nowadays promotion begins when the script is done and one starts seriously considering actually making the movie. Where in an era where studios have turned their backs on independent filmmakers, forcing them to go out on their own. Most filmmakers are still stuck in the mindset of the 1990’s. Everywhere you turn you hear or read the words theatrical distribution. Factoid: most films loose money during theatrical distribution, so it’s used primarily as a marketing tool.
With this in mind smart filmmakers find alternatives to the money-suck of theatrical distribution. While this seams daunting at first, the truth is that audiences can be amassed using various free tools on the Internet. Just imagine, you can make someone in India, Japan, Dubai or Australia aware of your film with a simple email. You can’t do that with a local screening in Santa Monica, CA.
So I’m constantly testing new ways to promote first myself and then my current projects. This blog reaches people in India and Japan. I’m on Twitter, Facebook, Orkut, Bebo, YouTube and Myspace. I’m also on Blogger, Wordpress and Live Journal. Occasionally I write an article for Associated Content or HubPages. I also leave comments on the useful blogs I visit. This one technique resulted in Filmmaker Magazine quoting me and then doing a write-up on my film Broken Hearts Club and the list building I was doing for it. This hard work translates to mentions. Mentions translates to a higher ranking on search engine results. Then I use Google Alerts to scour the internet for additional mentions of my projects.
Luckily, for once, I have editors in place so I can jump back into promotion after the film is in the can. It’s a lot of work, but until you have a team in place, as an indie filmmaker your job is promotion. Don’t get caught sleeping on the job
Tags: indie filmmaker, marketing, promotion, self-distribution
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This is a great reading. Thanks for sharing this information. We have few colleagues who would like to read this sort of information coming from an indie filmmaker. Also like you blog here http://SeriousRogers.blogspot.com
Thank you Angelo for all your help. I really appreciate it.
Hi Ian,
Greetings to you in Toronto! For film festivals you should think FREE and International. Here is a small list of *free* film festivals I’ve found (and submitted to)
~Portobello Film Festival in the UK
~Wreck-Beach Film Festival in Canada
~New Filmmakers Film Festival in New York
~BFI London International Film Festivel (UK)
~Rio De Jeneiro Film Festival in Brazil
Take some time and do a Google search for Free Film Festivals. After you sort through the crap you’ll find some very good international film fest that are free. The good thing about international film festivals is that your film still qualifies for premiere status in your home country.
Local film festivals (for you, Toronto, Quebec, etc) are a good deal because of the local story, publicity and buzz you can create. At some point you just have to make a decision to not submit to film festivals with fees over a certain amount (i.e $35US). That means you should submit a finished version of your film as soon as possible(early bird rates).
The film festivals that can change lives, Sundance, SXSW, Slamdance, Toronto, Cannes, etc are very competitive so be honest with yourself: is your film Sundance quality? If not, move on to the next festival.
Hey Angelo,
My name is Ian Agard, I am a filmmaker living in Toronto and I’ve come to your website here via a very cool video you made focusing on how the “old method” of distributing indie films is slowly dying. I loved it! I’ve been hanging out on your website for the past 15 to 20 minutes and it’s nice to see another fellow filmmaker who is taking matters into his own hands.
Last month I released my new feature film “Bend and Break” and I am currently self-distributing the movie.I’ve been considering submitting my feature to some film festivals (for some exposure,reviews,etc…)but the entry fee for some festivals can really add up. Do you have any tips or advice from your personal experience on some worth while festivals to submit my indie film to?