Independent Film Distribution: How to Make a Successful End Run Around the Big Guys Book

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgments

Foreword by Keith Gordon, Filmmaker

1 | A Brief and Potentially Disturbing Overview of the State of Independent Film in America

            Independent Film 101

            Outsiders Fighting Back

            Interview: Rick Curnutte, Editor, The Film Journal

            Different Voices: Outsiders on a Celluloid Platform

            The View from Today: Who Is Distributing Movies?

            Interview: Gregory Hatanaka, Distributor/Filmmaker

            Listen to What the Man Says

2 | Before You Even Think of Contacting a Distributor Ask Yourself: Is This Film Really Good Enough for Release?

            Which Distributor Are You Considering?

            Are All of the Elements in Place?

            The Passover Principle

            The Press Kit

            The Website

            Interview: Eric Robichaud, CEO, 401 Consulting

            Making Contact

            How to Respond If You Get a Contract Offer

            How to Deal with Rejection

            Interview: Bilge Ebiri, Film Critic/Filmmaker

            Listen to What the Man Says

3 | It’s Not What You Know, But...

            Interview: Eric Byler, Filmmaker

            The Producer’s Rep

            The Publicist

            Interview: Sasha Berman, Film Publicist/Marketing Specialist

            The Media

            Professional Resources

            The Lawyer

            The Someone Who Knows Someone Who

            But Then Again

            Interview: Albert Lai, Partner and COO, Matson Films

Listen to What the Man Says

4 | The Hard and Bitter Truth About Festivals

            The View from Yesterday

            The View from Today

            Interview: Ryan Dacko, Filmmaker/Author

            Are Festivals Worth the Bother?

            Interview: Christian de Rezendes, Filmmaker

            The New Festival Paradigm

            Interview: Mark Doyle and Bruno Derlin, Festival Programmers, Visionfest

            Listen to What the Man Says

5 | So You Think You Can Do a Better Job than Miramax?

            Interview: Arthur Dong, Filmmaker

            The Self-Distribution Pioneers

            Interview: Andrew Repasky McElhinney, Filmmaker

            A Few Basic Facts

            Self-Distribution War Stories

            The Service Deal Solution

            To Four-Wall or Not to Four-Wall?

            Opportunity Knocking

            Interview: Nick Day and Maurizio Benazzo, Filmmakers

            Listen to What the Man Says

6 | Is “Direct-to-Video” Synonymous with Failure?

            DTV, Yesterday and Today

            Interview: Doug Pratt, Author, Doug Pratt’s DVD

            Online Sales Success

            Doing the Nontheatrical Circuit

            Selected Movie, Coming Up

            Interview: Michael Legge, Filmmaker

            Listen to What the Man Says

7 | Using the Internet to Call Attention to Your Films

            Blogging

            Twitter

            MySpace and Facebook

            Wikipedia

            Internet Movie Database

            Online Video Sites

            Interview: James L. Hennessy Jr., Public Relations/Marketing Expert

            Listen to What the Man Says

8 | Who’s Who, Where They Are, and What They Are Looking For

            Interview: Mark Cuban, Producer/Distributor

            The State of Film Distribution as of Today

            Interview: Andrew Gernhard, Producer/Distributor

            Listen to What the Man Says

The Final Word

About the Author