Given the changes in distribution, as a filmmaker, getting your movie seen and selling is no longer solely the responsibly of a 3rd party distributor. Once you have sharpened your hook and targeted your target audience, your next step is to set up shop in some of the many popular internet based marketplaces.
The Video On Demand Market
Your next step is to determine the appropriate video on demand marketplace for your movie. There are many options for this, including setting up your own internet storefront, joining other filmmakers on a platform or setting up shop in popular Video On Demand marketplaces. Since most VOD outlets do not require an exclusive deal, I recommend getting your movie selling in multiple markets, including iTunes and Amazon.
To do this, you have two options. You can approach each platform individually or you can work through a traditional distributor or a video aggregor. There are pros and cons to each movie distribution approach.
With a traditional distributor, you would only want to sign over your movie if the deal makes more sense than distributing your movie yourself. What makes a good deal? This is really up to you. But the metrics to look for are transparent marketing spends, the distributor's ability to get you preferred placement in the platforms – and of course, a great track record.
If you go it alone, you will need to perform a lot of the heavy lifting yourself. You may have to pay upfront for encoding fees, Errors and Omissions Insurance and Closed Captioning to name a few. Later, when your title goes live, you will need to monitor your sales across all platforms.
For more information on how to market and sell your movie, check out this film distribution training system.
