For a very long time, the cost to make a film prevented most filmmakers from having a career outside of Hollywood. And while one can argue that independent filmmakers have always existed, even the most independent of filmmakers relied on traditional Hollywood distribution vehicles to get movies seen and sold. But those days are gone.
You no longer need to shoot on film. As a result, you no longer need to negotiate with a lab to get your film processed and transferred to video. With few hundred dollars and a laptop, modern moviemakers can now grab a camera and create cinematic quality content without asking permission.
Stop Crying About Filmmaking
While these enhancements mark the end of the Hollywood regime and the beginning of a true democratization of moviemaking, it is important to note that this evolution comes with new challenges.
This is the age of the backyard indie. And the market is saturated with cheap movies, making it difficult for any filmmaker to get noticed. Add the fact that physical distribution is being replaced by video on demand, and you can understand why nobody in the old guard wants to admit that they are scared.
The reason for all this fear is simple. In the past, you could depend on DVD sales to make up for money lost at the box office. These physical sales were easy to project – Sell 10,000 units to Blockbuster and get a few million dollars. But what do traditional filmmakers do in a world where one only has to upload a movie once to reach a global audience?
Seven Steps To Help You Grow Your Filmmaking Business
This is why veteran filmmakers are going cray, cray. This is the same reason why movies are more difficult to finance (thank goodness for tax credits.) And this is the same reason why YOU are now responsible for sourcing your own target audience. So how do you source your audience?
- Step 1 – Sharpen Your Hook
- Step 2 – Target Your Target Audience
- Step 3 – Get Into The Marketplace
- Step 4 – Create Your Movie Sales Funnel
- Step 5 – Refine Your Trailer (And Promote It)
- Step 6 – Increase Targeted Web Traffic.
- Step 7 – Leverage Your Following.
I talk about this stuff a lot more in my how to sell your movie program, but if you want to survive and thrive as an independent filmmaker, you need to realize that your audience is YOUR business. If you do not take the necessary steps to start sourcing your audience right now (I mean, today!), you will greatly diminish your chance for success.
