Filmmakers aren’t like normal business people. Marketing a movie is not considered part of the normal day-to-day process. But in other industries, marketing is just an aspect of business. This makes a lot of sense. In the old days, your success as filmmaker depended on your ability to create an unproven product. And if your product (or in this case, your movie) did well with audiences, it was picked up, marketed and sold.
Take a look at your trailer. Is your trailer congruent with your hook and the marketing elements we covered earlier? If not, I suggest you recut and refine your trailer to make sure your marketing message is consistent. In doing this you will have to find the balance between showing enough to sell your movie and giving away so much that you spoil the story. And since your movie trailer will be posted on various websites, you should also add a title card with a link to your movie website.
Do you remember retail DVD distribution? Do you remember walking into a video store and renting a video? Those days are gone. The demise of retail DVD distribution means that you can no longer depend on some video rental chain to buy 5,000 copies of your DVD. The advent of the internet…
While creating creating community around your title, building buzz and increasing your fan base is both challenging and fun, a lot of filmmakers have no idea how to get started. In this regard, one of your first steps is to determine if your movie is ready for the marketplace
“How do you plan to sell this movie and return my investment?” That’s the question prospective film investors are going to ask you.
If you’re like most filmmakers, you have a website for your movie. And odds are good you are trying to fit too much into it. So the first thing you need to do is remove all the distracting crap. Whenever I mention this at a talk, invariably someone asks me how to determine what’s distracting? It depends on your website objective.
While many traditional distributors would like you to believe otherwise, VOD distribution has been democratized. While it is possible that your film will …
Yesterday I had breakfast with a studio executive from one of the Majors here in Los Angeles. Much of what we talked about revolved around changes in the movie industry and how many of the studio folks are slow to implement new ideas. With an estimated 30,000 to 50,000 independent movies flooding the market each year, the movie industry is experiencing what happens to any industry when cheap labor, inexpensive production…
As a filmmaker, getting your movie into the various VOD marketplaces takes way longer than it should. The reason for this is simple. Every platform including iTunes, Amazon, NetFlix, Hulu and The Watchbox all want great content. The delivery standards required by some of these platforms are so high, that if even one frame is messed up, your title will be rejected! This is why video aggregators work with amazing encoders…
For those of you following filmmaking stuff, you know that I have been working on an awesome and comprehensive filmmaking book for quite …
Are you afraid to start selling your movie on iTunes and Amazon and Hulu because this will somehow deter traditional distributors turned aggregators from acquiring your movie… So that they can get your movie onto Amazon, iTunes and Hulu? Please explain…
Regardless of distribution technology, your audience still values the visual representation of your movie as a tangible product. And in ways akin to marketing an eBook via Amazon Kindle, you still need a killer design to represent your movie.
If you have a Kindle, and enjoy reading filmmaking stuff – I wanted to let you know that you can now access this …
I’m going to release a filmmaking book this summer. Read about it here…
If you’re writing a script to be read by someone who is possibly going to buy it, you want to make it as easy and entertaining as possible. Yes, it’s easy to overdo the parentheticals, ideally your dialogue itself suggests how it will be delivered. But when it helps, go ahead. A sarcastic remark from an actress is not too high a price to pay.
I’m pretty skeptical about script contests as a way to further your career. There are success stories but I think they’re the exception. So I was interested to read the view of Chad Gervich on the Script website. He says that winning a script rarely gives you the edge
I get excited about Video On Demand and the various popular internet marketplaces like iTunes and Amazon, is because movie distribution is no longer discriminatory. This means that you can actually control your own business and marketing plan.
An interesting twist on the old “write what you know” adage comes from aspiring screenwriter Mark McCann, who also is a policeman. One …
A lot of filmmakers (who do not have website traffic) are being fed the idea that “content enablers” will magically source an audience. When I wrote the post about website streaming, I did so more in response to the never-ending slew of emails I get from various PR firms trying to push the next streaming gizmo for indie filmmakers – none of which solves the blatant problem of actually getting enough people to watch the movie…
Since starting filmmaking stuff, I’ve noticed an increase in the amount of spammy hype emails promoting new filmmaking technologies that allow filmmakers to stream their independent movies. While many of these companies have a cool concept, the truth is, I think many of these streaming solutions are a waste of time.
Earlier this week, I caught wind of an indie production company based in Australia called Rapidfire Productions. This is a production company that operates as a self sustaining modern moviemaking business. They develop movies, get money, make their movies and through their own distribution arm, the company reaches the masses.
As a feature filmmaker, one of the biggest problems YOU have is finding a traditional distribution deal (that actually makes sense) for your movie. With each passing day, we get closer and closer to a world where DVD sales channels are being replaced by video on demand. And while we are not there yet, after spending the greater part of last weekend watching streaming content on NetFlix and Hulu, I am now of the opinion that the days of DVD distribution are numbered.
One of the most important filmmaking strategies you must adopt in this era of modern moviemaking is a long term perspective. In years past, filmmakers focused on making one movie, selling it and then moving on to the next movie.
One secret I utilize is frequent press release submissions. Years ago, it was advised that you only wrote and submitted press releases when you had something newsworthy to say. But these days, in addition to targeting traditional news outlets, most press releases are included in search engine results. Without getting overly technical, this means for a very small amount of money, submitting one press release complete with links to your website can increase your web footprint.
Filmmaking is changing. Like it or not, if you want to make a living making movies, you need to learn about the business side of independent movie making. And if this is your first time on filmmaking stuff, you are reading step 4 of a 7 part series on how to sell your movie How To Sell Your Movie On iTunes, Amazon and Netflix For Maximum Profit.
Given all 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.
Or it may be that in the middle of my script things drag along too slowly–a common problem of first drafts. In that case, reminding myself that the traditional story model calls for escalating conflict can lead to better consideration of how I can add incidents that ramp up the tension and drama.