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MillimeterExperimental Distribution
Jun 2, 2008 11:00 AM, By Eric Melin
Film festivals go from here to awesome.
Arin Crumley, cofounder of From Here to Awesome, captures DV footage for recent Four Eyed Monsters episodes into Apple Final Cut Studio on a Power Mac G5.
Photo: Mike Hedge
At South by Southwest (SXSW) this year, there was an interesting dichotomy happening. Not only did the interactive panels outnumber the film-oriented ones by about three to one, but talk of digital distribution and pirating overtook many of the more traditional film-related discussions. While some festivalgoers argued that digital delivery is ruining the industry, others looked for ways that content producers can benefit from this technological inevitability. Who says a couple of high-powered studio executives sitting in an office in Hollywood are the only ones who can decide what movies we can see when the Internet provides an open, global marketplace?
This caused a lot of chatter that some festivalgoers may have felt was off-topic for certain panels. But it is increasingly clear that web-based content will forever be mentioned in the same breath as theatrically distributed film. Those who don't realize the wave of the future will merely be plugging the dam until the pressure becomes too much and eventually breaks right through.
The music side of the industry already has a number of highly publicized success stories of self-distribution. Although Radiohead won't release exact sales figures, in October 2007, the band allowed its new album to be downloaded for whatever price the buyer thought fair. The band then released traditional hard copies of the album to retail, after which the album promptly shot up to number one, according to SoundScan. Nine Inch Nails also cut out the middle man, digitally releasing its new recordings this March to a whopping $1.6 million in revenue in its first week. Obviously, these bands have huge followings from years of major-label-supported ad campaigns, but this is proof that the market is not merely in the process of transformation. It has already changed.
With the expansion of digital cinema and advances in Internet technology, distribution methods for filmmakers are becoming more democratic. Online festivals and independent distribution models can now take digital content to a worldwide market without the help of a movie studio. Content creators must make sure that their thinking is as up to date as their equipment in this fast-changing environment.
Three indie filmmakers who are intimately familiar with the DIY process have teamed up to launch an unorthodox online film festival that allows directors to retain their rights while receiving revenue directly from the distribution outlets. Filmmakers Lance Weiler, Arin Crumley, and M dot Strange (also known as Mike Belmont) started the From Here to Awesome (FHTA) discovery and distribution festival, which is in full swing this month. Created by filmmakers to benefit filmmakers, the festival's goal is no less than the complete inversion of the film-festival model.
There are no submission fees to enter, and FHTA is sponsored by a wide assortment of web partners. Online viewers will determine winners across a variety of websites and platforms that will aggregate the results back to FHTA. The top 10 shorts and features will move on to be part of the festival, receiving opportunities for cash, sponsorship, and further distribution, all leading up to the final showcase in November at Paris' prestigious Cinémathèque Française.
Continue the discussion on “Crosstalk” the Millimeter Forum.
