Many films enjoy their greatest success both on an awareness and financial level via HYBRID THEATRICAL / NON-THEATRICAL screenings. The film “For the Bible Tells Me So” had a successful two-year run.  We (under our previous company New American Vision) worked non theatrical screenings for END OF THE LINE to screen at over 200 venues. Caitlyn Boyle worked many screenings of the film after us. The film  “Age of Stupid” made 6-figures in profit from automated house-party screenings.

Documentaries,issue-oriented films and niche films lend themselves to this model and it can absolutely be done by yourself or with a professional company, it all comes down to how much time and energy you have to do the work entailed. TFC recommends asking filmmakers who have tapped into a similar niche that your film targets for tips and advice on reaching the audience. Educational / Institutional distributors such as Bullfrog and Cinema Guild can definitely get you bookings you could not get yourself simply by virtue of having the right database, so investigate ahead of time. You may want to hold off on regular DVD and digital distribution if this is part of your plan, non theatrical screenings are a window after all.

On the THEATRICAL side, we recommend you check out our recent blog on the topic and remember there’s a lot you can do on your own (including booking theatres). We recommend comparing the realistic upside with the investment. If you can’t come close to the recoupment on the cost of theatrical booking, really weigh whether it is worth it. Beware of service companies charging too much. We did just learn of a narrative film that self-released and grossed $650,000 and will actually profit from the release overall because that theatrical screening campaign elevated the profile of the film and therefore it got the DVD, digital and TV business the investors were hoping for. We’ve been ask not to name the film, sorry.  In any case, examples like this can go both ways so be careful and get educated *before* the release.

Inception as a way to explain duties of a PMD

This was an awesome post in Fast Company and I have to share it here. In the quest to either find a PMD to work with or to become a PMD, it may not be possible to find all of the qualities or work experience needed from just one person. It is reasonable to expect just as corporations have multiple marketing team members responsible for the myriad of duties that need to be fulfilled, a full marketing team will need to be assembled under the careful guidance of a PMD. Here is how the article explained as it related to INCEPTION:

Cobb, The Extractor, (The PMD): Executive responsible for the film brand in large. This person  is also required to not only extract ideas to form the messages about the product (the film and related content), but also introduce the new ideas that empower consumers to relate to it and pass along the message. He/she may also lead teams or individuals into each social intiative. Will also be responsible for plotting the distribution path.

Ariadne, the Architect, (Graphic designers, web developers, applications developers, writers): Build and define the online experience as well as the bridges (and Penrose stairs) that connect the dots. This might include transmedia story extensions and building those worlds around the original content.

Arthur, the Point Man, (web analytics, message analysis and propagation): Data and research analysts who gather information and intelligence and present it to the various teams for incorporation into strategies and supporting tactics.

Yusuf, the Chemist, (more technical skills, but could be done under the Architect): Social technicians and alchemists who bring architecture to life through apps, landing pages, interactive media platforms, custom tabs and the like.

Eames, the Forger, (the voice of your production that the audience responds to): Brand representative who serves as the personality and voice on the front lines in communities.

Mr. Saito, the Tourist (the influencers your team attracts  and builds relationships with): Symbolic of the influencers who serve online communities as overseers and moderators.

Miles, Cobb’s mentor (the mentality the team must have to form meaningful and lasting relationships): The ethics that serve as the inspiration for meaningful social media programs and engagement. If the mentality is purely selfish, there will be no meaningful relationships.

Fischer, the Mark: The audiences and people with whom the film’s brand hope to connect and convince to see or purchase the film.

Needless to say, there is more than enough work here for one person to handle full time for a long period of time. It could take a team of people working tirelessly to bring attention and build community around your film. Still think the person heading this effort up doesn’t deserve a producer title?

Today’s guest post is from Tyler Weaver; editor in chief of the amazing blogozine Multihyphenate and practicing PMD.

Sitting in a music business class at a shall-not-be-named institution (rhymes with “Jerklee”) during the death of the music industry as we knew it was fascinating. This was in 2003-04, and it was a sad time to be in “the industry.” Nonetheless, we clung to our hardcover and expensive door stops, taking in each lesson as we were told. But the writing was on the wall: you’re learning stuff that was out of date yesterday. Thanks for the tuition check. 

As I sat there, staring blankly at what was going on in front of me, one remark the “professor” made stuck with me: “Those who control the trucks control what’s out there and what isn’t.” 

Funnily enough, my training in business and creative marketing didn’t come from a music business course. It came from majoring in music composition, where self-distribution is the way of life. No one is going to pluck you out of obscurity when you’re writing obscure pieces of new absolute music. You have to bootstrap (as this is Sheri’s blog, I can’t let my first post go by here without mentioning the equally ubiquitous Seth Godin). You have to find your own musicians. You have to find your own performance venues (even if it’s a dude with a guitar in a subway station), and you have to get it out there. 

It was during my time there that I learned the most important lesson of creativity: It doesn’t matter how good you think you are, if no one knows about you, you’re worthless. Creativity is not only a collaboration with other creatives, it’s a collaboration with your audience as you reel them into your work and make your work part of their lives. 

When I made the career switch to film in the middle noughties, that sensibility carried over.  I’ve never been a patient person, so I have no interest in waiting for others to swoop in and get people to see my work. I was hard-wired for self-distribution because it was the only way to survive. 

When I worked at a non-profit, I used no-budget video documentaries to bring in new eyes to bad news and increase readership and site usage. The videos could stand on their own, but were meant to highlight individual stories within the purview of the NPO’s mission and cause. 

So what, you may be asking, does all of this have to do with the newly coined (and rapidly burgeoning) position of “Producer of Marketing & Distribution?” If my time as a music composer hard-wired me to self-distribution as “Plan A,” my film and NPO experience taught me the most important lesson of marketing: 

Never market something you don’t feel passionate about. 

I cared about the NPO’s mission greatly. But I was never as passionate about it as I should have been. For awhile, it was greatly successful, but then the recession hit HARD and the competition for purse strings skewed the direction of more heart-tugging causes. Failure after failure piled up, and weighed heavily. By the end, I felt like the guy trying to market the Titanic as sink-proof after the iceberg.

As a filmmaker, I would never take on a project that I wasn’t completely, unabashedly, 100% passionate about. I would never take on a project if the script wasn’t wonderful, if it didn’t make me well up with tears at the thought of someone else making this movie. As a PMD, I would never take on a project if I didn’t have the same feelings for your project. I owe you that.  

But what stirs up those feelings? A great story. 

My love of marketing comes from a love of storytelling – and in spite of my seemingly haphazard career jumping, I have always been a storyteller, be it in music, film, or marketing. Your career is a story. Your film is a story. The making of your film is a story. I want to help you tell your story. 

Orson Welles famously said, “If you want a happy ending, that depends, of course, on where you stop your story.” I’ve seen stories stop at sad endings, and at happy ones. And I’ve been responsible for both outcomes.

In today’s wild west media landscape where truly, as William Goldman remarked, “Nobody knows anything,” filmmakers and creatives are in a position of power. Our careers are in our hands now. Gone are the days where the magical distributor will discover you like a Tarantino or Rodriguez; we are no longer in the age of “making it,” but in the age of “getting it made and getting it seen.” It’s the latter part of your story that I’m excited to be a part of. 

I’m a creative because I want to see cool stuff. I want to tell a great story. I want to be engaged. I want to be told a great story. And now, I want to make sure your great story is seen and heard. We’re all truck drivers now. Our cargo: our stories. It’s my job to make sure they get where they need to go – the eyes and ears of the audience. It doesn’t matter how great you are, if you don’t bring in the last collaborator – the audience – your story is never fully told. 

And that’s not a happy ending. 

TYLER WEAVER is a storyteller whose chosen medium happens to be that expensive form called film. He’s made some stuff, like THE FOURTEEN MINUTE GAP, IL MIO CANTO LIBERO, and GATHER ‘ROUND THE MIC. He lets the world knows what he thinks as the founder and EIC of Multi-Hyphenate and takes great joy in helping other people tell their stories as a PMD and marketing strategist.  He’s currently developing a transmedia project called WHIZ!BAM!POW! that pays tribute to his lifelong love of comic books. Because he’s slightly insane, he’s simultaneously developing a new documentary. He yaks about that and more on Twitter under the creative guise of @tylerweaver

Ask any filmmaker who has run a successful campaign and he will tell you it was a full time job to get those funds. It is a crusade to exert your goal continuously and strenuously, basically you are bothering and cajoling everyone you know to help get to the goal. You must be committed to doing that to be successful.

Statistically, the shorter the campaign deadline, the faster the funding comes. I know this sounds unlikely, but if you drag out the process beyond 90 days, interest seriously wanes even from those benefitting from the funds. It is just not possible to keep momentum going for a long length of time. Keep it tight and focused.

Remember, Kickstarter’s policy is all or nothing. If you don’t raise your goal amount in the time allotted, you get none of the money pledged. Indiegogo allows you to keep what you raise, but if you raise it in a specified amount of time, there is a rebate on their fees.

As previously stated, many distributors will have marketing procedures in place to help sell your film when it is ready for distribution. The true use of a social networking strategy comes long before your film is ready for distribution.

A social networking strategy will take many months to a year to implement and it will be an ongoing effort. This effort starts with you and your team first. You will determine whom you are trying to attract into your community and what you have to offer them of interest. It is NOT all about your film, in fact very little direct mention of your film is best. Follow the 80/20 rule, 80% of your assets are about the interests of your audience, 20% of your assets are telling them about the film. You will build your engagement pages and populate them with interesting and valuable content. You will not be asking your supporters for ANYTHING, merely building a solid base of supportive fans who will be there when you are ready for distribution.

You should never do anything that will make them feel that you have formed the community in order to use it for your own purposes. Companies and filmmakers who do this stand to ruin the very thing they have spent so much time developing; a genuine and authentic community that is very loyal and connected to you and your film. That kind of loyalty is extremely difficult to accomplish with advertising and it is really the ultimate goal of all brands.

Revisit every place you’ve played your film in advance of release (all film festivals, community screenings, etc.) and consider how you can bring them aboard as a partner to blast or otherwise promote your release. Most film festivals have a vested interest in promoting the success of their alumni films and their careers, so you can likely get inclusion in their newsletter etc that includes a link to purchase your film.

If you are working through an established distributor, find out if they have “affiliate programs” in place  (meaning your promotional partner can share in a percentage,usually 5 -15%, of the revenue generated by the link from their website), and  find out if you can extend those affiliate programs to your promotional partners. You can also set up DIY affiliate programs yourself through services like Amazon Payments, but the set-up charges are not cheap and probably won’t work for a one-off film. However, if you are building yourself as a BRAND, and expect a slate of films that you can promote, affiliate programs are a must.

We have mentioned what the platforms offer as far as marketing, but they should not be solely depended on to do this work.

Unless you have a real budget to buy significant internet real estate, you will be connecting with your target market via websites and bloggers. You may find it necessary to incentivize those sites in order to promote your film. The most common tactic is contests and giveaways — meaning you provide the website with something to give away to reward their loyal readers….i.e. merchandise, sponsored travel, or free copies of the film. Creating online games themed around your film are another possibility — but of course not all independent films lend themselves to gaming. And if you’re asking the cast, crew, and everyone else you know to FB, tweet, and blast about your release, consider creating an incentive for them as well.

If you’re working far enough in advance, you MAY be able to find an appropriate brand or agency to sponsor some marketing, but know that you’ll need to start this work many months in advance of release.