It used to be that a film company would spend the same amount of money marketing a film as it would spend producing a film.  The P&A, or prints and advertising would include the prints, advertising, PR, screening, basically anything that had to do with getting the film out to the public and creating a […]

Let’s start with a multiple choice pop quiz that includes just one question: Why do filmmakers make films? 1)     Because they’re bored and have nothing else to do. 2)     Because they have too much money and don’t know how else to spend it. 3)     Because they want to watch it in their room, by themselves, […]

For years I had heard good things about Del Weston’s Action On Film International Film Festival and Writers Event (which will be hosted in Monrovia, California this August).  I’d also heard about the launch of Del’s Action On Film TV talk show which goes out nationally via Time Warner Cable, Champion Broadband, PEG Media and […]

The last blog I wrote told the story of a new type of client that I’ve been encountering.  Well, they’re not actually clients, they’re creative holiday gift givers.  These are people who give the gift of PR. Spurred on by these creative PR gift givers, we decided to try and make the giving a bit easier […]

Film festivals are definitely one approach to market and showcase your film and one I would encourage any filmmaker to consider.  But using that as your sole approach can backfire.  Let’s say one of your primary goals is to show your film at film festivals, particularly at the top festivals.  Fine, the film festival route […]

The film festival route is certainly a viable one when it comes to promoting and marketing your film, but keep in mind that’s not the only route.  Plenty of independent films land a distributor and find an audience going different routes altogether.  Regardless of whether you go the film festival route or have another strategy, […]

Making a film can be a magical experience, but  many filmmakers get so excited about and engrossed in the making of their film that they forget producing their film is only step one.  Actually the production of your film should be pretty far down the line in your film to-do list.  Particularly when it comes […]

There are two primary areas where most independent films run into roadblocks, the first is marketing/PR and the second is distribution.  That has pretty much always been the case, but now, with the film industry in such flux and more competitive than ever, it’s becoming even more of a challenge. Marketing, public relations and media […]

The film world has been going through seismic changes.  It hasn’t been rocked quite a hard as the music world, but still, this is not your dad’s film world and it’s changing by the minute.  So start by shifting your mindset.  The days of making a film, finding a distributor and opening theatrically may still […]