Take it Seriously.

Something that I've had to deal with a lot since releasing The Truth About Romance is; Sorry we only deal with official releases.

It's been quite horrible. There's a tradition in the film industry, and it's all about film festivals and distribution (and higher up the ladder, awards).

The general thought is; anybody can upload to YouTube. 

Yes, I guess that is correct. However, there is a reason I chose to release my film through YouTube. I didn't have the money to go to film festivals, and the marketing budget to release the film with a distributor would have been silly. The Truth About Romance cost me £250, marketing it would have cost thousands of pounds.

Does that mean I shouldn't be taken seriously? I think a lot of people disregard YouTube as a film platform, there are so many silly videos of nonsense I can understand why. And yes, it doesn't sound very professional. However, the industry is changing. Cinemas aren't capable of screening no budget indie films, because they need to make money too. The rental world as also changed. When video shops were around a little indie film may have caught an eye on the bottom shelf or the guys working there might recommend it. Now rentals are online, and these websites have to shout about how they get all the latest biggest and best blockbusters, so they can attract customers away from rival sites.

So where is the home for low budget indie films?

At the moment The Truth About Romance as reached 60,000 views on YouTube, and it grows daily. I get to interact with people that leave me comments on YouTube, Facebook and Twitter. It's worked out well. If only the industry people would take it seriously too, otherwise what will happen to low budget indie films.

JGW

:)

27,000 views!

It's been awhile, hasn't it? 

So far the film has gained 27,000 views on YouTube. That's amazing! I always hoped it would do well, but I honestly didn't think people would have time to watch a 90 minute film. 

It as made me really positive about the future of indie filmmaking. Hopefully we'll start to see more films distributed like this.

JGW

:)

Pre-Production: Week 2

It's been a slower week. I think the initial excitement as died down a bit. I started this week worried, because this tiny indie film had grown so much within a week that it almost grew bigger than me. I got an email of a recognisable distribution company that basically said that if we had any bankable talent attached to the project they might be interested in buying the rights for UK and International distribution. This got me really excited. I started emailing agents and looking for TV/soap stars that weren't working at the moment. I figured if I got a few recognisable faces in the film the chances of getting a distribution deal would be greater. I suddenly realised after receiving a few emails back asking questions about budget and such, that I was dealing with all this for the first time and having to guess a lot of it. The truth is at the moment there isn't a budget, it's very much a passion project, so I'd be lying to the agents that their clients would get paid. I figured if you told enough white lies I'd be OK. Lie to the agent to get their client attached and then make a deal with the distribution company telling them which stars are attached, and then once it's sold use that money to pay the agent. Sounds about right to me. However, this is my first feature film and making the film is hard enough. Trying to get bankable talent and selling the film is a whole other level at the moment. One that I'm not prepared to take this time. It has made me think and I'd do this a lot different next time.


Monday night I decided that this was all wrong, it was too much and too big for this effectively no budget film. Having a distribution plan is key though. Knowing what you are doing with your film once it's complete is being a step ahead of the game. I wouldn't want to finish post production and have a finished film and not know what I'm doing with it. Then spend a month or so planning. Start planning now. In hindsight I would plan this out whilst writing the script.
After some research I have come up with a distribution plan, which I think will be cost effective and the best way to reach my target audience. Something I learnt last week was a lot of press won't cover your film whilst it doesn't have a distribution deal, because they don't want to tell their audience about a film they may never see. When you're sending out press packs make sure you include your distribution plan.


Right that will do. More updates to follow.
James G. Wall
(Producer/Writer/Director)