Normally it’s difficult to get me to shut up about myself, but occasionally I get busy enough that I forget to do even that. As a result you may have missed your golden opportunity to see me speak at the Georgia Big Picture Conference this morning. Never fear! I have two more panels here in Atlanta and one coming up in Massachusetts at the Independent Film Festival of Boston. Here are the gritty details.
The Film Festival Circuit: A discussion with authors Heidi Van Lier (The Indie Film Rule Book) and Chris Holland (Film Festival Secrets). Friday April 17th at 4:00 p.m. Starbucks 931 Monroe Drive Atlanta,GA 30305
Distribution Options and Alternatives Sunday April 19th at 10:45 a.m. Hotel Midtown Atlanta, GA Digital strategies for building and communicating with your audience Sunday, April 26 at 12:00 pm Somerville Theatre 55 Davis Sq Somerville, MA 02144
The other panelists are:
Scott Kirsner (moderator), author of the Cinematech blog and two very cool books.
Brian Chirls, digital film marketing guru extraordinaire
Sean Flynn, producer and cinematographer at Principle Pictures.
Panels are open to festival/conference badgeholders; please inquire to GA Big Picture Conference or IFF Boston if you need more info.
If you’re one of the lucky few, uh– thousands headed to South by Southwest in Austin next month, please stop by the Southby Bookstore in the Austin Convention Center on Sunday, March 15th at 1:30 p.m. Go ahead, mark your calendar, I’ll wait. Bring along your copy of Film Festival Secrets or buy a fresh copy from the bookstore and I’ll sign it on the spot.
I’m really looking forward to this year’s SXSW – they have a strong program this year and it’s always fun to meet the filmmakers and tech types who come into Austin for this surreal celebration of entertainment, music, and technology.
If you’re planning to attend SXSW interactive but think you might want to dip your toe into the waters of the film side of things, Agnes Varnum just posted a great article entitled A Geek’s Guide to SXSW Film. (Did you know there are films that your Interactive badge will get you into even if you don’t have a Gold or Film Badge? It’s true!) Also useful is Jette Kernion’s guide to SXSW film venues over at Slackerwood.
And finally, if you’re lucky enough to be a filmmaker with a film in the program, here’s a series of articles just for you: Last minute filmmaker tips for SXSW.
I will be attending and moderating a panel at the Oxford Film Festival in Oxford, MS this weekend (the festival begins Thursday and runs through Sunday).
I left the IFFS wishing I could stay and do more. I have already made plans to attend in 2009 and would recommend the experience to any film festival worker; It is a terrific opportunity to talk about nuts and bolts away from the pressure of film markets and festival screening schedules.
This is exactly the way I feel about IFFS in general. Though I and many others have thoughts regarding the panels and general format of the annual conference, this year’s event proved invaluable as a chance to touch base with old friends, forge new contacts, and put faces to the personalities I only meet by phone or e-mail. I hope everyone else finds it as useful, and that they’ll keep coming back even as the conference struggles towards the ultimate goal of making all of its component events relevant to a wildly diverse set of attendees.
For the rest of Tom’s thoughts click here. I have more detailed notes (including the notes on my own panel about new media and marketing) that I’ll be posting later this week and early next.
If what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, then we’re all wasting our time.
If, on the other hand, we all retain memories of these three days, then a lot of good could come out of the Film Festival Summit held in Vegas this week. The Summit, positioned in early December when very few festivals are held and just about anyone in the film fest industry could participate, is a chance for festival staffers and other industry types to get together and talk shop. Though there are occasional grumbles about the location, programming, or expense of attending, no one denies that the chance to be in a room with a 200+ other festival directors — from the smallest startup to the biggest of the big boys — is invaluable.
The first day was technically only a half day but when it bleeds into the late night you can definitely say you’ve put in a full day’s work. The keynote speech by Rick Allen of Snagfilms was followed by a panel about the relationship between panels and distribution. These, however, felt secondary to the networking marathon that took place immediately afterwards on the exhibit floor and then migrated to a nearby restaurant.
I’m going to spare you the gory details in favor of getting down to the show in time for the morning panel with programmers Trevor Groth (Sundance, Cinevegas) and Gary Meyer (Telluride) speaking on “The Art and Philosophy of Curating a Film Festival.” I’m guessing that those of you reading will care more about that than about “Board Development for Your Festival” or “Creating Value for Festival Sponsors.”
Ultimately, however, this is good for filmmakers. Smaller festivals will definitely benefit from learning about the conventions created by their larger counterparts (even if they decide to flaunt those conventions) and the larger fests will be reminded that filmmakers have a world of choices (large and small) outside their own events. More to come.
The International Film Festival Summit (IFFS) is currently seeking volunteers for its upcoming 5th annual edition taking place December 7-9 in Las Vegas. Volunteers at the IFFS will be engaged in a working atmosphere that exudes passion for the promotion and advancement of film and, in particular, film festivals. And, this is an opportunity to work at a one-of-a-kind Summit geared specifically towards film festival professionals – actually it’s the ONLY event of its kind! To learn more please visit their website.
Volunteers will also have some of the same opportunities as the IFFS attendees, which includes being able to sit in on various educational and inspirational keynotes, presentations and panel sessions designed specifically for film festivals. The overall experience will allow participants the chance to meet numerous professionals in the independent film, entertainment and film festival community. Truly a unique opportunity to hear insights on an industry that one might not normally have the privilege of having access to. If interested in being a valuable member of the 2008 IFFS, please contact: Lori Douglass at 702-430-6113 or lori@michaelbass.com
I will be in attendance at the Summit this year; this will be my third year returning to the Summit and I can vouch for the fact that it is a one-of-a-kind event.
Austin’s premiere film event of the fall begins tomorrow, and with the Austin Film Festival come throngs of filmmaking and screenwriting talent, both emerging and established. It is a sublime mix of the experienced and the impressionable sharing stories, drinks, and a love of cinema. I got my start “on the inside” at the Austin Film Festival; that means it will always hold a special place in my heart. It also means they’ll let me do wacky things like launch a book at their fest and moderate a couple of panels in the process. They are:
Write it, Direct it, Produce it. Do it. Independent filmmakers take the reins, executing the creation of a film from the concept to the big screen. If you have a script and need motivation to do it yourself, this session will tell you what it takes.
Featuring: Cole Selix Mark Potts PJ Raval Spenser Parsons
Are film festivals the new distribution? How do you navigate this world, anyway? How do you write a festival plan? What is the best way to utilize festivals to get attention for yourself and your film? In this in-depth panel, you will learn from people inside the festival world and successful fest filmmakers about making the relationship mutually beneficial and getting the most out of a festival experience.
Featuring: James Faust (AFI Dallas) Kelly Williams (Austin Film Festival) Michelle Emanuel (Oxford FF)
I’ll be giving a few copies of the book away at these panels and just generally enjoying the fest itself. If you’re at the Festival this week, do stop by one of these panels and introduce yourself. I’ll post some notes from the panels themselves here on the blog next week or possibly the week after that.
Here’s a first: an indie film that plays festivals, gets some great buzz, then premieres on Hulu instead of in theaters. That’s exactly what’s happening with Crawford, one of the hit docs of this past year’s South by Southwest film festival, courtesy of distributor B-Side (my employer).
There’s a lot of talk about how indie film distribution will work in the future. In my opinion it really boils down to a simple equation: the more people see your movie, the more people will buy it. (Given that the potential of any indie film to saturate the market like a Hollywood film is practically nil, the idea that an indie film can be “overplayed” is laughable.) Congratulations to director David Modigliani for taking some brave first steps in the new world of progressive distribution.
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If you’re one of the lucky few, uh– thousands headed to 
I will be attending and moderating a panel at the Oxford Film Festival in Oxford, MS this weekend (the festival begins Thursday and runs through Sunday). 
Austin’s premiere film event of the fall begins tomorrow, and with the Austin Film Festival come throngs of filmmaking and screenwriting talent, both emerging and established. It is a sublime mix of the experienced and the impressionable sharing stories, drinks, and a love of cinema. I got my start “on the inside” at the Austin Film Festival; that means it will always hold a special place in my heart. It also means they’ll let me do wacky things like launch a book at their fest and moderate a couple of panels in the process. They are: