Feeling left behind because you’re not going to Park City this week? Here are a few ideas on how to keep yourself occupied — either by distracting yourself with other business or by taking part vicariously. In no particular order:
Hold some test screenings for your own film. Chances are you haven’t held nearly enough test screenings to really know how an audience will react to your film, so why not have a little festival magic of your own? See chapter one of Film Festival Secrets for more on holding test screenings, but it’s pretty simple: Get a bunch of strangers together, show them your movie, and gather some opinions. It feels good and it’s good for you. Read more »
If you’re headed to Sundance you’ll appreciate the organizational genius of Erin McCarthy’s Sundance Binder.
I used to go nuts with a similar binder (folder, actually) on trips, stuffed with Yahoo maps directions of each place I needed to be during the trip. The iPhone has replaced those folders for me (GPS + internet = awesome) and I’ve tried to move away from paper as much as possible. During Sundance, however, with its terrible cell signal and GPS-ruining snow, binders still rule supreme. I’ve got mine ready.
MovieMaker puts this list out every year but this is the first year I can remember agreeing this much with their choices. I don’t know all of these fests but there’s a lot of overlap with my personal favorites here: Cinekink, deadCENTER, Florida Film Fest, Friars Club Comedy Fest, Traverse City – it’s a great list.
Charles Judson, communications director for the Atlanta Film Festival, in CinemaATL magazine:
It’s much easier to start a festival than it is to maintain a festival. Starting a festival really requires a commitment that has to go beyond just the three or four people who will bust ass to bring that inaugural event to fruition again and again and again. If a festival is really to have any shot at being a self-sustaining entity, it’s not just funds that have to be constantly flowing in, you need a constant stream of man power, and self-renewing passion that translates into a mission that folks instantly get.
Now, instead of using that same man power and determination to create a festival, why not suggest filmmakers create one off events around their films? If you’re a filmmaker, there’s absolutely no shame in doing something that only benefits your film. Being self-less is great, but if you’re not paying back your investors or creating any momentum to start your next film, what is that virtuousness really gaining you? And unless your goal is to stop making films, doing a festival will not be the wisest of career moves.
For years I’ve been kicking around the idea for a book for people who want to start a film festival. The first chapter is titled “Don’t.”
Hop on over to the Sundance Film Festival Facebook page for the link to a streaming web broadcast of the Sundance programming team, answering questions about submitting your film to the festival. Should be illuminating.
Ready to submit your questions? Join us tomorrow 9/8 at 12PST for a 30 min live Q&A with programming staff. Come prepared with any questions about submitting your film to the 2011 Festival.
It’s that time again: South By SouthWest PanelPicker voting is open, which means you get a say in the panels that appear at the Film, Music, and Interactive Conferences. Voting closes on Friday so get yourself over to the site and vote.
Regional Filmmaking: Revenge of the Flyover States – The best film festival in the U.S. is in Texas, so why should the best filmmakers in the country have to live in New York or Los Angeles? Working filmmakers from the so-called “flyover states” talk about the challenges and advantages of making movies outside of the cities traditionally associated with filmmaking. Also proposed by me and Jesse. Vote for it.
Sex it Up! – What’s the difference between art and porn? The old joke is that “one is in focus,” but it’s also an aesthetic distinction that is increasingly irrelevant. Just as more “mainstream” indie filmmakers are utilizing explicit themes and imagery in their works, a new school of directors working on the adult side of the industry are creating works that defy the porn clichés. Even if you’re not looking to bare all, here’s your chance to learn from each and tell stories that move past the bedroom door to embrace the full range of our experiences. Proposed by Lisa Vandever of Cinekink. Vote for it!
Jennifer Amman, Festival Production Manager for the Telluride Film Festival, leaves her position with this rather public message. I’ve never met Jennifer or been to Telluride, but the video provides a glimpse into the problems (and backstage tensions) that exist at many film festivals these days. Sponsors are harder to come by these days and money is tight all over. It’s tempting to side automatically with Jennifer, but as Sarasota Film Festival programming director Tom Hall rightfully points out:
. . . cutbacks to festival budgets are an absolute reality right now, and that one of the main issues facing any non-profit at this time is setting new, adjusted priorities and getting organizational buy-in for those changes. I don’t think there is anyone working at festival today, from a Board President to a volunteer, who has faced down a change to the landscape and hasn’t thought to themselves “This is the last straw.” I know I have, I know everyone has; it’s all part of being under-paid, over-worked and deeply passionate about the integrity of the event you’re putting on.
That said, finding savings in the morning meals of your volunteers (if true) makes you an easy target for ridicule.
I suppose it was only a matter of time before someone struck on the idea of a film fest at Burning Man. Luckily for potential attendees, the folks who organized this one have a ton of experience. They’re going to need it – the conditions they’ll face are unlike those at any other film festival.
I have a ton of notes on this and I’ll be writing a longer entry soon, but the festival’s call for entries ends tomorrow (Thursday, July 15th) so I wanted to get the word out today. If you have a short film that would be cool to show at Burning Man, now’s your chance. Here’s the link to submit. There’s also an official Facebook page for the festival.
I just got word that the festival will be screening their films on “The Engine,” a 1000-pound “light and steel sculpture” that is essentially a portable projection system. Sounds cool.
Festival consulting is available at reasonable rates. Whether you just need a few answers or want a complete strategy for your film, I'm here to help. Read more >>
First Time Here?
There's a lot to learn about film festivals. Learn more about Film Festival Secrets and see some of our most popular articles. Read more >>
If you’re headed to Sundance you’ll appreciate the organizational genius of Erin McCarthy’s Sundance Binder.
It’s that time again: South By SouthWest PanelPicker voting is open, which means you get a say in the panels that appear at the Film, Music, and Interactive Conferences. Voting closes on Friday so 
