CREATIVE DISTRIBUTION MISCONCEPTIONS 101
In the current landscape of film distribution pretty much anything is possible. The industry has changed radically in the past ten years and unlocked a world of opportunity and discovery for many documentary films. But the amazing new opportunities outlined came at a cost and the wealth of possibilities also brought many uncertainties.
Today filmmakers are presented with many choices to distribute their documentaries and like anything else those choices have consequences. Some filmmakers submit widely to the film festival circuit hoping to be selected and picked up by buyers at an A-list festival. Others reach out to large traditional distributors or are approached by them and sell their rights to join vast digital catalogues. Some expect their films to go directly into broadcast. There are filmmakers who fall victim of predatory distribution practices such as the ones exhibited by Distribber.
In this landscape, every year, we encounter a number of films that are have the potential to make a profound impact in society and expose largely ignored or untold injustices, spark conversations, ignite debate or even change policy. These are the films that often engage with a creative distributor, but what is really a creative distributor? It depends on whom you ask. There are so many descriptions and discussions around impact production and creative distribution that also many misconceptions have made their way into the conversation. Here we attempt to clear up three of them:
1. Creative distribution and impact equals no revenue -
It’s not uncommon to think that impact distribution will not generate revenue for your film and that it is focused primarily on exposing communities to the story or issues at hand at no cost. That is not the case.
When impact is part of a well-planned distribution strategy, it can not only generate revenue from licensing, speaking engagements, and sponsorships, but also create a strong buzz towards semi theatrical and theatrical tours, as well as educational and digital releases, for which public performance rights (PPR) licenses, sales and royalties are negotiated.
On the other hand, it’s important to remember that creative distribution has a strong focus on engagement. It aims to move targeted audiences, start conversations and drive social change, therefore it benefits from hybrid models and on occasion there will be a mix of paid and free screenings, when those screenings are deemed crucial to push the campaign forward or otherwise when high-impact screenings provide benefits beyond direct revenue.
2. Creative distribution and impact will hold me back from my next project
Impact campaigns require some level of commitment from the filmmaker and subjects in order to succeed, so there are considerations to make regarding availability and timing. However, finding the right partners will allow you to run an efficient campaign, without holding you back and this is why:
- Impact distribution builds an engaged fan base for the film that could potentially follow the filmmaker to their next film. Extrapolation of research and work from one campaign to the next for a filmmaker is very common.
- Through the hard work of the campaign team, Impact distribution builds solid, long-term relationships that can be very valuable moving forward and not necessarily end after a specific campaign is over.
- Impact distribution is great for your social media and organic reach as it can expose large audiences to your film and your brand over an extended period of time and leave them asking for more.
- Understanding impact of distribution can empower filmmakers with valuable insights into optimizing budgeting strategies for their upcoming films. This firsthand experience underscores the importance of including distribution planning, a factor frequently overlooked in the initial production budget.
3. Creative distribution and impact are not compatible with traditional distribution -
It’s worth expanding on the idea that to be effective, creative distribution can and should intersect with most aspects of traditional distribution while using a different mindset that prioritizes filmmakers’ goals and engagement of audiences around the film issue. Impact distributors are in a particularly good position to do so by working closely and transparently with partners and communities, theatre owners, programmers and platforms to get the film out into the world. Like traditional distribution, impact distribution also benefits from windowing and long-term planning including broadcast and/or digital (VOD, SVOD, etc.) release stages. So, in our experience a good impact campaign doesn’t seek different channels of distribution per se, but engages with them in a different way and provides added flexibility with an emphasis on teamwork.
Furthermore, many creative distributors and impact producers partner with traditional distributors that can take on all or some of the film rights after the impact campaign ends. For example, one of our partners is Europe-based Feel Sales, an international sales agency devoted to acquiring and distributing documentary films and short films.
This is all for today. But before you ask, here are a few more clarifications that we’ll address more in depth in the next blog post:
- Your film must address a human interest, social or political issue of relevance.
- Your film should not be available on platforms before a campaign is launched.
- Creative distribution and impact need a budget. Check out this fantastic resource from the International Documentary Association to make sure you address this critical step.
- An impact producer is not a community organizer, they need to understand the film ecosystem.