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Leaning on the Festival Circuit is a Lost Cause
Tuesday, April 14, 2015 at 8:00AM 
Photo by Pavan TrikutamAs difficult as making movies can be, there’s nothing worse than going through the trials and relief of finishing one only to have it sit on the shelf collecting dust because no one is watching it. Even the probability of some viewers disliking it, for whatever reason, still trumps the death of a movie that goes unnoticed.
Last year, I mentioned wanting to ease up on playing the expensive and anxious waiting game that is the film festival submissions process. Between then and now I’ve had constant reminders of how important it is to have several ideas of how the life of a film can flourish – with or without being in a festival lineup.
Of the many things alternative events such as Couch Fest and Secret Cinema has taught me, one is that the industry standard way of showcasing indie films via festival screenings does not have to be the end-all and be-all for anyone’s work. So in the age of evolving technology and the flexible ways people consume their entertainment, I find it interesting how so many of us keep throwing our darts and funding at the same ol’ targets.
While the trajectory of films playing in theaters seem pretty clear – limited or wide release, VOD/Disc rentals (e.g. Netflix, iTunes, Redbox), home video sales, cable television, network television, etc. -- the same cannot be said for the thousands of independently produced shorts and features on the film festival circuit. That’s not even counting the tens of thousands (and counting) of films getting rejection letters from festivals.
L is for LeanLots of indie film producers view festivals as an end-game for our efforts because some of them provide career perks such as opportunities to secure the kind of distribution deals that make it possible for our work to be playing at a theater near you.
Other advantages that could come from getting into festivals include reviews in newspapers and related publicity, representation of some sort, and connections with investors who could fund future work.
Too often, however, this is just a dream since most films don’t play in festivals. Even for those that do, it seems like the life of the film ends there.
It’s bothersome how indie filmmakers often get caught up in the limbo of submitting to festivals, crossing our fingers and hoping for an acceptance letter. We tend to lean on these events too much with the expectation of them bringing us an audience and thus, validating our work. Depending on a third-party to do the work of getting movies seen is not a good idea because it can backfire when we don’t have any other cards in play.
How long do YOU tend to wait for something to pan out before moving onto another opportunity?
Do YOU like to exercise several different options when trying to reach an objective, or go with one that seems the most promising?
Reader Comments (6)
I am always working on something at the same time, so if one thing runs it's course... I am ready to the next.
I think it is so cool that you are a filmmaker.
Yes, as there's nothing more discouraging than writing books or blogs that no one reads...especially books, since they, like films, are labor intensive.
I'm going to share this post with my husband. He wants to make a short film and has been discouraged by the festival screening process...nice to get some helpful hints on other options!
It can be discouraging when the favored way to do something can also be a discouraging route. But I find it helpful to have a Plan B or C in place so that if Plan A falls apart, I'm not stuck with only the results of that one way.
And I thought the query process was difficult!
I had no idea that some Independent films are only played at film festivals. Makes me wonder how many wonderful movies I've missed. Now that I'm back on Netflix I've been able to see quite a few independent films that never reached our area, but I thought it was because we're out in the boondocks.
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