Filmmakers: Wait for the Money!

There is a lot of talk floating around about the changing distribution market for indie films. It feels like filmmakers are waiting for a knight in shining armor to rescue them. With good faith and intentions filmmakers are handing over their films to people who seem to have absolutely no idea how to generate revenue from the product. Many online 'distributors' and 'rights managers' happily exclaim how audiences can watch these films for free! Does a filmmaker really need a middleman to give their film away. When it comes to resourceful avenues for marketing independent films filmmakers lead the way in progressive, successful and profitable ideas.

The revenue issue will not sort itself out. People will sort it out. The question is who is doing the sorting and on whose behalf are they sorting? If someone else is doing the thinking for you as to where your money should go, do you think they'll put it in your pocket or their own? Think about it. Think Madoff. Think for yourself. Don't be blindly led down a road of relinquished royalties and rights.

Your life is not a Disney movie. You will need to be your own knight in shining armor.

Three potentially big players in the indie world are Google, YouTube and Facebook. These entities haven't sorted out how they are going to create revenue. How are they going to sort out how you can make money?

If a company wants to put your film up for free then ask what you get out of it besides hits. Solid monetary numbers are good. If those figures only pay your phone bill then perhaps you might want to look at what other companies are offering, or at least what sort of rights they want turned over. Hold out until you get an offer worth taking or create it yourself.

Make sure you read the fine print. Question what deal is being offered to you. If your film is good, it will be good in two years. Find the right avenue by which to distribute. If you aren't patient and your film goes out for free and you can't take your rights back because you signed them away, then what? Then will you ever have the opportunity to make money from the film you worked so hard to create?

I've read that if you put a picture up on Facebook you give FB non-exclusive rights to your work. Is that indefinite? Does that mean the company can always put your photo up even 50 years from now for free? How does YouTube work? If you put your film on Google for free, non-exclusively, can you take it down? Do you have that right? Or, did you just sign your rights away? If Google has the right to continue screening your film how could you make money off the film elsewhere? Be patient? Know what you are getting into. Think longterm. Don't lose crucial control over your potential paycheck. Be weary of smooth talkers and unexplained hype.

Don't be in a hurry to get nothing for something from which you can potentially earn a living. The marketplace is changing. Be patient. If you're film is good now it will be good later and you will be able to make money from it in the long run. If you jump the gun you might lose out. Just be careful. Think before you act. Find out exactly what is in it for you. If your potential partner can't tell you, then maybe they haven't figured it out yet. Fine. Then maybe it's okay to wait until the dust has settled.

Participate in both your own success and the success of your work. The independent film market is huge and untapped. Don't believe everyone who says the market is flooded. Perhaps the problem is that old methods just aren't working anymore. We are creating a new system. This is a very exciting time for the independent film industry.

Your product is golden. Treat it like such. Don't let someone else make your money because they convinced you that your product wasn't valuable. If your work is good, it's valuable. Don't believe the rhetoric. There is no time limit on quality. Have you seen The Godfather lately? Quality is timeless. If your product is good then time is on your side and you have nothing to lose but your livelihood.

Google, YouTube and Facebook (or their proverbial equivalents) can be your best friends. These companies know how to reach an audience. What they don't know how to do is make money. That's okay. Everyone needs to start somewhere. Just remember to work with them, not for them.

Even in today's climate of flux within the industry, there are times when YouTube is clearly an excellent place to share your film and money becomes irrelevant. Let's say you're Kate Hudson and you just directed your first short which is screening at Tribeca Film Fest and you'd like the world to see it because that exposure and recognition is all the leverage you need...