January 2014
FREE LEGAL from Entertainment Legal Aid Clinic • TFC Slate @ Sundance • Sundance Transparency Project |
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Dear Collaborators,
2015 is off to a fantastic start, and we have lots to share, including an OFFER FOR FREE LEGAL SERVICES, an EXCITING NEW COLLABORATION, and lots of Member and Client news. Don’t forget to check out our recent blog posts on digital platforms that filmmakers can utilize directly and
TFC’s takeaways of 2014.
All best,
— The Film Collaborative
 | No cost legal services by faculty-supervised, student staff
The Entertainment and the Arts Legal Aid Clinic is a faculty-supervised, student-staffed legal clinic specializing in transactional representation of low-budget feature films and other entertainment projects.
The clinic provides business and legal affairs services at no cost to the filmmakers or the production. It is a program of the Donald E. Biederman Entertainment and Media Law Institute at Southwestern Law School, located in the historic Bullocks Wilshire building in the heart of Los Angeles.
Services include:
- Script clearance
- Negotiation and drafting of development and production related agreements, such as Option, Rights Acquisition and Writer Agreements, Key Crew Agreements (Director, Producers and Department Heads Such as DP, Editor and Composer), Location Agreements and Appearance Releases,
Vendor Agreements
- Business and legal counseling from conception through completion and delivery
For more information download a PDF about the Clinic.
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 | TFC is a Collaborator on this Project!
We are proud to be collaborating with Sundance Institute on the independent film Transparency Project, which seeks to encourage greater data access and transparency regarding the performance of independent film on platforms outside the theatrical box office. The project is designed to maintain anonymity (film titles and filmmaker participation are not revealed) while encouraging the sharing of data on the effects of budget, genre, cast level, production quality, P&A spend and windowing styles on revenues and field-wide trends.
As TFC has been advocating transparency for the past five years, the fact that it is now in vogue provides a more than insignificant degree of validation. However, as Sundance Institute notes, it’s more of a movement than a project…so reaching a critical mass has always been one of our milestones, and we couldn’t be in better company! There is still lots of work to be done, and that begins with filmmakers like you, some of whom have been listening to our calls for years. We encourage you to visit the The Transparency Project Website and deepen or rekindle your involvement.
You can read more about this project here:
article by Scott Macaulay, Filmmaker Magazine and article by Anne Thompson, TOH / IndieWire.
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TFC @ Sundance
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Directed by Jenni Olson
THE ROYAL ROAD is getting rave reviews at Sundance. |
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From Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering, the Academy-Award®-Nominated Filmmakers of The Invisible War
THE HUNTING GROUND is also getting a great deal of press at Sundance and just released their official trailer. |
Client News
 | Now on Digital
APPROPRIATE BEHAVIOR is now available on digital platforms in the U.S. and Canada. |
Theatrical Releases
 | Opens at IFC Center in NYC on Feb 6
Official Selection at AFI DOCS, IDFA, Tribeca, and Palm Springs International.
TFC-Direct is proud to be handling the theatrical release of Johanna Hamilton’s 1971.
On March 8, 1971, eight ordinary citizens broke into an FBI office in Media, PA. Calling themselves the Citizens’ Commission to Investigate the FBI, they removed every file in the office. Mailed anonymously, the stolen documents started to show up in newsrooms. The heist yielded a trove of damning evidence. The most significant revelation was COINTELPRO, a controversial, secret, illegal surveillance program overseen by lifelong Bureau director J. Edgar Hoover. Despite one of the largest investigations ever conducted, the FBI was unable to catch the burglars. Those responsible have never revealed their identities. Until now. For the first time, the burglars have decided to speak about their actions. 1971 is their story, examining the consequences and implications of their actions—then and now. |
TFC Direct Digital DIY Distribution News
Many filmmakers still do not know about TFC’s Direct Digital Distribution programs. We’re offering filmmakers interested in DIY distribution two different avenues for distribution and guided support. We’re adding this section to our newsletter to highlight some films in this program.
TFC Direct Digital Distribution
 | Now on iTunes, Amazon, Google Play and VHX and one-week Los Angeles theatrical
If you are a filmmaker who is thinking about a DIY release for your film, you might want to look to this film for some inspiration.
Trieste Kelly Dunn from Cinemax’s BANSHEE and Mackenzie Davis from the ground breaking new AMC series HALT AND CATCH FIRE head up an ensemble cast in this genre-bender featuring cutting edge video-game animation and an original score from industrial music legend Raymond Watts.
Additionally, the film will open for a one-week limited theatrical release at the Arena Cinema in Hollywood starting today! Get tickets here.
Now on iTunes, Amazon, Google Play and VHX. And they are using VHX to power their website.
Lastly, and perhaps the coolest, through the "Made In NY" marketing program, they were able to procure 200 subway posters and 20 Bus stop posters, and also get a 30 second trailer playing in NYC's 13000 taxicabs! The second picture here is of the bus shelter at 96th & Broadway! |
Member News
 | Now available on Amazon Instant Video and Amazon Prime
TFC Member Arthur Vincie, writer & director of FOUND IN TIME, a fantasy that combines elements of film noir, sci-fi, and drama, has informed us that his film is now available on Amazon. For more information on this award-winning film, please visit the film’s website. |
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