TFC Tidbit of the Day 43 What makes people donate?
You must think of fun, interactive and interesting ways of soliciting funds. My friends from Tilt the movie had a really fun way of engaging their donors. They created a map of the town where their film is set and “populated” the town with their backers, complete with fun, made up bios of each one. For $15, a donor could see what kind of creative backstory could be invented for their presence in the story of Tilt. All from the creative minds of the filmmakers.
Think of the target audience of your film, what drives them, what interests them, what can you give THEM for donating? You will find that your donations are easier to get when people feel great about helping.
Orly Ravid August 18th, 2010
Posted In: crowdfunding
Tags: crowdfunding, map, soliciting donation, Tilt the Movie
TFC Tidbit of the Day 42 There is a reason it is called a campaign
Ask any filmmaker who has run a successful campaign and he will tell you it was a full time job to get those funds. It is a crusade to exert your goal continuously and strenuously, basically you are bothering and cajoling everyone you know to help get to the goal. You must be committed to doing that to be successful.
Statistically, the shorter the campaign deadline, the faster the funding comes. I know this sounds unlikely, but if you drag out the process beyond 90 days, interest seriously wanes even from those benefitting from the funds. It is just not possible to keep momentum going for a long length of time. Keep it tight and focused.
Remember, Kickstarter’s policy is all or nothing. If you don’t raise your goal amount in the time allotted, you get none of the money pledged. Indiegogo allows you to keep what you raise, but if you raise it in a specified amount of time, there is a rebate on their fees.
Orly Ravid August 17th, 2010
Posted In: crowdfunding
Tags: campaign, crowdfunding, indiegogo, Kickstarter
TFC Tidbit of the Day 34 Grassroots Promotional Partners and Affiliate Programs
Revisit every place you’ve played your film in advance of release (all film festivals, community screenings, etc.) and consider how you can bring them aboard as a partner to blast or otherwise promote your release. Most film festivals have a vested interest in promoting the success of their alumni films and their careers, so you can likely get inclusion in their newsletter etc that includes a link to purchase your film.
If you are working through an established distributor, find out if they have “affiliate programs” in place (meaning your promotional partner can share in a percentage,usually 5 -15%, of the revenue generated by the link from their website), and find out if you can extend those affiliate programs to your promotional partners. You can also set up DIY affiliate programs yourself through services like Amazon Payments, but the set-up charges are not cheap and probably won’t work for a one-off film. However, if you are building yourself as a BRAND, and expect a slate of films that you can promote, affiliate programs are a must.
Orly Ravid August 12th, 2010
Tags: affiliate marketing, grassroots marketing, promotional partners
TFC Tidbit of the Day 31- Aggregators and Distributors to Get Your Film on iTunes
New Video-They are choosy about the films they represent and they charge 15% of all revenue generated.
IndieFlix– They go through New Video and charge a 30% Fee on all revenue generated (we think that’s inclusive of the New Video fee but are waiting to confirm).
Indie Rights– They go through New Video and charge a 20% fee in addition to the New Video fee.
IndieRights and IndieFlix also work with platforms other than iTunes as do we at TFC so that should be factored in when making distribution decisions.
Tunecore-Aggregates straight to iTunes. Distribber uses Tunecore to access iTunes. Distribber charges a flat fee of $1,295 for iTunes and all the revenue flows back to the filmmaker, no backend fees. TFC uses Tunecore and works with Distribber as a partner (we are working with them for no extra charge to filmmakers).
Gravitas– A VOD / digital aggregator (who often goes through Warner Bros), they will handle your iTunes submission, but that’s two fees (each at 15% as we understand it and they claim that Warner Bros and studios in general get better revenue even from Apple).
Warner Bros and Lionsgate- TFC works with Lionsgate and it seems that both have more marketing leverage (as does New Video) to get best promotion possible on iTunes. This can make a big difference and should be factored in along with analysis of backend splits and fees.
TFC works with both the flat fee and commission models because of the fact that when cable VOD or even sometimes DVD is a valuable option, regular digital often goes with them.
Orly Ravid August 9th, 2010
Posted In: Digital Distribution, Distribution Platforms, iTunes, Uncategorized
Tags: Digital Distribution, Distribber, Gravitas Ventures, independent film, IndieFlix, IndieRights, Lionsgate, New Video, Tunecore, Warner Bros
TFC Tidbit of the Day 30 URGENT: Build Some Distribution Expenses into Your Production Budget
Nothing is more disconcerting than filmmakers who spend $100K (or whatever) to make their film, but now have nothing left to make screeners, exhibition masters, hire publicists, set up buyer screenings, hire a team to oversee their web presence, etc. A film in the can is only a tree toppling in the forest, and if you have nothing left in the bank then your tree will certainly fall silently on deaf ears.
Remember that everything AFTER you complete your film will still cost some money, even if it is only Festival submission fees; the postage and assistance to get the film out there; a few key trips to important Festivals and markets where you can promote your film; and distribution deliverables (including MUSIC CLEARANCES). A good guideline minimum is 10% – 20% of your production budget to help you start the distribution process…so if you are thinking your film will cost $100K to make, then make the budget 110 or 120K at least.
Don’t get caught in the ultimate trap that so many filmmakers find themselves in; a film in the can with nothing more they can do with it. You didn’t max your credit cards to end up in this dilemma! Think about distribution expenses IN CONJUNCTION with production expenses. Please!
Orly Ravid August 6th, 2010
Posted In: DIY, Film Festivals, Marketing, Uncategorized
Tags: distribution budget, distribution expenses, festival submissions, music clearances, production budget