Distributor ReportCard - Gravitas Ventures

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Gravitas Ventures

Founded in 2006, Gravitas is one of the largest all rights distributors, often being referred to as a catalogue distributor.

The company releases around 300 titles a year, which would presume around 25 titles per month, and has an acquisitions staff of 3 (according to their website).

For lower tier films, Gravitas offers an opportunity of brand recognition with no upfront fee. For higher tier films needing more personal attention, the distributor offers theatrical releases and servicing to all major platforms.

We interviewed filmmakers who have worked with Gravitas Ventures, asking each the same set of questions. Below are their responses.

The quotations below are excerpts from actual interviews with filmmakers who have recently worked with this distributor.

- Why a ReportCard?
- Methodology
Why a ReportCard?

One of the reasons we founded The Film Collaborative in 2009 was that filmmakers would often tell us how unhappy they were with their distributors—that they wished they would have known the things they now know when they originally signed their deal. The Film Collaborative embarked on a mission to educate filmmakers about distribution, which we have done ever since, not only through our normal daily interactions with filmmakers, but also on panels, at film markets, and through this suite of online educational tools.

But all the education in the world cannot ensure that filmmaker relationships with their distributors go perfectly. We are often asked to keep the gripes we hear—not to mention the larger problems—confidential, as filmmakers writ large are fearful of potential blowback. So, although TFC has a “secondhand” sense of how these distributors often operate, we wanted to find a way to let filmmakers speak for themselves while still remaining anonymous.

Our first attempt a half dozen years ago was a quasi-“Yelp” for distributors. We begged filmmakers to log in and leave comments, even anonymously, if they so desired. But no one wanted to take us up on this for fear of being identified, hurting their relationships with their distributors, and losing distribution potential.

Fast-forward to 2021, when we shifted to “Zagat”-type format, conducting private interviews with a diverse range of filmmakers who have worked with each distributor and synthesizing their actual quotes into a larger portrait.

The “report card” aspect here should not be taken literally, as we do this not to flunk anyone, but to provide guidance to future filmmakers as to whether these distributors are a potential fit and what filmmakers can reasonably expect from working with them. And also, perhaps, to give distributors a chance to reflect on these comments and ultimately do better for the films that these creators have entrusted them with.

—The Film Collaborative
A word about methodology…

All films interviewed were feature length.

TFC has, of course, received feedback about these distributors over the years from sometimes dozens of filmmakers who have used them, but for the purposes of this guide, we have made every effort to interview and utilize quotes from at least 8 separate filmmakers who have had relatively recent experiences working with these distributors. Of course, these experiences will vary from film to film, especially in terms of whether the project in question was fiction, documentary, or hybrid, what genre it was, and whether the film contained “name” cast.

When there were sharp differences between filmmakers with older and more recent titles, in order to provide a more accurate picture of the distributor’s current position regarding staffing and efficacy, we conducted interviews with additional filmmakers who had worked with the company within the past year.

Certain elements have been redacted in places to ensure the anonymity of the filmmakers interviewed.

As a nonprofit dedicated to filmmaker education and transparency in the industry, we will continue to offer filmmakers a forum to express their views without preconception or bias, now and always. If there are filmmakers or distributors who would like to add to, or further contextualize, any of the opinions provided herein, we have set up a special email address that will only be accessed by the TFC staffer who is facilitating these interviews, and not by the TFC team as a whole.

How did you first hear about Gravitas Ventures?

Through our Sales Agent.

fiction, genre, no name cast

We were approached during our festival run.

documentary

fiction, genre, no name cast

Approached them directly.

What motivated you to work with them?

They were the only offer we had on the table.

fiction, comedy, name cast

fiction, genre, no name cast

They were our last effort to get the movie distributed. No one else took us.

It was our safety school.

fiction, genre, no name cast

fiction, drama, name cast

They were a known quantity to me in a certain way. Maybe not as much as the highbrow places I was hoping for. Gravitas was a safe bet.

We had a redactedredacter deal before we signed on with them, a deal that required an aggregator in order to facilitate delivery.

fiction, comedy, name cast

fiction, drama, name cast

Gravitas had a slate of films such that when you looked at their website, they had at least handled films I had heard of and liked. They were the distributor for a couple of my friends’ films

We approached Gravitas directly after researching the number of successful digital titles in the “New and Notable” section of the iTunes store. [It should be noted that this was over 3 years ago.]

fiction, genre, no name cast

They were incredibly enthusiastic at the first meeting with our filmmaking team. We signed with them because of their creative ideas in marketing.

They promised to commit to a theatrical run for the film. Not all distributors were going to promise that to us. They agreed to commit a certain amount of money to the marketing and the campaign for it.

fiction, comedy, name cast

What went well?

They did follow through with the theatrical run.

fiction, comedy, name cast

fiction, genre, no name cast

I have gotten some reporting and I actually think we’ll make our money back sooner than with my other title.

They were definitely making sure that the trailer premiered someplace, that the poster premiered someplace. Any time we gave them social media posts, they shared on Gravitas social media. They wanted to be a part of the marketing efforts the entire time and really made sure we were aware of who the marketing team was. We were always on an email chain.

fiction, genre, no name cast

What went poorly?

I had a very thorough producer who went through the revenue reports line by line and always came up with discrepancies. We’re always keeping an eye on them. It’s something we feel we have to keep an eye on.

fiction, comedy, name cast

Did they breach the contract?

Although our contract stipulated that the filmmaking team got approval of any expense over $500, we witnessed at least twice being billed expenses without prior approval.

fiction, genre, no name cast

Filmmaker Friendliness?

It all started with my first conversation with redactedredacted, where he treated me like I should be very thankful that my movie even has this opportunity. I was unhappy with them actually fulfilling the cliché of the predatory distributor.

documentary

They were very responsive and responsible and seemed to be really happy with the marketing efforts that we were doing but didn’t just rely on us 100% to do the marketing.

fiction, genre, no name cast

fiction, drama, name cast

For a film like ours where no one else stood to benefit from success, I would regard distribution as throwing yourself at the mercy of the distributor and “please don’t screw me too badly.”

fiction, comedy, name cast

I am still friends with the majority of the people we were working with. None of them are with Gravitas anymore.

What would you have done differently?

If we were to do it again, we would have held out longer… Perhaps that was a rush decision. In retrospect… But at the time it seemed the best choice.

fiction, comedy, name cast

fiction, genre, no name cast

We had a great experience with them on our first film, but with our second film, after too many accounting errors, we would not go back.

Would I recommend Gravitas? No, if you can get somebody better, you should get somebody better.

fiction, drama, no name cast

Takeaways

For the most part, these were first-time feature filmmakers who weren’t choosing between multiple offers on the table.
Few would disagree that Gravitas has acquired enough higher profile titles to have garnered a reputation for success in the landscape. For certain films, they appear willing to commit to a theatrical and a marketing spend. Newer filmmakers seem inspired to sign on with Gravitas at least in part because they like the idea of their film being in the company of these larger Gravitas titles that are being provided a more robust release.
Gravitas’ tiered model has encouraged those on the lowest level (those doing straight digital distribution) to view the film as machine-like and their releases as templatized.
Filmmakers often go with Gravitas because they like the feeling of being “chosen” over having to hold out for other offers, suss out other options, or try their hand at self-distribution.
A regular turnaround in staffing and a large quota of release titles (over 300 annually) could contribute to the diversity of experiences reported.

Are you a filmmaker or distributor who wants to contribute to this page? Please reach out at drc@thefilmcollaborative.org. Emails sent to this inbox are confidential and accessed only by the staffer who facilitates ReportCard interviews.

Acknowledgments:

The Film Collaborative would like to recognize the Golden Globe Foundation for their generous support in helping us maintain our online educational tools, video series, and case studies.

Subnavigation

Body

Why a ReportCard?

A word about methodology…

Article

How did you first hear about Gravitas Ventures?

What motivated you to work with them?

What went well?

What went poorly?

Did they breach the contract?

Filmmaker Friendliness?

What would you have done differently?

Takeaways

Contribute

Acknowledgements