I know I was supposed to discuss digital distribution, but I came across a great posting by Christine Kane on How to Not Take Things Personally and thought I’d share some of my personal insight! #8 in the article - “Make a list and move to the next thing” - really spoke to me. As a producer, every phase of making a film is not just ardous and time consuming, but also intermixed with a ton of rejection, and by a ton, I mean for every one yes, I think I heard at least 20-30 no’s! It doesn’t matter whether you’re trying to raise funds, make deals for the actual production, submit to festivals or attempt distribution, its hard to keep hearing the word ‘no’. I’m surprised when I look back at the process that I didn’t quit earlier - don’t get me wrong, I def. thought about it, but somewhere in the process, I just felt like I couldn’t give up. With every no, I was even more determined to make it work for me and for the film and the only way I knew how to, was by making a list of every person I knew and creating the connections. As people/contacts would say no, I would say ‘thank you for your time’ (as politely as I could!), ‘do you know of anyone else who might be interested’. I was surprised by how many people we met through what many might have considered a ‘closed’ door. Little by little the sting of the rejection would diminish, new doors would open and all of a sudden (literally 2 years of pursuing this process) I heard the yes’s. Christine Kane is right, you can’t take things personally, you just have to make a list and move to the next thing!
There is always a first time for everything - and here’s my attempt at blogging, with my new blog: What does a Producer do?. Answer: What doesn’t a producer do!
If I got a nickel for everytime I’ve been asked that question, I def. would be very well off and might even be able to fund my next feature - if only!
I recently finished producing my first indie film, Raspberry Magic, written and directed by Leena Pendharkar, in 2009. We had started down the path of making a feature in late 2006, and now find ourselves four years later, working on the last part of the equation, distribution.
It is hard to stay with a passion project for this long, no doubt, but I’ve been lucky, as I’ve experienced the challenges of each phase of the film, it has inspired me to be that much more vigilant and dedicated to seeing the film through, and making it a success.
Check out Leena’s article in Women and Hollywood talking about our process.
This last phase - distribution, is interesting, lots of trying to understand what will work between traditional and non-traditional distribution strategies, who we can trust to represent the film, how we can make the most of the film financially, and what will get us the most buzz.
Next up: Digital Distribution for Indie Films.
Raspberry Magic
