Why didn't I get into Sundance/Slamdance?

Filmmaker and author Heidi van Lier has a new blog over at Film Independent and her first subject to tackle, naturally, is the immortal question: "Why didn't I get into Sundance/Slamdance?"

There are a lot of hurt feelings out there this week, some people are actually questioning if they should ever even attempt another film, others are pissed and shouting how much they despise the programmers of either festival (I’m included as one of those programmers), and still others are just depressed, feeling defeated, and not sure what to do next.

You should certainly read Heidi's answer (and check out her book), but I have to turn the question around. With thousands of films submitted each year (about 8000 to Sundance alone, according to a recent estimate) and only a few hundred programmed (even if you include Slamdance's 100+ titles), fewer than 1% of the films received by these festivals are programmed. In what other kind of competition do contestants enter knowing that they have less than one chance in a hundred of getting in (based solely on the judgment of other human beings) and then get sore -- in some cases even violently angry -- when they don't win?

This is meant more as a reality check than a lecture, though there are certainly Sundance rejects who could use the lecture. Those, however, are the people who will not pick themselves up and move on to the next thing. Those are the people who won't look at the year's worth of worthy festivals laid out before them and decide that there are exciting and prosperous days ahead. Those are the people who will fail to buckle down, create a festival strategy for themselves, and apply accordingly.

And guess what? Those are the people whose films you won't see at SXSW or IFF Boston or Oxford or Seattle or Austin or Ann Arbor or the multitude of other deserving festivals that kick ass each year. Sure, it would be nice to play Sundance or Slamdance and take part in the madness that is January in Park City. It would also be nice to win the lottery or find yourself at a dinner party seated across from Scarlett Johansson. The difference is that with talent and persistence you can work your way up to Park City. Persistence applied to the other dreams will net you an empty wallet and a restraining order, respectively.

Sorry, Scarlett.

Tom Hall on The 2008 International Film Festival Summit

I left the IFFS wishing I could stay and do more. I have already made plans to attend in 2009 and would recommend the experience to any film festival worker; It is a terrific opportunity to talk about nuts and bolts away from the pressure of film markets and festival screening schedules.

This is exactly the way I feel about IFFS in general. Though I and many others have thoughts regarding the panels and general format of the annual conference, this year's event proved invaluable as a chance to touch base with old friends, forge new contacts, and put faces to the personalities I only meet by phone or e-mail. I hope everyone else finds it as useful, and that they'll keep coming back even as the conference struggles towards the ultimate goal of making all of its component events relevant to a wildly diverse set of attendees.

For the rest of Tom's thoughts click here. I have more detailed notes (including the notes on my own panel about new media and marketing) that I'll be posting later this week and early next.

International Film Festival Summit Day 1

If what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, then we're all wasting our time.

If, on the other hand, we all retain memories of these three days, then a lot of good could come out of the Film Festival Summit held in Vegas this week. The Summit, positioned in early December when very few festivals are held and just about anyone in the film fest industry could participate, is a chance for festival staffers and other industry types to get together and talk shop. Though there are occasional grumbles about the location, programming, or expense of attending, no one denies that the chance to be in a room with a 200+ other festival directors -- from the smallest startup to the biggest of the big boys -- is invaluable.

The first day was technically only a half day but when it bleeds into the late night you can definitely say you've put in a full day's work. The keynote speech by Rick Allen of Snagfilms was followed by a panel about the relationship between panels and distribution. These, however, felt secondary to the networking marathon that took place immediately afterwards on the exhibit floor and then migrated to a nearby restaurant.

I'm going to spare you the gory details in favor of getting down to the show in time for the morning panel with programmers Trevor Groth (Sundance, Cinevegas) and Gary Meyer (Telluride) speaking on "The Art and Philosophy of Curating a Film Festival." I'm guessing that those of you reading will care more about that than about "Board Development for Your Festival" or "Creating Value for Festival Sponsors."

Ultimately, however, this is good for filmmakers. Smaller festivals will definitely benefit from learning about the conventions created by their larger counterparts (even if they decide to flaunt those conventions) and the larger fests will be reminded that filmmakers have a world of choices (large and small) outside their own events. More to come.

Live in or near Vegas? Volunteer for the International Film Festival Summit

The International Film Festival Summit (IFFS) is currently seeking volunteers for its upcoming 5th annual edition taking place December 7-9 in Las Vegas. Volunteers at the IFFS will be engaged in a working atmosphere that exudes passion for the promotion and advancement of film and, in particular, film festivals. And, this is an opportunity to work at a one-of-a-kind Summit geared specifically towards film festival professionals – actually it’s the ONLY event of its kind! To learn more please visit their website.

Volunteers will also have some of the same opportunities as the IFFS attendees, which includes being able to sit in on various educational and inspirational keynotes, presentations and panel sessions designed specifically for film festivals. The overall experience will allow participants the chance to meet numerous professionals in the independent film, entertainment and film festival community. Truly a unique opportunity to hear insights on an industry that one might not normally have the privilege of having access to. If interested in being a valuable member of the 2008 IFFS, please contact: Lori Douglass at 702-430-6113 or lori@michaelbass.com

I will be in attendance at the Summit this year; this will be my third year returning to the Summit and I can vouch for the fact that it is a one-of-a-kind event.

[via the Cinevegas newsletter]

Frequently asked questions about film fests - Understanding Film Festivals part 3

Parts one and two of Understanding Film Festivals covered the annual festival cycle and the benefits of film festivals -- part three wraps it up with some often-asked questions and a summary of the essays.

What does "festival circuit" mean?

When a filmmaker talks about "doing the festival circuit," it generally means showing your film at a series of film festivals. There's no prescribed order of these festivals except by their arrangement on the calendar; you can submit to whichever festivals you want, whenever you want. Some festivals will refuse to show a film based on the other festivals that film has played. See Film Festival Secrets the book for more discussion on this.

What's the difference between a film festival and a film market?

A film festival generally has its origins in the celebration of film as an art form, while a film market is explicitly created as a marketplace for filmmakers to sell their films to distributors. Some festivals have become de facto markets (like Sundance) and others now have markets attached (like Cannes), but in general there's not a lot of buying and selling going on at film festivals.

So why shouldn't I just bypass the festivals and go straight to a film market?

Film markets are less discriminating when it comes to the films they accept, but they charge much bigger fees. The market model is really designed to foster interaction between distribution companies and the production companies or agencies representing groups of films. The market typically rents out booths on a trade show floor, arranges screenings on site, and provides meeting space. The American Film Market (AFM) is probably the most well-known event of its kind in the U.S. Held in October or November each year, AFM has many of the trappings of a film festival (screenings, parties, red-carpet premieres) but has no competitive aspects. Anyone can exhibit -- provided they can pay $7500 or more for the privilege.

As an individual filmmaker, it's unlikely you have the spare cash and experience to take your film to market yourself and sell it successfully. Even if you could, you'd be cheating yourself of all the cool things that festivals have to offer. Beyond the personal rewards that festivals provide, a successful run on the festival circuit with accompanying reviews and awards will make your movie that much more appealing to prospective buyers. In the process you might even find an agency willing to represent your film at market -- saving you the money and trouble of doing it on your own.

How can I learn more about the way a film festival works?

Volunteer. Film festivals always need volunteer help, both during the event and in the months leading up to it. Filmmakers have been volunteering at film festivals for decades in order to learn the festival ropes, make local film connections, and earn free festival badges. Volunteering can give you some highly useful perspective when it comes time to submit your own picture.

So all festivals work like this?

Well, no. Now that there are more than a thousand film festivals in existence (some say as many as 2500 -- it's difficult to say for sure), festivals are trying a lot of new things to distinguish themselves from the rest of the herd. Such efforts include diverging from the model described above in every way imaginable. There are festivals held exclusively online, festivals that accept only films in certain formats, and festivals that cater to every demographic, no matter how small. That means nearly unlimited opportunity for filmmakers, but also exceptions to every rule. For that reason, think of the advice in this book & blog as relevant to the nucleus of independent film festivals but not necessarily applicable to every individual case. Every film festival is different, but they all exist to provide the same basic things: a venue for independent filmmakers to find an audience, and a place for moviegoers to see new and exciting work outside the mainstream.

Review

• Film festivals are year-round efforts that often require a full staff of people (often filmmakers themselves) to work for little or no pay. Respecting that fact is one of the single greatest things you can do to advance your film and your career on the festival circuit.

• The festival cycle begins with the call for entries, continues with the screening process, and culminates in final programming and of course the festival exhibition itself.

• Festivals often appear glamorous and crammed with willing moviegoers, but in reality the organizations are often starved for funding and audiences for some screenings can be difficult to find. Don’t be discouraged; take advantage of what the festival has to offer and be sure to seek out the other filmmakers in attendance.

AFI Fest Report from Austin Film Festival programmer Jesse Trussell

Special guest post by film competition programmer Jesse Trussell of the Austin Film Festival.

AFI Red Carpet - photo shamelessly ripped from Shaz Bennett's Facebook album.

A pimp is out searching for a kidnapper in a crowded neighborhood. He comes to an intersection, and his Jaguar slams into the car of an agitated young man, covered in blood. Is this the kidnapper, or just another disaffected member of Beijing’s claustrophobic sprawl? We want our hero to find his man, but even if his gets the girl back she will just return to a life of prostitution. What can be called justice here?

All this happens in Hong-jin Na’s The Chaser, an intriguing and often disturbing South Korean take on the thriller genre which screened during the annual AFI Fest that wrapped up after the first week of November. A keen and incisive take on current world cinema is really the hallmark of the annual Los Angeles based festival. The 11 day event, thrown by the American Film Institute, had special sidebars this year on recent films from such far flung places as Argentina and Kazakhstan, as well as a look at the recent production from 6th generation Chinese auteur Jia Ziang Ke’s company XStream. Internationalism is also felt in AFI main competitions, where Uruguian Frederico Veiroj's Acne and the Ugandan shot Kassim the Dream won the jury prizes for narrative and documentary features, respectively.

In addition to the diverse world cinema programming, AFI screened some of the year’s best American independent films. A real highlight was writer/director Mike Gibbiser’s moving Finally, Lillian and Dan. In an American indie scene dominated by the solipsistic bent of mumblecore, Gibbiser’s small tale of love between the two most awkward people in the world aims for a lyricism and feeling far beyond the character dramas that litter the festival world. Shot on gorgeous and grainy 16mm, and understanding brilliantly the use of silence, Finally, Lillian and Dan marks an auspicious debut from a director still in his 20s.

Filmmaker Trevor Anderson, Sundance programming coordinator Landon Zakheim, and AFI Fest's Associate Director for Programming Shaz Bennett. Photo shamelessly ripped from Shaz Bennett's Facebook album.

Another facet of AFI Fest greatly beneficial to their filmmakers is the Connect program. Now in its 8th year, AFI sets a one-on-one meetings between its filmmakers and over 100 industry professionals, in addition to a series of more informal cocktail hours and gatherings. This invaluable face time and advice is a fantastic bonus for any filmmaker, especially due to the caliber of industry participants the AFI is able to attract.

Overall, 2008 was an incredibly strong year for AFI Fest. From bold programming to a fun and friendly community, it is one of the real gems in the fall festival calendar.

Cinekink's "Final-Final" deadline approaches

I mentioned Cinekink before but wanted to give them another bump as their no-kidding deadline approaches. If your film has some sexiness to it or a sex-positive message, this could be a great NYC screening for you.

CineKink NYC - "the really alternative film festival" - is seeking films and videos, of any length and genre, that explore and celebrate the wide diversity of sexuality. Dedicated to the recognition and encouragement of sex-positive and kink-friendly depictions in film and television, we're looking to blur some boundaries and will be considering offerings drawn from both Hollywood and beyond, with works ranging from documentary to drama, camp comedy to hot porn, mildly spicy to quite explicit - and everything in between.

The final-final(!) postmarked deadline for entries is November 29th.

For more information and to download an entry form, visit http://www.cinekink.com/entries.

NewFest artistic director departs, reflects on state of film festivals

Basil Tsiokos in indieWIRE:

Over the past several months, even before news of the financial crisis broke, it's been an open secret that many film festivals around the U.S. have been suffering - while some have managed to secure enough funding to stay in operation, others (like the recently shuttered Jackson Hole Film Festival) haven't been so lucky. While I leave NewFest in the capable hands of my Board of Directors and on good terms, chiefly out of a desire to move on to new challenges elsewhere (yet to be determined), it would be disingenuous to not acknowledge that the difficult realities of non-profit funding had some role in my decision. Running a film festival, in my experience, is hardly a standard full-time job - it's an all-the-time job.

Interview with Fred Andrews of Kansas City FilmFest (formerly KC Jubilee)

Unveiled with very little fanfare, the first episode of the Film Festival Secrets podcast. In it I talk with Fred Andrews of the new Kansas City FilmFest, the joint creation of the festivals formerly known as KC FilmFest and KC Filmmakers Jubilee. You can listen to it on the web with this player:

You can subscribe to get future episodes with this URL:

http://www.filmfestivalsecrets.com/podcast/podcast.xml

(If you don't know how to subscribe to a podcast in iTunes, you can follow these instructions.) I have submitted it to the iTunes store, hopefully you'll be able to subscribe directly through iTunes soon.

Two new "no-fee" festivals

Reader Isabelle Vossart brings two new fee-free festivals to my attention:
The Blue November Micro Film Festival and the Flyway Film Festival. As with most such "no fee" festivals these look like small start-up fests, but if you're looking to rack up some additional festival screenings on the cheap this could be the way to go.
See the (always growing) list of no-fee festivals here.

Cinekink wants your sex-positive films.

Cinekink is precisely the kind of niche festival that can provide your film with much-needed exposure if you're having trouble getting traction on the mainstream festival circuit. (Of course, that's only if your film fits into its particular niche.) While niche festivals like Cinekink often find themselves curating their programs from other festivals, most of them would far prefer to discover new talent and to present content not yet seen elsewhere. If you have a sex-positive film that needs to be seen, submit to Cinekink.

SUBMIT TO CINEKINK!
Call for Entries - CineKink NYC/2009

CineKink NYC - "the really alternative film festival" - is seeking films and videos, of any length and genre, that explore and celebrate the wide diversity of sexuality. Dedicated to the recognition and encouragement of sex-positive and kink-friendly depictions in film and television, we're looking to blur some boundaries and will be considering offerings drawn from both Hollywood and beyond, with works ranging from documentary to drama, camp comedy to hot porn, mildly spicy to quite explicit - and everything in between.

Cutting across orientations, topics covered at CineKink have included - but are by no means limited to - BDSM, leather and fetish, swinging, non-monogamy and polyamory, roleplay and gender bending. Or, frankly, given the current moral climate, as long as it involves consenting adults, just about anything celebrating sex as a right of self expression is fair game. (Far be it from us to define "kink" - if you think your work might make sense in this context, please send it along!)

Scheduled for its sixth annual appearance February 24-March 1, 2009, the specially-curated CineKink NYC will also feature a short film competition, audience choice awards, presentations, parties and a gala kick-off, with a national screening tour to follow.

The postmarked deadline for entries is November 15th.

For more information and to download an entry form, visit http://www.cinekink.com/entries

Catch me this weekend on two panels at the Austin Film Festival

Austin's premiere film event of the fall begins tomorrow, and with the Austin Film Festival come throngs of filmmaking and screenwriting talent, both emerging and established. It is a sublime mix of the experienced and the impressionable sharing stories, drinks, and a love of cinema. I got my start "on the inside" at the Austin Film Festival; that means it will always hold a special place in my heart. It also means they'll let me do wacky things like launch a book at their fest and moderate a couple of panels in the process. They are:

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DIY Independent Film

Facebook event | AFF page

Write it, Direct it, Produce it. Do it. Independent filmmakers take the reins, executing the creation of a film from the concept to the big screen. If you have a script and need motivation to do it yourself, this session will tell you what it takes.

Featuring:
Cole Selix
Mark Potts
PJ Raval
Spenser Parsons

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The Film Festival Circuit

Facebook event | AFF page

Are film festivals the new distribution? How do you navigate this world, anyway? How do you write a festival plan? What is the best way to utilize festivals to get attention for yourself and your film? In this in-depth panel, you will learn from people inside the festival world and successful fest filmmakers about making the relationship mutually beneficial and getting the most out of a festival experience.

Featuring:
James Faust (AFI Dallas)
Kelly Williams (Austin Film Festival)
Michelle Emanuel (Oxford FF)

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I'll be giving a few copies of the book away at these panels and just generally enjoying the fest itself. If you're at the Festival this week, do stop by one of these panels and introduce yourself. I'll post some notes from the panels themselves here on the blog next week or possibly the week after that.

Austin Film Festival preview on Slackerwood podcast #4.

In Slackerwood podcast #4, Jette and yours truly spend a pastoral evening outdoors with Austin Film Festival programming director Kelly Williams, who shares news about some of the must-see events from the upcoming film festival and conference. We also reminisce about Fantastic Fest and talk about some upcoming events, like Home Movie Day. That's Kelly in the photo that accompanies the article below.

Listen to Slackerwood podcast #4 now.

A coffee with ... Kelly Williams of the Austin Film Festival

The Austin Film Festival film programming team. From left to right: Jesse Trussell, Kelly Williams, John Merriman.

The Austin American-Statesman sits down with Kelly Williams, the film programming director for the upcoming Austin Film Festival. Apart from just being a nice profile of a friend (I used to work at AFF), the piece reveals the sorts of things programmers look for and the ways festivals might differ from one another.

"It's a long process. Thousands of entries come in, and it takes a good portion of the year to just get it down to a small group. I sort of look at it like a pyramid. You start at the bottom and figure out how to get to the top. Since the festival focuses on screenwriters, the main question we ask is how well is the story told. That's the No. 1 thing. The same goes for documentaries. We look for ones that are very narrative-driven."

Read A coffee with ... Kelly Williams of the Austin Film Festival.

Chris Jones chronicles his short film's road to the Oscars

Chris Jones (author of The Guerilla Film Makers Movie Blueprint, among other things) has done a great job of taking his blog readers along for the ride on his latest film's journey. The movie, a narrative short entitled Gone Fishing, has played a number of festivals and Jones has posted video blog entries for many of them on Vimeo.

Jones' latest set of entries have to do with entering his film for Academy Award nomination consideration -- that's right, once you've qualified to be considered (one such way is to win an award at an Academy-accredited film festival), there's a whole process of campaigning to be included in further rounds of consideration before your film can ultimately be one of the five nominees in its category. Chris lays out the timeline for application here and talks about the voting process here. It's all good stuff for short filmmakers, I definitely advise you to check it out.

Creating video blog entries might feel a bit silly if you're self-conscious about appearing on camera, but if you're not a great writer they can be a simple and fun way to tell your film's story -- and to generate new material for your web site -- without having to turn out reams of text.

Jackson Hole Institute, Film Festival shut down

The Jackson Hole Film Institute closed its doors Tuesday following the nation’s worst single-day points drop of the Dow Jones Industrial Average on Monday.

“Funding dried up pretty quickly because of what’s been going on with the financial markets,” said Todd Rankin, managing director of the Jackson Hole Film Festival, the primary program of the institute. “Even leading up to this summer’s festival, things were tight.”

The film festival had board and staff committed to raising a sizeable percentage of the full festival budget for 2009, estimated at $1.2 million to $1.5 million. To date, sponsors and support were in place for only about $300,000, and with the worsening national financial outlook, board members were not comfortable going forward, Rankin said. Even streamlining the festival to an $800,000 event didn’t seem feasible.

The sad state of the economy seems to be leaking into everything these days, including the film festival circuit. For those filmmakers suspicious of the way festivals seem to be "raking in" the submissions fees, this should be a bit of evidence to the contrary -- for a festival to survive, they need a few more revenue streams.

Read the full story in the Jackson Hole Daily. (Via indieWIRE.)

Catch me this weekend at the Sidewalk Moving Pictures Festival

I'm serving on the narrative shorts jury this weekend at the Sidewalk Moving Pictures Festival in Birmingham Alabama. You should be able to see me on a panel or two during the festival, in particular the "alternative distribution" panel at 4:00 p.m.

indieWIRE: Eating, Drinking, and Shopping in Toronto

Tens of thousands of people are about to converge upon Canada's largest city for one of the world's largest film events, socializing and networking all over town. indieWIRE surveyed a group of Toronto locals and insiders about their favorites places to eat, drink, shop and chill, including some of our own tips from indieWIRE staffer (and former Torontonian) Peter Knegt.

Possibly the most useful thing indieWIRE has published all year. If you're headed to the Toronto International Film Festival, you must read indieWIRE: TORONTO '08 | Eating, Drinking, and Shopping in Toronto: An indieWIRE Insiders Guide.

Interview: Jason Connell, New York United Film Festival

When asked for his advice for upcoming filmmakers:

I was on a panel at the Maryland Film Festival about a month ago, giving filmmakers advice on getting into festivals. There are so many and the shorts are incredibly long. They have a tendency to be longer than need to be. 16-minute shorts are hard to program, but if it's a great 5-7 minutes, it's easier to program. But it has to be special. Also, have someone else look at your film, since a director is too married to the film and someone else has a different eye and can offer objectivity. Festival competition is tough, so be sure to submit early, too. If you submit late, the lineup for an evening may already be locked up, no matter how great your film is. Our submissions are cheap, too. Those things are key. Oh yeah, make a great film. That's important, too.

Read Interview: Jason Connell, New York United Film Festival - ARTISTdirect News.

Owens moves from Indianapolis to Nashville fest (and why you should care)

indieWIRE:

The Nashville Film Festival has named Brian Owens as its Artistic Director. Owens joins the Festival as it gears up for its 40th anniversary on April 16-23, 2009. Owens was previously the artistic director of the Indianapolis International Film Festival, which he founded in 2003.

When someone moves from one festival to another (particularly a programmer), it gives the alumni of the former festival an opportunity at the new festival. This is why it's important to include a cover letter with your submission -- if your film played at Indianapolis (and maybe you met Brian while you were there), you could submit that film or your next film to Nashville with a personal letter to Brian. In the letter, mention that your previous pic played Indianapolis. Whether Brian remembers your film or not, it provides a connecting point. Owens might at least look up your previous film and take your current movie somewhat more seriously than he would a random submission. It might seem a slim opportunity, but it's better than starting from scratch.