Waiting For Something To Happen

It seems like a lot of the film marketing/selling business is waiting. You send a DVD to a film festival, which gives you a notification deadline - you mail a DVD to a potential distributor - you hand a DVD to a famous celebrity...

And then you wait.

Wait for that call, or, in most cases, an email which says "Thank you for your submission..."

I have attempted all of the above with The Great Intervention. Today is the deadline on two festivals I entered that seemed appropriate - Dances With Films and The Los Angeles Comedy Festival.

I am not optimistic about my chances.

This is not due to the quality of the film - I think The Great Intervention is good enough. I'm beginning to feel that film festivals are parasitic enterprises that feed off the entry fees of indie filmmakers and then program their festivals using inside connections.

Maybe this is sour grapes - I have no inside information. To this date, the only film festival rejection was from Tribeca, which was not a surprise. Thinking back, that $120(!) entry fee (I think there was some overnight delivery involved) could have maybe been spent on advertising or postcards, or some other tangible product associated with the film.

I also recently sent the film to a collaborative distribution company, which filmmakers can pay a fee and receive access to counseling and discounts with their partners. They also directly distribute a small, but impressive list of titles, a few of which I had actually heard of or seen.

I was curious if they would be interested in The Great Intervention. The initiation fee, while not huge, would definitely be worth it if they helped me distribute directly. I started my conversation with them via email, which was promptly and courteously returned, offering to watch the film even before I joined, which was cool. So I sent a DVD.

And waited.

One month went by, and I courteously emailed back saying "Did you receive the DVD?" I received a prompt reply; yes we have received it - please be patient and we will get back to you.

I waited again.

Two months passed. At this point, it seemed clear in my mind that the film had been forgotten - a three-month wait seemed a little excessive. So I wrote politely back, asking for an update.

And waited.

The following response came after about two days - enough time, it seems, to finally watch the film:


"Hi there Steve:
Sorry for the delay in getting back to you. Thanks SO much for the opportunity to watch your film.
As a non-profit, we only have a certain limited number of films we can take on for direct distribution at any one time. Right now, our slate is quite full.
We'd have to pass on direct distribution of your film.
However, we can provide distribution education and consultation if that interests you....meaning we could talk to you at great length about what opportunities are out there for you to distribute the film in the DIY (Do-It-Yourself) space."

Gee thanks SO much for your reply.

I'm going to pass on joining your collaborative.

It seems to me, this generic answer could have been given to me within a reasonable time frame, where I might have at least felt my film was properly considered. They might have also found one tiny specific thing to say about the film to let me know that they did, indeed, watch it.

And finally, I have had the lucky opportunity to get it personally to some A-List celebs that I have had contact with over the years, as well as an unbelievable opportunity to hand it to a very prominent TV show creator (always have a copy of your project on you, people!)

Will any of them watch it? I don't know. But I will continue to try and get the word out in any way I can.


And then wait for some good news.