It has been more than a year since the lockdown and the start of the COVID-19 pandemic; at that time, it seemed like everything was coming to a standstill, many festivals were canceled, and others began to change their dates.
In the midst of the pandemic, just a few months after the lockdown, we began the distribution of the animated short Roberto, by Carmen Córdoba, one of the shorts that has performed best for us at Selected Films Distribution.
The analysis of Roberto’s distribution allows us to see what the pandemic has meant for the festival circuit and what actions we can take as distributors to adapt to situations like this.
This capacity for adaptation and flexibility is key to establishing a distribution strategy; these are long processes that can take more than a year and where anything can happen.
At this moment, Roberto has already reached 279 festivals in 46 different countries and approximately 110 awards, although it is still in distribution, and these figures may still grow further.
These results have been achieved despite the problems caused by COVID-19, restrictions, postponements, and cancellations.
Distribution began with the first deadlines in June 2020. At that time, we opted for a strategy that covered different options; on one hand, at a national level, it was not necessary to reserve the premiere, as we had to take advantage of many types of festivals, some of them especially important, held from September onwards.
At an international level, we tried various types of major festivals, but only with a national premiere requirement, since reserving the international premiere was not worth it and could delay distribution by several months in a context of great uncertainty.
In this sense, the short has managed to participate in very prestigious festivals that qualify for the Oscars, such as Foyle, Chicago Children’s, Stuttgart, Animayo, Spark Animation, etc.
Furthermore, Roberto has several segments that have allowed for increased festival options throughout the year. It is a short under 15 minutes, directed by a woman, a debut film, animated, for children and young audiences, and with a social theme.
The feelings at that time were good, and with infections dropping, in fact, Roberto began to perform very well starting in September 2020, a month where many festivals were able to be held in person, albeit with many safety measures.
This is the graph of festival selections for the year 2020:
Here you can clearly see the effect generated by the strategy we applied from the beginning: the first selections are in August, with growth in September that continues through October and November, peaking at 23 selections in a single month.
During these months, and despite perimeter lockdowns, Carmen was able to travel to festivals to collect awards, as they only invited selected and winning directors.
Furthermore, online celebrations also allowed access to other audiences and enriched the short’s run.
From December onwards, it is normal for selections to drop slightly, but between late 2020 and early 2021, infections began to grow again, and many festivals were delayed once more; however, there were not as many cancellations, and online celebrations again helped maintain the circuit’s pace.
This is the evolution of the short this year, from January to the present day:
With a more complicated start to the year, although with very good figures (March worked well), the pace has recovered since May and has not stopped growing until now, with an impressive month of August featuring 27 selections, in addition to September and October maintaining the pace after a full year.
This recovery is a reflection of what we have been experiencing these last two months, where festivals are being held again with “a certain normality” and selections have regained their usual pace, as you can see in the weekly summaries we publish on the Selected Films website.
During this time, and against all odds, Carmen has been able to travel to many festivals and has been recognized in magazines such as Variety as one of the rising Spanish talents.
Furthermore, she is already preparing her next project, titled Amarradas (Tied), which has participated in major forums such as Next Lab.
In summary, these are some of the lessons learned from the distribution of Roberto during the pandemic that can help us face similar moments:
- Combining online and in-person has been fundamental; it allows festivals to take place and shorts to reach the audience, even if through other means.
- In line with the above, we have discovered that the most important thing is for a festival to take place, to be held, whether online, in person, on other dates, etc., but that it exists, that it has a selection and screenings that connect with the audience.
- Despite the difficulties, festivals have known how to adapt and continue; collaboration forums and online meetings have increased, as have events. It has been quite a lesson despite being a small sector, and in many cases with very few resources. In a context where cinemas were closed and revenue plummeted, festivals continued to be held and short films continued their festival run.
- It is advisable to accompany distribution with a presence on social media and create a community around your film; Carmen has worked hard on this aspect and has contributed to the short being known in many areas and generating a certain level of expectation.
Although cases like Roberto have been exceptional, they also demonstrate that there is an entire circuit that has known how to adapt, and as distributors, we have to analyze both the film and the context and external conditions.
We are now finishing this second year of distribution and already planning what will be the official online premiere of the short for 2023. You can follow the distribution and see the full list of festivals in the short’s file.