{"id":11769,"date":"2017-04-06T09:47:03","date_gmt":"2017-04-06T07:47:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ismaelmartin.com\/distribute-your-film-5-tips-to-keep-going\/"},"modified":"2017-04-06T09:47:03","modified_gmt":"2017-04-06T07:47:03","slug":"distribute-your-film-5-tips-to-keep-going","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ismaelmartin.com\/en\/distribute-your-film-5-tips-to-keep-going\/","title":{"rendered":"Distribute Your Film: 5 Tips to Keep Going"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last Saturday I was teaching a class in the Distribution Master’s Program<\/a> we have at ECAM. Among several topics we covered were submission platforms<\/a> and the facilities currently available for festival distribution<\/strong>, and how, sometimes, these facilities can also cause some problems. <\/p>\n

This case probably sounds familiar: there are some directors who start submitting their film through a platform like Festhome<\/strong> or FilmFreeway<\/strong>, submit to a large number of festivals very easily, and then sit back and wait for selections, but they never come.<\/p>\n

I often see cases that reach me through the blog<\/a> of directors who are distributing their film through platforms, but after submitting to several festivals have only received bad news, so they end up convincing themselves that their film is bad, or simply that they have no talent.<\/p>\n

You must be very aware of the enormous competitiveness<\/strong> in the circuit<\/strong>, with more than 10,000 films distributed each year, finding a place and having a festival run is increasingly complicated, so you must be very patient.<\/p>\n

Here are some tips so you do not get discouraged and keep trying:<\/p>\n

#1 Prepare a Distribution Strategy<\/strong><\/h2>\n

To distribute a film it is not enough to submit to festivals through a platform and that’s it<\/strong>. You must prepare an initial strategy<\/strong>, research the festivals where your film might fit, make a preliminary list and start submitting with sufficient time, it is not a good idea to submit on the last day. <\/p>\n

There are several submission platforms, as well as festivals that have their own form and you will not find on these platforms. Therefore, do not limit yourself to just one, study the festivals a bit more and register on several of them. <\/p>\n

#2 Validate the Initial Strategy<\/strong><\/h2>\n

If you have already made a preliminary strategy, but after submitting have had no luck, then you should worry and consider whether to continue with distribution or not, but not before. Under no circumstances should you believe you have no options if you have submitted to festivals blindly and without any criteria<\/strong>. Of course there are features and shorts that work well from the start, but others (the vast majority) need a lot of time and many doses of patience to start seeing results. <\/p>\n

I have distributed shorts that have been a success, exceeding 100 festivals, to achieve this they were submitted to more than 500. As you can see, films that work are also rejected at hundreds of festivals. Be patient. <\/p>\n

#3 Change the Strategy if Necessary<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Do not hesitate to change and modify your initial strategy with the first results, but do not give up<\/strong>. Learn from this first phase, review festival programming, and adapt the distribution. You can expand the number of festivals you were submitting to in the first phase, look at other platforms, and even consider a limited release at online festivals. <\/p>\n

Being able to adapt the strategy based on the first results is not only very important for the distribution of your film, but also for your evolution as a filmmaker.<\/p>\n

#4 Learn<\/strong><\/h2>\n

This is one of the main objectives of submitting your film, and one we sometimes forget. Whether you have done well or poorly on the festival circuit, the most important thing is the learning you have gained throughout the process<\/strong>. Getting to know festivals, their programming lines, contacts, trips and visits to festivals, distribution needs, etc. <\/p>\n

Focus on learning everything you can, the journey to working steadily as a film director is long and full of ups and downs, do not get discouraged right at the start.<\/p>\n

#5 Do Not Stop Trying<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Albert Einstein said that “If you seek different results, do not always do the same thing<\/em>.” Do not be afraid to change and try different strategies, success at festivals should not necessarily be measured by the number of festivals. Travel to markets, visit festivals, start developing new projects and seek international coproduction whether for features or shorts. <\/p>\n

There are many different types of festivals, and although there are more and more films, it is very important to be able to adapt to these changes and move forward<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Do not give up.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last Saturday I was teaching a class in the Distribution Master’s Program we have at ECAM. Among several topics we covered were submission platforms and the facilities currently available for festival distribution, and how, sometimes, these facilities can also cause some problems. This case probably sounds familiar: there are some directors who … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11770,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[250],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11769","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-festival-strategy"],"yoast_head":"\nDistribute Your Film: 5 Tips to Keep Going - Ismael Martin<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Distribute your film at festivals, do not give up despite the difficulties you will encounter along the way, learn from the process.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ismaelmartin.com\/en\/distribute-your-film-5-tips-to-keep-going\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Distribute Your Film: 5 Tips to Keep Going - 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