Observation #5: Festivals- Part 1: Strategy

When I started thinking about discussing festivals, I realized that I can't discuss them without first talking about the goals for your film.

Before you make a film, you really need to think about what goals you have for it.  Do you want to make money on it?  Where do you want it shown?  How many people do you want to see it?  Etc.  Your goals for the film will certainly guide your future plans for it, whether or not you even want to submit it to festivals, and how you want to distribute it.  I'll discuss this in more detail in a future blog post.

The old trajectory for a film, one that I learned in film school about fifteen years ago or so,was make the film, put it in festivals, and then contact distributors or they would contact you.  This plan certainly wasn't a solid lock but you certainly would get your film seen and create a calling card of sorts for yourself.

Now, a lot has changed.  First, there are way more festivals and way more people making films.  How does this affect filmmakers?  Well, it makes getting your film into any festival that much harder.  Getting into festivals now is so, so, so competitive, much, much more difficult than it used to be (and let me tell you that back then it wasn't that easy either).

It's important to have a festival strategy.  Before making your film, plot out which festivals if any you want to aim for.  When you do this, think like a programmer and strategize accordingly.  Length is a priority here.  Programmers have an easier time programming shorts into their festivals (that is if they have shorts at all) so you'll have better luck getting in with a short film.  Also, if you have a feature length film, it is usually better to make it an over an hour so that a programmer can give your film an hour and a half slot without having to pair it with a short or shorts.

Also, what's your subject matter?  Think about this and target festivals that showcase it.

Again, meet and network with programmers, get to know them.  The more personal relationships you have with programmers, the easier it will be for them to actually see your film.  Keep in mind, festivals are inundated with films.  As such, they have many people doing the screenings and judging.  You have no idea who these people are or what their tastes in film may be so it is highly likely that your film will not get through.

Because of this festivals certainly were a rude awakening for me for my most current film.  As always in the independent film world, you have to get used to rejection, be persistent, and make a strong story with strong visual, and sound elements, one that you believe in.

Next blog post I'll discuss if festivals are even worth applying to and some of the different channels you can take outside the festival circuit to get your film seen.

Thanks for reading!