Oh, nice find, even if a couple+ years old.
(EDIT: Ah! Farther into the article I see it's younger than I thought with a September-23-2010 date on one quoted excerpt)!
I'm gonna cross link to your post here of your find, if that's okay with you.
Looks like the same principles definitely still apply.
Case in point, this passage here:
"Traditional Distributor"...
"It has actually been virtually the norm for smaller distributors of CD's and/or DVD's to rip off indie suppliers by paying pennies on the dollar owed for media sold. Just based on my experience and feedback I've heard from others, I'd say that about 80% of small distributors outright rip off suppliers. With physical media (DVD's) rapidly becoming obsolete, there will certainly be more blood as distributors go bankrupt and filmmakers get screwed."
... geehaws with this October 12, 2010 posted point here:
"Chapter Eleven Is Distributor Heaven
With the crash of the world financial market, quite a few distributors and sales agents have found themselves taking huge, six figure and seven figure losses. Most are so hopelessly under water, that it’d take an Avatar or two to pull them out of debt. So, instead of continuing to dig their own grave, many independent distributors are purposely bankrupting themselves and then setting up shop under a new company name. This can be a very smart business move, but it royally screws filmmakers. This is because once bankrupt; the distributor doesn’t have to pay filmmakers what they owe them. What’s worse, the films the distributor represents usually get tied up in the bankruptcy.
Attention filmmakers: when you’re signing a distribution contract, make sure you get two things in it:
1 - Your film rights revert back to you immediately upon your distributor or sales agent filing for bankruptcy.
2 - Your distributor cannot reassign or sell your rights to another entity, without your express written consent.
Demand these two clauses and you’ll safeguard yourself from having your film be eaten up by a bankruptcy.
http://www.filmthreat.com/features/26469/
* * * * * * * RETURN TO ARTICLE * * * * * * * * *
I find unqualified anecdotal personal opinions to be alarmist and harmful:
"One filmmaker says that because distribution companies are paying so little for rights to an indie movie, unless your film cost less than $5,000 you aren't going to get your money back. Another says that Lion's Gate used to pay $50,000 advances, but now they're barely paying $5,000."
Still, it looks pretty depressing as you say.
Yeeouch.
"Nowadays a movie must be made as cheaply as possible or it is doomed. With no stars (with legitimate box office draw) in your film, realistically you're probably not going to make more than $1,000 to $10,000 in gross profit in the USA over the life of the DVD."
Oh, h3ll yeah.
"The need for a someone "famous" in your movie can literally make the difference between getting distribution and not getting distribution, or between selling DVD's and not selling DVD's. This will cost you more money. If you are making an indie movie, don't just open up your wallet to anyone who seems "famous" or claims that their name sell DVD's because they appeared in this movie and that movie. Actors have big egos and will always make big claims. Instead you need someone with legitimate box office draw power."
Just look at the following links under "Starring" then "BO Gain or Loss".
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...Hh6cHJBMW5aQkZSMzZYR2V3VUxQVUE&hl=en_US#gid=0
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AsBznn8D13zOdGlCeDRmWTFCYXJRWjJ3SUphZDNzMGc#gid=0
A single well known star, or even a gaggle of 'em, doesn't guarantee sh!t for theatrical distribution.
In fact, I will go on to say that just because a star reads your screenplay and agrees to work for whatever fee, that
DOESN'T EQUATE to
any sort of validation of how the story IS on paper or will BE after shooting and editing.
"Oh! Billy Zane agreed to be in MY film!" Ooo-whop-tee-doo!
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1460639/ = Ratings: 2.7/10 from 353 users
MANY stars agree to be in SH!T films.
Oh, I like this. This makes a fair bit of sense:
"FILM FESTIVALS:
The goal of entering a film festival should be to get the attention of a quality distributor and maybe get some press / buzz. For most indie films I would not waste my money on the big film festivals like Cannes, Sundance, etc. On the flip side I would also not waste my time on rinky-dink film festivals in isolated cities where no industry people will ever see your movie and nobody will care if you were a winner either. I believe it's best to pick a few medium sized festivals in major markets like Los Angeles and New York, where distributors are based. A few that come to mind are the San Fernando Film Festival, the Malibu Film Festival, the Long Island Film Festival, and CineVegas. Otherwise I think you're just throwing away money. If you don't get any action out of these festivals then it's time to focus on self distribution."
Honestly, I could see both this POV and that of by winning or even showing in rinky-dinks that still generates more interest and attention to your own self distributed indie film.
To NOT generate interest is essentially leaving money on the table, HOWEVER this honestly depends upon if you feel your product really is good enough to warrant the speculative expense or is it actually just your ugly baby and you're wasting money better spent on your next/current production.
Niiiice.
"Based on my experience I fully believe that some if not most sales agents and/or distributors out there are opportunists and/or con artists, who fully intend to skip out on paying you in full or just want to cash in on your non-traditional sales, knowing that your movie has very little chance of ever getting distribution into physical stores like Best Buy, Wal-Mart, etc."
"Often they will only get you a deal with a small distributor that merely only winds up selling your DVD on Internet, which anybody can effectively do.
I'm of the opinion that most indie filmmakers can do a better job just being their own sales agent, thus saving 15 to 25% plus expenses."
"Foreign distribution deals are made in the form of cash buyouts per territory. Do not sign a deal whereby a foreign distributor pays you a percentage of sales, because from what I've seen they NEVER DO pay you or they short change you."
"Unfortunately it is very rare that an indie film ever gets that all important press and publicity that you need to begin to actually make money selling a movie. Any buzz usually begins at a film festival or by going "viral" on the Internet. If the movie doesn't have what it takes to create a buzz, it just won't take-off.
The movie does the selling -- not the distributor. Some distributors might like you to believe that they have magical selling powers, but they can't squeeze blood out of a rock."
"Realistically an indie filmmaker's best route is to post their movie on YouTube, enter it into a few film festivals, and then hope for the best.
It's highly unlikely that a nationally distributed magazine or TV program will mention your movie, but if you have a unique angle to get their attention then it can't hurt."
