My cynicism kicks in when there is a serious dearth of information. And, when we started to ask questions, instead of supplying more information or posting a website link or other form of contact the OP got defensive.
Strange, I'm the complete opposite! My cynicism kicks in when there is too much information, when a distributor/agent answers questions publicly and effectively acts as a seller rather than as a buyer. Distributors are of course essentially middle-men, so they are both buyers and sellers. When they have completed content (and the rights to distribute it) they are sellers and of course have websites, trailers and other PR/marketing tools to provide information in order to sell thier content but as far as buying/procuring that content in the first place, they publicly provide virtually no information, certainly as far as the business side is concerned.
Everyone in the industry knows this and would never ask those types of questions. Doing so therefore demonstrates ignorance of the industry which indicates/implies that those asking the questions are probably too ignorant/inexperienced to produce content desirable by the industry in the first place!! If a deal looks like it might be on the table, then of course these questions need to be asked (and satisfactorily answered) but they need to be asked at that stage, by those people and in private.
I didn't see the OP as getting defensive, I saw them as getting indignant... A significant difference! If you go into a Ford dealership to buy a car and instead of showing you the cars, the only questions the salesman asks pertain to whether you are a real buyer or not, you'd probably be indignant too. I certainly would be, I would not answer the questions, walk out and not buy from that dealer on principle!
The OP's indignant response indicated to me (though of course not conclusively) that they are, or at least might be, a legitimate buyer! Those responses lowered my BS meter rather than "pegged" it!
I've had to strengthen the peg on my meter.
On the other hand, a forum filled with desperate filmmakers is ideal for phony fly-by-night "distributors" charging for submissions and other "fees" -- their business model may work even if all the contents submitted are crap.
Good luck with that approach!
It's true that IT is a potentially target rich environment for dodgy aggregators or dodgy providers of various services to aid/facilitate indie filmmakers to essentially self distribute. However, that's not the case here!! Not once did the OP say or even imply that they are some sort of service provider who would charge you for their service, in fact the complete opposite, the OP specifically stated they are buyers! The second they ask for any sort of up-front fee, then my BS meter would be "pegged" too but until then, as a seller, you have to assume they are a legitimate buyer, just as the car salesman does, otherwise you'll alienate them. This is fundamental basics of sales which anyone with half an inkling of how the world works should know!! So, as I said; good luck ever selling a film commercially if your starting position is to alienate potential buyers!
There seems to be here on IT not only only a great deal of ignorance of the very basics of salesmanship but ignorance of product design and ignorance of the marketplace as well. Hardly surprising therefore that few, if any, here ever get any type of distribution deal which even cover their costs, let alone make a decent enough profit to actually constitute being a professional filmmaker.
Just think about the market for a minute: There are more cinema screens worldwide than there has ever been and more TV channels worldwide than there has ever been and therefore there is more demand for content than there has ever been. The problem isn't with the demand side of the supply/demand equation it's with the supply side. There are plenty of distributors/broadcasters/sales agents looking for content, their problem is finding the type of content with the production values which fulfils the requirements of their marketplace at a price which represents a lucrative investment/purchase. The vast majority here do not appear to think in terms of "product", "product design", the marketplace or the requirements of the commercial buyers (distributors/broadcasters). They generally don't appear to even bother to find out what the buyers are really looking for, let alone how to fulfil those demands/requirements. Instead, they just make their own films, for their own reasons, to their own specifications, for their own pleasure/experience and then hope they can find a distributor who by sheer chance just happens to be looking for exactly that type, quality, specifications and price of content. By definition this is amateur filmmaking and by definition they have almost no chance of success. The solution of many appears to be: Spend more time trying to make money self distributing, buy some new camera equipment or improve their photography skills, redefine "success" and, moan about the state of the industry and become cynical, disparaging and alienated from/towards it. Sorry, but that's a petulant child's solution! The only viable solution, if they're serious about professional/commercial success in the industry, is to develop a professional approach to filmmaking, which means thinking in terms of buyer requirements and product design to actually improve their chances of success!
I respect and admire those who dedicate themselves to amateur filmmaking, what I don't respect are those amateurs who aspire to being professional but refuse to try, accept, learn about or develop any sort of professional approach. What I find really offensive though are those amateurs who not only vainly want commercial success only on their own terms but who deliberately alienate and sabotage potential opportunities for those who are attempting a more serious professional approach to filmmaking. If people like this come to totally dominate IndieTalk, it will not be a forum which includes those involved in, serious about or aspire to commercial indie filmmaking, it will become a forum solely for a subset of ignorant, bitter, no hope trolls! It wouldn't be the first time this has happened to an indie film forum and I personally think the moderators (and indietalk owners) should be concerned and more circumspect/active in threads of this type.
G
