distribution sobering view on the micro-budget film distribution.

We talk about distribution a lot and how the micro-budget film makers are losing the traditional outlets for their movies; DVD/Blu-ray sales.

Here is a video with some sobering views. The people in the video are pretty much saying the same thing that everyone else is; the doors are closing. There is no money to be made.

 
Remember that girl "Cash me outside" ?
She made like 50 or 60 million dollars last year doing micro budget film making.

I read about it, she was hosting the videos on a site called onlyfans or something like that
 
I never heard of her, but I did a google search. It said she's a rapper, model, and filthy rich. She somehow got her start on Dr. Phil. Her stage name is Bhad Bhabie.

Maybe it's one of those things where in today's world, to be successful you have to connect with the young people who are more than willing to throw their parent's money at you. That leaves most of us out. I'm old and nobody thinks I'm cool. Lol!
 
I never heard of her, but I did a google search. It said she's a rapper, model, and filthy rich. She somehow got her start on Dr. Phil. Her stage name is Bhad Bhabie.

Maybe it's one of those things where in today's world, to be successful you have to connect with the young people who are more than willing to throw their parent's money at you. That leaves most of us out. I'm old and nobody thinks I'm cool. Lol!

lol yeah she a viral moment on tv acting like a dumb teenager and now shes richer than either of us will ever be

 
Remember that girl "Cash me outside" ?
She made like 50 or 60 million dollars last year doing micro budget film making.

I read about it, she was hosting the videos on a site called onlyfans or something like that

But is that "filmmaking"? To argue semantics, just making videos for OnlyFans or even YouTube is not "filmmaking" in the same sense, is it?

She isn't making documentaries or short films or anything resembling "art" as it were. Maybe it's just me, but she's not a filmmaker and her videos are just that - web videos, which are not films, hence, not a filmmaker.

But anyone can define filmmaking however they want.

I think the video posted (which the thumbnail has a director that looks, dresses, and has a hat eerily familiar to me....) is talking about short films and feature films and their distribution prospects, which are dismal today. There are no significant returns on investment anymore, not in 2022.
 
I don't know the answer to this, but I wonder, in today's Indie climate, is there greater change at realizing a financial reward by making a 90 minute feature or 9 - ten minute episodes telling the same story as the 90 minute feature? See what I mean? 8 smaller pieces altered slightly to connect to each other plus a 9th piece to conclude the story. This would be something geared toward Youtube audiences.
 
I know nothing of this, but here's my perspective.

For decades, industry insiders from various industries have been saying that things will never be the same again, and technology will mean the end of small firms or big firms. But, somehow, that doesn't happen. Just as technology closes some outlets, it opens others. Yes, DVD/Blu-ray may no longer be part of the business model, but Youtube Prime and other streaming outlets have provided far more avenues than Blockbuster. So I would be so pessimistic.

But that's just my observation.
 
I don't know the answer to this, but I wonder, in today's Indie climate, is there greater change at realizing a financial reward by making a 90 minute feature or 9 - ten minute episodes telling the same story as the 90 minute feature? See what I mean? 8 smaller pieces altered slightly to connect to each other plus a 9th piece to conclude the story. This would be something geared toward Youtube audiences.

I have no clue what the answer is either. Other than Vloggers like David Dobrik and Casey Neistat, who are vloggers, not filmmakers in my opinion, what is the model for a narrative filmmaking success on YouTube? I'm just not familiar with any films or series of films or singular feature films from indie filmmakers on YouTube that were profitable.

Filmmakers I know are getting on Redbox streaming or Tubi, but I don't know how well the financial return on investments are with those. Since Best Buy no longer even has a DVD/Blu ray section at several stores, I don't see physical media surviving the next 5 years.
 
But is that "filmmaking"? To argue semantics, just making videos for OnlyFans or even YouTube is not "filmmaking" in the same sense, is it?

She isn't making documentaries or short films or anything resembling "art" as it were. Maybe it's just me, but she's not a filmmaker and her videos are just that - web videos, which are not films, hence, not a filmmaker.

But anyone can define filmmaking however they want.

I think the video posted (which the thumbnail has a director that looks, dresses, and has a hat eerily familiar to me....) is talking about short films and feature films and their distribution prospects, which are dismal today. There are no significant returns on investment anymore, not in 2022.
Could all be true, I've only ever made videos for youtube so I'm in no position to judge anyone.
If shes making content on her own terms and producing millions then she's more of a success than i'll ever be
 
Y'all gatekeeping the word filmmaking and none of y'all even using actual film 😂

I have shot on actual film for several shorts and my first feature, but still..... there is a world of difference between making narrative and documentary and Vlogs. Like I said, it's just semantics as to what each person wants to consider "filmmaking" and to each their own.

I don't think it's feesible to shoot on actual celluloid anymore. The cameras, the film stock, developing, and transfer is far more sparse and more expensive than ever before.
 
Could all be true, I've only ever made videos for youtube so I'm in no position to judge anyone.
If shes making content on her own terms and producing millions then she's more of a success than i'll ever be

Making any content is not the same as making a film, is it? I'm not saying you're wrong in some general sense or judging anyone. My own personal definition of "filmmaker" is a little more precise than creating any moving image with sound. Again, I don't think I have any authority to decide what defines a filmmaker for anybody other than how I think.

They still refer to festivals as "film festivals" even without the celluloid film and they don't have a category for vlogs or random YouTube content, and definitely not for OnlyFans. This Bhad Barbie girl can be all kinds of "success" however you define it, but that still doesn't make her a filmmaker.

Or does it? What do you guys think? Is it all filmmaking or is it a more narrow definition?
 
They are not calling themselves filmmakers though it was just something @sfoster posted. Maybe some are, and maybe those people are filmmakers. Even @sfoster tried his hand at TikTok and yes, I considered that a short film.
 
I have shot on actual film for several shorts and my first feature, but still.....
Oh I knowww me too, but remember when everything turned to video and the purists said you were a videographer, not a "film"maker? I'm just making light of that similar gatekeeping happening now, as in, it's not the media it's recorded on, but the content. And the same thing is happening. 😁
 
Oh I knowww me too, but remember when everything turned to video and the purists said you were a videographer, not a "film"maker? I'm just making light of that similar gatekeeping happening now, as in, it's not the media it's recorded on, but the content. And the same thing is happening. 😁

I always thought it was funny years ago - Music Videos were all shot on film and Short Films were all shot on video.....

Digital has changed it all. Who knew in 2002 when George Lucas decided to convert shooting Star Wars to 100% digital that within 20 years 99.9999% of all film would become a purely digital medium? Apparently just him.
 
You remember George Lucas, for some reason, I remember Robert Rodriguez being an early adopter and proclaiming it the future.
 
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