Indipendant Filmmaking and distribution in Experimental Film
- Giovanni Peresson
- Nov 10, 2023
- 4 min read
By Giovanni Peresson 10/11/2023
Introduction:
Distribution of experimental film differs greatly from mainstream media. Large media company spend unfathomable amounts of money on distribution and advertising. It's common place that the budget for the promotion of the film is greater than the production budget. A lot of the time experimental film is self funded and there isn't a traditional distribution. Usually we see smaller screenings as it is niche, even to this day. In a recent video essay for my business of tv and film module I created a video on the franchise effect and one of the topics discussed in it was distribution which made me think about how distribution and funding in experimental film works and I wanted to find out more so I set out to research it.
Modern distribution
In the modern day getting your film to stand out is extraordinarily difficult, there is a fierce and highly saturated marked out there with a tight grip on the top from the dominating companies. There is a double edged sword. One the one hand as a filmmaker today there are so many platforms you can screen your film on on the internet, as well as all the legacy options such as theatres, film festivals, private screenings, DVD and on and on. Yet, on the other hand the issue with the internet is first of all there is so much content being pushed out every hour by millions and millions of people that getting your films to stand out on these platforms you have to engineer your films to fit with the algorithms that push your videos up on peoples home pages. With this the sense of creating the films you want to create yourself becomes distant. You have to make a choice, do you make films that fit the algorithm and generate views or do you create the content you want to create?
the story of user generated content yet other platforms exists such as Netflix, Hbo, amazon prime, etc is much like it is with large production companies such as Warner Bros for example where you have to pitch your idea for them and seek funding to have your film produced and distributed by them. You have to create content for their audiences and demographics and they might be looking for very specific target audiences which when it comes to experimental film makes it nearly impossible to seek funding from these companies as they want to follow current industry trends that work and that will generate them revenue and more subscriptions. Experimental film doesn't stand a chance in this market.
Distribution in the past
In the past It was just as challenging if not even more so to get funding and distribution for your experimental films. Filmmakers often seeked funding from art organisations, galleries, universities and cultural intuitions but more than all they where independently funded by the filmmaker themselves. It was the same story, experimental film was very niche.
Distribution of experimental film throughout history was very challenging. Due to the unconventional narratives and aesthetics there was limited commercial appeal to cinemas. With this film festivals and Universities and art galleries where the common place of screening. Experimental filmmakers often shared their films and would organise these these screening events.
Organizations
Throughout my Research I discovered that there are a number of organizations that dedicate themselves to the preservation and distribution to theatres all over the world. The two I looked into where the French based Light Cone and also an Irish based organisation called the Experimental Film Society.
Although The Experimental film societies on demand films are behind a paywall and you can only watch 30 second segments for free it did take me by surprise to find out that there in fact a number of Irish experimental filmmakers who regularly create films and have a platform they can use to distribute their films and also be able to generate some revenue for their productions. They also show screenings and you can purchase tickets on their website available here. Looking at some of the segments you can watch you can see that some of the films like the ones by Maximilian Le Cain Embrace Irish culture and heritage throughout there films.
Light Cone on the other hand they work with non-profits, Universities and museums restoring and digitizing films and bringing back to their original state to show them to the public at screenings in Paris. Persevering Older films is an important job that must be done and there are a number of organizations out there that do just that.
Conclusion
There is still one question unanswered which we may never know the truth on. How many experimental films have been lost in the past? With how niche it was there weren't many physical copies and the test of time must have truly impacted them. As film degrades over the years and people throwing old things away a number of films could very well have been lost for ever.
A difficult as it is to gain success with experimental film and to get proper distribution there still are options available especially in the modern digital world with platforms such as YouTube, Vimeo TikTok and much more. Another great opportunity with digital files is you can apply to as many film festivals as you would like, dramatically increasing your odds of getting screenings with audiences all over the world. There is more opportunity now than ever.
Bibliography
Erin Pearson, (2020),"The complete Guide to film distribution", Topsheet available at https://topsheet.io/blog/complete-guide-to-film-distribution accessed 7/10/23
Light Cone available here https://lightcone.org
Experimental film Society available here http://www.experimentalfilmsociety.com
Maximilian Le Cain, Early non fiction films, (2008 -2014), Available here http://www.experimentalfilmsociety.com/film/early-non-fiction-films-2008-2014/
This Blog has been written for educational purposes as part of CIN506 Experimental Film Week 6 Blog.
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