WATCH THE MEETING HERE:

https://youtu.be/aHCGuYyVmFs

Reframing How We Look at Film Marketing

• We’re conditioned to think:
  • we have “one chance” to get our movie out there
  • we need to take from others to get something
• Instead of one lucky shot for success: a non-dependent and generative career is the goal
• You may experiences the 5 stages of grief when discovering as a filmmaker you have to become a marketer as well (lol)
• We’re conditioned to think we need one big hit, and we have one chance to do it, but we have to think about it more as a lifelong endeavor
• Every film is a seed, not a product — there’s fruit every season and you can always grow more out of it

Strategies for Non-Dependent Film Marketing

• Look at the secrets from the gaming industry:

  • they build a universe they bring people into it

• Use AUDIENCE MAPPING:

  • decide who this film is for
  • build a character or archetype for who you think it’s for, give them a name, an age, all the demographics
  • choose 3 key audiences
    • 1 primary
    • 2 secondary
    • 1 movable middle (may be ppl who are into your film, but maybe not)
  • get people together and ask them questions — a few ways to do that:
    • alk to people in this group (ND50)
    • have a table read and invite people to listen, ask questions
  • how do I find the “pain points”? i’m not launching a service or product —
    • take it back to: what are the questions that your film is asking? what are the questions your characters are asking?

  CASE STUDY: Forbidden Fruit

  • When deciding which festivals to choose, we thought through:
    • the main character: he lives in the south, wants to make friends, and wants to make food — so audience is food banks, southern audience, rural audience, nursing program
  • Don’t look at just the main characters, but also the side characters
  • All about research and experimentation, asking people and connecting
    • Go on the subreddits and ask the question:
      • who here identifies with XYZ? what do you want to see in the world that would talk about your experience?
      • they’ll tell you and then you can make those things
  • This can all happen at any stage!
  • The entry points we’re using for this film:
    • the entry point was a photo book, that got into a bookstore in brooklyn, then that store hosted a screening — that was a better entry point into the film than blasting on social
    • don’t ask them to commit to the film right away, give them a smaller way to explore
    • exploration points:
      • booklet afterwards
      • questions to explore their feelings
      • workshops with partners
      • screening events
        • q&a and getting the audience involved, the deeper questions having be those questions that you’re asking in your film as the QA, they’ll be more attached to the work
  • “What are the ways we can market the movie without just doing social media? How can we get people involved?”
    • We will still do traditional social
    • Side characters do a social account and do a narrative on social
    • During test shoot — doing a short film prequel to release
    • Workshops with non-profits
    • Concerts with one of the actors who is a singer
      • soundtrack with an AR overaly so you can see the world as character sees it
    • Not all of this has to be out by the time the film comes out
    • “How long are you distributing?” Until I’m dead! (lol)

  General Marketing Theories

  • Use the “7 Hours Rule” to understand how many entry points you need to make
    • Daniel Priestly — his book Oversubscribed says an audience needs to see you for 7 hours, 11 different times, in 4 different places
    • doesn’t have to be on social media
  • Let’s call this work Signature Media, NOT CONTENT
    • Blended Future Project manifesto — high quality effort in, high quality attention out
  • THE GARDEN CYCLE:
    • spring - tease — marketing
    • summer - in person push — events and screenings
    • winter - rest — not as much promotion, you’re gonna start reaching out to build relationships with those audiences, but we also need to have a rest period
    • fall - digital push — goes on demand
    • Think of it as a cyclical process, we don’t put it in front of audiences one time, we bring it back again through the seasons
      • both for those who have already watched it with new entry points
      • and new entry points
    • Spike Lee does this on his instagram, check it out

  How to Show This to Investors/Grants

  • how do you lay all of this out in paper? / what looks good to grants?
    • they want to know: how are you going to build a relationship with your audience?
      • that’s a multi-tiered process
      • tell them how you are going to build the relationship over time
      • show them the audiences, (give them two)
        • these are our two main audiences
        • researched those audiences beforehand — we did this market research, so we’re going to do XYZ and to attract this audience
        • lay out the plan before you shoot the movie, while shooting the movie, while editing, and when it’s about to come out
        • even if you never do those entry points / exploration points, list out what you’re going to do