Data is integral to the movement. Why? Two Reasons!

1. FOR THE PEOPLE OUT THERE: Even though you and I know the economic and creative realities of being a filmmaker and why the non-dependent film movement is essential, it can just sound … well… kind of anecdotal to the outside world. Data helps ground our lived experiences in facts and figures to paint the broader picture for the audiences, financiers, and partners.
2. FOR THE PEOPLE IN HERE: Data helps us make better decisions faster and with more confidence. The data we collect in 2026 will help us move with more agility in 2027, and beyond. Remember, it’s not just about one movie. It’s about a body of work, and the movement at large.

The goal by this time next year is to put together a NonDē 50 Films Project Digital Handbook that reports back on every film made in 2026. If we have 50 films, we’ll have 50 in-depth case studies. The value of tracking all of this data can’t be understated.

We’ll briefly talk more about this at the upcoming meeting on December 18th (info below), but no reason you can’t get started now.

So, what kind of data should you be recording and keeping on file? Let’s make a list!

Here are some examples of data to track during your NonDē production process:

• Audience Demographics
  • age
  • location
  • career & interests
  • how they consume media
  • which Substacks, podcasts, Discords, etc. they subscribe to or participate in
• Cast and Crew Information
  • how many people on set
  • how many days
  • costs and budget associated with arts workers
  • any worker-owned legal agreements
• Financing
  • funding sources
  • how many investors on this film
  • budgets
  • crowdfunding stats
  • breakdown of funding, where does it come from?
  • conversion rates (i.e. how many pitches until you got your next financial ‘yes’)
• Distribution
  • revenue / profit
  • unique views / total views
  • which windowing strategies did you use
  • which windows had the highest return
  • biggest audience gain
  • biggest revenue gain
• Marketing
  • audience conversion rates on paid ads
  • audience conversion rates on organic marketing
  • Average Order Value (AOV) for audience/customers
  • impressions / reach of each marketing asset
  • how many press/pr hits
• Production Timelines
  • how many weeks/months in each stage (development, pre-, production, post-, distribution)

This isn’t a definitive list, just a working start. But take a look at it and think about what you could start tracking now. You don’t have to track absolutely everything at all times, but it’s a healthy practice.

As the saying goes: what gets measured grows.