Two days before THE INVISIBLE WAR got an Oscar Nomination for Best Documentary (i.e. today), Congress announced it would hold a hearing on sexual abuse in the Military.
When it becomes more and more difficult for our mainstream media to examine complex issues in depth and with true soul, it is left to
Imagine if he sought out the most talented, but not yet established, filmmakers in this country–the stars of the film schools, people, festival prize-winners, critically acclaimed directors whose movies have not turned a profit. He invites each of these people to his office in California, where he takes them for a nature walk to explain his dream of a colossal experiment in cinematic collaboration, larger than anything the world has previously seen. Not incidentally, he offers each of them a substantial salary to take part. Most will grab the money or be curious; others will be suspicious of his motives or wary of being tied up and say no. It will take awhile to put together the perfect group, but the entrepreneur is patient and won’t quit until he’s assembled hundreds of people, the best of the best of the best. Of course, sometimes he’ll make the wrong choices, but one thing he’s known for is his decisiveness about letting people go when necessary.
You are in, and now you have all sorts of wonderful problems — the kind most filmmakers wish they could enjoy. You know, you have to do all the things you have to do for a film festival. I have tried to collect the various blog posts I have written or have found written by others that will really prepare you. There’s a lot more to be written. But this is a good start:
Previously: How KinoNation Works
What a difference a year makes. This time in 2012 I was working for an humanitarian assistance NGO, just back from a village solar power project in Tajikistan, and about to fly to West Africa to set up a veterinary aid project in Mauritania. That contract ended in July, and by August I was fully committed to online film distribution and KinoNation. Quite a contrast.
We’ve been on a “coding sprint” throughout the holidays to hit our planned “soft-launch” later this month. Klaus and our software team have been doing what developers in start-ups do — writing code into the early hours. I usually work past midnight, but there’s always a twinge of guilt when I get up and see the emails that have flown back and forth at 4 in the morning.
Last year, the film that the San Francisco Film Society had supported with grants went on to great things. Sure prizes and deals are not the only way to measure success, and really just getting a movie made is the real achievement — and hell, getting it into Sundance is pretty damn sweet.
I have loved what I have seen of Ryan’s work so far. I also love all he has to say about the film. I also love the the film is about something real to us all; in this case the killing of Oscar Grant at by a police officer. If you haven’t checked it out this video already, I recommend you do so now:
If you’d like to read more about this and the original case it is based on, this HuffPost article includes many photos of the Oakland riots that followed after the officer was sentenced only for involuntary manslaughter for two years, minus time served.
By Kavita Pullapilly
Going into their next feature film, BLUE POTATO, award-winning filmmakers (and past contributors to this blog with a great series of posts “The DIY Chronicles“) Aron Gaudet and Gita Pullapilly wanted to answer a question that all independent filmmakers want to know: How can independent filmmakers and studios collaborate in a more profitable and cost-effective way to get quality films into the marketplace?
Working with a team from the Harvard Business School, Gaudet and Pullapilly created a strategy to minimize risk, increase audience reach and maximize profit potential for potential distributors for BLUE POTATO. Read about how they developed key strategies for marketing and distribution that makes their film attractive to studio buyers. And find out how they evaluated their film so that they could reduce their financial risk while still accomplishing their goals in production.
