Chris Gore wrote a great list called "10 Stupid Things Indie Filmmakers Do to Mess Up Their Movies." There are 10, but 2 great ones that lately we see several film magazines and blogs talking about in their own ways. Here are two of the most noted ones:
Number 1 is:
No Money For Marketing
"There should be a line item in your budget for money to be spent on promotion and festival travel. Getting the film made is only HALF the battle - now you have to sell it. Without money for posters, publicity, travel, fees, delivery costs, etc. - the odds of selling your movie will be stacked against you."
(comment: Ever wonder about that DIY film that you read about somewhere online once and never heard from or saw again? Its the unfortunate reality of DIY filmmaking in general. Without a top 10 tier festival premiere, you need a marketing budget. Thats why several of these films remain stuck in cyberspace, usually with the director eventually abandoning the project you once read about for another film, only to repeat the same cycle again and again (this has led to what the indie world refers to as "the oversaturation"). On another note, a lot is made about small movies that have done well on the festival circuit and have even gotten into theatres - theatrical releases are rare, and are usually supported by a nice sized budget somewhere after the film has been completed, to assist the promotion of the festival premiere. Sundance itself is a fiercely competitive town, that requires stickers, posters, buttons, electronic press kits for media, and whatever else can be achieved to promote and pack your screening. Then there are delivery items for distributors, but we dont have the space here...
As experts Lyle Foggia and Kelly Neal pointed out in an earlier edition of Film Arts Magazine, a budget of nearly $25,000 is required to fully roll out a feature film of any budget, even more important for ultra low budget films. They write, "Indeed, as industry executives and consultants ourselves for over two decades, we cannot emphasize enough the peril of pre-maturely exposing your film, even to festival programmers, who are also overwhelmed with hundreds, if not thousands of submissions. As many filmmakers have regrettably discovered, there are no second chances with the key players in Indiewood." See this all important full piece HERE for details.)
There is No "I" in team.
"Dont try to do it all yourself. If you try to do it all, you will fail. Delegate, delegate, delegate. Build a strong team to help you during the production, in post production, after completion for internet promotion, and while you're at the festival, otherwise, you'll be the only one hanging up posters. "
(comment: this whole process takes a very important thing called 'money.')
The rest of this list is as follows:
1) Weak Script
2) Casting non-film actors
3) Sacrificing quality to meet a deadline
4) Wearing too many hats
5) Clearances
6) Bad sound
7) No festival strategy
8) Serious documentary = snore. Funny documentary = sale.
Check out more vital info on the realities of low budget filmmaking promotion in "Chris Gore's Ultimate Film Festival Survival Guide - 3rd Edition."
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