Distributing Your Own Films & Series (Part 1)
You don't need a sales agent, distributor or aggregator to be successful.
My name is Candice Cain, and I am an independent filmmaker. I own Gemelli Films Incorporated, and independent production company based out of Brookhaven, NY. I made my first film What Happened Last Night in 2015, and it was released at the end of 2016. In 2018, the spin-off series New Dogs, Old Tricks was released. In April 2019, I filmed Ivy & Mistletoe, which was released in 2020. Those three titles are with two different sales agents and distributors. The amount of money that I have been sent for those titles is absolutely laughable. They are with "professional" companies.
Furthermore, before I ended up with these companies, they were with other companies that turned out to be scams and frauds. One of the companies actually pocketed $59,000, breaching a contract with my company where they were supposed to pay me a $20,000 minimum guarantee. Because of this, I created a distribution arm of my company.
I'm tired of hearing stories about independent filmmakers that are taken advantage of the way that I was. For that reason, I've decided to create an article series about how to distribute your own films. Since signing over Ivy & Mistletoe to Studio City Pictures, I have worked very hard in securing other distribution deals for my other films. Fortunately, I was able to secure distribution for one of my series and SEVEN of my films on Pure Flix in the USA and Canada, not to mention Cosmote in Greece, SBS in Belgium and several others. I distributed these titles on my own, not using anyone outside of Gemelli Films.
I have decided to write a series of articles about selling independent film titles in hopes of helping independent filmmakers get their projects sold. With the impending IATSE strike, it is a terrific time to get projects in front of buyers. (All of my projects employ non-union filmmakers, but treat them better than union members are treated by bigtime production companies! However, that's another article for another time.) In this article, I'm going to tell you how to get set your company up for success in selling your titles directly to buyers.
CREATE A PROFESSIONAL WEBSITE. There are a lot of websites out there that can help you create one. Buy a domain name for $1 from GoDaddy, and create your site through Wix, WordPress or any other site designer. If you have the money to hire someone, fantastic! I personally didn't, and purchased a $1 domain and designed through Wix.com for free.
APPOINT A SALES DIRECTOR. Buyers do not like working directly with the person in charge of writing, directing, producing, etc. films and series. They prefer to deal with some whose name isn't on the project. Why? I don't know. Maybe it's because they feel that someone involved with the project will be too difficult to work with because of an emotional attachment. Name someone as your Sales Director. Even if it is YOU using a pseudonym, create a Sales Director. Make that person (real or a pseudonym) the point of contact for buyers. When you come to contract, make sure they use the name of the president of the company to sign. (Unless, of course, you actually have a Sales Director.) A great way to knock on the door for buyers is to introduce the Sales Director. For example, "Hi there! My name is xxx and I am the new Sales Director for XXX. I wanted to introduce myself to you and let you know about our available titles. May I send you our catalogue?"
GET A PROFESSIONAL EMAIL ADDRESS WITH YOUR DOMAIN NAME. Contacting buyers through a Gmail, Yahoo or Hotmail account will most likely end you up right in their trash. I personally signed up for Google's G-Suite and use the GemelliFilm.com domain name. I have four different mailboxes for different tasks: Sales, Marketing, Production and one for my business partner. I upgraded my Google Drive for delivery purposes, so this does cost me about $45 per month.
SIGN UP FOR A MARKETING EMAIL ACCOUNT. Again, this is something that can be free. I use Sender.net, although I have used MailChimp in the past. I do prefer Sender because it is more user friendly, with their drag and drop options. I also prefer their templates. I have a free account for this.
GET CONTACT INFORMATION FOR BUYERS. Now, this is where you are going to spend the most money. You can attend a content market like AFM or MipCom, or you can buy a list. (In case you are interested, I sell my own list for $50. It has a little over 1600 names, and I've compiled this contact list from different markets I've attended since 2019.) There are companies that will sell lists for upwards of $500. You can attend AFM virtually this year for $300, or exhibit for $700 (which I chose to do). There's also NATPE, MipTV, MipCancun, HK Filmart and many others. They're expensive, but you network and can really establish and grow relationships.
REACH OUT. Send a brief email introducing yourself, your company and mention your title(s). Ask if you can send more information, such as a catalogue, trailer or screener. If you do not hear from them in a week, reach out again. Personally, I reach out until they tell me that they aren't interested. Sometimes, I'll even call if I think that it's a good fit. Remember to always be respectful. The buyer is the one that can make or break your project. Give them a reason to want to work with you. Be kind and respectful to their position. Most of all, be gracious when they do invite you to send more information.
These are just the first steps to set your project up for success. It might take some people a day to do it; it could take others a year. Follow the steps in order above and you'll be sure to get a response.
About the Creator
Candice Cain
Candice Cain is the owner of Gemelli Films, where she is the main writer/director of many films and series. She has a BA in Dramatic Literature with minors in English, Theatre and Creative Writing from The George Washington University.
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