The incredibly useful Workbook Project recently added another weapon to its creative arsenal. NEW BREED consists of first person accounts of the filmmaking process – you can read through all the posts or go straight to the filmmakers or projects that you’re particularly interested in. The site outlines some NEW BREED goals for 2009: With the dawn of 2009 comes some new additions to the site. NEW BREED: CRITICAL FOCUS will introduce a new series of interviews, special topics addressed…

This is the second and final part of a 2 part post on non-theatrical distribution by Rachel Gordon, a freelance marketing/distribution consultant specializing in the niche and educational usage of documentary films. Something to be aware of that many filmmakers don’t consciously think about when starting to get their work out is that it will take some time for your film to “hit” a place in the non-theatrical market – often up to a whole year.  You can’t count on…

This is the first part of a 2 part post on non-theatrical distribution by Rachel Gordon, a freelance marketing/distribution consultant specializing in the niche and educational usage of documentary films. Disclaimer – This article assumes that you are self-distributing and not working with a distributor.  The narrative below is solely from the perspective of educational, also known as “non-theatrical,” usage of film and does not refer to theatrical or home video distribution. Independent documentary filmmaking continues to rise after several…

Another great event from Own It – The Creators Guide to Going Mobile: a Digital Revolution Made Simple. If you can get to it, this looks like it will address a lot of the questions that we all have about mobile content and how it will pay… Are you thinking of joining the next revolution in digital media and distributing your work through mobile phones or inventing software applications? This seminar will give you an overview of the legal framework…

I’ve just added some links to the blogroll on the right hand side of this blog that link to sites working to protect our digital rights. The more excited I get by the possibilities for filmmakers in the digital age the more aware I am that we need to fight to continue to exercise our creativity (flexible copyright law is key here) and keep the channels of distribution open (if you don’t know what net neutrality is I really urge…

Scott Kirsner of CinemaTech was commissioned by ITVS to investigate how indepedent filmmakers are working with new technologies and to answer the following questions: Opening Up Production to Participation During pre-production and production, how are filmmakers communicating with audiences, widely dispersed teams, funders and prospective subjects in new ways? What new opportunities for involvement and participation are they exploring? Finding New Audiences Once a project is completed and ready for release/broadcast, how are filmmakers using blogs, social networks, games and…

I’ve just been having a look at Reelisor, a new initiative by Discovery Campus who are known for their fantastic training/mentoring events for documentary filmmakers in Europe, along with a string of key partners including BRITDOC and EDN. Reelisor looks like a mixture of an online marketplace, resource and network for doc folk. Savvy filmmakers are getting increasingly strategic about international partnerships when it comes to financing and distributing their films and this is a good place to start as…

Super producer and super nice guy Ted Hope gave a keynote address at Film Independent’s Filmmaker Forum in Los Angeles over the weekend. If you need to gird your loins for the challenges and opportunities ahead you should read it because you, dear readers, are the TRULY FREE FILMMAKERS he is talking about, or at least you can be. A THOUSAND PHOENIX RISING How The New Truly Free Filmmaking Community Will Rise From Indie’s Ashes I can’t talk about the…

Hi everyone, I’m Patrick and this is my first time posting on Shooting People. Two weeks ago I was approached by James Mullighan to blog about a self-distribution project I’m running at Met Film. Some of you might know the Met Film School, it turns out we’re actually a group of three companies, Met Film Post, Met Film Production and the Met Film School and we develop, produce and post-produce a variety of feature films and television programs… Bet you…

I wasn’t able to attend the Shooting People/BAFTA Short Sighted event in London earlier this month due to the very inconvenient fact that I was in New York! But all the feedback has been excellent and it sounds like filmmakers really benefited from the day’s panels and case studies. I particularly like this comment: “The event was motivating due to the knowledge of panel members as well as the clever filmmakers attending. Shooting People is ‘as yellow as the generosity…