While it’s clear at this point that the conference model can just seem like a useless bore to some, IFP’s Independent Film Week and Filmmaker Conference still draw decent numbers of emerging and experienced filmmakers looking for information on the next trends in funding, filming and distribution. If that sounds potentially fun to you, panels in the new distribution realm you may enjoy include this afternoon’s
“Outreach and Audience Building” with Ingrid Kopp from Shooting People, Diana Barrett of Fledgling Fund, Katy Chevigny from Arts Engine, Aron Gaudet, Director of THE WAY WE GET BY and Joel Heller, Producer of WINNEBAGO MAN.

Later this week there are a couple other newdistro panels of interest:
Wednesday 9/22 at 3:30: Marketing Without A Cause
Thursday 9/23 at 4:30: Cage Match: Am I a Filmmaker or a Brand?

Also at IFW are the screenings of new and in-progress work that can be illuminating. (Or you can just go to the parties).

A video made for THE MAIN EVENT: Finding YOUR Audience, a panel I moderated at SXSW. Thom Powers, founder of the fantastic NYC doc series Stranger Than Fiction and doc programmer for TIFF, shares a few tips with filmmakers hoping to capture some of STF’s success for their own releases.

Thom Powers on making a doc screening a success from Laure X on Vimeo.

Just flagging some upcoming events I’ll be attending at which I hope to see you and give you one of my new cards.

Making Your Media Matter- DC, February 11-12 “Cutting-edge practices for making your media matter”

Free Culture X- DC, February 13-14 “Free software and open standards, open access scholarship, open educational resources, network neutrality, and university patent policy”

South By Southwest- Austin, March 12-18 (Presenting a panel about event screenings and attracting audiences)

The Conversation NY- March 27 “New business and creative opportunities” in film and media

Interviewed by CinemaTech‘s Scott Kirsner:

New Directions for Independent Cinema: Ian Calderon from Scott Kirsner on Vimeo.

Missed this in time for the submission deadline, but interesting to note that Sundance has added a new section for no-lo budget films it’s calling NEXT (represented by the symbol < = >). How these play at the festival will be a great experiment- will they be assessed on the same merits as other films or given a handicap? Given that the ultra-low budget level seems likely to emerge as viable (or even dominant?) in a troubled time for the industry, and given that these films don’t need distribution of the traditional sense to break even, there may be a new paradigm beginning to emerge right in the epicintre of indie buying buzz.

Some cool stuff from the Toronto International Film Festival last week:

Liesl Copland, formerly of Netflix and now with William Morris Endeavor’s Global Finance & Distribution Group, gave a keynote at the Doc Conference about the state of digital and what it means for the industry. The takewaway: theatrical still has life; filmmakers need to learn about metrics; crowdsourcing is the new focus group.

Ted Hope, as captured by indieWIRE’s Eugene Hernandez, about Hope’s Doing It With Others (DIWO) philosophy. The takeaway: Blog, tweet, Facebook your whole life- or at least your projects and interact with other people using those tools. (He’s made a lot of films but does he have time now with all these social networks? He says yes.)

A conversation with a number of distributors in the New York Times about the state of distribution and what’s to come. The most interesting response for me was IFC prexy Jonathan Sehring’s, when asked about the glut of films in the marketplace (something the other respondents universally decried, as per conventional wisdom).

The one comment from my colleagues that drives me nuts is that there are “too many movies.” If one looks at specialized film as “art,” it is the only art form I can think where people who work within the industry say there are “too many” of. I never hear anyone in the music industry say there are too many songs, no one in publishing says there are too many books, no gallery or museum says there are too many paintings, no one in fashion says there are too many designers — why too many movies? When my colleagues say this it sounds like the anti-immigration, protectionist rhetoric from the far right.

Pat Aufderheide from the Center for Social Media on ‘what she learned at TIFF’- the takeaway: People still find Peter Broderick’s “DIY” presentation new, even after about 500 wears- he must be using Tide with Bleach Alternative! Also, go see some good docs.

The Toronto International Film Festival is more about watching movie (and schmoozing at parties) than attending panels but there are a couple of things geared towards documentary filmmakers that would be worth checking out during all the glam.

The Doc Conference
Sunday, September 13, 2009
University of Toronto’s Victoria College (93 Charles Street West, behind the Isabel Bader Theatre), Room 323
An all-day meeting, with this panel a highlight for filmmakers interested in new directions in funding/sales:
1:30pm – Financing in Tough Times
Franny Armstrong, Director, The Age of Stupid
Dan Cogan, Impact Partners
Lois Vossen, ITVS

*Doc Conference is open to all Guest Relations, Sales & Industry and Press pass holders.

Doc Roundtables

“Now in its fourth year, Doc Roundtables create a rare chance for filmmakers to meet with industry leaders for an informal networking session. This year, industry participants include representatives from Sony Pictures Classics, HBO, Films Transit, Submarine Entertainment, SnagFilms, Zeitgeist Films, IFC Films, Emerging Pictures, Oscilloscope Laboratories, Lorber Media, and more.”

Date: Monday, September 14, 2009 through to Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Time: Twice daily sessions from 2:00pm to 3:00pm and 3:30pm to 4:30pm
Location: Match Club (5th Elementt Restaurant, 1033 Bay Street)

Speaking with my distribution hat on, we often receive calls from filmmakers who express bitterness that we tend to look primarily at films that come out of major festivals, the big three being Cannes, Sundance, and Toronto, and for us, also Berlin, Venice, and Rotterdam.

They usually act as though it was an affront that we were trying to be ‘exclusive’ and keep their populist movie out of the distribution game. Then there are industry analysts who suggest that these festivals are essential because the programmers weed out the dross and show us “an initial signal of a film’s quality.”

To me, it’s much more basic. Most arthouse/independent distributors don’t have huge marketing budgets. If a film is at one of the major festivals, it means it’s on the radar of a lot of press, theatre owners and industry, and even the public, all for free. If it gets good buzz, or especially an award, that is money in the bank. It’s not some kind of conspiracy to keep The People out but it is a business.

Can this be generated more affordably and in a less elitist way with online tools? Can you replicate the kind of excitement and engagement a large, expensive festival can produce? Or is the whole system outdated?