“Focus on Film” Social Media Club LA Meetup

Tonight, I attended my first Social Media Club event in Los Angeles. What an amazing experience. The subject of the evening was called “Focus on Film” with several different people from different aspects of the entertainment industry sharing their thoughts about the future of film/television. By the end of the panel’s discussion, I wasn’t sure whether I felt hopeful or not about the future of film. What was clear is that due to the current economy and the expense of producing movies, developing unique ideas that may not appeal to broad audiences (see: indie movies, documentaries, and even features) and as a result bomb at the box office or not have the huge sales needed to make back profits, there is no money for them. No one can seem to figure out how to monetize online distribution, fewer people are attending theaters to see movies, and DVD sales are slumping. What’s a filmmaker to do!?

Well, for starters, there are some websites they can take a look at for possible assistance:

Indiegogo: IndieGoGo is an online social marketplace connecting filmmakers and fans to make independent film happen. The platform provides filmmakers the tools for project funding, recruiting, and promotion, while enabling the audience to discover and connect directly with filmmakers and the causes they support.

Freestyle Releasing: Freestyle Releasing is a full service theatrical motion picture company that specializes in representing independent companies, major studios, and mini-major studios on a “service deal” basis for the purpose of exhibiting their films in a first class theatrical release.

Movieset: MovieSet brings the authentic behind the scenes experience of working on a film set directly online to fans in exciting new ways.

Workbook Project: Our goal is to create a free resource for content creators that will become a user contributed repository of information.

Artemis Eternal: Artemis Eternal is a professional sci-fi fantasy short intended for film festivals and traveling screenings. The film is the premier crowd-funded, professionally-led, studio-quality film with absolutely no studio intervention

Seize The Media: Seize The Media (STM) designs, develops, and produces stories and games for both online and traditional media outlets.

Wreck A Movie: Star Wreck Studios is a film studio that is specialized in blending the Internet and the film industry together by unleashing the creative potential of Internet communities, and changing the whole chain of filmmaking.

There does appear to be some light at the end of the tunnel, but it just feels like everything is in flux right now. What is clear is that the current system of distribution, rights, union contracts, and so on are not working no matter how hard the industry tries to hold them together. It’s human nature to become defensive when being attacked. What is most likely true is that people are no longer going to be paid the same amount nor the same way that they have been in the past for doing film production work. However, no one has figured out a new system yet. I think the film industry should take Obama’s novel approach to solving the nations problems. Ask its consituents to come up with a plan and show them a better way to do it.