When I tell people that we're self-distributing, their response is similar to that of expressing condolences or acting as if we were just diagnosed with leprosy. The idea of filmmakers taking control of their creative work is not unprecedented. However, straying from the norm and exploring alternative paths to distribute a film is still pretty strange to some folks. Well, in the spirit of my dad, we're going against the grain. We didn't play by the rules when we were making the documentary, so why should we start playing by the rules at this stage of the game?
The DVD is still getting additional mentions and positive reviews that we're pretty excited about...you can click on the logos to skim, peruse or read in depth some of the coverage:
In the past month or so, we've been fortunate to receive some pretty good media coverage! Considering that we're self-distributing and we don't have our own press agent, exposure like this is really precious to us...
Slate.com posted our first official DVD review by Joe Keohane (click the pic to read the article):
Also, this past weekend (before April Fool's Day), Brooke Gladstone of NPR interviewed my dad and I on On the Media:
Here is the audio clip from that segment, called "Prank Calling":
Finally, David Nanasi wrote this nice review ("Biting Back at the Media") on the PBS | POV blog (click the graphic to read to the post):
So, please stay tuned as this crazy journey continues...
My dad and I finally returned from an adventure-filled journey to Spain and I'm not sure where our travels will take us next. I guess it depends on the next invitation that we receive in our inbox from a far-away place. In the beginning (or I should say, at the end, when the film was in the can and we started doing festivals), I was hesitant to screen our documentary anywhere that we couldn't physically be. So, whatever travel expenses the festival couldn't pay for, we picked up the difference. I don't regret those expenditures. Although, in retrospect, it seems silly or maybe downright crazy. But, at the time, I was so attached to the project. I couldn't bear the thought of NOT being there during those early screenings. I have finally recovered from this addiction, although my dad has the bug still, even after three years!
He is always up for attending screenings and he, of course, loves adventures. His suitcase is already packed, ready to go. Unfortunately, we did not make it to Belgrade, Republic of Serbia or Guangzhou, People's Republic of China or Athens, Greece. But at least our movie made it there, which means, by default, that we were there in spirit!
My dad and I are taking off for Barcelona in a few hours. He's gargling in the bathroom right now...somebody sneezed on him last week and he's recovering from a bad cold.
We've been invited to attend a festival in Spain called The Influencers. It's a three-day event "devoted to surreal, controversial and visionary examples of mutation in media and entertainment, modified digital technologies, and radical experiments with the public of global communication." Where does my dad fit into this crazy description? Somewhere between infiltration and manipulation of the media with a healthy dose of satire (and sometimes toilet humor) mixed with performance art.
Past years have included guests such as the Yes Men, Joey Skaggs, DJ Spooky, and the Reverend Billy. It should be cool, interesting, weird and fun. ABEL RAISES CAIN is screening with Spanish subtitles!
I never imagined that we would one day travel to Spain together, let alone as a result of a movie that I would spend close to a decade toiling away on about his life. This documentary is somewhere between a wounded horse that keeps running the race and a wandering prostitute. We can't stop it, it just keeps going and going, and it gets around. I just told my friends in New York recently that we should enjoy the ride while it lasts. I know that my dad is having the time of his life. I can't help but to think this is all leading somewhere positive. And along the way, my dad's story is spreading to corners of the world I never thought possible.
Throughout this whole crazy trip we've been on with the film, somewhere deep down inside I knew that we would be okay...that it wouldn't matter whether or not we landed a distribution deal the first year of our festival circuit run. We had heard about shady deals and unhappy filmmakers. And in the back of my mind lurked all the negative stories that my parents had told me about how they got screwed over by their past distributors (for their film, Is There Sex After Death?). Also, I felt pretty strongly that my dad's story was timeless and that somebody would eventually come along and see the potential in our documentary.
It's pretty ironic that the digital age enabled Jeff and I to make our film, but also threw a monkey wrench into the works of all the major motion picture companies. Studios began floundering and scrambling to catch up with the new technology while their stronghold in the industry began to crumble. In turn, their slow demise is what's allowing independent filmmakers to self-distribute their work.
I just read in MovieMaker magazine that 20,000 new independent films are produced every year. We're lumped in there somewhere along with all of the other filmmakers like us who edit movies in their living rooms on Macs equipped with Final Cut Pro. Also in this mix are the major's subsidiaries like Sony Pictures Classics and Warner Independent. Although I have never understood how a multi-million dollar budget film can be considered independent. Okay, I'm starting to sound like Andy Rooney from 60 minutes...
We've remained truly independent, licensing to a few foreign TV channels on our own and holding onto the remainder of the rights to our film - and we ultimately control the path that ABEL RAISES CAIN takes.
So now what? We have to be clever and take advantage of the networking opportunities that the internet age has to offer. There are several independents making waves right now and we have been keeping our eyes on them. Lance Weiler (Head Trauma), Arin Crumley and Susan Buice (Four Eyed Monsters), and M Dot Strange (We Are the Strange) are four filmmakers who have pioneered unbelievably innovative paths in terms of distributing their work.
These guys, collectively, have started up a new online discovery and distribution fest called From Here to Awesome. Their mission is "to create a direct connection between filmmaker and audience...FHTA attempts to create multiple revenue opportunities for the festival filmmakers by providing a platform that enables distribution across multiple outlets - mobile, online, living rooms and theaters. Filmmakers retain all their rights and choose how to price their work."
Filmmakers are encouraged to submit a 3-minute video explaining why their film is "awesome" and deserves to be seen by a wider audience. So, Jeff and I have spent the last week preparing our submission video. Here is the fruit of our labor:
If you are reading this now, please follow the above link and click on the big button that says, THIS FILM SEEMS AWESOME! You'll be led to a screen that allows you a chance to vote. Please help us even further and spread the link of our video as widely as humanly possibly (MySpace, Facebook, Blogs, etc). Filmmakers who make it to the top ten are showcased during the month of April at participating venues throughout the world. This could be really instrumental in terms of us finally reaching our audience! Thank you, everybody!
