Thinking Loudly, Worrying Mightily, Smiling Softly, And Plotting A Better World
Aka finding the drivers through the muck
Wednesdays and Saturdays? Or Mondays and Wednesdays? I’m trying to slim down — I’ll start with posting and then maybe get to eating. I am trying to now give you what you want; it started to feel like I was overwhelming you. I am reducing (or trying to reduce to) one post a week of original material and one post that references what I stumbled upon or did not find worthy of a full post. I am going to try Wednesdays and Saturdays for a bit. It feels like link posts should be for the weekend, right? They are a ICYMI sort of thing. And this one is one of those.
Now Free From The Paywall
Well, THIS one post is free (for now):
It’s been popular and if you get it to 10K views or 50 hearts, I’ll keep it free longer. It’s up to you. Give it a read if you haven’t already. Now’s your chance! Share it with friends too. Thank you. Just trying to do my part.
Want links for this weekend? We’ve got at least ten for you today. It is a benefit currently only gifted to the paid subscribers. It’s a little morsel. The real gift is those that pay know they make many posts possible to share with everyone else.
Sold Out! Invisible Nation’s Bay Area Road Tour Success Story
San Francisco, Berkeley, and San Jose totally sold out. We had sizable crowds in Sebastopol and San Raphael too, but you could have gotten in if you showed up the day of. These days, you should always buy you tickets in advance though. And one for a friend or three too. #JustSaying.
This one is from San Jose: https://www.worldjournal.com/wj/story/121472/8138725?from=wj_maintab_cate
The good news is we should be coming back to some of those venues. Berkeley’s Elmwood on August 28th, 7P. Don’t miss it! Get tickets here: https://rialtocinemas.com/archive/invisible-nation-elm/
I think it the Coolidge Corner out Boston way next. October 20th. We have to find something for next month too though. Stay tuned and make suggestions.
“T2P Truth To Power” Docs Have A New Model. True Indie Films Too.
Yup. If you make them, you have to support them. EZPZ. Truly, madly, and deeply. And there’s many ways to do it. More than we ever give attention to. We like to cry “crisis!”, or at least I know I do ( this post of mine is from 18 months ago). Ditto on some of the trades. Addie Morefoot over at Variety has been very good on this beat. It is a crisis and we all have to take action. That’s the answer: don’t just cry, take action.
Yes, it starts with us accepting the truth. The Global Streaming Platforms are not compatible with truth telling or aesthetic boldness. They are fast food franchises, delivering the false comfort that leads to a nationwide obesity epidemic. They are the fast fashion franchises that seek to stimulate buying as a solution to our lack of satisfaction. They didn’t have to be. They chose to be this way. At it’s core, it is bad leadership.
Addie’s latest post is a #MustRead but I think you know the story (the Global Streaming Platforms shut out anything that MIGHT ruffle feathers now) — yet most filmmakers and their supporters are still pretty much ignoring the solution. This is our second crisis: the reality that too few are doing anything about it. Lot’s of talk and little action. Addie focuses nicely on Jolt, a new platform that is the opposite of hot air; they are taking action (COI Alert: I am on their Board of Advisors), but it feels like they are more the exception than an example.
More folks should take their films on the road. Vanessa sums it up well.
Doing the work to support your film is part of the virtuous cycle, the flywheel of growth that occurs when you put in the time. Frankly, I think any other approach one does is irresponsible. You can’t make a film and expect to be rescued. You have to fund the release from the start (or along the way). You have to build community (or be part of it). We have tools. And it takes time.
But it can’t all be on the filmmakers’ backs. And their support can’t be a further gift that the artist contributes. All of the stakeholders — the sales agents, the producers, the financiers, the theaters, and the audience (to name a few) — need to contribute to the road show and all the next steps.
It is a lot of work, but there are real solutions that can make this all work a whole lot better. We need to invest in them and support them.
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