A few micro-budget filmmakers have begun to use new distribution techniques to get their films in front of audiences, earn back production costs, and build their core personal audiences. They have taken control of distribution.
Ten years ago, you only had two options for distributing your low-budget film. You could either sign a distribution deal that gave all the rights to one company, or you could do everything yourself. If you gave the rights to one company, they would control those rights for years and decades to come, during which they might, or might not promote the film. If you did everything yourself, you faced years of difficult and often frustrating work.
Now, there is a middle ground, a technique known as hybrid distribution. In a hybrid distribution deal, you keep the right to sell certain things (like DVDs and digital downloads from your website) directly to your audience, and then sign separate deals with specialized distributors who have the ability to reach people that you cannot.
Distribution is still not easy. It never has been. People who have done hybrid distribution successfully say things like "It's not for the faint of heart." However, if you are willing to put in the time and effort, there are more distribution possibilities for micro-budget filmmakers than ever before. You now have a realistic chance to control your distribution, and have it be successful.
Distribution strategist Peter Broderick is the developer and chief advocate of the hybrid distribution concept.
The techniques that Broderick recommends appear to work, and work well. He developed the distribution strategy for Marianna Palka's feature film, Good Dick, which was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize, Dramatic, at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival.
I spoke with Broderick recently, and asked him how these techniques might apply to micro-budget filmmakers. My first question was what is hybrid distribution?
"In a hybrid distribution scheme, the filmmaker retains rights to do direct sales from a website and at screenings and then teams up with several different distribution partners for other areas.
"These distribution partners are chosen for their knowledge and expertise in specific areas. For example, a filmmaker might choose separate distribution partners for areas like foreign rights, VOD (video on demand) or Internet rights. These partners have the ability to reach audiences that the filmmaker cannot reach alone."
