Distributing Your Film

If you're like most documentary filmmakers, you will be self-distributing. What does that mean? How are you going to find your audience? How are you going to generate revenue?

After I completed my first documentary, Briars in the Cotton Patch, I was in shock that the distribution and marketing of my film turned out to be just as much work as my documentary, if not more!

Film Festivals

Submission fees can add up quick, so you want to be selective in which festivals you apply to. In addition, if you get accepted, of course you'll want to attend and those travel costs aren't cheap. I was fortunate to get accepted to four film festivals and they were each worth the effort in their own way. Film festivals are definitely at the top of the list for jump-starting the process of distributing your film.

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Awards

Of course, the OSCAR is the ultimate award for a film and will catapult you into stardom.

Television

One obvious choice for distributing your film on television (at least in the U.S.) is PBS. That's who I ended up going with.

I had heard that the best way to reach the national PBS folks was through a local PBS affiliate. Since I lived in Georgia and the documentary subject was based in Georgia, it was a natural decision to approach the Georgia PBS station (GPB). They agreed to be my sponsoring station and pitched it it to PBS-Plus, the distribution arm of PBS. My documentary was approved for national distribution, which means it would be sent out on satellite to all PBS stations in the United States who would then air the documentary at their discretion.

Here's the catch with PBS, at least when your documentary is sent out via PBS-Plus. They did not pay for my documentary. In fact, I had to pay a production company in Washington D.C. about $3,000 to “calibrate” my film to the exact technical specifications required for broadcast on PBS. So that was a shock to get that bit of news. But the opportunity for exposure was too good to pass up and gave my film great credibility. I am still selling DVD's today (five years later) as a direct result of my documentary showing on PBS.

Theater Release

Internet

If you're hoping to make money distributing your film online, Video On Demand (VOD) is a very exciting option although requires a lot of marketing on your part to lead people to your video and get them to buy. You may want to consider some paid advertising like Google Adwords or Facebook ads... but you can loose a lot of money particularly with Google if you don't know how to do this right, so find an expert who can help you or you'll just need to experiment and do some trial and error as you go.

Some VOD options include: Amazon Unbox, filmbinder.com, site.dynamoplayer.com, distrify.com. I am currently using Dynamo Player as my VOD option for my documentary Briars in the Cotton Patch and it works great. Do your homework and figure out which option is best for you. In fact, include a comment at the bottom of this page if you have any experience with VOD services or distributing your film online that you'd like to share.

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Marketing and Public Relations

For me, once my documentary was accepted by PBS-Plus, I enlisted a freelancer who knew the ins and outs of PBS and agreed to help me promote my documentary to the individual PBS stations to encourage them to broadcast my documentary. We put together a press packet and literally mailed out a packet to each station.

You'd think it was enough that PBS was sending the documentary out on their satelitte network, but it's not. In order to get each PBS station to air your program, you've got to get their attention. And we also asked our supporters to contact their local PBS stations to request the film to be broadcast in their area.

I also enlisted the help of a co-worker of mine who was an expert in public relations. He helped line me up with media interviews all across the U.S. I did a lot of phone interviews and traveled some when the opportunity was big enough to justify the travel costs.

Again, social media sites are key to getting the word out and even some paid advertising on Google and Facebook can help if you've got some extra cash you're willing to spend.

But the best kind of advertising is news coverage which is FREE and has much higher credibility. You could even submit a DVD to film critics if you feel confident you'll get a good review.

Documentary Production 101:
Festivals and Distribution

Public Relations Campaign Check List:

• Press Packet (printed and digital)

- Include general press release about your film

- Bio sheet on yourself and other members of your “crew”

- Synopsis – a basic summary and overview of your documentary

- A DVD copy of your film

- High Res photos that are print ready for newspaper or magazine articles (put photos on a CD and/or provide link URL where photos can be downloaded)

- Link to your video trailer (Vimeo and YouTube are good choices)

- "What People Are Saying" -- Page of quotes from people who have seen your film


• Website – A must-have! Build it before you even begin shooting. Think of it as your online business card for distributing your film. Here's a great Filmmaking Wordpress Theme. Add articles and content that will be noticed by Google search engines so that if people happen to be searching for keywords involving your documentary subject, they will find your website. A blog is another good way to attract attention across the web. And make sure to get “links in” to your website and/or blog to build an even bigger audience. Upload video clips and podasts to keep people interested throughout the filmmaking process.


• Social Media – At the very least start a Facebook page about your film the moment you start planning your project. This is a fantastic way to build anticipation for your film and get audience participation.


• Posters, postcards, etc – These come in handy at film festivals and other events as ways to promote your documentary.

Fans, Friends And Followers:
Building An Audience And A Creative Career In The Digital Age
By Scott Kirsner

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DVD Distribution

In total, I ended up utilizing six groups to sell my DVD including several non-profit organizations tied to the subject of my film, a Christian film distributor called Vision Video and PBS.

I admit it was a bit of a pain to keep up with orders and invoicing, but in the end it was worth it to keep more of the profits and control over the process.

See bottom of page for tips from film producer Sharon Reed on how to find a distributor.

Educational License Agreements

You can view pricing examples for educational licenses for documentaries at distribution companies such as The Cinema Guild.

Sell Your Documentary!

Have a Comment or Question about Distributing Documentaries?

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What Other People Have Said

Click below to see contributions from other visitors to this page...

• Where to Find Money for Your Documentary
• It's Showtime! Documentary Film Festivals
• The Best Places To Watch Documentaries Online (and Off)
• How to Make a Documentary
• Documentary Ideas
• Top Mistakes of a First Fime Documentary Filmmaker
• Read an Interview with Distribution Expert Jason Brubaker

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