It’s all about leverage, and ITVS.org offers new ways to engage your audience. For the first time ever, you will be able to post your own screenings, making ITVS.org an extension of your current marketing efforts. (You should have received an email last week explaining how to post your screenings. Contact us if you need it resent.)

The new “Related Films” feature (at thew bottom of each film overview page) allows like-minded fans of other similar films to discover yours, and by linking your film’s page to your Facebook and Twitter accounts, we enable you to attract and engage these new fans, building a base you can convert when trying to fund your next project.

In addition, your film pages are also now a one-stop shop for all your promotional materials, turning ITVS.org into the perfect electronic press kit (EPK). Just point your adoring press to ITVS.org and you can be sure they receive all the info they need for that great review.

Got questions? Post them here in the comments and we’ll answer them.

IndiesLab Director Davin Hutchins

In my last blog post, I made my first prediction –– “Creative Destruction Will Continue… And That’s a Good Thing.” Over the next few months, as independent filmmakers proceed with their projects for 2010, I will attempt to share some tough love, sage advice, and cause for hope.

PREDICTION 2: Curation Will Become As Important As Technology

When I lived in San Francisco, every Friday I would stroll down the street from my apartment on Russian Hill to Washington Square and check out the video wares at The Film Yard. My mission: to get an indie flick for my wife and me. There was usually one clerk. I don’t remember his name but let’s call him “Brad.” Even on a busy Friday night, Brad usually remembered me and my last rental. Brad could even make insightful recommendations based upon my body language when I hovered near the “documentaries” or “20th century period pieces” aisles.

The main problem with online film delivery platforms today is there is no “Brad.” At best, there’s an algorithm mixed with a cookie cross-referenced with my purchase history. Usually when I watch a video online, a crude piece of code will analyze the keywords in the video I just watched and then regurgitate the five videos with the closest metadata. Four of those are usually user-generated drivel. More sophisticated platforms like iTunes or Amazon do feature technology like “Genius” recommendations or “Customers who bought this item also bought…” But the front of the store still connotes the New Releases rack at Blockbuster. What I crave –– what we all crave I think –– is a site that knows me right as I walk in the door. Something like my.hulu.com.

Netflix probably comes closest to suggesting films that match a someone’s tastes. But even after awarding the $1 million Netflix Prize to outside programmers who bested Netflix’s own patented film recommendation engine, by their own admission, the site still does a poor job of predicting taste. Maybe technology will never give us exactly what we crave –– qualified serendipity.

We shouldn’t try to mimic human intuition with databases and Javascript. I’m not sure it’s even necessary. Each one of us is surrounded by and consults with dozens of “Brads” or what I call “curation agents.” Many curation agents are impersonal. An agent might be a film critic like A.O. Scott. A festival like Tribeca. A local Landmark theater. Even a Rotten Tomatoes rating. Curators are valuable because we trust their judgment.

Our most trustworthy “curation agents” are personal –– our own circle of friends. Most of us would prefer a friend’s film recommendation over any algorithm, even if it is via his or her Facebook Feed. Today, buttons for social web services and crowd sourced ratings are littered throughout blogs and online news sites. But online film platforms are still shockingly behind the curve, reluctant to integrate with social sharing services and trusted curation brands in a user friendly way. I imagine in 2010, the companies behind these platforms will slowly realize this is a mistake and begin adjusting to make way for third-party curators. After all, we don’t really need them to invent another Brad for us. We’ve got plenty. They just need to allow those we trust to hang out in the store.

Next month, I’ll share my third of five predictions of 2010 on Beyond the Box blog. Stay tuned!

Davin Hutchins
Director, IndiesLab

Q: How can I improve my chances of being successful in the Open Call?

A. ITVS Programming staff recently contributed to an article for Shaking the Money Tree by Morrie Warshawski. Here are seven tips for producers when applying for funding from ITVS.

1. Read the guidelines and application instructions thoroughly and follow them. This tip sounds so simple and one should assume that it goes without saying –– but like any instruction manual, it is essential to go over the guidelines very carefully and to follow them before filling out the application.

Here are some other pieces of advice to keep in mind:

• Submit the proposal online, and ALSO submit the paper and required (video) materials –– some applicants do not submit their hard copy proposals and video materials and then they are disqualified.
• Deadlines are not flexible –– we need to receive them in the office by the deadline date or they will not be accepted.
• Read the fine print on the guidelines and application. The ITVS award is not a grant, it is a contract agreement, thus certain requirements and deliverables must be accepted (because of FCC guidelines, your project must adhere to broadcast standards).
• Do not submit extra materials –– letters of recommendation, graphics or illustrations, gifts or personal director statements are not required. The materials will be reviewed by staff and evaluators based on the required materials only.
• Use 12-point font –– don’t try to cram everything in your treatment pages because of limited space. The evaluators appreciate clear writing and size 12 font is easier on the eyes.

2. Budget your project realistically. If you under-budget your project, that does not mean that you have a greater chance of being approved. If you over-budget your project, this will be taken into account and can jeopardize the approval. Each initiative has different budget thresholds and is indicated in the guidelines. For example, Open Call does not require an itemized budget in the first phase, but does require that you indicate the request amount and what money has been already raised. The average request for Open Call is between $80,000 and 250,000 for a one-hour documentary.

3. Tell your story in the treatment. Write a treatment, not a treatise. Tell a story, not history. Don’t list events or dwell on past events or context and history. Your treatment should include your vision and style as producer or director, as well as information and context to understand the story. Incorporate your passion into the treatment, but don’t resort to superlatives and empty market-speak to describe your project. Have someone else read your proposal before submitting –– if a colleague can’t understand your story, ITVS evaluators won’t either. For useful information about how to write a treatment, see the ITVS essay Writing a Better ITVS Treatment.

4. Consider the ITVS mission and what the program will bring to public television –– look at the criteria and state in your application how they would apply to your film so that it would be an appropriate fit for ITVS. For example, discuss how the film would target an under-represented audience (minority communities, seniors, youth, physically, and mentally challenged), or how your film would be appropriate for those communities whether through access, personal or professional experience or research. Discuss how the story is untold and deserves attention, or what fresh perspectives you would give to a story that already seems to have been told.

5. For the funding initiatives, remember that the process takes four to six months for a final response. Think about this timeline for your project –– if you are in production and will finish before the final recommendation in five months’ time, then in wouldn’t be appropriate to apply to Open Call. Urgent cases –– where timely events or subjects that are old or dying must be recorded immediately –– do not hasten funding or make a more compelling argument for greenlighting.

6. Include samples that exemplify your best work, whether it is a past completed sample or a demo of your work in progress. Remember that evaluators will watch up to ten minutes of your current demo, so clearly indicate what you would like to present, whether it is a trailer, work-in-progress, scene selects or footage.

7. Be open to feedback. ITVS offers feedback to applicants at different stages of the review process. Even if your application doesn’t make it, you can always reapply.

Interested in other tips? Learn more about Shaking the Money Tree >>

The forum, entitled “Thinking Outside the Doc Box,” is designed to explode the myth that funders and broadcasters only want one kind of film. The evening will feature a keynote address by ITVS Senior Programming Manager Richard Saiz. Karen Everett, owner of New Doc Editing will give an overview of innovative structural approaches to documentaries and Michele Turnure-Salleo, director of filmmaker services at SFFS, will address the topic of institutional funding of documentaries. The evening will conclude with a conversation between Saiz and Everett about contemporary issues in documentary production and questions from the live audience.

Missed the webcast?  The video recording is available below.

Thinking Outside the Doc Box from Programming on Vimeo.

Learn more about this event and others on the San Francisco Film Society website >>

]]> http://beyondthebox.org/join-the-live-streaming-webcast-tonight-myths-of-filmmaking-and-funding/feed/ 0 http://beyondthebox.org/live-streaming-webcast-exploring-myths-of-filmmaking-and-funding/ http://beyondthebox.org/live-streaming-webcast-exploring-myths-of-filmmaking-and-funding/#comments Fri, 05 Feb 2010 16:16:57 +0000 phil_zimmerman http://beyondthebox.org/?p=7881 ITVS is hosting a special live streaming webcast on Monday, February 8 at 7:30 PM PST of the San Francisco Film Society (SFFS)’s Arts Forum, a bi-monthly workshop that includes dynamic presentations, topical panels, works-in-progress screenings, and trade secrets.

Beyond the Box will be streaming the event live on Monday so filmmakers across the country ––and around the world –– can learn more. The forum, entitled “Thinking Outside the Doc Box,” is designed to explode the myth that funders and broadcasters only want one kind of film.

The evening will feature a keynote address by ITVS Senior Programming Manager Richard Saiz. Karen Everett, owner of New Doc Editing will give an overview of innovative structural approaches to documentaries and Michele Turnure-Salleo, director of filmmaker services at SFFS, will address the topic of institutional funding of documentaries. The evening will conclude with a conversation between Saiz and Everett about contemporary issues in documentary production and questions from the live audience.

We hope you’ll take advantage of this great opportunity. The discussion will begin streaming on Monday, February 8 at 7:30 PM PST.

Learn more about the event on the SFFS website >>

Bookmark the live video feed >>