Today and for as long as we can remember, making a mark on the film industry is not the easiest thing in the world without the help of a huge bank balance. Even in this Internet age, with the countless number of opportunities for free global distribution with websites such as YouTube, it is still difficult as these websites are now becoming ever diluted with second hand content. Vimeo is one of the few video portals around that still offer quality content from independent filmmakers, although still limited in terms true ownership of the distribution, rather a strong supporting link in the overall picture.
Things used to be different when filmmakers handed over all the rights to their work, now they control and own everything from beginning to end, something that ensures film is once again an art with unlimited expressive opportunities. One of the biggest differences is the behaviour of viewers, once simply cinema goers, they are now fans on myspace or followers on twitter, something that mainstream film is constantly trying to tap into with their huge marketing budgets. But as with anything, quality over quantity wins, especially in the content driven world of the Internet, a perfect environment for indie movies.
As major picture studios increasingly cut ties with independent studios, the Internet is becoming an accessible and obvious choice for filmmakers now. Independent film producer and media advocate Saskia Wilson-Brown perfectly explained in a blog post for us last week, before the Filmmaker Summit at this year’s Slamdance Film Festival which was streamed live by us at Flumotion, “The truth about the independent film world is that for the most part, the only ones that are able to sustain comfortably are the lawyers, the middle-men, and the studio execs.”
As we know, the Internet is traditionally suited to short one off viral hits, but as online video viewing continues to grow at an enormous rate, it’s impossible to ignore its cultural and demographic reach. Probably the best way for filmmakers to attain total control over their content online and its distribution is by using Streaming Software, with no restrictions from a 3rd party provider such as YouTube. This way everything from quality, formats and codecs are decided and changed as desired, giving total control of the presentation of the content from beginning to end – the entire streaming value chain. As a result independent streaming will always give filmmakers artistic and technical management over their work from conception right through to delivery. Find out more about Streaming Software…
