Mark Duplass to Filmmakers: Don't Be Afraid of VOD March 16 2015, 0 Comments

It used to be that the hardest part of filmmaking (besides getting a film financed) was finding distribution, but not anymore. 

With the plethora of web options Out There from Vimeo to VHX to Distrify and then to the aggregators like Gravitas or Distribber or FilmBuff - there are tons of ways to get a film seen. Of course this does NOT equate to making money, but at least the film will be able to make money by being seen.

However, lots of indie filmmakers still dream of their films playing in theaters (not a bad dream to have mind you, but not a very realistic one). So it was refreshing to hear indie (and not so indie these days) filmmaker Mark Duplass tell filmmakers at his SXSW Keynote address to not be afraid of VOD...

“God bless VOD,” Duplass said. “This is a great thing for independent film. Please don’t reject VOD. Please don’t be afraid of it. Please don’t be attached to your early films playing at theaters. You will have no more money to make movies.”

He told aspiring filmmakers to start shooting movies on their iPhones for cheap, and to use the festival circuit to make connections with actors who are looking for creative challenges.

“This is a hard career,” Duplass said. “Don’t eat out. Don’t buy clothes.”

While some of the last part about don't eat out and don't buy clothes is a bit of hyperbole, it is good advice in that it reminds newbies that filmmaking is very challenging and most people can not make a living doing it.

Read the entire article from Variety here and seriously consider a VOD distribution path on your next film project. :)

Have you had experience with VOD distribution? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.