Joni eccentricproductions.com.au

Recently my masters class had the CEO of Madman Entertainment, Paul Wiegard, come and discuss independent film distribution in Australia. Firstly, I should note that as a filmmaker one of the most important elements of a project is securing distribution deals. With so many hopeful filmmakers it seems to be an after-thought, but the truth is distribution should be one of the first elements looked secured when starting a project.

Ewan Burnett from Burberry entertainment highlighted briefly how when putting together an idea he secures distribution from the start. Lack of distribution is one of the primary issues many new film makers run into. So why is it that distribution is often so much of an afterthought?

Madman is a distribution company that deals specifically with Niche film markets. I have to admit when Wiegard mentioned this was “Madman’s” driving concept, I was not sold. For those of you, who know Madman and are reading this, please excuse my prior ignorance.

I could see clearly how dealing with Niche markets in the US would be a great idea. But, I did not think there would be enough movie goers in Australia and New Zealand to make this sort of business venture “down-under” viable. I was clearly wrong, because after the lecture I came home and did a little research into Madman and discovered they have an excellent turnover every year and are constantly expanding and keeping up with technological changes. This is not bad for a ten-year-old niche market company. What I also thought about is how the whole world is really made up of niche markets. Sure, we have our so-called blockbusters but what they really are, are big niche markets. We have the Jews, Italians, French, Asian, young, old….etc, all of whom compromise their own niche markets.

Upon further research I also discovered Madman was one of the first distribution companies to realize how DVD’s were going to revolutionize the entertainment industry. They not only taped into an unseen market but they also understood the concept of technological growth in the industry.

The film industry is not simply about producing good films. We are currently in a technological renaissance period for films. Technology is rapidly changing both the way we view films, interact with films and what films we choose to view.

Madman is an example of a company who had foresight into the industry and the possibility of change in the industry. I think part of the foresight producers and film makers now need is securing their marketing and distribution before a film is commenced.

I would also like to share some quotes that I took from the lecture that I found very enticing:

“ everyone has to be a sales person of some kind”

“Know who your market is?”, it is amazing how many film-makers have no idea about who their intended audience is.

“Never watch your film with buyers, they are all pretending not to be interested…even if they love it”

The End