Some of you may have noticed Brian Newman's comment yesterday on this website (down in the article on fests and microcinemas called "Fresh and Local"). Among the things he had to say was this:
Having run a film festival, I was always amazed at how many people used the festivals to find a distributor (and failed) instead of using it to find an audience. Festivals are generally poor, but we should start to develop systems that allow filmmakers to better use the festival tour as part of their distribution and to help them seel DVDs and maybe make a living.
It was a great surprise to hear from Brian. I first met him back when he ran the Atlanta Film and Video Festival. I haven't talked with him in a few years, but I really respected his taste and the way that festival was run.
Brian emailed me yesterday to say hello -- he's in New York now, and it turns out he recently started a blog, SpringBoardMedia. I've just spent a few minutes reading over the early posts. Wow. These are susbstantial thoughts on distribution, the future of film and video, and the issues facing film/video makers. It's great to read something written from his unique perspective -- he's in the non-profit sector and it's his job to help filmmakers.
The blog is young so, not surprisingly, it's thin on comments. I hope you'll check it out and give him some feedback on his ideas. I'll see you over there.