Monthly Distribution Blog

Making a film is the easy part.

This is where it gets complicated...

Saturday 31st July 2010

The screening for the cast and crew went well. Beforehand I was quite nervous. Emma Rozanska did a good job projecting the film, checking everything was good and making sure I was happy.

Pete Stevenson didn’t come. I had hoped he would shoot the screening as a coda to the documentary. Julie, Grace and Marc were also absent. Beforehand I read out letters from Julie and Marc. The latter got a good many laughs.

The sound and picture were wonderful in this cinema. The best we have had so far and a big contrast to Phuket. I saw nearly all the film and was able to check the dcp. As a sting in the tail, though, I observed that reel 2 was slightly out of sync. I sent it back to Soren the next week to be sorted but that hasn’t happened as of yet.

After the screening, Cristina Corazza told me that the hard work had been worthwhile. As she was the crew member who gave me the most difficulties during the shoot, that was warming.

Monday saw Jonnie and I working on admin. During this, I discovered that we had missed a few key deadlines for film festivals. I hope now that we are on top of things again. We need to keep going with the festival circuit until the end of the year at least.

The following Friday, Pete Stevenson sent me an e-mail saying that he had thought that the screening would be in the evening and that was why he had missed it. I called him the next week to tell him the progress with the documentary.

At the screening I had discovered that the sound for the doc had not actually been given to JD as I’d thought. On the 13th I finally got hold of Rhys. He promised to give me the sound for JD on Monday the 19th – my birthday. He promised he would take me out for dinner as a forfeit if he didn’t keep his promise.

Rhys kept his word and when JD got the sound he estimated it would only take two weeks to perfect it. The following week he sent me a copy of the doc as I’d not seen the final (64 minute) cut. It didn’t have any voiceover, nor need it. I called Pete and told him that as he was still waiting to find out Rhys’ response to the voiceover he’d recorded!

This month was focused on getting a UK distributor for the film. I had a number of meetings about it. I also decided to do three more screening of the film, one this month and two next as a final chance for people to see it if they haven’t yet. Jonnie and I will need to make a decision at the beginning of September on what we will do. We will also need to make a choice about International Sales. We had a conference call this month with our reps in LA who will be in Toronto representing us also but we still need to make a decision regarding a sales agent.

A bright moment this month was the demise of the UK Film Council, an organisation that did little to help British Independent film-makers. We will see what it is replaced by.

This week Jonnie e mailed me to say he is coming to London next week but that “I will help out with DEP but it is not nor cannot be my priority so please do not try and persuade me otherwise - it won't work.” Amazed, I e-mailed him back immediately. I know full well that his priority is to earn money.

The next month will be absolutely critical for UK distribution. What will happen I do not know but a decision needs to be taken. Everyone involved in this film has other priorities except me. I can’t continue this lonely furrow forever. I have to move on. Will I be able to?

Today JD called. He has finished the sound on the film. What a guy! Total efficiency. Like Roger and Daniel, he is absolute A+. All I need to do now is check the work next week and then master the doc.

2 days away from completing the documentary.