Review Topic:  Sights & Attractions

Review Topic:  Sights & AttractionsIn July 2000, my indie film LAUGHING BOY played the New York International Independent Film and Video Festival in New York (please see my other opinions for this review.) The NYIIFVF also has a Los Angeles edition, and we participated in that as well. The L.A. version of the festival took place in September 2000.

About six weeks prior to the festival, I was excited that I requested and received the Saturday evening 8PM screening slot for my film LAUGHING BOY. I ordered my promotional postcards and issued the press release announcing our presence in L.A.

The festival required all industry types to fax a request to Megan at the fest's New York office for free admission to the L.A. screenings. Fine. After a couple of weeks, I was contacted by a guy named James would said he was now in charge of industry admissions. I changed my emails and press releases telling industry people to contact James via fax. A couple days later, after a couple of my phone calls weren't returned, James told me he was no longer in charge of industry admissions. It was Megan's responsibility once again. Not a problem at the time, but possibly later...

A couple of days before I was to leave for L.A., a woman named Ellen called me at home. She left me a friendly message, asking me to call her as soon as possible, she wanted to update my records and needed my fax number. I called her back and she quickly went into a hard sell, asking me to fork over $900 so the festival could represent LAUGHING BOY at the Cannes market taking place in the near future, as well as 2 other foreign fests. When I said I don't have $900 to spend, she got rude and pushy - saying something like "so you made a movie and you are not going to do anything with it...it's just gonna sit there, right?"

Fast forward to the fest. Again, I feel sorry for those who paid the money for a table to present their goods at the opening night gala. Nobody cared, and no influential industry people attended, despite the festival's promises. It just doesn't make sense to me to set the event up like that, like a trade show, at a bar with live music. I discussed the cost with a couple of filmmakers, and apparently the price was negotiable at the last minute. I am happy I didn't buy into the opening-night "market."

Once again, the films that I saw were poorly attended. The 8PM Friday (FOLLY ISLAND: winner "best comedy" in July/N.Y.) show had 35-40 people in attendance, mostly cast and crew.

The short (and feature) at 2PM on Saturday was supposedly sold out. I made it a point to attend, partly out of the need to promote my screening, partly out of curiosity to see who attends. I talked with the director of the short prior to the screening, as she was trying to SELL her tickets on the street outside the theater. She told me the festival MADE her buy 100 tickets. I take this with a grain of salt, because I don't know the details.

Also at 2PM Saturday (after the short) was a feature length documentary about Star Wars fans. I spoke with the editor of this feature prior to the screening, and he told me they were originally supposed to play on the last evening of the festival. They had all their promotional material printed, then shortly before the festival, the fest contacted them and said oh by the way you are no longer on the last day, you are Saturday. To make up for this and the cost of all the promotional printing, the festival gave them 10 tickets. Big whoop.

Just about 80 people attended the 2PM Saturday screening, which was the largest crowd I saw at the fest, but I didn't go to see much, and didn't see anything after Sunday. I am anxious to find out what attendance was like Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings. Anyone know?

Friday and Saturday afternoon, myself, Sheila Sawyer, Bryan Lee McGlothin and his wife Evelyne passed out hundreds of handbills at the Third Street Promenade, and many people seemed interested. We targeted people waiting in line for the movies, high school kids, anyone that made eye contact with us. We placed cards on payphones, light poles, car windows, you name it.

Saturday night at 8PM was the screening for my film LAUGHING BOY. I was very nervous and excited. In the weeks prior, I mailed postcards to over 600 industry people. LAUGHING BOY had the largest amount of industry rsvps at the fest. Everything looked like it was going to be a packed house. 50 people attended. Only 3 people that rsvp'd showed up. At least the audience got into the movie. I can only imagine how great it would have been if it was a packed house.

The Laemmle was a great place to hold the festival. With their high definition video projector, everything looked and sounded great. LAUGHING BOY never looked better.

Sunday as I was discussing the previous night's screening with some friends, one of them made me aware that Saturday night was also the world premiere of REMEMBER THE TITANS. 50,000 industry people were invited to the rose bowl to watch RTT on 4 huge screens. Who is going to turn down an invitation from Jerry Bruckheimer? That explains the low attendance for LAUGHING BOY.

I made it a point to attend the Sunday 8PM screening of PIGEONHOLED which also played in New York to a house of about 190-200 people. PIGEONHOLED is a very well made movie and looks like they had a considerable budget. 39 people showed up Sunday night. That was very disappointing. I thought for sure their would be a large crowd for that. Did the producers do any promoting at all?

I don't know how this festival was marketed in Los Angeles. It was mentioned in at least 3 L.A. newspapers, but not as anything major. In fact, one paper called the fest "a mall of mediocrity" and this article was blown up real big and displayed in the theater lobby. Smart display, folks.

A filmmaker that participated in the New York International Independent Film and Video Festival last year says industry people in L.A. will not attend this festival because most of the films and videos are just plain bad. You have to sit through a lot of junk to get to the good stuff, if any, but you may not have the patience to sit through the junk. I mean, if you wasted six hours of your valuable day watching junk, would you ever return to this festival? The NYIIFVF festival accepts everything that comes their way, as long as the check clears. The festival claims to offer a refund if they don't accept you. It would do them good to siphon through some of the ultra-crap stuff like much of the programming in New York. I can't blame industry people for not attending.

My recommendation to filmmakers considering this festival: don't rule it out. Use it strictly as a marketing tool. After all, it IS a guaranteed screening in L.A., N.Y. or both, which is VERY valuable. It is very much worth entering if you know how to work the press. Prior to the new York screening, our press attention was very minimal. After the N.Y. screening, LAUGHING BOY has had over a dozen articles and mentions in Texas newspapers, magazines and broadcast news, and they are still coming. It makes future screenings press-worthy as well. It is not worth it if you do not plan on doing any promotion on your own. Yes, $300 ($500 for both L.A. & N.Y.) is steep, but consider what it would cost you to hold a screening there yourself. Also, when considering this festival, PLEASE take a good honest look at your work and tell yourself whether or not it is any good.

Also, if you do choose to enter this festival, have people contact YOU to request free admission or information, not the festival. The festival staff is very bad about returning calls. Consider not mentioning the festival name at all in your promotional material. If industry people really are aware of all the junk shown at it, they may not attend. If they think yours is simply a screening separate from the fest, they might just show up.

Luckily I had a meeting with an interested distributor (that had already seen the movie) Friday prior to my screening of LAUGHING BOY. If I hadn't arranged that meeting, it would have been a HUGE disappointment, because no distributors (out of 100 invited) attended our screening. A distribution contract has been signed, and you can expect to see LAUGHING BOY on cable and video in the near future.

Here is a review LAUGHING BOY received from the L.A. screening:
www.projections-movies.com/reviews/laughingboy.html

Here is a review LAUGHING BOY received from the N.Y. screening:
www.showbizdigest.com/FILM_REVIEWS.html
(scroll about 1/3 down)

Good reviews from L.A. and N.Y. are very important, and we wouldn't have them without this fest. But do not purchase the promotional packages this festival offers. If you choose to participate in the New York International Independent Film and Video Festival, pay only the entry fee, then say NO to everything else they try to sell you.




Recommended: No