Certainly understandable, since filmmaking is an art form, but a common thread was the obvious lack of addressing commerce , the business side of filmmaking. Filmmaking is art, but undeniably, it is a business. The key industry business people need to be involved, in a festival, in order for the films to find their audience. It is our belief that winning isn t necessarily always a foot in the Hollywood doorway. It s a step closer but not a guarantee of a 2 picture deal.
Nothing is a guarantee but there are steps that can be taken toward that goal.
Our intention is to give up to 12 feature film directors a hand in the introductions to the key people that could change their lives, whether it be a distributor or an executive is acquisitions. These are the people that can change a filmmaker s career. Again, it s about relationships. A filmmaker may not sell his movie at a festival, however, if he meets with an industry professional, nurtures that relationship and gets offered job, or gets the ball rolling with his sophomore effort using these relationships, then we ve done our job. We surveyed distributors and execs in acquisitions in July 1999 and actually developed our festival around their preferences.