The Guerrilla Approach to TV and Film Distribution. (Explicit)
By: Phil Autelitano
Tags: Film, Movies, Television, Streaming, Filmmaking

Some tough love for my filmmaker friends…

By Phil Autelitano

www.streamingfeatures.com

It never ceases to amaze me how many people go through all the trouble and all the expense of producing a TV show or film with no fucking idea of how they’re going to distribute it once it’s done — like, the day they wrap it’s magically gonna get picked up by TV networks or Netflix or HBO or some other shit. They have this delusion that if they make it, they will come. But they make it and no one comes and they’re sitting their holding their balls like what do we do now? All that time and money to waste… for what? I get it though, filmmakers aren’t necessarily businesspeople, most fancy themselves artists first — and history has proven that artists aren’t always the brightest businesspeople. That’s not a dig — it’s true. Artists are hardwired for art — not business. It’s never about the money …until the art is done, then they’re like, oh shit, I need to make money to make more art — Help!

I get dozens of emails every day from people who made movies and don’t know what the fuck to do with them now. They all want a deal. Everyone thinks their movie is hot shit — and to them it is, of course, cuz they put everything they had into it. They’ve sent emails to networks and streaming platforms and got no response — mainly because they never took the time, amid all the filmmaking, to actually learn the process for submitting it. No, they see my article on the Net that totally explains HOW to do it, but they don’t actually READ it. Instead, they email me asking for help. Which is great, I’m happy to help. I can distribute their film, no problem — I even launched an entirely new company, Streaming Features, just for that purpose. I can’t guarantee them Netflix or Hulu or HBO, but I can guarantee them distribution to a bunch of other platforms in the mean time, while I shop it to Netflix and Hulu, and some of the other big ones — but ultimately it’s up THEM if they want the film, if it’s good enough — not me.

Feelings get hurt all the time when Netflix or Hulu or whoever says NO, but in the mean time, money gets made. Netflix and Hulu aren’t the only games in town — sure, they’re the biggest, but a handful of other smaller platforms combined can be just as lucrative, especially to a film with zero prospects to begin with.

There are a lot of aggregators or “distribution” companies out there happy to take a filmmaker’s money — whatever they have left, if anything — to distribute their film, but mine isn’t one of them. Streaming Features doesn’t ask for money up front — we get paid on results, and we get paid well …on results. We do however have some set criteria, a few prerequisites required, before we’re able to distribute a film. Once those are met, we’re in business.

Who am I to say if a film is great. Fuck, who is Netflix or Hulu to say if a film will be great? Ultimately it’s up to the audience, not me, not the Content Acquisitor at Netflix, not some boardroom suits. I’ll give any film a chance to prove itself. There’s no prejudice — when you start factoring in opinions and human elements, every film is equally great and equally shitty. For me, it’s all business — bring me your film, let me shop it and run it through the distribution channels, let’s see what it makes. What other option do you have since you already blew your whole wad making the damn thing?

Streaming Features is open for business. We distribute TV shows and films — we’re not the last chance saloon, we should be your first choice. Ours is the “guerrilla” approach to film distribution. We don’t fuck around. No one knows the tricks of the trade of this new industry more than me. I’ve been at since Day One. I don’t fuck around. If you want to get your film out there and making money, get in touch, do what you gotta do to make it stream-ready, sign the fucking paper and let’s do it. For every second you wait, I got another email with another film ready to go.

Show me your film, I’ll show you the money. How much money depends on your film and the audience — not me — if it’s as good as you think it is, we’ll both make a ton of cash. If it’s not, well, it’ll make something, at least, instead of sitting there for another day collecting dust.

You’re either moving forward or you’re not moving at all. You’re either making money or you’re not — and some’s better than none. You be the artist, let me be the businessman. I’ll squeeze as much money out of that fucker as I can. It’s what I do.