I got a question for phil hobden- you mentioned once somewhere on these boards that selling an independent film through a sales agent was more profitable than selling it your self. Why is this? I mean wouldnt selling a movie directly, by your self, garuntee that you get every penny?
Also, well done on getting your film out there. While i didnt think that the film was all that great , the fact that you got it made and distributed is admirable.
Thanks for your question. Happy to field this...
In terms of direct takings yes it would be IF you had the legal side covered (drawing up agreements for EVERY territory & Sale) and IF you had the contacts to do so (and trust me even the best sales agents don’t have contacts with very sale). Not to mention being able to afford stands at markets such as Cannes, AFM and MIPTV. Oh and speaking Mandarin, German, French, English etc would help also.
These are what a sales agent can offer. Alas they DO take a cut but like any business you need to spend to make money and I truly believe that sales agents are the best way to do this.
Ha! Not everyone will love the film I know that for sure. Even people who worked on it dont like it! But thankfully many ten's of thousand of people have bought it and hopefully SOME of them liked it!
Thanks for taking teh time to watch it
Phil Hobden
Producer - 10DM
Oh i see! thanks for the reply. One more question......
When you gave ten dead men to the sales agent, what components were needed for them to sell it to distributors? I mean , i know that you needed to hand in a final master copy of the film, but what else?
(im asking because i might just make an independent film one day)
Thanks!
The key one is M&E mix... an audio/Effects split with the ADR in place. It's the worst part to get right. That's why we originally planned tehf ilm with VERY little dialogue to avoid this cost.
MOSTLY the rest is standard stuff like a master Digi Beta, audio on tape, a few extras, contracts etc...
Phil Hobden
Producer - ten Dead Men