IndieFlix In The Media

As broadband blazes new trails, watching video or listening to audio is becoming as common as reading a blog post . Video hosting sites have seen a big boom, with many trying to be what Flickr is with photography. Recently, major tech companies such as Google, Yahoo, AOL have laid out plans in this new arena. However, the Filmmaker is lost in the shuffle. Web-filmmaking is an oxymoron - what tends to work online are pieces of video that are shocking, loosely threaded, very little context, happenstance and amateurish. Well, at least that is what my email box is inundated with, even though my contacts, I believe for the most part, have good taste.

Indieflix co-founded by Scilla Andreen & Carlo Scandiuzzi, is another online media distribution site. However the similarities end there, unlike say YouTube or even Google Video, content (but for a sample) is not streamed. If something interests you, you add it to your shopping cart/ DVD. The DVD that arrives in the mail is custom made for you. And here is the cool part, the filmmakers gets a nice piece of the revenue pie. A completely different, innovative but untested revenue model. One that favors the Filmmakers, paying them for their work, providing opportunities to further market their films, all this for no cost. However, Indieflix is not sacrificing its audience either. The content is delivered on DVD's which is the most widely used format, its search and recommend features are better than much of its competition. Some of the upcoming features talked about in this interview are very cool, combining a Netflix-like recommendation system with a community based system that connects audiences with the Filmmakers.

My email interview with Scilla Andreen covers a wide range of topics that deal with online distribution, how it helps Filmmakers and what it has in store for Indieflix.

What was the inspiration behind IndieFlix?  
As filmmakers, the inspiration behind IndieFlix was really more of an act of retaliation. Our frustration with the standard distribution model finally exploded.  We realized that like an abusive relationship we had only ourselves to blame. What the hell were we afraid of?

A lot of sites have popped up vying to be the Flickr for videos, how is Indieflix different?
I think the fact that other sites are popping up is a great thing.  It shows how timely this all is.  I feel very validated. I also feel it is very important to have choices.  Let's face it there is no one real truth or answer for everyone.  Even in religion and politics there are choices.  By having other companies out there for filmmakers allows a natural weeding out process.  Our filmmakers are with us because they want to,  not because we are the only saloon in town.  We will all benefit and grow more quickly.  

How are we different?  I know our site is virtually free to the filmmaker and no other site currently offers that. We invest in our filmmakers.  We incur the encoding, manufacturing and fulfillment costs completely.  The filmmaker is free to sell on any other site at the same time and they keep their rights and get a 1/3 of the gross and check every month. They can also pull it off the site any time they want. Indieflix is about tipping the scales in favor of the filmmaker and creating advantages for them but ultimately this translates into advantages for the audience.

Google, AOL and Yahoo are getting into video, how do these major tech companies figure in the equation?
Maybe we will partner with them.  There's plenty of room for everyone in the sandbox so long as we all play nice.  I love Google and AOL.

Hollywood is quite scared of this new medium, do you think they have anything to be scared about?
Yes.  I do think they should be afraid if they don't jump on board soon. It's the wave of the future. Technology is spearheading this evolution in distribution not us. We are merely facilitators.

The movie screen is shrinking, a new era of cinema is being born, what can you say about these changes?
Do I think we should watch a movie for the first time on a mini screen? No. We all listen to songs more than once and I think this new capability will allow us to do the same with movies but the first time should be on a bigger screen and sometimes in a big theater in the dark with a lot of other people running the same energy.  

How should filmmakers prepare for this new aesthetic?
I think the old rule still applies.  Shoot your movie to tell the story in the best possible way. Don't think about the size of the screen.  In the old days even the movies in the theaters were again reformatted for our TV sets.

Generally, the videos that do well online are shocking in some way, almost juvenile. How do serious filmmakers find a market for themselves?
I think the filmmakers know innately their market, what they may not always know is the other ancillary markets that will love their films. We help filmmakers look for creative and different ways to attract their audience and still try to keep it free. Whether it's having a screening that's proceeds go to a charity that is connected to the content or facilitating press interviews for the filmmaker to talk about why they made this film. I think with smaller films it's always good to start regionally and grow from there.

What films have succeeded on Indieflix?  
Many now that we have been live for 3 months.  I can say that all filmmakers have made money. Some more than others but we sign a huge pile of checks each month and I can honestly say it is the most rewarding part of the job.  A few of the titles that have been flying out the door are "Making Arrangements' which is hilarious, "Suits" "Outpatient", "The Flats", "Phone a Clone" "Sweetwater". just to name a few.

Right now, you have no advertising on your site, will that change?
I don't know.  I dream about a huge billboard on Sunset blvd and buying a table at the indie Spirit Awards but in order to keep it free for the filmmakers we have to be mindful of our costs and we feel that an ad is less credible than say an interview like this. We do get out there and make some noise at film festivals, schools and college campuses. We do lots of interviews, podcasts, radio shows and the like. We [were] asked to speak at Sundance this year. We now have T-shirts, which are very cool and will be available on the site on the indie-wear page.  And once again we will make them good quality and affordable. I guess that's advertising. I made a few just for fun and everyone is requesting them so T-shirts, tanks and beanies are coming. We also have great stickers.

Does the iPod help the move to the small screen? Is it related to what you are doing?
I think in time we will be providing content for the iPods and vPods and a-zPods.  My kids all love them.

Where are you headed with the site?
Our thoughts for the future of IndieFlix are definitely spelled out but we have also factored in the opportunity to let much of it be organic. This will dictate how best to prioritize the constant building that we are now in the midst of. We feel that the community aspect is by far the most important to focus on right now. When there is a lot of content that does not necessarily have a lot of big name stars attached to it, we feel that it is important that people get to know the filmmakers and the reason they are telling these stories and for the filmmakers to get to know the audience. I guess you could call it the reality aspect of the film. In collecting this information we have come to really care about these people, (the filmmakers & the audience). It's like meeting someone really interesting at a great dinner party.

A lot of development is still happening with the site backstage, what are some of the new features we can expect to see?
In a few weeks our Beta site will soon be replaced with our official V-1 site. This new version will be much richer in features that offer unique, and fun search options, trailers & clips, special offerings and a constant flow of new movies.  We have a new search feature called, "R U an Indie Film Virgin?" which helps people decide what to watch minimizing the risk.  When you click on it, a list of well-known titles comes up. You select some and we offer up titles that have been associated, compared or likened to, or inspired by these films. We will also offer any consumer to become a "Tastemakers". It's sort of in the same vein as the i-Tunes play lists that are submitted. Only our Tastemakers have their picks. The consumer will fill out a fun Bio grid as a sort of fun introduction. This allows anyone to kind of get to know the person who is making the recommendations.  The Tastemakers that get the most action will have their own web pages with comments posted just like Roger Ebert or Harry Knowles. Their opinion will be valuable search tools.  

We will have a community bulletin board with postings and we will soon offer download to own or burn on demand for the consumer.  We just have to figure out exactly how we want to do it for the long haul. Everyone talks about downloading like it's the biggest thing but the percentage of people who actually download to own is very small. We will definitely offer both always.  We like everyone else want to address the piracy aspect.

We will have the typical Top Rated, Top Selling of the day, Top selling of all Time, Top Reviewed and most sold in the shortest amount of time from launch.  We will also provide these Top Listed Films to companies that we are creating alliances with that want to find talented filmmakers to invest in.  Filmmakers on our site will have a multitude of opportunities to go to the next level whether it is, funding for their next movie, a theatrical release for their current film or making their short a full feature. We will provide content to airlines, airports, college campuses, film societies etc.

The revenue streams for these filmmakers are almost limitless. & nbsp;We are also actively supporting film schools with proceeds going to the film programs while the filmmakers make a name for themselves. We support filmmakers directly with cash prizes through film festivals and soon organizations like the IFP, Women in Film, and AFI just to name a few. Many of our filmmakers have signed over their royalties to foundations or charities that they support and we ourselves continue to support organizations we believe share our mission.  Our advisory board is made up of people who are credible and make things happen. Together we all support the artist, the artistry and the desire to keep the playing field level.  I guess you could say we are like a big petri dish and the best for the times that we are in will bubble up and get the attention.

Do you plan to have a section on vodcasting or vlogging? I notice right now you do not, is it something that nobody approached you about or are you focused on films that would have played at a festival?
Totally interested but we can only build so much so fast.

What do you think will be the online movie experience in 5 years?
Regardless of how nice it is to have access to new content in the privacy of our own homes I do think that people will still want to have that group experience in the dark and on the big screen. We are social beings. We like to discuss things and evolve and share. I don't think that will ever change.

Thanks to Scilla Andreen for the interview. We hope Indieflix continues to grow as we Filmmakers have the most to gain.