What Film Distribution Strategy Is Right For Your Film?

At South By Southwest (SXSW), there are numerous discussions going on regarding the state of independent film distribution. Saturday’s distribution discussion at the bustling SXSW Film Conference that runs alongside the SXSW Film Festival featured Barker, Magnolia’s Eamonn Bowles, IFC’s Ryan Werner, Oscilloscope’s David Fenkel, Blockbuster’s Keith Leopard, and was moderated by film rep David Garber. Filmmakers were offered a lot of facts and figures and encouraged to do their homework to find the approach that could work best for them.

Now more than ever there is a unique tension between two distinct approaches to film distribution. Most distributors, from Sony Pictures Classics and Fox Searchlight to Zeitgeist, Miramax and many others, remain committed to the traditional roll-out of a movie with word of mouth that builds over time. Yet, others—namely IFC Films and Magnolia Pictures—have embraced more immediate releases that hope to generate instant blog buzz and national attention driven in large part by the Internet.

What approach are you considering?