YouTube Spotlights Indie Films
Today YouTube launched a new section of its site titled The YouTube Screening Room, which it calls a "platform for films from around the world to find the audiences they deserve." Here, they will showcase four short films every two weeks and will even offer an occasional feature. Some of the films have been previously screened at film festivals and some have been nominated for or have won an Academy Award. But others will be premiering on the site. Apparently, the filmmakers will be paid a percentage of YouTube's ad revenue based on views and each film will also feature a "Buy Now" button so that you can purchase that film or other films.
Today's debuts include Are You the Favorite Person of Anybody?, a 2005 short written by Miranda July (Me and You and Everyone We Know), directed by Miguel Arteta (The Good Girl) and starring John C. Reilly, Mike White and July. I've embedded it above for your viewing pleasure. The other three are The Danish Poet, which won the Oscar for Best Animated Short in 2007, Love and War, which is a stop motion opera from Sweden, and Our Time is Up, which was nominated for Best Live Action Short in 2006 and which stars Kevin Pollak.
Over at the blog CinemaTech, there's some criticism about the way the "Buy Now" button works (for Our Time is Up, it initially brings you to a page without instructions or purchase information) and the lack of personal communication from the filmmakers that would help develop a fanbase. Yet in general, the concept seems beneficial to both artists and audiences. There's even an email listed for independent filmmakers to recommend their own films for showcase.
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(Page 1)2. YouTube’s ‘screening room’ announcement today underscores the powerful role the Internet can play for independent filmmakers to share their work and build a fan-base without the limitations of conventional theater distribution. But it’s not the first -- Lycos Cinema has provided a platform for indie filmmakers to showcase their work since late 2006. Having been at it for a while Lycos Cinema is loaded with hundreds of award-winning independent films, such as God's Lonely Man (Grand Jury Nominee - 2006 Sundance Film Festival); The Corndog Man (Emerging Filmaker Award - 2000 St. Louis International Film Festival); Kid Brother (Special Jury Prize - 1988 Paris Film Festival, Unicef Award Berlin International Film Festival); and The Zeros (Audience Award, Narrative Feature, 2001 SXSW Film Festival).
And as part of a major upgrade in May 2008, Lycos Cinema teamed up with Independent Features for an online film festival that is running from May 5 to June 30. The festival takes advantage of Lycos Cinema’s unique, patent-pending watch and chat capability, which allows fans to synchronously discuss and watch movies in real-time. So it really mirrors the community experience of a film festival with fans socializing and buzzing about their favorites. Fans also get to vote, and the top films will be shown at the Tribeca Cinemas in NYC in late July. Check it out here: http://cinema.lycos.com.
Posted at 8:37PM on Jun 19th 2008 by Bill
1. It remains to be seen how much the feature will help the filmmakers, but I just wanted to mention how much I loved "Are You The Favorite Person of Anybody?" It was featured on the first McSweeney's DVD and still puts a smile on my face.
http://www.slowclapchildren.blogspot.com
Posted at 7:49PM on Jun 19th 2008 by Jonathan Kuhn