22

Marketing and Distribution

Marketing your film and getting distribution is very important for your film. Many filmmakers aspire but never reach an audience because they don’t realize the importance of this part of the process. Getting a handle on this means you start this part of the process early, even before you shoot. Ideally you would have a marketing strategy in place early in production that will dictate how you acquire marketing materials. Getting distribution before you even finish shooting is also ideal. In low-budget land, with inexperience as the obstacle, it’s difficult to get distribution for the theatrical world. Big distributors want stars to attract people to theaters. Occasionally a small film will gain attention at festivals, even sometimes get bought, either at a festival or film market. For low budget this only happens after the film has been made. For medium- to higher-budget films, again, you need a star for theatrical distribution.

The good news is that distribution is not just theatrical anymore. There are more avenues for distribution now than ever before. There’s Internet, subscription, video on demand (VOD), and more. This chapter will look at how to set up a marketing strategy and plan, as well as outline the various forms of distribution, along with a look at the very important distribution deal.

Marketing Starts in Production

Part of setting up a marketing strategy is having the right materials to work with. You need “copy” or media and production stills to use in press kits, posters, and so forth. One way to get these is through the work of the unit publicist.

The Unit Publicist

On medium- to high-budget films, a unit publicist is hired to create and handle all publicity. It is important to know and understand her function, as her work will help you later in the marketing phase of production. The publicist may be hired by a studio or production company and usually has contacts with industry press such as trade publications and entertainment broadcast shows. The publicist answers to the production executive of a studio or the production company owner. She is the point person for all publicity associated with a show. The unit publicist’s general duties are as follows:

• Works with the studio or production company to decide what to publicize. Each show is different. A show might decide it is more advantageous to push the star of a show or may decide to publicize the latest special effects.
• Sets up interviews for the producer, director, and stars with print and broadcast media.
• Sends stories about the project to print and broadcast media.
• May be needed to handle bad publicity situations.
• Oversees the still photographer to make sure the proper stills are being taken and are of good quality.
• Coordinates press day.

The Still Photographer

The still photographer works on set to capture stills that will represent the project visually. These stills are very important. Having a good photographer will go a long way to giving you great marketing materials. The still photographer comes to set each day to shoot. He has read the script and has reviewed it with the unit publicist. The publicist guides the photographer in what scenes might be better for shooting. The photographer usually comes to set at the shooting call, after all preparations for the first scene have been made. In order to stay inconspicuous, photographers sometimes get their shot either right before the director calls action or right after the director calls cut. At the end of the day, the photographer edits his shots and then delivers them to the unit publicist.

Following is a guideline for what you could have your photographer shoot on set:

• Director “directing” actors.
• Director next to the camera, “working.”
• Camera operator with his eye to the lens.
• Sound mixer, with a good view of the recorder.
• Medium to wide shot with the camera and operator, boom, actors, and director watching.
• Any fancy rigs using cars, cranes, mounts, and so forth.

Shooting the Action

• Get as close to the film camera as possible and try to replicate what the camera shoots.
• Try to catch emotional moments between the characters or shots that showcase the emotional state of the character.
• Try to catch action shots, if applicable.
• Think about what might be a good shot for the film poster or DVD cover, or a shot that tells what the story is about (without giving away too much).

What Not to Shoot

• Crew members smiling at the camera (these are useless).
• Crew members doing anything but working.

Press Day

Press day is a day during your shoot when you invite print and broadcast press to your set. You should pick the most exciting day of shooting. That way, the press gets good footage or stills for their publications or broadcast. The unit publicist coordinates who will come and helps them secure lodging. Before press day, the publicist arranges a schedule for the press to have sit-down interviews (some on camera) with the producer, director, and lead actors. The publicist also coordinates with the 1st AD to schedule these interviews so as not to interrupt shooting. The unit publicist notifies all press what will be happening and when their interviews are scheduled. The publicist also works with the 1st AD to find a location for any on-camera interviews. The idea is for the interviewee to be available yet not too far from the set. Usually the interview location is arranged so that the crew or a set can be seen in the background.

Publicity Kicks In

As the release date of the film draws closer, movie marketers try to get early favorable press coverage in newspapers, magazines, and on entertainment TV shows. The main movie publicity tactic is something called a press junket. At a press junket, journalists, entertainment reporters, and movie critics are flown out to a special location for a day or weekend to get interviews with the stars and filmmakers. The actors, directors, and screenwriters sit in separate rooms and the reporters are brought in one by one to ask questions. Press junkets are very controlled. The publicist will be there to make sure the interviews show the stars and film in a positive light. If you’ve ever seen a TV interview with an actor sitting in front of a poster of the movie, that’s most likely from a press junket.

Weeks before the movie opens, the promotions department starts to ramp up exposure of the film. The idea is to bombard the public with so many images and promos for the movie that everyone knows about it. Movie marketers will place billboards all around big cities, run tons of trailers on TV, place full-page ads in newspapers and magazines, and the movie’s stars will show up on all of the major talk shows.

The Internet is proving to be a prime spot for publicity. We will often see behind-the-scenes and viral videos on high-traffic sites like YouTube and Facebook. This is also when we start to see product tie-ins. This is where product companies that have either made deals with or have product placement in a movie start selling their wares. You might see special edition cups at a convenience store, plastered with the title and star of a movie. These strategies stem from basic marketing principles. Basically there are three rules of marketing:

• Rule 1: Positioning and targeting
  Place your film so that it gets to the people who are most likely to come see your movie. Finding that specific audience and knowing what they will pay to see is the goal.
• Rule 2: Communicate that positioning
  Make sure you are communicating what should be out there about the film; let them know they will love this movie, and why.
• Rule 3: Deliver
  Have slick, polished, focused advertising that intrigues your specific audience.

If you follow these three rules, you will be in a good place to reach your audience. There are also other ways to reach that audience.

Testing

If you can afford it, doing marketing tests can be invaluable to finishing your show. Tests help you make the right decisions about what is working and what might need to be changed. There are some marketing firms that will do testing for you. They will arrange for a screening and have the audience fill out questionnaires about what they did or did not like. This is great, but can be expensive. Even in low budget you can still do this: just offer a free screening, publicize it locally, and then offer some sort of prize or incentive to a small group, so you can do a focus group and get some real answers. With this knowledge you can then adjust your marketing strategy accordingly.

The Marketing Plan

There are a number of items that need to be part of the marketing plan. Part of that strategy also involves a timeline of when materials will hit the market. When it comes to marketing plans, no two look alike. The approach, or the marketing strategy, comes out of the script and what the film calls for. Some marketing strategies may have lots of merchandising involved, some none at all.

So, just how do you get started on a marketing plan? Let’s take a look at the many elements that COULD go into a movie marketing plan.

The Executive Summary

The executive summary is usually a one-page document that summarizes your marketing plan. Here you describe the film’s target audience, or those who will enjoy seeing your film. It will include what the trailer or poster might look like, what the website might have, if there’s any merchandising, and so forth. You will actually write this after you put all the other elements together, as it is meant to be a summary of what the marketing plan entails.

The Trailer

The trailer is often the first chance to promote a movie. Starting up to a year before the release of a major studio movie, distributors run movie trailers that are meticulously edited and audience-tested. The idea is to give moviegoers a taste of the laughs, special effects, or plot twists of upcoming releases, while leaving them wanting more. They tell the story of the movie in a highly condensed fashion, compressing maximum appeal into two and half minutes or less. It’s an art form that’s usually handled by special trailer production houses for higher-budget films. In low-budget land the editor is usually contracted to cut the trailer.

The Website

About the same time that the first trailers hit the theaters, the filmmakers or studio will unveil a website. Typical movie websites allow visitors to view multiple versions of the trailer, watch behind-the-scenes interviews and mini-documentaries, read plot synopses, download cell phone ringtones and desktop wallpaper, play games, chat in forums, and even preorder tickets. The website is an important part of the marketing effort. Fans may come and check out your website long before deciding to see the film. So, how you present your film on the site could make or break a ticket at the box office. Just check out any movie website and see how the filmmakers are drawing in their audience. Remember, that’s the key: to create a website specifically targeted to people who are most likely to go to your film.

The Movie Poster

The movie poster is how many will identify your film. The poster should be teasing yet simple. Unless you have talent in movie poster design, it really is best to hire someone who has experience and great creativity in this area. It should not reveal everything about the movie. The poster should be a visual representation that intrigues the audience into wanting to see it. It should give an idea of what they can expect, while also maintaining a bit of mystery.

Slideshows

These can be stills, trivia, and trivia games from the film, shown between movie show times in theaters or on the website or social media.

Standees

These are freestanding paperboard life-size images of figures or sets or scenes from the film. These are 3D displays, sometimes with sounds and lights or motion.

Internet

Besides the website, filmmakers can market through virtual relationship hyperlink marketing. This is where a major search engine (like Yahoo’s main page) has articles presenting news-related items. These articles are then “back-end loaded” with links that connect the reader to a film, characters, storylines, or products.

Online Digital Film Screeners

These digital film screeners (known just as screeners) have the benefit of letting you send individual copies of your film or a promo to the press, sales agents, distributors, and so forth. These screeners will have expiration dates, and you can see reports of who viewed your film. This is a great way of getting initial feedback on how the film is playing to viewers.

Viral Marketing

Viral marketing, in this case, involves putting trailers or other promotional video on movie-oriented websites. Additionally, you can use original film shorts based on the movie on sites such as YouTube over a number of months leading up to the premiere. Place these shorts with behind-the-scenes featurettes on social media to keep interest going. These shorts will gain interest and could lead people to the website, and eventually to the theater or subscription service or VOD showing.

Print

Paid advertisement is used in newspapers, trades, magazines, and inserts in books. You can use cross-promotion of an original book or novel. These ads could be the movie poster in reduced size or using stills from the film along with interviews with the director or producer or stars.

Merchandising

If your film is appropriate to have merchandising, you can receive a lot of revenue. You can do co-advertising of a product with the film or have promotional giveaways. Think McDonald’s toys, T-shirts, drink cups—the possibilities are endless.

Promotional Tours and Interviews

Film actors, directors, and producers go on television, cable, radio, and online media to promote a film with interviews. These are the interviews the publicist has coordinated from production.

Marketing inside the Industry

There are many avenues to get your film noticed within the industry. You can advertise the date of release and marketing campaign in the trades such as Variety, Hollywood Reporter, and Entertainment Weekly. You can travel to conventions such as the America Film Market to show your trailer. Here are some more:

Video Games

This kind of tie-in is usually done with big-budget action films.

Extended Placement

This is when the film is promoted on television talk shows, entertainment news programs, or network news programs.

As you can see, there are dozens of marketing elements that comprise the marketing plan. Which of these you use is dictated by your story, who your audience is, and what is the best way to reach them. Marketing does cost money. In higher-budget films there is what’s known as a P&A budget, or prints and advertising budget. Often the distributor will pay for these marketing ventures. In low-budget land it is still possible for smaller distributors to pay for marketing, but the P&A budget will be lower. More often filmmakers are doing much of the marketing themselves either through money raised for the film or by finding additional investors.

Distribution

Distribution is an ever-changing field. Years ago films would compete to get into theaters because that was the only place to go. Now, distribution is wide open. Filmmakers still seek theaters as the ultimate goal, but they can also find great revenue coming from other distribution such as television or Internet. Let’s start with a look at how distribution works.

The Distribution Process

Here’s the path a film usually takes to get to your local theater:

• Someone has an idea for a movie.
• That person creates an outline and uses it to promote interest in the idea.
• A sales representative (rep) shops the film around to distributors.
• A studio or investor decides to purchase rights to the film.
• The screenwriter, producer, director, cast, and crew make the film.
• The film is completed and sent to the studio.
• The studio does a licensing agreement with a distribution company.
• The distribution company determines how many copies (prints) of the film to make.
• The distribution company shows the movie (screening) to prospective buyers representing the theaters.
• The buyers negotiate with the distribution company on which movies they wish to lease and the terms of the lease agreement.
• The prints are sent to the theaters a few days before the opening day.
• The theater shows the movie for a specified number of weeks (engagement).
• The audience buys tickets and watches the movie.
• At the end of the engagement, the theater sends the print back to the distribution company and makes payment on the lease agreement.

Some of these steps may be combined and, particularly in the case of small independent films, additional steps may be necessary. As you can see, there is a lot that goes on before a movie is ever shown to a paying audience. At each of these steps money may be changing hands. The way money moves through distribution is called the revenue stream.

Film Revenue Stream

Revenues from a project fluctuate between the domestic market and the international market or the current trends in viewership. The main revenue streams for films are:

• Theatrical exhibition (in theaters)
• DVD rental
• DVD retail
• Pay-per-view television
• Subscription or pay television (Netflix, Hulu, etc.)
• Free television

The length of time at these distribution channels has changed over the years. A film that years ago stayed in theaters for months may now only stay in the theater for weeks. Additionally, more and more movies are doing simultaneous releases at the theater and online, or on DVD. Here are recent time frames at each venue.

• Theatrical: 0–6 months
• DVD: 6–15 months
• Pay-per-view: 15–18 months
• Pay TV: 18–30 months
• Free TV: 30+ months

The longer a film stays at any one venue, the more revenue it could generate. Since pay-per-view and subscription rates have gone up dramatically in the last five to ten years, more filmmakers are seeing significant revenue from these streams.

Keep in mind: each deal is different. The way percentages are determined or how the revenue stream flows will depend on the parties involved. Another concept to understand here is profit participation. This is where some people participate in sharing the profits and may have a percentage of revenues on “the back end.” For example, an actor might negotiate to receive 3 percent of net profits. This means that the producer’s share of any revenue is further divided, as the actor will then receive that 3 percent out of the producer’s profits. This is not the only way it is done. There are many different kinds of profit deals, just as there are many different distribution deals. Let’s take a look at those.

Costs off the Top Deal

Here the distributor recoups its marketing costs first, from rentals (the exhibitor’s payments). The distributor keeps a distribution fee of up to 50 percent and gets back any advance plus interest (if there was an advance) before paying the final balance back to the producer or investors.

Net Deal

In a net deal, the distributor keeps its distribution fee of up to 50 percent off the net theatrical rentals. After that, the distributor recoups any costs for P&A and any advances plus interest. Anything coming in after this goes to the producer or investors.

Gross Deal

In a gross deal the producer gets an agreed-upon percentage from net theatrical rentals before any P&A spending or advances go back to the distributor. After that, the distributor gets back its distribution fee and P&A costs, advances, and any interest. Notice in this deal that the producer does receive some monies before the distributor starts to get any.

Of these three models, the net deal is the one most commonly used. However, because of what used to be called in Hollywood “creative accounting,” it is rare for producers to see much if anything from this part of the revenue stream. Fortunately, it’s the other revenue streams where producers can start to see some of their hard work come back.

DVD Distribution Deal

There are various kinds of DVD distribution deals for the independent producer to be aware of. Here are some of the most common:

Royalty and Off the Top

• Royalties: The distributor pays royalties to the producer of around 35 to 45 percent.
• Off the Top Deal: The distributor takes a fee of anywhere from 25 to 35 percent, then deducts its costs (typically up to 25 percent) and then sends the rest to the producer.

Pay-per-View

Here the pay-per-view company keeps 40 to 50 percent of what the audience pays for the film, then gets back any advance and pays the remaining balance to the distributor. The distributor then keeps 25 to 35 percent and then gives any remaining to the producer.

Subscription Television

The subscription company pays a fee to the distributor. Sometimes the deal includes a clause where the fee will increase if the film becomes really popular. The distributor will then take a 25 to 34 percent commission and give the remainder to the producer. Keep in mind, this is different than direct distribution to a subscription company. Some subscription services are striking deals directly with producers. In these cases, the subscription company may pay a onetime fee up front for the film, then retain most of the revenue.

Free TV

The license fee paid by the broadcaster depends on the film’s performance. A distributor typically takes percentage fees from 25 to 50 percent, with the balance going to the producer.

The Distribution Contract

What follows is a breakdown of portions of what you might find in a distribution agreement. The goal here is to do away with legalese and explain this kind of document in plain English. Keep in mind that agreements will vary from one company to the next, and you should always consult with your lawyer to iron out the details and understand exactly what it is you are signing. Here are some clauses that you need to understand.

The Sales Representative

Sales reps work to sell your film. They get commissions, which are usually in the range of 10 to 30 percent, with 25 percent being the most common. The percentage is taken off the top of the sale. Most of the time, reps are able to get a much better price than what you would be able to negotiate, so the fee is more than worth it.

The Term

This refers to the number of years for which the contract is valid. You always want to try to negotiate for as short a term as possible in case you’re not satisfied with the rep’s performance. On the other hand, the rep will negotiate for a minimum of five years and possibly up to fifteen years to have more time to recoup the investment. Additionally, the distributors who buy your film will ask the rep for a minimum of five years.

Exclusive Grant of Rights

When you sign a distribution contract, you grant your rights to the sales rep for the length of the contracted term. Remember that unless you’ve signed a traditional distribution deal (where you sign off all of your rights), anything not covered in the contract is still open to negotiation elsewhere.

Distributor’s Expenses

This is where the sales rep specifies a lump sum to cover expenses. The sum is taken out of the producer’s share of gross receipts. The expenses include servicing, promotion, marketing, delivery, publicity, distribution, and so forth. This section of the agreement specifies that the rep will retain all revenue until the specified sum is covered. So if the sum agreed upon is $20,000, the rep will start paying you your share (minus his percentage) only after he has received $20,000 to cover his expenses. While a rep will most often break even on expenses, some reps will take advantage of naïve producers and set this fee very high. Be aware that anything above $30,000 for a film without a theatrical release is probably out of proportion.

Producer’s Share

This share is what remains after the rep has taken his fee and recouped all expenses.

For example:

• The rep is allowed to recoup $20,000.
• The rep makes a first sale for $10,000.
• From that income, he removes his share of 25 percent, which is $2,500. This leaves $7,500, which goes to the recouping expenses.
• The second sale makes $40,000.
• The rep takes 25 percent, which amounts to $10,000. He takes out another $12,500, which is the remaining balance of the costs to recoup. That’s a total of $22,500 taken out.
• The remaining sum of $17,500 goes to you.
• From this point onwards, the rep takes 25 percent of any income, and the remaining 75 percent goes to you.

Delivery of Picture

This is a list of items you are expected to deliver before the rep commences with his work. It usually includes:

• Digital master
• Publicity
• Music cue sheet
• Bonus materials
• Chain of title verification (copyright)
• Music and effects track
• Slides (slide format or disk)
• Synopsis
• Dialogue script
• Trailer
• Errors and omissions insurance certificate

The rep will insist on having these before starting any activity because distributors will want all of the items on this list. It is therefore almost impossible for a rep to market your film if any of the items are missing.

Accounting Records and Audit Rights

Your rep will attempt to give you an accounting of revenues once a year, but it’s worth the effort to push for having that done quarterly. Not only will this help you keep closer track of sales, but you will also be receiving payments four times rather than once a year. The accounting records and audit rights section should also state your right to audit (at your expense) the rep’s accounts once a year.

Default

The default section explains how, should one of the parties not respect the contract in any way, the other party may, in writing, specify how the contract is being breached, resulting in a thirty-day time frame for amends to be made. For instance, if your accounts are due quarterly but the rep fails to send you the documents, you may write to your rep requesting the accounts within thirty days. If the rep fails to comply, you may leave the contract. Remember, though, that this works both ways.

Distribution Rights

Following is a list of common distribution rights you will find in a distribution agreement.

Theatrical Rights

These rights include the right to exhibit the work in theaters.

Non-Theatrical Rights

Generally, non-theatrical markets include the following four markets:

Educational A/V

This includes the sale, lease, or rental of film or videos to universities, schools, libraries, museums, or similar institutions for exhibition directly to audiences or closed-circuit exhibition.

Institutional or Industrial Markets

This is the sale, lease, or rental of the work, film, or videos to corporations, businesses, prisons, or hospitals for exhibition to people in those institutions.

In-Flight and Other Transportation

This category includes in-flight exhibition, ships at sea, oil rigs, and the like.

Military

This is the sale, lease, or rental of the work on film or videos to military bases for exhibition to military audiences.

Usually, non-theatrical rights include showing the work to audiences by organizations who are not primarily engaged in the business of exhibiting films and whose purpose is generally educational, cultural, religious, charitable, or so forth.

Pay Television Rights

This is the right to exhibit the work via pay cable, closed-circuit television, and similar venues where viewers pay for the right to see it. This category includes hotels, motels, hospitals, and so forth.

Free Television Rights

This is the right to broadcast the work via network or public television. It also includes syndication and satellite rights.

DVD Rights

This category includes home DVD rental and sales. Here the consumer purchases or rents copies for use at home.

Video on Demand

This allows the viewer to request a program on a television or viewing screen that is sent via signal directly to the consumer and not to the general public. Thus, it is distinguished from pay-per-view, where the consumer does not request a particular signal at a particular time.

Bargaining

The ability to bargain well in this kind of negotiation is important. You want to actually limit rights at this point, because you may not know how effective your distributor will be.

On the other hand, the distributor wants the opposite, to stretch the distribution net wide, to maximize revenue. Research potential distributors. A producer friend of mine told me how he once regretted contracting with a small distribution company. The problem was that the company didn’t do much for the film in terms of promotion or being aggressive about getting it to different venues. One way to avoid these pitfalls is to learn as much as you can about current distributors. Ask yourself, how long have they been in business? Have their clients been happy? Have they actually made money for their clients?

Exclusivity

In most cases, distributors want exclusive rights. It is usually okay to grant the distributor exclusivity for certain markets. Remember, some distributors perform better in certain markets rather than others. Know this before signing off on the contract. This exclusivity would exist only for a certain period of time. The terms for most distribution agreements is usually between:

• three and five years for non-theatrical
• five to twenty years for theatrical (often twelve years)
• two to five years (or longer) for television
• five to ten years for home distribution

Producers are often worried about what happens if the distributor fails to adequately perform on the distribution of the work. One solution to this concern is to negotiate a performance requirement in the agreement. A performance clause might, for example, allow the producer to terminate the agreement if the distributor fails to generate certain sales levels within a specified period of time. The distributor may seek to limit the producer’s right to terminate until the distributor has gotten back its advance (assuming the distributor has given the producer an advance). Another way to work this performance clause is to specify that the markets in which the distributor has failed to distribute the work revert to the producer after a period of time.

Sub-Distribution Agreements

Sub-distributors are used by distributors to reach certain markets, such as international markets. This is good for a producer who may not have those kinds of connections. You have to be careful, though, because often the term with sub-distributors might be longer than the term with the original distributor. If the sub-distributor fails to perform well, you might be stuck, even though your agreement with the original distributor has expired.

Packaging

Sometimes distributors will distribute a group of films in a single package. This works great when all of the films perform well. However, the distributor might offset a film that is not doing well with a film that is doing well. This is called cross-collateralization. While this is great for the filmmaker whose work is not doing well, it’s not so great for the filmmaker who is doing well. Make sure in the agreement that your film would not be subject to such practices.

If you decide going in a package is okay with you, make sure you see the other titles to make sure they are up to par with yours and that you don’t mind the association with them.

Delivery

Delivery can sometimes be a stressful part of the process. There are a lot of details in delivery and the contract reflects that. Make sure you really take note of when your film is to be delivered, how it would be delivered, and what is required by the distributor to satisfy delivery. If you miss something here, there could be consequences. The distributor, if not satisfied, might create some of the deliverables and then charge you for the expense. Or, you might not get your advance payment until all the materials are in.

Territory

Many agreements state the territory as being “worldwide” or “the universe.” The producer should determine the appropriate territory to be granted to the distributor. Most non-theatrical licenses and home video licenses are limited to the United States, and Canada, and sometimes “all English-speaking countries” is added.

Revenue Considerations

There are a variety of methods that can be used by the producer and the distributor to calculate revenues. As stated earlier in this chapter, how this happens depends on the deal. Always know what the deal means to you before you sign the contract.

Revenue Payments

There is something called the royalty formula that is used for non-theatrical and home distribution agreements where revenues are based on how many units are sold. The distributor fee formula is used for television broadcast and international and theatrical distribution. Here’s how some of that looks:

Non-Theatrical Distribution

The royalty paid to the producer can range from 7 to 30 percent of the gross sale and/or rental fees. Some distributors offer a 50/50 split of net receipts after taking out their expenses, such as marketing and distribution costs.

Home Video

This can range anywhere from 15 to 30 percent. Again, in this industry you get what you negotiate for.

Television Distribution

Here a distribution fee can range from 20 to 40 percent of the license fees received by the distributor. Alternatively, the distributor might pay a fixed fee, which depends on how much the distributor believes in the project or not.

Theatrical Distribution

Typical fees can range from 15 to 40 percent of net receipts.

With all of these different scenarios, you can see why it is a good idea to get a lawyer. There is actually a lot more to a distribution agreement than is covered in this chapter. Hopefully you now have a better grasp of the major items to look for.

Summary

Marketing and distribution are important parts of the process that need to start early on in a production. You need to use the services of a unit publicist and get good stills for marketing. You need to set out a marketing strategy and determine what might go into your marketing plan. Then, you need to seek out distribution. Distribution comes in many forms, and it’s up to you to determine who is the best distributor for your project. In addition, you need to be able to understand the distribution agreement so that you get the best return on your film.