Dusting off the old drives that hold the release cut of my digital feature from 2005 Stringer. Distribution for this movie was appalling mainly at the hands of Arkles Entertainment who are yet to provide me with any real figures regarding the sales and income the movie generated. I continue to occasionally ring John in the hope that he will answer and maybe even pay my share of the revenue the film generated. Now were not talking billions here, this movie got six days at the Academy Theatre in Auckland and then straight to DVD. At the most it generated between 5-10,000 dollars Its a difficult decision for a film-maker to make particularly if the film has been an independent and is unfunded from the start. My experience has made me aware of the lack of support for filmmakers who are trying to reach their audience. They may have made a great little movie which defies the odds but will fall at the last hurdle as their is no help fostering a distribution network locally for our films, both feature and short.
In my opinion the NZ Film Commission would be better served fostering a demand for NZ shorts and films by actively coordinating their release and distribution across old and new media.
For now with Stringer the ball is back in my court. The deals with Arkles Entertainment has expired and I am starting the process of re-cutting and releasing the film with my own distribution. Its going to be a voyage but if anything I will be better informed and empowered to self distribute my next film project.
In the meantime if you are interested in purchasing a DVD of the film or a download version please drop me a email. Over the next few months we will launch a Stringer shop page where the movie purchased.
