There are apparently 3,000 film festivals that are active at least bi-annually. Each year, film producers and distributors fly red-eye, accruing millions of miles trotting across the globe and spending tons of hours trying to find and talk to the right buyer within short span of a few days. Sellers are able to showcase only a limited and season-fresh front catalogue, while buyers are exposed to a small number of handpicked screening options.
The first film festival sprung up in Italy in the 1930s to spur development and distribution of the very controlled cinema industry then. It brought great minds together and allowed the cinematic community to congregate and make cross-border distribution happen. Fast forward to 2018, does film festivals and markets in its current form still serve the same purpose?
The significance of film markets have shifted from sales to exchanges of global insights, now more importantly than ever, as relationships matter because of the fierce content fight.
Evolving Role of Film Markets
The one thing that is irreplaceable about Film Markets are its people. These highly energised events pose an opportunity for filmmakers from different cultures to exchange ideas and share their works at the most critically acclaimed level. It also allow film distributors, producers of all sizes to foster relationships and share insights of evolving markets and consumers’ needs. It is however, a constant challenge to decide how you should best prioritise your time to be most productive within the limitation of each film market.
Evolution of Film & TV consumption
Film and TV used to be platforms for carefully curated content due to limited screening and programming spots. As a result, a small number of buyers vie over the top 10–20% content. But with the introduction of IPTV and OTTs such as Tivo and Netflix, the content explosion has happened. Netflix alone has reportedly spent $8 Billion to fund 700 TV shows and movies in 2018. From cooking shows, wildlife documentaries, to Netflix original series, Japanese anime, or sometimes lesser known B-grade films; there’s always something for everyone on a rainy Sunday. Audience now have an abundance of choices on what to watch, when to watch and where to watch.
Audience expect content options to be added and refreshed every other day. With changing demands and habits like these, more buyers are now vying for all types of content at a speed never before to appease fickle-minded audience.
So while film festivals and markets remain a great platform to see what’s new and to applaud gems of the field; is it enough, to fulfill the opportunities technology brings?
The Digital Distribution Revolution
Following the speed of technology, that has disrupted almost every industry, the film & TV business is gradually warming up to exploring new ways of doing the old business more efficiently; bringing in automation, knowledge & asset management and digital sales processes…
So, is there a way to license content faster, better, cheaper?
Enter the Digital Distribution Revolution. Within the content licensing supply chain, there are many processes involved from the sales negotiations, to getting legal contracts drawn, to management of formats like Metadata and Avails etc that has hindered the speed of licensing. A solution like Vuulr, changes that paradigm in traditional distribution and has removed the frictions, making it faster, better and cheaper, to meet the expectations of buyers and audience today.
Powered by Blockchain technology, Vuulr is the one-stop Entertainment and Sports content rights marketplace where top distributors around the world showcase their quality front & back catalogue to buyers globally. OTTs, broadcasters, on-transport entertainment providers etc can find their desired shorts, features, series, documentaries, sports, animation content, make an offer to the seller and close a deal on Vuulr, 24/7.
Vuulr works with Hollywood-supported standards from EIDR, EMA and MovieLabs Content to bring universal identifiers, avails and metadata to the Blockchain so sellers and IP owners no longer need to rework Metadata repeatedly nor manually manage the Avails.
Information can be made available to buyers instantaneously, who can promptly make a call on their offer terms.
Vuulr Marketplace is free to use for both content buyers & sellers
To help the industry in getting digitally ready, both industry-verified buyers and sellers can register and use Vuulr for free. Sellers are free to list their content anytime using a self-serve dashboard, large distributors can also do a bulk upload, personally assisted by the Vuulr Team. All content listed on Vuulr are automatically provided an EIDR listing, a Hollywood-supported universal ID for film & TV content that is otherwise chargeable when registered separately. Buyers on the other hand, are free to search, browse and make an offer on Vuulr, 24/7.
Vuulr helps to market, recommend and match preferred content to buyers. A small commission is only chargeable upon a successful trade on the Vuulr marketplace.
Be a part of this digital revolution. Regardless if you are a buyer or seller, harness the power of digital to license your Entertainment & Sports content better, faster and cheaper.