Evaluation Q3 Distributor

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

Distributors are companies whose job it is to make sure media products (such as films, music and other commercial items) get a wide release and are available to buy. Their job is in advertising and persuading cinemas that their film should be shown.

Our product is a low-budget indie film, with no stars or expensive effects, so it would have difficulty getting picked up by one of the large conglomerates, such as Warner Bros. or Paramount Pictures. These companies are two of the 'big six', large Hollywood companies, and although they are primarily involved in production and broadcasting rather than distribution, they are so large that they usually have a distribution wing, often a subsidiary rather than a separate partner. To them, indie films are seen as a liability, with no guaranteed box office success, and it would be incredibly difficult to get a distribution deal with no proven track record. Instead, a company used to dealing with indie productions might be more ideal.

Unlike the US, media institutions operate differently in the UK. The UK Film Council, an umbrella group set up in 2000 with twelve regional bodies, (intended to tie together the various parts of the UK film industry) was directly funded by the UK government; privately financed film production companies are unlikely to succeed thanks to domination of the market by American companies. This allows indie companies to gain enough money to finance and distribute their products without having to compete with the 'big six'. Warp Films is funded in this way, specifically by its local regional arms EM Media and Screen Yorkshire. In 2011 the Council was closed down due to budgetary concerns, and most of its role was carried on by the reduced regional arms and the British Film Institute.

StudioCanal UK (formerly Optimum Releasing) is a distribution company that has worked with indie and low-budget filmmakers multiple times in the past; it is the main distributor of films made by Warp Films and several other British film companies. Although it is a subsidiary itself, half owned by NBCUniversal, it's role is primarily one of releasing non-Hollywood films, and it has a specialty in UK indies. It would be an ideal distributor for our film if we could secure a deal.