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Kulo Luna the movie - producing, scripts, casting, directing shooting, editing and marketing

MOVIE DISTRIBUTION METHODS

Making a movie is not as difficult as getting it distributed. Due to the cost in money and time involved in distributing a movie, a distributor must feel confident that they can make a sufficient return on their investment. 

Having the backing of a major studio or a well known director or star can greatly improve the chances of securing a good distribution deal. Independent filmmakers often use film festivals as an opportunity to get the attention of distributors. Once a distributor is interested in a film, the two parties arrive at a distribution agreement based on two financial models:

1. Leasing
2. Profit sharing

In the leasing model, the distributor agrees to pay a fixed amount for the rights to distribute the film. If the distributor and the studio have a profit-sharing relationship, on the other hand, the distributor gets a percentage (typically anywhere from 10 to 50 percent) of the net profits made from the movie. Both models can be good or bad, depending on how well a movie does at the box office. The goal of both the studio and the distribution company is to predict which model will benefit them the most.

Most of the major studios have their own distribution companies (DC). For example, Disney owns Buena Vista, a major distributor. The advantages of having your own DC are that it is very simple to set up a distribution deal and the parent company doesn't have to share the profits with another company. The big problem is when an expensive movie is a flop. If that happens there's no one else to share the costs. This is the main reason some studios have partnered on major movies in recent years. For example, "Star Wars: Episode One" was produced entirely by Lucasfilm but distributed by Fox.

The next big step occurs once the distribution company has rights to the film. Most distributors not only provide the movie to theaters, but obtain ancillary rights to distribute the movie on VHS, DVD, cable and network TV. Other rights can include soundtrack CDs, posters, games, toys and other merchandising.
When a distributor has leased a movie, they will try to determine the best strategy for opening the movie. The term: 'Opening,' refers to the official debut of a movie. There are several factors to consider:

* Studio
* Target Audience
* Star power
* Buzz
* Season

A movie that has 5 stars: major studio backing, big stars and a great story, is probably going to open big and do very well. If it has big stars but no story (so will not stay popular for long), the distributor may opt to put the movie in as many theaters as possible during its first engagement. Fewer theaters will be interested in a movie with an unknown cast or poor buzz (unofficial information about the movie).

Sometimes a movie manages a good buzz, but isn't likely to have mass appeal because of the audience it is directed at. It might also be the wrong time of year for a particular type of movie. EG, a Christmas story is not likely to do well opening on Memorial Day weekend. Therefore timing is important.

All of these factors help the distributor determine the number of prints to make. Each print typically costs about $1,500 to $2,000 to make, so the distributor must consider the number of theaters a movie can successfully open in. Many of the 37,000 screens in the United States are concentrated in urban areas. A popular movie might fill the seats in several theaters in the same city while another movie would have a much smaller audience. Since opening a movie on 3,000 screens could cost $6 million for the prints alone, the distributor must be sure that the movie can draw enough people to make the costs worthwhile.

Most theaters use buyers to represent them in negotiating with the distribution companies. Large chains such as AMC Theatres or United Artists employ buyers while small chains and independent theaters contract with a buyer. The negotiating process is very political. The buyers often will accept a movie that the theater is not very interested in to make sure they get a film they really want. Distributors try to balance the movies they lease to theaters in the same local area to make sure all of the theaters will continue to work with them. Sometimes a theater will get an exclusive or special engagement to premiere a movie in its area. It's a volatile market that requires specialist knowledge.

Contacts:  Please note that the rights to this story are now with the Cleaner Ocean Foundation Ltd, in connection with their ocean awareness campaigns. Blueplanet Universal Productions remains dormant. Hence, the 2013 business plan for a proposed film ceased to be, though development may proceed with the new copyright holders.

KULO LUNA - the movie:  BUSINESS PLAN

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