If you read this blog, you know I am a champion of mission check. You might now be wondering a bit about mine. A year or so ago, I reported to you that when asked to consider a project I responded:
“I am taking a hiatus from producing any projects for the time being. Instead, I am trying to advance an independent film infrastructure that can truly support a diverse and ambitious film — in it’s broadest & most innovative definition — culture, one where the artist and their supporters are direct beneficiaries of the work they generate, where risk is both rewarded & encouraged, & audiences are active participants in the community. I am running Fandor in hopes I can help the progression move quicker & others may navigate the paradigm shift to abundant, accessible content more smoothly & less painfully.”
Only of course then I did not say Fandor, did I? But other than that, my current mission has not changed that much from last year’s. If you read the news yesterday, you may have caught my latest change. I am hopeful that my move out of a nonprofit organization can truly expedite some action that will benefit all of us. As pleased as I am with what we got done at the Film Society, I was chomping at the bit to be able to run free and do more. I really loved the idea of a community endeavor, but nonprofits are curious beasts. Let’s just say I look forward to a culture not predicated on approval and process, but one focused on results.
Fandor is currently structured on a curated SVOD model with a complementary film news and appreciation site, Keyframe. I dig it. Unlike some SVOD companies, they pay a portion of the subscription fees back to the creators. I really dig that. Although it is too early to share my thoughts on where we can go and grow, suffice it to say I see a world of opportunity. It’s chaos out there for artists, audiences, distributors, and all their supporters. I hope to help bring some order to it.
Really, why wait? Sign up for Fandor now. Say you were there when it all began again. They have built something special and I look forward to helping it realize where it now really needs to go.
Yes, I will keep up this blog (and hope more of you choose to contribute to it going forward). Yes, I plan to still produce projects out of love, but as I said last month, I will no longer produce films for my living. Yes, discussions with Fandor had taken place when I published that, but I was also talking to others then too, and weighing what I really want to do with my labor and time. I had not yet decided, and now I have. And yes, Fandor fits quite well with what I plan for a total systems reboot of the indie film infrastructure.
It is sort of funny. When I look back on posts like “Why I Chose To Lead The San Francisco Film Society” (9/2012) or talks I gave like “Why I Felt I Must Not Focus On Project Specific Producing” (10/2012), it feels entirely applicable to what I am planning to do now at Fandor. The goals remain the same, but I suspect the action will be entirely different.
I look forward to moving quickly, and pivoting when necessary. I look forward not being in a culture of permissions or favors, but one of results and rewards. I want to take advantage of good ideas and being able to reward excellent work. I am thrilled that I will continue to work with artists, audiences, industry, and investors. Yes, I am now going to be “the industry” and no longer just a “maker” or “supporter”, but I do not see this as just a buyer. I see Fandor as a service provider with artists, distributors, and audience as our clients. We work for you.
You probably recognize how frustrating I find it that our creation, appreciation, and monetization is still being done the same damn way as it always been, despite the fact that whole world has changed. I used to get really REALLY frustrated that neither the creators or the industry were doing what I felt was necessary to take advantage of the situation before us — but then a friend pointed out to me that there was a name for this action and it was called business. Business is filling the gap between what people are willing to do and what really should be done. There is tremendous opportunity in front of us as the gap is huge.
And of course the REALLY great news is I will be working with all of you. Making it better is a group effort. I look forward to collaborating.
Stay tuned!
