Going Global: Learning About Film Distribution for a Global Community

A while ago my friend (and sometimes collaborator) Todd Brown referred me to Stacey Parks.  Stacey was looking to make a viral video for her website, www.filmspecific.com, a distribution resource for filmmakers.  As part of the deal for making the video for her, Stacey gave me a pass to her weekend boot camp on global distribution.

So here I am at the Viceroy Hotel in Santa Monica, listening and learning about global distribution at a time of world disarray.  The funniest thing was running into the Carberry twins, who I've blogged about in the past.  These 19 year old kids managed to finangle a job videotaping the event.  I'm convinced in 5 years we're all be working for them.   Sitting next to me right now is Bilal Khan, a graphic designer/social media consultant/businessman who is doing a documentary on relief work done by Islamic charities during Hurrican Katrina.  Such an interesting person who effortlessly blends piety and modernity.

I've learned a lot of interesting things from the event, and when I finish producing the marketing video for Stacey's site, I'll post it in the future.

Sleep Dealer

There's been some great sci-fi in the last few years, work that's really brought the best of the tradition of sci-fi in its ability to critique and present insights about the world we live in.

Sleep Dealer seems to fit into this mold.

This is the description I found on IMDB:

"Set in a near-future, militarized world marked by closed borders, virtual labor and a global digital network that joins minds and experiences, three strangers risk their lives to connect with each other and break the barriers of technology."

What made me really want to see this film was this- a walk through one of the scenes by the director Alex Rivera.

One In A Million

The New York Times has a great series profiling various interesting people in the city: there's the maid to New York mayors, a tabloid photographer, and my favorite, the principal of a Muslim high school. The essays are told through photo essays and narration by the subjects themselves.

Check it out here.