“In an old model, the way a film would imprint itself on the public's consciousness is to get a theatrical run. But now there are more documentaries and more films in general being released than ever before. There are weeks when the New York Times is reviewing 15 films, so it's harder to leave an impression on the public. A lot of these films are seeing their financial future on digital platforms. Because viewers aren't hearing as much about films in theatrical release, I think the festival circuit is going to have increasing importance for the life of a film.” ThinkingWayRunningFilmConsciousnessSeeingWeekNew YorkModelsImportanceHarderFinancialHearingImpressionReleaseDigitalPlatformsViewersDocumentariesFestivalsNew York TimesTheatricalCircuits Author:Thom Powers
“For some reason at Sundance, more than other festivals that I'm aware of, you find filmmakers rushing to screen works that sometimes aren't completed. In my seven years of programming at Toronto, I'm not aware of any documentaries that went back for serious editing after their premiere - other than those presented as works-in-progress. But at Sundance every year there seems to be a few films that push the deadline so hard that they get taken back to the edit room afterwards.” YearsSometimesHardReasonSeemsFilmRoomsTakenProgressSeriousSevenScreensFilmmakerProgrammingEditingDocumentariesFestivalsSeven YearsEditsDeadlineRushingTorontoWork In ProgressPremieresSundance Author:Thom Powers
“You can start a documentary with just a camera, as opposed to a fiction film where you need actors, a crew, a script, a lot more start-up resources. It may be self-perpetuating.” NeedsMaySelfFilmActorsFictionResourcesCamerasScriptsCrewDocumentariesPerpetuating Author:Thom Powers