Truly Indie

Holy effing crap. More rabbits from the hat of Mark Cuban and Todd Wagner.

indieWire has the story of a potentially brilliant new distribution strategy:

Three films have been tapped to launch Truly Indie, a new distribution initiative formed by Mark Cuban and Todd Wagner's 2929 Entertainment. Truly Indie will enable theatrical distribution funded by filmmakers themselves, mainly through 2929's Landmark Theaters, the country's biggest arthouse theater circuit. Offering a twist on the service deal model, a filmmaker pays an up front fee that covers all distribution costs (marketing, advertising, and publicity). Securing a one-week run in at least five markets (or as many as twenty markets), the filmmaker keeps 100% of box office receipts and retains all rights to their film. The first three projects on tap for the venture are Ian Gamazon and Neill dela Llana's "Cavite," Mari Marchbanks' "Fall to Grace," and Donal Logue's "Tennis Anyone?"

"This is a new distribution company," explained Bill Banowsky, the CEO of Magnolia Pictures and Landmark who is running the new 2929 Entertainment initiative, in a conversation with indieWIRE Monday. "We are creating a new distribution company called Truly Indie, it is completely outside of Landmark, but it has a relationship with Landmark and other theaters."

Filmmakers can pay as little as $40,000 for a one week placement in five markets or as much as $150,000 for a week-long theatrical run in 20 markets, according to Banowsky. In most markets, the local Landmark theater will serve as the venue for the release, but in the case of New York, Truly Indie will work with the Quad Cinema because of the competitiveness of advance bookings at its Sunshine Cinema in Manhattan. Truly Indie releases can take place via digital distribution as part of the digital upgrade at Landmark that will launch early next year, or filmmakers can provide film prints for their week-long runs.

For filmmakers skilled in creating their own heat, this could be an honestly profitable route to the big screen and beyond. Improvising all of the things a distribution company can do is extraordinarily expensive and time-consuming. And if the problem is that you believe in the potential of your movie but the bean-counters do not, this could be a provide-your-own-beans solution.

Obviously, it's not as good as being picked up by Magnolia. With no profit potential, Magnolia/Landmark cannot sensibly be motivated to prefer a Truly Indie film in poster placement, running a trailer, pitching to the press, securing the best ad deal, etc., over a Magnolia-associated title, but that's hardly a hidden conflict of interest, and sloppy seconds ain't perfect. It's better to be inside the door than outside.

Of course, you still have to get inside the door. It's pay for play, but you have to apply, and being chosen to play is not guaranteed.