Thoughts on Jon Reiss' book Think Outside the Box Office
Industry Centre > Blogs > Thoughts on Jon Reiss' book Think Outside the Box Office
Posted by Liz Hover
on Monday, January 11, 2010.
Categories: Film, Marketing, Digital media, Distribution, NSI, Production
The publishers of Jon Reiss' Think Outside the Box Office were kind enough to send us a copy of this shiny new book about film distribution and marketing in the digital age.
I finally finished the book yesterday and wanted to share my thoughts with you.
As Jon points out in his introduction, it's a dense book not intended to be read all at once.
There is a lot of information here. And for some first time filmmakers it might be a bit intimidating.
Making a film is hard work. And Jon doesn't let his reader forget that.
Think Outside the Box Office runs the gamut from the conception of a film through to all stages of distribution. But what makes Jon's book different is his approach to distribution - due largely to the changing face of the traditional distribution of independent film brought on by digital technology.
Jon uses his own experience from his documentary Bomb It to advise and guide other filmmakers. He is a proponent of DIY filmmaking - which, as the name suggests, is a model of filmmaking that puts control in the hands of the filmmakers who do the work of marketing and distribution themselves.
There are plenty of practical hints and tips on how to get your head around marketing your film and maximizing its potential in the marketplace.
In a rush to publish the book there are some spelling mistakes and information is sometimes repeated but that doesn't prevent it from being an essential guide for filmmakers everywhere.
The core take-away from this book? Move with the digital times or get left behind.
You can buy Think Outside the Box Office from Jon's website which entitles you to free chapter updates.
How Not to Make a Short Film by Roberta Munroe
I also recently read this book by Roberta Munroe, a former Sundance programmer.
This is an essential read for film students who need to learn about the process of filmmaking. As another reviewer put it, this book is not for the faint-hearted and will weed out folks who aren't really serious about making short films.
Buy How Not to Make a Short Film online at Amazon.
NSI on the web
Views expressed here are the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Screen Institute - Canada (NSI).
Comments
Login with Facebook
You can post comments using your Facebook account by clicking the button below.
Login with your NSI account
Sign in to add comments or join (it's fast and free).
The views expressed here are the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Screen Institute - Canada (NSI).