Online Indie Film Distribution

Name: Online Indie Film Distribution
Rating: 4.4 (35 reviews)

Top strategies for self-distributing, marketing and promoting your indie feature film online.

Created byZB Siwek

Last updated 1/2022

English

What you'll learn

Online film distribution
Indie film self-distribution
Learn digital marketing including Facebook ads
Grow an audience for your film

Course content

12 sections • 26 lectures • 3h 38m total length

Course introduction5:58
Explore audience building and film release strategies for online distribution, from audience research, email lists, and social media to search engine optimization, aggregators, streaming platforms, and post-release promotion.
Creating marketable and profitable films5:39
Select films with a strong pre-existing audience, like indie horror or captivating documentaries, to boost distribution and reviews. Keep making low-budget films to grow a profitable catalog.

Audience research and personas2:24
Identify diverse audience types through topic-based listings for your indie film, then craft an ideal persona who overlaps drama, indie interest, mental health, and a diverse cast.
Where can you find your audience?1:27
Identify where your audience gathers on Facebook groups, Reddit, and Twitter, and learn their language, preferences, and pain points to tailor your film description and social copy for indie distribution.
Pre-existing communities14:06

Social media accounts2:15
Build a single production company social media presence on Facebook and Instagram, grow pre-existing audiences, and use ads to drive traffic to your films' pages and boost reach.
Building a social media following2:35
Avoid chasing organic growth on Facebook or Instagram, as reach is limited and ads perform better; focus on Facebook groups and inexpensive ads to steadily grow your indie film audience.
Imdb page1:48
Set up an IMDb page before submitting to streaming services to build credibility and gather reviews, filling fields like storyline, release dates, production details, and credits; consider omitting micro budget.
Company website1:14
Create a production company website, using Wix or WordPress if needed, to support your film projects and boost traffic through search engine optimization, blogs, landing pages, and conversion ads.

Amazon Algorithm6:32
Activate strategies to boost your indie film on Amazon by optimizing customer engagement ranking, title popularity, and title caliber through compelling assets, reviews, and viewership retention.
Algorithms of other platforms7:18
Optimize indie film discovery across platforms by aligning topic, genre and keywords, boosting traffic, engagement, and visibility with strong opening scenes, reviews, and notable press.

Creating viral content9:44
Drive traffic to your film page with engaging Facebook and Instagram posts that maximize link clicks, comments, shares and stop-and-read actions, and encourage cast and crew to share.
Groups and communities promotion11:37
Paid online advertising48:04
Master paid online advertising for indie film distribution via Facebook Ads Manager, setting up lead generation and traffic campaigns with budgets, audiences, and dynamic creatives.

Requirements

Basic knowledge of filmmaking

Description

This course compiles the most successful and up to date strategies for releasing a profitable indie film online, gathered from film distributors, PR consultants, marketing experts and indie film producers.

Build Your Audience and Release your Film

Before you release your film you need to build an audience. In this section we'll discuss how to conduct audience research, find where you audience is and become a trusted part of their communities. We'll also discuss how to build your own fan base through social media. In the section you will learn:

Audience research: who is your target audience and where can you find them
How to become part of pre-existing communities and groups efficiently
How to build a social media following and expand your reach
How to get your followers engaged and excited about the release
How to build an email list and how useful is it
How to approach and build relationships with bloggers and journalists
The key to getting more reviews, more press and more exposure

Once you have your audience the next step is to decide where and when you should release your film. We'll discuss all the topics including:

How and when to work with aggregators and distribution platforms
Which streaming platforms should you submit your film to?
AVOD vs SVOD vs TVOD
SEO is key to getting views and sales - we'll teach you how to optimise it
How to optimise posters and key art - what really works?

Market and Promote Your Film

Your film is released! Now what? How can you promote it to get as many viewers or sales as possible? In this section you will learn:

Advanced social media marketing and promotion
How to self-promote within groups and communities
How to use journalist and blogger contacts from day 1 to maximise exposure
Should you work with PR agencies and which ones are best?
How to acquiring reviews and why are they so important?
Paid FB Ads - do they work and how to utilise them step by step
Using youtube channels and influencers to increase traffic

At the end of this course you will have all the tools and strategies to self-distribute your indie feature film online.

Who this course is for:

Independent Filmmakers

Online Indie Film Distribution

What you'll learn

Explore related topics

Course content

Introduction2 lectures • 12min

Audience Research3 lectures • 18min

Online Accounts and Pages4 lectures • 8min

Errors and omission insurance1 lecture • 1min

Distributors and Streaming Platforms2 lectures • 27min

Filmhub3 lectures • 35min

Other streaming platforms1 lecture • 4min

Film Release Strategy1 lecture • 6min

Algorithms2 lectures • 14min

Social media promotion3 lectures • 1hr 9min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: