IndieFlix

October 14, 2005 4:42 PM

These days you can get your self-published book printed on-demand, anything you want on a single t-shirt or mug, and a CD pressed of the indie band that only three people have heard of. Seems like the only medium that's missing is movies, but oops, now we've got that too. IndieFlix accepts masters from independent filmmakers, puts the title up for rating and discussion, and lets people order DVDs full of movie that would be hard to come by otherwise. Filmmakers get a third of each sale to put towards their next work of genius.
posted by endquote (12 comments total)

A few months ago I utterly gave up on any on-demand CD services -- one of them never responded to email and the one I'd previously used seemed to be lost in Website Update Hell for two solid months. I had a small run duplicated instead.
posted by Foosnark at 4:44 PM on October 14, 2005

Great, a vanity press for movies.

I'd like to believe there are a few unrecognized auteurs out there, and that ventures like IndieFlix might allow them exposure and success—but POD publishing does not set a promising example. The vast, vast majority of POD books are garbage. The authors couldn't get published through established book publishers not because the Powers that Be were blind to the wild talents of these unique snowflakes, but because editors and agents correctly realized that the would-be authors couldn't write.
posted by Slithy_Tove at 6:56 PM on October 14, 2005

This is a good idea, there are a lot of young filmmakers (high school/college) entering films into contests (resume building) that are seen at festivals etc.. but otherwise never get distributed. I want DVD full of moxie.
posted by stbalbach at 6:58 PM on October 14, 2005

If they've been shown at festivals, then maybe...but I went to film school for 4 years and there was nothing more PAINFUL than sitting through the (3 or 4 hour) final screening at the end of every year. Bad amateur films can be a scary thing.
posted by chococat at 7:09 PM on October 14, 2005

Slithy_Tove, that may be true of fiction, but non-fiction is a different matter. A lot of writers self-publish simply because conventional publishers don't think their topic will generate enough sales to turn a profit.
posted by watsondog at 7:25 PM on October 14, 2005

The vast, vast majority of POD books are garbage.

And it really must be said that such a tool is far more dangerous in the hands of a filmmaker. Indie authors have egos. Indie filmmakers have diagnosable illnesses.
posted by VulcanMike at 7:47 PM on October 14, 2005

The great thing about the digital revolution is that anybody can make movies.

The horrible thing about the digial revolution is that anybody can make movies.
posted by brundlefly at 8:05 PM on October 14, 2005

Is it just me, or is their whole 'catalog' like 20 movies?
posted by fixedgear at 3:26 AM on October 15, 2005

This is a great idea, especially for short films - every year at the Edinburgh International Film Festival, or at Rezfest, which is touring at the moment, I see truly amazing shorts, most of which will only ever be screened a handful of times, to essentially the same audience of industry and press. Obviously, there'll be a lot of cack on a site like this, but there really is a need for a service that gets 'festival films' wider exposure.
posted by jack_mo at 4:26 AM on October 15, 2005

I'll third that festival film hope, I've often seen films on festivals that I'd love to have a copy of. If this site gets together with a few festivals and distributes the shorts it has a very promising future.
posted by dabitch at 4:31 AM on October 15, 2005

fixedgear... it's obvious they just started, give em a break.
posted by banished at 7:54 AM on October 15, 2005

It's true that a majority of POD books suck. Bookstores are reluctant to sell many of them as most POD companies don't allow returns, so if the bookstore takes a risk on a POD book, or orders it for a customer, and they don't buy it, the store is stuck with it.

Apparently there are authors who originally got attention through POD or self publishing. For example, "Idiot Girl's Action Adventure Club" was originally self-published. One of the big advantages of POD(and I know Barnes and Noble is seeking to take advantage of this) is that it would be possible to keep every title in print, a customer would just order a book and then it would be printed up and sent to them. This could work for movies as well. Can't get a copy of "Liquid Sky?" A VOD service whips you up a copy and mails it out. If anything, the service could encourage obscure tastes.
posted by drezdn at 9:23 AM on October 15, 2005