We Need an Army

Lately, when I speak with my closer film business friends about this Fall, the topic inevitably returns to how the film industry might re-open and whether we’ll be able to attend Toronto or other Fall festivals? The answer to this is no, but my new reply is always: I’m less concerned about whether or not we will gather in theaters than whether we’ll be able to gather in Washington DC, in protest, come November when Trump tries to stop the election.

Fair Warning – Stop Now if you don’t want politics – non-political news is “below the fold.”

Don’t think I’m crazy for too long on this one. And if this despot doesn’t try to stop the elections or seriously curtail voting, we have another issue already ­– Biden is going to lose. Now, before you get in a fuss and think I’m some Bernie-Bro or whatever, I’m not (promise). But we need to win outside of our bubble, and that’s where we’re losing.
 
Biden has no traction online. And that’s the only place that matters anymore – if not BC, definitely after, where we live now. As Bob Lefsetz recently said, “Joe’s got no media traction, he doesn’t know how to make news. And he’s too old to figure out social media. The only sunlight he’s gotten recently has been when Bernie, Barack and Elizabeth endorsed him.”  And while Lefsetz thinks the right VP pick will make the difference, it won’t – no one has ever voted for a VP.
 
Bottom line, Joe’s got no game. As one filmmaker told me recently, “Everyone is stuck with the notion that we are generally winning the battle over facts and losing the battle for hearts. Biden does nothing to help with the battle for the heart and soul of America.” And that’s going to be a huge problem come November, when our media is overwhelmed/inundated/obliterated by a sea of misinformation, all while truth is already distorted. The recent astro-turf protests are a harbinger of what’s to come; and if you aren’t terrified by how a few thousand people, organized by a handful of folks, could take over the news and change the conversation, then what does terrify you?

But I do see a way we can win. What we can do, as a film industry, is come to his rescue. We are storytellers, and we know how the web works, right? We know how to shoot, edit and post (online that is). We know how to craft a message and we know how to get it out to people. But instead of spending our corona-time worrying about when our industry can tell its stories again, we need to be using all of this time towards one thing – winning the information/attention war.
 
We need an army of filmmakers making the short form, social-friendly video that Biden will never get around to making for himself. It needs to be persuasive – capable of swaying someone’s opinion. And it needs to be a massive effort. This video by Nico Pitney on NowThis (screenshot above) was pretty popular and effective, but imagine what all of our filmmaker friends could do with a little time. I bet it would look more like this – from Inequality Media – and it would have more impact.

Guess what else we have – an army of unemployed filmmakers sitting at home, with time to spare. But who will pay for them to work, you ask? No one. I am sorry to report that there will be no WPA for this. The major foundations won’t fund it, as they are too timid. This is going to be free work, but it has to be done, and all of our free time should be going towards this goal.
 
(A quick aside here- I realize I am writing from a place of privilege, and that not everyone has free time, or can afford to think about political battles. I am also guessing most of my readers fall into a similar camp as me (same bubble). I’m also aware that tons of people are doing the hard work- on the ground organizing, etc. to win this, and I am not trying to belittle that work when I say it needs to be augmented with more work from all of us in the film world.)
 
We need thousands of new films every day. We need creatively made stories- that tell the truth, but that appeal to the heart. And we need help spreading these messages. If you don’t want to spend the next four years (or longer) hating life, then take your talent and put all of that energy into making media that helps, now. Have a camera on your phone – oh yeah, we all do – use it to film something creative now. Know how to edit, use that skill to help other filmmakers to edit these stories into something compelling. Already finished a film about topic-X that really matters, and don’t have time to make another? Well, I bet too few people saw it, or will see it. So re-edit your old films into shorter messages that get to the point fast, and show people how we can make a difference on that issue. I assure you, whatever you care about, and whatever your old films are about – there’s an angle to be pushed here.  Don’t live in the US? We’re ruining your country from afar, so you’re part of this fight, too. Don’t want to make videos for the election? Make them just to get out the real news – there’s too much crap from those who decry fake news while spreading it…like a virus.
 
Need inspiration? Copy Inequality Media. But make it for your cause, your issue, your talent. Because we all need it. 
 
Now, off my soap-box and back to the news:

The NYT Covers the Fragile Eco-System of Festivals – Aisha Harris writes a nice Op-Ed for the NYT on the fragility of the fest eco-system. As she notes, “When there isn’t a crisis going on, putting up a festival is already an often financially precarious endeavor. Of course, some organizers will find ways to adapt and work around it, or are already doing so, but the ability to undertake an event with so many moving parts and variables just became infinitely more difficult. The ramifications are reverberating far and wide.” My fear is that it’s gonna be worse than anyone quoted in this article seems to be contemplating. 

Netflix Made Some Docs Avail for Free to Educators – On YouTube – This is a pretty cool gesture from Netflix for teachers stuck at home. Educational guides as well. Surprising that they worked out rights to show them for free on YouTube as well, but great. 

CauseCinema (iGems) made a free e-book for Earth Day, with info on some of the best environmental docs – Get info on the films, links to where you can watch them and more. Check it out here.

Sundance Responds to Covid-19 with Emergency Grants and More: The good folks at Sundance have responded relatively quickly to the crisis, with some great grants for artists, film organizations and more. Some items are for alumni only, but not everything, and many resources are online for free. I’d dig into this more, but it’s been reported everywhere, and you can read for yourself. 

Arthouse Cinemas are Getting Creative – Via the Arthouse Convergence Newsletter,Sidewalk Cinemas and the Texas Theater are making “home cinema survival kit” concessions available for curbside pickup. And I’m loving Reel Rumble from Bryn Mawr Film Institute and featuring ArtsQuest vs. Renew Theaters in a Family Feud style show. Small efforts, but very crafty and interesting ways to engage audiences during the crisis. 

Fandango Bought Vudu – I think Vudu is actually one of the better interfaces out there, and while it wasn’t a good fit for WalMart, maybe it will be for NBCUniversal/Fandango. The Verge reports.

Unfortunately, movie theaters remain last on the list of cultural events people see themselves attending anytime soon – according to actual data – from IMPACTS data – which is tracking which cultural institutions people expect to attend at pre-covid levels. One chart:

But we can watch a documentary in VR instead – Ask No Questions – a film which premiered at Slamdance and was set for many other festivals, is holding a VR screening in conjunction with San Francisco’s DocFest and VR MovieHouse. You can get more info and tickets here, Deadline wrote about it here, and this is what it will look like:

Branded Content:

Every Covid-Commercial is the Same – Great video on the same-ness of every company’s crisis ad. Yes, we all know why this happens, but it shows why another approach is needed. 

But Not Yeti-Streams – Not your average Covid-Commercial and quite possibly the most original idea from a brand during the crisis, yet – Yeti launched Yeti+Virtual Streams, which you must experience to understand. Brilliant stuff, folks. Like most of what Yeti does (former client, but I wasn’t involved in this one). 

BackBone Media takes a Look at Trends Across Lifestyle Media and Marketing – and finds some good news. I’ve worked with the folks at Backbone on many campaigns for clients, and they’re good, hardworking people. They’ve done a good job compiling what’s going on in this space, and among the findings – a positive response to positive messages, at-home tutorials, entertainment, and escape from the news cycle (all to be expected). They recommend focusing on the long-tail over short-term sales. 

MISC:

This is the Wake-Up Call for Nonprofits and Foundations to Get Political – Good luck with that, but if there’s ever been a time they should take their heads out of their a-ses and get political, it’s now. Love the fire analogy here – “So the fires rage on and worsen as the firestarters get smarter and bolder, knowing that no matter what they do, the townsfolks will only respond to the effects of the fires, not try to stop them from setting fires.” Via NonprofitAF . 

Strangers Project Collects Quarantine Stories – I stumbled into the Strangers Project in Hell’s Kitchen back in December, 2019 and have been a fan ever since. It’s explained here, but essentially, this guy collects stories from strangers and shares them online. He’s been doing it for over 11 years, and has 60K+ stories. Normally, you have to contribute your story in person, but for a limited (we hope) time, he’s collecting stories online. Contribute your story of what it’s like to be you, now, in quarantine, here.