CONFERENCE AGENDA
SUNDAY DECEMBER 2, 2007
11:00am Registration Opens
1:15pm- 1:30pm Welcoming Remarks & Introductions
1:30pm- 2:30pm Convenient Truths: Creating a Sustainable Film Festival and Tactics for Success
Getting over the hurdles of the first five years of a film festival is a huge challenge in and of itself. From educating your community as to what exactly a film festival entails, to introducing yourself as a festival to distributors and filmmakers, and stretching a small cash budget coupled with in kind sponsorships, these are some of the crucial elements of young, independent film festivals' survival. Being able to determine your parameters of success, while growing stronger year by year, is an important balance to achieve.
Attendees will hear about the successes and mistakes made by this group of panelists. This session will create an open dialogue between panelists and attendees, to allow for the sharing of ideas, thoughts, and advice between fellow film festival organizers, and to deepen the camaraderie and catharsis between similarly young festivals.
Moderator: Lela Meadow, Festival Director, Tallgrass Film Festival
Eric Moore, Festival Producer, Tallgrass Film Festival
Cheryle Reynolds , Founder and Producer, Urban Mediamakers Film Festival
Herman Snell , Festival Director, Crossroads Film Festival
2:45pm- 4:00pm Festival Round-Up and Break Out Sessions
Take this opportunity to roll your sleeves up and get to know your fellow festival professionals in this interactive break out session. Dissect strategy and bounce ideas off your colleagues. Walk way with new partnerships, resources, and best practices that you can immediately implement.
Funding & Sponsorship
Programming
Operations & Management
Laurie B. Kirby, Esq., Executive Director, Ojai Film Festival
Publicity & Public Relations
Acquisition & Distribution
Digital Technology Solutions
Long Term Planning & Sustainable Growth
Executive Management
4:15pm- 5:00pm Keynote Presentation
Mr. Handling joined what was originally known as the ‘Festival of Festivals' in 1982 as a programmer. Through the years, the organization expanded its programming year-round, and became known as the Toronto International Film Festival Group, of which Mr. Handling has been Director and CEO since 1994. He has been an instrumental driving force in helping to transform the once small festival into one of the most important film organizations in the world.
He will draw upon his extensive and broad experience at the helm of TIFFG to share his perspective for the current state of the film festival industry along with what new opportunities and challenges are on the horizon.
Piers Handling
Director and CEO
Toronto International Film Festival Group
5:00pm- 6:30pm Opening Cocktail Reception
MONDAY DECEMBER 3, 2007
8:30AM - Registration Opens
9:00am Opening Remarks by Conference Chair
9:15am- 10:00am Keynote Presentation
This presentation will present Variety's perspective on the importance of festivals in the entertainment ecosystem. In his presentation Mr. Koones will address the many facets of a festival including art vs. commerce, glamour vs. edge, festivals and the awards season and Variety's interest in and commitment to the festival business.
Charlie Koones
President & Publisher
Variety
10:00am- 11:00AM The Next Big Thing: Tying it all together Content, Technology and your Film Festival
As the film and television viewer experience evolves, so must the outlets that promote and deliver this content. New technologies are disrupting the traditional distribution channels allowing for greater consumer choices and control. With the continued proliferation of film festivals their place in the value chain will serve to promote both independent film and educate the consumer about new services and ways to receive this content.
This panel will address how new technologies are impacting audiences, filmmakers, film festivals, and what new opportunities this will present for all of them. Hear from industry experts who are currently working with film festivals and other content owners about the changing landscape. Attendees will walk away with a greater understanding of innovative models for film distribution, how to use leading edge technology to get your audience and filmmakers more involved, and how these technologies can benefit your film festival.
Moderator: Scott Kirsner, Author, CinemaTech
Mike Gordon, Co-Founder & Chief Strategy Officer, Limelight Networks
Chris Hyams, Founder and CEO, B-Side
Graham Leggat, Executive Director, San Francisco Film Society
Darcy Lorincz, CEO, Origin Digital
Ian Calderon, Director of Digital Initiatives, Sundance Institute
11:00am- 11:30am Morning Break on the Exhibit Floor
11:30am- 12:00pm Are Film Festivals the New Art Cinemas?
Gary Meyer
Co-Festival Director
Telluride Film Festival
12:00pm- 1:30pm Break for Lunch
3 x Afternoon Breakout Tracks
Track 1
1:30pm- 2:00pm Film Festival Strategy and Long Term Planning
Gregor Ash
Executive Director
Atlantic Film Festival
2:00pm- 3:00pm Media & Film Festivals: Roles and Relationships
The role and relationship of film festivals to the media is a paramount concern not only impacting coverage of the festival but films in competition. Understanding how to approach the media, what constitutes good press, appropriate relationships with journalists, credentialing issues, roles & responsibilities of press at a festival are all critical areas that a festival can execute flawlessly. Don't miss this informative session addressing the ins-and-outs of how to effectively work with the media.
Moderator: Laurie B. Kirby, Esq., Executive Director, Ojai Film Festival
Robin Laatz, Director & Co-Founder, San Diego Film Festival
Mike Jones, Managing Editor, Film Festivals, Variety
Bonnie Voland, International Marketing & Publicity, IM Global Film
Matt Dentler, Festival Producer, SXSW
3:00pm- 3:30pm Aggregating Talent and Content at Your Film Festival
Robert Schwartz
Chairman & CEO
Slamdance Media Group
3:30pm- 4:00pm Afternoon Break on the Exhibit Floor
4:00pm- 5:00pm Connecting Sponsorship Dollars with Festivals
As mass media continues to underperform, national sponsors are looking for new consumer channels. None offers them more than festivals; but festivals do have challenges to overcome.
Charles Brown, Chairman and CEO of Festival Media Corporation (FMC) will discuss both opportunities and challenges for festivals in 2007.
FMC connects corporations with communities through a proprietary global database of 40,000 community festivals and events, including more than 300 film festivals. FMC's SponsorFest® is a paradigm shift in sponsorship. It streamlines and automates the sponsorship process, enabling producers to enter demographic profiles, assets and packages; and sponsors to plan, purchase and measure festival sponsorship through a single source.
Charles Brown
Chairman & CEO
Festival Media Corporation
5:00pm- 5:30pm Executive Management for Film Festival Professionals
Gregg Schwenk
Executive Director
Newport Beach Film Festival
Track 2
1:30pm- 2:00pm Hitting the Road: An Inside Look at a Traveling Film Festival
Film festivals are constantly looking for ways to expand their audiences and one way is to brig the show to them. Mountainfilm on Tour started in 2000 with 5 shows on the road and has expanded to 100+ shows on 5 continents with audiences well over 30,000 a year. This talk will cover our successes as well as our failures and will lay out a road map to success in hitting the road (if it's right for your festival).
Attendees will understand the advantages, disadvantages, etc. of taking your film festival on the road. How to plan for a tour, issues to think about, etc. Additionally, Justin will talk about logistics, planning, and more. Taking the show on the road sounds complicated but Justin will lay out the groundwork for successfully spreading the word and building an audience. This includes new media, social networking and good old fashioned cold calling.
Justin Clifton
World Tour Director
Mountainfilm in Telluride
2:00pm- 3:00pm Ticketing Shootout
This session will provide an in-depth overview of the myriad of festival ticketing solutions available. Take this opportunity to understand the latest solutions that your festival can use to cut costs and increase revenue streams. Our group of panelists will arm delegates with the information they need to select a ticketing solution that's right for your festival.
Brian Arnone, Vice President, ENTA USA
Jeff White, Vice President, inticketing
Richard Steward, President, Agile Ticketing Solutions
3:00pm- 3:30pm Best Practices and Guidelines for Festival Programming
Brian Owens
Director
Indianapolis International Film Festival
3:30pm- 4:00pm Afternoon Break on the Exhibit Floor
4:00pm- 5:00pm The "First Look" Advantage: Tapping the True Value of Your Festival Over the Next Five Years
Over the past five years, the number of quality independent films produced annually has exploded, driving similar growth in the number of film festivals emerging to share them with audiences. As distribution models adjust to new technologies, expanded delivery platforms and the surplus of quality film programming, film festivals – and their "first look" position for undistributed films – will play an increasingly strategic role in the transformation.
This session will frame the accelerating importance of festivals large and small within this larger industry shift, and explore the essential avenues festivals can pursue to take best advantage. How can you use your 'first look' position to tighten the links between your program and content buyers? How can you create branded distribution opportunities that attract the highest quality programming to your festival? What is the value of your audience to online advertisers? How big can your audience really be? Panelists representing distribution, advertising and festival thought leadership will break down the formulas for maximizing the value of your festival in this rapidly changing landscape.
Moderator: Chris Hyams, Founder & CEO, B-Side
Gabe Wardell, Executive Director, Atlanta Film Festival
Martin Anaya , Executive Director, Sacramento International Film Festival
Andrea Galante , Founder & Director, Milan International Film Festival
5:00pm- 5:30pm Branding 101
The ability to evoke emotion is what makes the entertainment industry so successful. To make a film festival successful, there must be marketing in place that stirs up excitement and curiosity. The best way to do this is to give it a creative face through branding.
In order to successfully brand your festival, you need to bridge the gap between creativity and strategy. You want an identity that pushes the envelope in creativity, but it must also maintain strategy so that people see more than just an image. It has to move people to take action, to remember the event, talk about it and attend it.
In this session, attendees will see innovative examples of identities created for film festivals and other events. They will also learn about beneficial long- term impacts of effective event branding as well as important elements to consider when creating an event theme.
Debbie Bates
President
Bates Creative Group
Track 3
1:30pm- 2:00pm Distribution 2.0
Film festivals give birth to the creative endeavors of independent filmmakers. Often, this is the first time that anyone will get to see their film on the big screen. While this is a great thrill, the hope and dream of every filmmaker is that this will be the first of many opportunities for people to share and enjoy their vision. There are many ways that festivals can help filmmakers realize this dream. One of the important things that a festival can do for its filmmakers is to educate and inform them about distribution. Today, there are many new and exciting opportunities waiting for filmmakers with completed films that have passed the scrutiny of festival programmers. This presentation will address many of these opportunities.
The number of distribution deals done at the top tier festivals is dwarfed by the number of wonderful films that never find a home or an audience. All that is changing. Learn what you can do to make sure that great films that make it into your festival get to be seen by more than your local audience.
Linda Nelson
Producer
Nelson Madison Films
2:00pm- 3:00pm Festival Management and the Media Revolution
As the digital revolution accelerates, the conventional boundaries and paradigms of Indie Film are in flux. Film content proliferates across platforms and delivery systems, as Filmmakers discover innovative new models for connecting with their Audiences. At the center of these new models rest Film Festivals, venerated institutions of the pre-digital age.
We find ourselves in a fascinating convergence between exciting new trends and cherished traditions. The Withoutabox Submissions System is evolving into a comprehensive Management Suite, with a greatly expanded set of tools to streamline the workflow of your entire process, and carry you into a digital age. Our goal is to allow every film promoter the greatest expansion of their brand, and the widest array of services they can offer to filmmakers. Now you can manage marketing, submissions, judging, scheduling, social networking and ticketing with a simple, integrated solution.
At Withoutabox, we realize the plates are shifting. We see unprecedented opportunity to ensure that Film Festivals are firmly embedded deep into the emerging topography of the new Indie world. We invite you to join us for a discussion of the ways in which your Festival can position itself to flourish as the industry is restructured.
Withoutabox is on the verge of launching a fundamentally new system to empower Filmmakers to connect with Audiences like never before, with Film Festivals at the heart of the process. Join us for a fun, informative discussion, Withoutabox!
Fred Kramer
President & GM
Withoutabox
3:00pm- 3:30pm The Filmmaker Perspective
Dan Mirvish, Co-Founder, Slamdance Film Festival
Adrian Belic, Director & Filmmaker, WadiRum Productions
3:30pm- 4:00pm Afternoon Break on the Exhibit Floor
4:00pm- 5:00pm Hot and Bothered: Censorship in Festival Programming
In the summer of 2006, the Ann Arbor Film Festival's programming was censored by the state government of Michigan for being too controversial for taxpayers' money. Without watching the programming, state legislators deemed that films from the AAFF were "pornographic," and the festival's state funding was revoked by legislators. In addition, the festival was asked to alter its programming in order to receive continued support from the state. In response, the Ann Arbor Film Festival sued the government, and the festival is currently the plaintiff in a Federal lawsuit against the state of Michigan over First Amendment violations.
Join AAFF executive director Christen McArdle to learn more about the First Amendment lawsuit that has taken the festival community by storm, and discuss how your festival can prevent and respond to similar issues in the future.
Chris Gore, President, Film Threat
Christen McArdle, Executive Director, Ann Arbor Film Festival
5:00pm- 5:30pm If You Build It, They WON'T Come (Unless You Give Them a Reason)
So many events assume a website and a shopping cart is all that is needed to sell tickets in advance. Yea, right – and having kids will automatically make you a great parent! Successful online ticket sales require work and a focused marketing strategy. This presentation discusses the reasons that people buy in advance and what you can do to make sure ticket sales happen now.
We will look into the mind of the potential ticket buyer and analyze the factors that make someone want to purchase advanced tickets – and what keeps them from pulling out their wallet. How do you encourage the impulse to buy tickets in advance days, weeks and months before customers plan to arrive? Are advance purchases more valuable than walk-up sales?
We will review real examples of websites and marketing, both good and bad. This presentation will encourage active participation from the audience – please come prepared to share your success stories and your lessons learned.
Michael Patrick
Vice President
ClicknPrint Ticketing
5:30pm- 7:30pm Reception on the Exhibit Floor and presentation of the IFFS Excellence Awards
TUESDAY DECEMBER 4, 2007
8:00am Registration Opens
9:00am Opening Remarks by Conference Chair
9:15am- 10:00am Keynote Presentation
Don't miss this engaging presentation that will provide a unique perspective on independent film and the growing festival business. Mr. Hernandez will address the festival landscape pulling from his diverse experience working with the many stakeholders in independent film.
Eugene Hernandez
Editor-in-Chief & Co-Founder
indieWIRE
10:00am- 11:00AM What Sponsors Need and Why They Repeat Sponsorships
Attracting national sponsors to film festivals is perhaps the most challenging task for most festival producers. Sponsorship is moving rapidly from corporate community service departments and foundations to corporate marketing departments, and the sponsors are looking for returns on the investment of sponsorship dollars from all types of events, including film festivals.
Hear from leading national and international sponsor companies about what their goals are, what they look for in a sponsorship, and the results they need to repeat sponsorships with film festivals.
Moderator: Jim Shanklin , Executive Vice President, Festival Media Corporation
Brooke Golden , Senior Consumer Marketing Manager, LUNA Brand Team
11:00am- 11:30am Morning Break
11:30am- 12:00am Programming Extravaganza
12:00pm- 1:30pm Break for Lunch
3 x Afternoon Breakout Tracks
Track 1
1:30pm- 2:00pm Re-Inventing the Film Festival for a Modern Population
In this modern day-in-age, where there are more than 2500 film festivals world-wide, what is it that makes your festival unique and what is it that will KEEP your festival on top? What keeps people coming back from year to year, and what is it that is drawing a NEW audience and NEW submissions? What will make your festival grow and what can you do to adapt to an ever-changing industry and social culture?
Whether your festival has been around for a half-century, or this is the event's first year, there is a whole-lot more that you can do to re-invent your festival EVERY year. We're in a new era of filmmaking, why not be in an era of new, original events as well?
Hear from JC Schroder, CEO & Producer of Star Com Productions (a live-events production management company), President of the Miami Film Association, and the Executive Director and Founder of the Oxford International Film Festival (one of the newest and fastest growing festivals in the Midwest), and Stephen Murray, Emmy-Award Winning film Director, former President of M.A.F.I.A. Films (a production collaborative) and current Operations Director for the Oxford International Film Festival.
JC Schroder
Founder and Executive Producer
Oxford International Film Festival
Stephen Murray
Festival Operations Director
Oxford International Film Festival
2:00pm- 3:00pm Internet Intelligence: Branding, Marketing, and Expanding Audiences
As with most other businesses, it has become increasingly imperative for film festivals to harness the power of the Internet as a complete business tool. This discussion will look at how entertainment news and information assists a film festival's brand and adds marketing assets with very little cost. We will take a look at some key examples in which the Internet is being used to generate screening buzz, site traffic and long-term film associations that ultimately help generate expansive audiences and more attractive destinations. Beyond the traditional localized marketing campaigns, news/information-based websites offer a great way for festival organizers to create buzz and awareness for movies they are exhibiting – allowing them to tap into previously inaccessible audiences.
Topics that may be covered:
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How does internet buzz build on movies your festival screens? Can you harness this?
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How do you use business intelligence on the Internet to tap into previously inaccessible resources like company directories, artist representation, and location-based reporting?
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How does entertainment data create millions of pages of web content? And why does this matter to my festival?
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How can you proliferate your festival's brand on-line, and create a network of content and connections that create both local and national connections?
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How can you use the Internet to tie your festival's brand to the films that have screened there? And why is this important to the success and longevity of the event?
Ryan Williams, Director, Creative & Marketing, Baseline StudioSystems
Chris Gore, President, Film Threat
Christine Churchill, President, KeyRelevance
3:00pm- 3:30pm Connecting Film Festivals to Community
This presentation will present examples and success stories of how to create a film festival that will connect to your community, and how to use that connection to attract regional and national attendance. Attendees will walk away with a greater understanding of how to capitalize off of what makes their film festival unique -- its location, and the community it is a part of.
Erik Jambor
Executive Director, BendFilm
Co-Founder, Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival
3:30pm- 4:00pm Afternoon Break on the Exhibit Floor
4:00pm- 5:00pm Local and Regional Sponsorships
The national offices of car and computer companies, and other businesses that support larger film festivals, aren't writing too many checks to small and medium sized festivals. Most of the “regional” festivals rely heavily on the businesses in their area for sponsorship. Whether cash or trade, attracting these community sponsors, retaining them year-to-year and increasing sponsorship levels is important for survival. Hear from festival directors how they have gained the support of local businesses - from big corporations based in their area to restaurants and retail. From meals to media trades to large cash amounts, find out how these festivals use sponsorship to balance their budget.
Moderator: Martin Anaya , Executive Director, Sacramento International Film Festival
Tom Olbrich , Executive Director, Ashland Independent Film Festival
Jason Redmond , Executive Director & Co-Founder, Independent Film Festival of Boston
Andrew Rodgers , Executive Director, River Run International Film Festival
Ian Jankelowitz , Managing Director, CineVegas Film Festival
Track 2
1:30pm- 2:00pm Film Festival Budgeting
Barbara Morgan
Executive Director
Austin Film Festival
2:00pm- 3:00pm Alternative Distribution: New Opportunities for Festivals and Filmmakers
Film buffs are suddenly eager to watch movies on all kinds of new platforms -- whether PCs, cell phones, portable devices, or on television sets linked to the Internet. Some festivals have experimented with making shorts and features available on these platforms for a limited time, expanding their audience reach. But filmmakers can be skittish, worrying that this new digital availability might damage their movie's value in the marketplace. How can festivals and filmmakers work together to address the challenges and take advantage of the new opportunities that alternative channels of distribution create? Bring your ideas and examples.
Moderator: Scott Kirsner, Author, CinemaTech
Scilla Andreen, CEO & Co-Founder, Indieflix.com
Tom Swanston , Founder and CEO, Wysiwyg Films
Bob Alexander , President, IndiePix
Derek Kuhn , Senior Director, North American Strategy, Alcatel-Lucent North America
3:00pm- 3:30pm Sponsorship Programs & Corporate Development
Nancy Kennedy, Development Director, Seattle International Film Festival
3:30pm- 4:00pm Afternoon Break on the Exhibit Floor
4:00pm- 5:00pm Wall Street Meets Independent Film
Suraj Gohill, SVP, CIT Group
Matt Rhodes, CEO, Persistent Entertainment
Track 3
1:30pm- 2:30pm Know Your Niche: The Key to Genre Film Festivals
Moderator: Jennifer Morris , Director of Programming, Frameline
Lisa Vandever, Co-Founder & Director, Cinekink
Andrew Migliore , Founder, H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival
Rachel Belofsky , Festival Director & Founder, Screamfest Horror Film Festival
2:30pm- 3:30pm IEG Sponsorship Workshop
Dan Kowitz
Vice President
IEG Advisory Services
3:30pm- 4:00pm Afternoon Break on the Exhibit Floor
4:00pm- 5:00pm Goals & Expectations: Developing Your Own Strategy for Realistic and Attainable Success
Moderator: Kerrie Long , Festival Producer, Edmonton International Film Festival
Carl Spence, Artistic Director, Seattle International Film Festival & Palm Springs International Film Festival
Matt Dentler, Festival Producer, SXSW
Barry Rivers , Founder and Director, Maui Film Festival
5:00pm- 6:00pm Closing Reception
*Schedule Subject to Change