I can’t say I’ve had many positive experiences with publicists. I once met one who texted throughout our entire first meeting, another who pretended not to have a spare ticket for a screening, and another who set up an interview and then told me afterward it couldn’t be published. But a series of lousy experiences by no means speaks to the universal personalities that PR attracts. It’s just that I’ve found publicity in general to be more on the unpleasant side of film industry unpleasantry, so it’s somehow been easier to judge. When I think of PR, I have a […]
by Taylor Hess on Apr 28, 2015For much longer than I care to think about I’ve been hitting the road and traveling the friendly skies far and wide, covering film festivals both nationally and internationally. And yet it never ceases to amaze me how often paid publicists and filmmaker-publicists shoot themselves in the proverbial foot when it comes to obtaining coverage for their indie endeavors. So with Sundance nearly upon us, I thought it might be helpful (and in my case, cathartic) to go over a few dos – and two definite don’ts – when it comes to working the PR machine. DO everything in your […]
by Lauren Wissot on Jan 9, 2013There was an elephant in the room during day one of IFP’s annual Marketing and Distribution Labs, and that elephant’s name was Sundance. The majority of the Lab’s 21 attending filmmakers submitted applications earlier this year, each one hoping and secretly sort of expecting an acceptance letter. What they all received instead was a courteous but crushing rejection. Today’s afternoon session started out as something of a venting session. As the lab leaders tried to reassure these first-time filmmakers that their careers were not over, that they had many options still on the table, the mood in the room only […]
by Jane Schoenbrun on Dec 9, 2011