Calling video on demand the emerging wave of film distribution no longer seems accurate: with YouTube, iTunes and Netflix all into or fast approaching their second decade, digital streaming and downloads are arguably already the primary means of independent film distribution. But what is still emerging is the vast array of VOD and download services available to independent filmmakers seeking to reach audiences of paying, online movie viewers. The companies composing today’s field, discussed here, roughly fall into three permeable categories: the established players; the large cadre of new start-ups, many of which offer tools for filmmakers beyond simply hosting […]

The instructions are easy enough: Communicate your project idea in three pages. I think, “Great, I can bang this out in a day or two.” I sit at my desk and wait for the words to pour forth. And this is when my brain likes to take vacation. As 2014 rolls in and I am applying for grants for my new documentary project, I wish I could tell you that it gets easier to pen grant proposals each time I do it. Let me be honest: grant writing is tedious. It’s as much fun as writing a manual on video […]

Women, this is our year.  I don’t say this because I’ve got numbers to back me up (because I don’t), or because I’m generally an overly optimistic cheerleader of life (though I am). I say this because it’s our only choice. This has to be our year. As Sundance kicks off in Park City, a large handful of women are about to debut their new films and fresh voices to the world. And after interviewing almost all of them myself I can say, in my most eloquent terms, that this year’s slate of Sundance female filmmakers is absolutely badass. The […]

We are in the middle of a hardware revolution. Inexpensive processors, memory and sensor technologies are now accessible to the masses. Long gone are the days of expensive fabrication and manufacturing processes. Maker culture and crowdfunding have ushered in a new cottage industry of manufacturing, one that enables entrepreneurs to go direct to consumers. As a result, innovation is pouring out of garages, basements, bedrooms and makerspaces around the world. My favorite hardware innovation of the last year is a latecomer. Just last month, a startup named Kano launched a crowdfunding campaign for a $99 computer aimed at teaching kids […]