Independent Film to Die a Digital Death?
There’s a problem in the independent film world. It can be summed in one basic sentence: people don’t buy DVD’s anymore. Whether it’s Netflix, Hulu or a what-have-you host of websites, increasing numbers of global movie watchers now turn to digitized streaming video as their main means of film consumption.Yes, this enables a larger consumer base to see independent film via the internet, but while that may be the end goal in an ideal world, independent filmmaking is still a business and businesses see money to survive. Netflix buys content at a fair price and certainly there are means of legal movie downloading by which filmmakers can be duly compensated, but the independent film industry which is already strapped for cash in terms of budgets is hit particularly hard by piracy and free online movie viewing. Devoid of major studio funds, indie flicks have long relied on DVD sales as a key source of revenue in balancing out the sometime out-of-pocket production costs. The advent of the internet, precipitating the decline in DVD sales has been absolutely wonderful in terms of exposure for the indie scene. Unfortunately exposure doesn’t directly translate into revenue.The problem is exacerbated by a lack of Hollywood movie studio interest in independent works. Gone are the days of Disney run Miramax, specifically looking for great indie films with big time backing to help turn a modest endeavor into a blockbuster hit.So while the ease with which we watch movies is ultimately eased by streaming digital content, the originality of the selection will soon start to suffer. Perhaps convenience is always the best motivation to ensure great work, unless we want a world full of cookie-cut movies fresh out of the major studio Easy-Bake Oven.