Film Update – Do You Trust the News?
When a new film is about to hit our screen and we anxiously wait for the film update, we often hear something like this – “I can’t tell you where it’s at, but I’ll find out soon enough.” While it is true that movie news is a dime a dozen these days, if you have any hope of being taken seriously in the film industry then you have to be able to discern what is important and what is not. Many people, when they hear “film updates” stop for a moment, mouth a big, laugh and then say “Oh, I can’t tell you that! It’s so Top Secret!” Believe me when I tell you that is no way to run a business.
Let me give you an example of how I think that you can separate what is important from what is not. If you look at the newspaper, you will see each day there are several important stories, many that get ignored in the larger scheme of things. But those two or three listed on the morning section of the paper will be news to those in the film industry because they pertain directly to the film industry and it was important to them that the story got out there. But, if you ask a person who reads the paper only to have them tell you what you already know, then you are getting different information than what you were seeking.
You see, it is not the newspaper’s job to inform us of what is important and what is not. The film industry is a different animal and while the newspaper will try to give you the broad strokes of events, the film industry goes above and beyond that. And when they have an important story they want to share with you, they want to make sure they get their facts across to you in the clearest manner possible. As an independent producer, your job as a consumer, is to be able to separate the news from the spin, and that takes knowledge, experience and a certain touch of humor.