Packaging is stuck in the past

FilmNation head Glen Basner says the biggest problem in indie distribution is how rigidly films get put together before anyone shoots a frame.

The math actors and directors

The formula runs: this name actor is worth this much money, plus this director, plus X, Y and Z, and only then does the budget pencil out.

“this name actor means this much money and this director and it has to have X, Y and Z to make sense”

Buyers chase safe money

That formula pushes buyers toward selling titles to pay TV giants and streamers in their own markets, because a pre-sale spreads the risk before release.

Risk management becomes the plan

Managing downside is now the organizing principle of the deal. The film gets shaped around who will write the check, not who will buy a ticket.

Made for the streamer

Basner's warning is blunt: the industry is designing movies to satisfy streaming companies first, and the result is tuned for a home screen.

“we're building movies for the streaming companies”

Streaming hit is not theatrical hit

A title can perform well on a service and still have nothing that gets people into a cinema. Basner told a TIFF market panel those are two different propositions.

“it may work great on the streamers, but it's not the same as building a theatrical proposition”