The document discusses various options for distributing and exhibiting films, including their advantages and disadvantages. After evaluating the options, the author concludes that social media would be the most suitable distribution method as a first-time filmmaker due to its low cost. YouTube is selected as the best exhibition method since cinemas are unlikely to show a first film and YouTube offers free viewing.

1. Film Distribution
and Exhibition
By Danielle Duffy

2. Introduction
Film distribution involves selecting the most appropriate way
(form of media) to distribute our film to and make our audience
aware of our film. In this piece of research I will find out the
options available to us and at the end be able to conclude which
is the most suitable for our film so that it can reach our desired
audience. Film exhibition is the way in which we will display our
film so that our audience is able to view it.
This will be useful for helping me decide which way I could
present my own film to my target audience of ages 15 and up. I
will look at the advantages of disadvantages of these methods
and assess the overall suitability of them, selecting the one that
I could use for my own film.

3. Marketing: Print Media
Printing media such as film posters seen on billboards and in magazines is a
highly popular method of advertising which is usually effective in attracting the
attention of potential customers. Conglomerates with larger budgets can
afford to place these posters in popular areas (such as busy cities) or in
magazines distributed to larger audiences, reaching more people. Posters aim
to give the viewer an idea of the film’s themes and inform us of the genre,
selecting and designing one image that will attempt to draw-in the viewer. Film
magazines such as ‘Empire’ are ideal as they are read by viewers who enjoy
films and so increases an institution’s confidence that their expenditure was
worthwhile.

4. Pros and Cons of Print Media
Advantages
• Will be seen by large numbers of people (especially if placed in popular
magazines)
• Imagery is effective in captivating potential consumers’ attention
• There are a range of magazines for different audiences and so you could
choose one that is read by your potential customers
• Can select the size of the advert which also determines the cost
Disadvantages
• Hard to target wider audiences
• There is a lot of competition meaning your advert may
not be noticed by everyone
• Time consuming and flexibility issues

5. Marketing: Social Media
In modern times, technology is
developing and increasing numbers
have access to online sites and apps
that could potentially be used to
promote your film. Social media
includes Facebook, Twitter and
Instagram etc. where you can post text
and/or images, share links and videos.
To increase your chances of having
your advert noticed you may want to
pay to have your posts appear on
people’s dashboards.
An advertisement for film ‘The
Scorch Trials’ on their Facebook
page

6. Pros and Cons of Social Media
Advantages
• Very popular with our target audience (ages 15 and up), used
regularly by them
• Pay per click – only pay for the views you receive meaning it is
rather cost effective
Disadvantages
• Time consuming to set up and keep the page running
• Is often ignored as many people find it irritating and unprofessional
• Information is only visible for a short period of time
before newer posts replace it

7. Marketing: Film Trailers
Many institutions choose to create
a film trailer to introduce their
film’s narrative and other
elements to the audience in
attempt to make them want to go
and see the film.
These are often most commonly
displayed prior to the screening of
a similar themed movie at the
cinema, or on official movie trailer
channels on YouTube.
Trailer for film ‘Lucy’ on YouTube

8. Pros and Cons of Film Trailers
Advantages
• Gives the viewer a taste of the film's narrative and themes
• Raises anticipation for the film
• Can be uploaded to YouTube free of charge and is accessible to all
• Shown before similar movies at the theatre and so would appeal to those
who are a fan of the genre meaning there is a reasonable chance that
people will take an interest
Disadvantages
• Costly and time consuming to put together
• May give away too much of the narrative, spoiling most of the movie and
subsequently deterring the viewer from wanting to watching it all
• High cost of having it shown at the cinema
• Could be misleading as clips in trailers are not always included in the final
cut and this may disappoint viewers

9. Presenting: YouTube
YouTube is an online site video sharing site that allows anyone to sign up and create
an account to upload videos as well as rate and comment on others’ videos. It allows
global viewing and those with videos containing their own content can earn money
from views. From looking at trends I would say that the most popular types of
videos include comedy, music, beauty and gaming. Popular content producers have
millions of subscribers and growing proving YouTube is a promising place to share
your creativity. I know that it is used by the majority of our target audience (ages 15-
25 years).

10. Pros and Cons of YouTube
Advantages
• Popular with my target audience
• Costs nothing to set up your channel and post videos
• Free for your audience to access
• Chance of being ‘discovered’ by professional companies who can view
your work
Disadvantages
• Small chance of your video being seen as you are a first time movie maker
• As I found from my market research, thriller is not one of the most popular
genres and so views are not guaranteed as it is not the larger market in
the film industry

11. Presenting: Cinema
Cinemas screen popular films to large audiences, allowing the
owner to collect profit from ticket charges which the customer
will have to pay to view the film. Cinemas are popular with my
target audience as groups of friends like to visit together.

12. Pros and Cons of Cinema
Advantages
• Can present your film to a large audience (cinemas seat many people)
• Immediate viewing
• Popular with my target audience
Disadvantages
• Highly expensive
• Customers have to pay for the ticket and travel to the cinema
• May not raise much profit as it is not guaranteed that people will take a
chance and pay to see your movie
• Very unlikely that a first-time film maker’s production would be shown
• Lots of competition from institutions with
established customer loyalty

13. Presenting: Netflix
Netflix is an international online streaming service offering a
selection of movies to its customers who pay monthly for
access to all of the movies whenever they like.
The standard current charge is £5.99 per month, highly
reasonable when we compare it to the average cinema ticket
price per movie which is usually higher than this. Although
affordable for its consumers, this means Netflix is not likely to
give movie producers much of a return in profits in exchange
for featuring their movies.

14. Pros and Cons of Netflix
Advantages
• Is popular with my target audience
• Customers can watch the film in their home (do not have to travel to the
cinema)
• The film is instantly available for whenever the viewer wants to watch it (and
will not be removed unlike cinemas when they stop showing a film)
Disadvantages
• Not all families have Netflix as it is a service you must pay for and not
everyone watches movie very often
• The company will want a share in the profits and so you may not get much in
return
• Do not pay per view (of your film) and so profit is a fixed
and limited amount, making it difficult to judge the success of
your film

15. Conclusion
After evaluating each method available to me for distributing my film, I have decided that social
media would be the most suitable way. This is because as a first-time film maker I have a limited
budget and print media is considerably more expensive than social media. Social media sites are
free to use and I could easily set up a Facebook and Twitter page etc. as I am familiar with
technology. I would be able to reference these links so my target audience would be able to view
my production online and easily access key information, being able to subscribe to receive future
updates. It is most popular with my target audience who spend many hours per day on these
sites, and so there is a higher chance they will find my advertisements. Also due to our minimal
funds we would not be able to produce a trailer as I believe this would likely show only the best
parts of the movie spoiling it and raising expectations too high. Despite its benefits of being
popular with my target audience and the prompt of having my movie available to viewers
continuously over time, it would be very difficult to get Netflix to stream my film and they would
not pay much resulting in low profits for me and therefore Netflix is unsuitable.
I have also selected YouTube as the best way to present (exhibit) my film to my audience as this is
more suitable than a cinema. An important factor to consider is my position as a first-time film
maker and so it is very unlikely that any cinema would agree to show my film. The cinema also
requires customers to purchase tickets as oppose to YouTube which offers free viewing and so
this would benefit my consumers and entice them to watch my film.