The document discusses distribution strategies for a low budget niche film. It suggests that Optimum Releasing would be a good independent distributor as it has experience with similar films. It also recommends partnering with a small cinema chain like Cineworld to show the film in around 40 screens nationwide. As an example, it cites the similar strategy used for the film Brick. Internet marketing through social media and links from related films is highlighted as an effective low-cost strategy for smaller distributors to target niche audiences.

1. What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

2. What sort of Distribution Company are you going to choose to distribute your film? As our film would appeal to a niche market and would not have a big budget of $400-500,000, a small possibly independent Distribution Company would suit our film best. I think Optimum Releasing would be the best Distribution Company for our film. Optimum Releasing is a quite small company that has distributed films such as Brick, This is England and bigger films like The Hurt Locker. This would be a good distribution company for us as it can provide for the niche market but breakthrough into main-stream.

3. What cinemas are you hoping to get your film into? Why? A good cinema to show our film would be a small chain cinema. This would mean it would be shown over the country but remain a niche target. It would show in around 40 screens. It could also give the opportunity to break out among the more main-stream and attract more audiences. A cinema like this would be Cineworld.

4. Give an example of a real film that fits into the strategy for your film? A film that fits into the same strategy we would have taken is Brick. It is also a film-noir with a modern twist and was a low budget film with a niche market. It was shown in 45 screens with a budget of $475,000.

5. What would be the benefits of having this distribution strategy for your film? Using Optimum Releasing as the distributer means we could use synergy to advertise the film, as they have recently founded the Optimum Home Entertainment which means the film could be advertised on the DVDs. This could mean that the film is advertised to people who enjoy the same kind of film and therefore will be easier to target the niche market as they the film is exposed straight at them.

6. What sort of strategies are you going to use to spread “word of mouth” about your film? Why would these be successful? To spread word of mouth, horizontal integration would be useful as it would be exposed to the target audience. Also using the internet would be useful as it requires little money. A website linked to similar films could attract audiences. Using social networking groups means information of the film can be passed on easily to the target market with little cost.

7. How would you use new technologies to help you advertise/market the film? Why is internet marketing such a good idea for smaller distribution companies? Why is it such an effective form of advertising/marketing for all distribution companies? We would use the internet to advertise our film by using social networking sites. This could mean the target audience can pass along information about the film to many people. Using links to other films similar over the internet means that the target audience can find out about the film within seconds. Also using Optimum Releasing’s websites and films could provide a useful way of advertising. Internet marketing is very useful for small distribution companies because it is very cheap and it is easy to target the audience with little effort. If you are a large distribution company, the internet can be easily used to mass advertise your film using larger, popular websites such as Google and FaceBook.