How to Market a Movie on a Tight Budget
Are you an indie filmmaker? Do you want to market your movie to the masses, but aren’t sure where to start? Are you putting together a film marketing plan on a shoe-string budget? If so, you’re in the right place!
At Philosophy in Film, we believe in promoting independent filmmakers and their work. We understand that promoting indie films is hard because few things in life (including movie marketing campaigns) are free. Fortunately, we offer indie movie promotional services at very affordable rates. So, if you’d like to learn how to market your movie with us (or someone else), read on!
Film Promotion and Marketing with Philosophy in Film
Philosophy in Film will promote your film on our social media channels for free. However, we do screen films to ensure that they match the tone of our site and the interests of our readers before we engage in any promotion. For a small fee, we will write a review of your film (like this one) and promote it through social media. Finally, for a slightly larger fee, we will write a long-form essay (like this one) about your film and promote it on a recurring basis. All of the options are very affordable and will help get your movie in front of independent film fans!
So, here’s a quick recap of our promotional services for indie films:
- Social Media Shoutout – *Free of charge; reaches thousands of people instantly. (*your movie must meet our editorial standards)
- Review + Social Media Shoutout (our most popular choice) – Requires a small fee; reaches thousands of people instantly; a review (750+ words) brings in viewers over time.
- Essay + Social Media Shoutout – Slightly higher fee; reaches thousands of people instantly; an essay (1,200+ words) brings in even more viewers over time.
For more information on pricing, reach out to us directly, or send a message to our Facebook Page.
We realize that our platform is not the only way to promote your film. We just wanted to let you know that we’re at your service if you need us! It’s important to remember that the people who come to Philosophy in Film are generally interested in independent films, avant-garde films, surrealist films, horror films, short films, and the like. So, if you’re trying to promote a mainstream action movie or romantic comedy, this may not be the right place for you!
In any case, let’s look at some other ways to market and promote your movie on a tight budget!
How to Market a Movie Without Breaking the Bank
The movie industry is constantly evolving. The industry of today is vastly different from the one we knew just 10 years ago. As a result, you should stay updated on ways to effectively market your movie. It could make the difference between screening your movie in your apartment or debuting your work at a major film festival!
So, let’s look at 5 proven methods to market and promote your indie film project!
Set Aside Funds for Marketing Ahead of Time
It doesn’t matter if you made your film for $0 or $50,000, you need to have a marketing budget. Most independent filmmakers focus on the funds they need to actually make the movie and completely ignore marketing. Then, they do everything in their power to market their project for free.
While we definitely recommend taking advantage of free movie marketing strategies (more on that later), you still need to have funds for paid marketing. Even if it’s just $20, it could help get the ball rolling and put your passion project in front of more viewers. So, when you’re setting up your budget during the pre-production phase, don’t forget about the cost of marketing!
Send Your Film to the Right Film Festivals
Film festivals are one of the best ways for indie filmmakers to get their movies in front of audiences. If your movie is well-received, you could even get a distribution deal out of it! That’s why you should always submit your finished work to more than one film festival.
This doesn’t mean you should submit your film to every film festival in existence. If you’re a first-time filmmaker, you should strike a balance between optimism and pragmatism. You shouldn’t automatically assume your movie won’t make it into big film festivals, but you also shouldn’t assume that it will, either.
So, what’s the solution? Send your movie to a wide range of film festivals that are relevant to your project. This last part is particularly important. You don’t want to send a short comedy film to a horror film festival! So, do some research to figure out which festivals are best for your movie.
Additionally, take advantage of where you come from and where your movie was made. For example, if you live in Atlanta, Georgia and shot your film there, look to local film festivals like the Atlanta Film Festival or the Atlanta Underground Film Festival (these are just two of many options).
Local film festivals have a much higher acceptance rate than bigger, international film festivals like the Sundance Film Festival or Cannes Film Festival. That said, you should always have a bit of optimism when submitting your film. So, submit your film to small and large festivals alike. You never know what could happen!
Reach Out to Film Blogs
This tip may be a little self-serving, but it’s also a legitimate and very effective way to promote your movie. Philosophy in Film receives dozens of emails from independent filmmakers in need of marketing every week. While not every film makes it to our front page, many do. The same is likely true for other film blogs.
So, spruce up your writing skills and prepare to compose the best email of your life! You don’t want to be overly verbose (bloggers are busy people), but you also don’t want to undersell your movie. Your email to film blogs should include all of the following:
- Identity – Explain who you are and provide a very brief description of your background and experience in film.
- Film Description – Describe your movie or short film in three sentences or less.
- What You Want – Are you looking for free or paid marketing? Do you want a press release, review, or social media shoutout? Explain what you want the blogger to do for you.
If your movie (or a trailer for your movie) is available to view online, you should include a link to it in your email. Then, find all the bloggers whose content aligns with your needs and send out your email en masse. Many bloggers won’t respond at all, while others will come back with rates way out of your price range.
However, you’ll likely get a few responses that meet your needs and work within your budget. Once the blog posts start rolling out, you can expect your movie to get traction online and become much more visible. Oh, one more thing about reaching out to film blogs: don’t forget to be friendly!
Harness the Power of Social Media
You don’t need to have a huge social media following to market your movie (though it could certainly help). There are tons of groups and accounts for independent filmmakers to market their content for free. You may need to do a little digging to find them, but they’re there!
In any case, you should use just about every channel at your disposal to market your movie for free. Here are a few of the best platforms to use:
- Youtube
- Tumblr
If you have a personal blog, even better! This gives you your own platform to regularly promote your own filmmaking projects for free. If you weren’t able to scrape together any money for marketing, social media and/or personal blogs are the way to go. These are the only free methods that give your movie the chance to go viral!
Create and Use Promotional Material
While bloggers, film festivals, and social media platforms can all help promote your film, you are your own number one promoter. No one wants your feature-length movie or short film to be as successful as you do. So, be prepared to do the heavy lifting when it comes to creating and using promotional material.
Learning how to market a movie requires time and dedication. To save money, you may need to create your own trailer, movie posters, advertisements, flyers, and other promotional materials. These materials should provide basic information about your film so that people can decide whether or not they want to see it. If you have the money to outsource these tasks, that’s great! But keep in mind that it will take away from your overall marketing budget.
Bottom Line
Learning how to market a movie is like a crash course in content promotion. However, film promotion and marketing doesn’t have to be a pain. You simply need to create a budget, set your goals, and follow the tips above to reach your desired audience!
If you’d like to learn more about how to market your movie or short film, contact Philosophy in Film today!