It's worth saying, asking anyone to give film distribution & marketing strategy in the year of plague is absurd. My chats with my sales agents friend, are, well, damned if I know. https://twitter.com/LydiaMulvey/status/1316791279511048194

Cineworld shuts down till spring, studio releases delayed or shunted to SVODs, audience trust in cinema shook. What the hell does that mean for theatrical distribution? Will foreign markets want more international content because fewer local language films are being produced?

Independent distributors are backed up with unreleased films and no way of recouping. Theatrical windows will shorten. Disney will lead the way on that on playing hardball with exhibitors on Disney+. Is exhibition gonna survive or is cinema going the way of the travelling circus?

Can independent films get production insurance? Yes, in some territories. How do you factor COVID into shooting & the kinds of films that get made? What happens with series in this time? We all want something to watch with all the time indoors. What's that gonna look like?

Are we going the way of the drive in for exhibition? Re-releases of classics are getting some traction? TV advertising is falling through the floor which impacts the long reducing TV value for films where series have been . Airlines are hit hard, so that's another revenue hit.

Which is a long way of saying, who knows? I'm working on a project with a sales agent friend from one of the top tier companies. Our conversations are constantly, well, who the hell knows? We don't have crystal balls. My strategy is to work on the best scripts we can.

You've got mass unemployment & the worst recession in a hundred years looming over the winter, creative industries decimated by a government that won't support the arts despite their value, not only economically but because stories & culture are essential.

Ask for a distribution strategy? Sorry, your age pound audience who liked to watch British dames in gentle comedies may not go to the cinema again. 35 - 55 year old women are busy trying to keep jobs, families, relationships, homes together.

Anyway, if you want some smart thinking on the future of film, check out the Nostradamus Report. It comes out of Göteborg Film Festival. Sadly doesn't cover the pandemic since it was published in January, but they are stellar. Should be essential reading. https://goteborgfilmfestival.se/bransch-2/nostradamus/