We just received a lump sum payment via Filmhub* for a license deal on our feature film Friends, Foes & Fireworks. The buyer was ReelShort, a new streaming network, which opted to purchase the film upfront rather than paying a percentage of sales or ad revenue, as most platforms do.
Banner poster for Friends, Foes & Fireworks, our improvised indie film experiment.
This marks the second buyout of Friends, Foes & Fireworks this year. A Belgian streamer also purchased the film for their network earlier.
Friends, Foes & Fireworks was originally released in 2018, six years ago. Back then, it performed poorly in terms of revenue — and, to be honest, it continued to underperform, with only brief spikes in revenue here and there.
But this year, out of nowhere like the RKO, we received two licensing deals that nearly doubled the revenue Friends, Foes & Fireworks had generated in the previous five years. This just goes to show the value of owning the rights to your film — feature films have long shelf lives, even those that didn’t initially succeed.
Sure, most indie films will make the bulk of their money within the first year of release, especially in the initial months. After that, revenue typically drops off. But sometimes, a film has staying power. For example, In Corpore is one of our best-selling films, consistently earning money every month for the past four years.
Late last year, we even signed a license for In Corpore with a new streamer, further proving the continued earning potential of older titles. Then just last week, we submitted Dace Decklan: Private Eye, a 13-year-old film, to a new streamer focused on B-movies. And right now, I’m uploading our catalogue of feature films to Reveel, another independent streamer, creating yet another opportunity to earn.
And that’s the key: you never know when a new platform will emerge or when a new opportunity for one of your films will arise.
On set in NYC working with Clara Francesca and Timothy McGowen Reynolds on In Corpore.
A few years ago, nobody was talking about Tubi. Today, it’s a major revenue source for many indie filmmakers, offering one of the highest AVOD rates in the industry. And just last month, YouTube made history as the first streaming platform tracked by Nielsen’s Gauge report to achieve a double-digit viewership share, reporting 10.4% for July. That’s 10.4% of all viewers across America watching YouTube’s official AVOD channel, surpassing Netflix, which came in second at 8.4%.*
Many filmmakers don’t consider YouTube a legitimate distribution channel, but the reality is that it’s the biggest video platform by far. Many distributors are now eager to place their films on YouTube, especially on the bigger YouTube movies channels, which offer more selective content and attract more viewers and higher ad rates.
These evolving opportunities highlight why it’s crucial not to lock up your film rights with a distributor for 10 or 15 years, like some boilerplate contracts I’ve seen suggest. Personally, we’ve never signed any agreement longer than five years, and that was actually when we were naive and signed with the first distributor who wanted Friends, Foes & Fireworks. We eventually had to involve a lawyer to reclaim the rights after that particular distributor breached our agreement.
And we’re glad we did. Platforms evolve, new networks emerge, revitalizing demand for content. By keeping control of your films, you stay flexible and ready to capitalize on these opportunities as they arise. So, while the initial release might feel like the peak, remember that the true lifespan of a film is far longer — and often more profitable — than you might expect. The next big deal could be just around the corner, waiting to breathe new life into your film.
Written by Ivan Malekin
*If you are ready to join Filmhub, we invite you to take advantage of this link with the referral code ‘Nexus’ to receive 82.5% revenue share for the first 18 months instead of the standard 80% at no cost to you. We approached Filmhub ourselves to be an affiliate, because of our own positive experience with their service. We have seen too many filmmakers taken advantage of by distributors and we want filmmakers to know there are options out there, like Filmhub, that make distribution straightforward and are completely transparent in how they operate.
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* YouTube Becomes First Streaming Platform to Crack 10% of Total Viewing in Nielsen’s Gauge Report