Why BEING SOLD wasn’t selected

I had an interesting email today from a film festival in the states. As you know my comedy/drama BEING SOLD is doing the festival rounds. We submitted it to quite a few festivals and we were selected for some (and won some nice awards!) and a few others rejected the film. This can be for a number of reasons… the film is shockingly awful, the film isn’t the right “type” or, in some cases, they didn’t even watch it (there are a few bad festivals out there!). Comedy is a hard sell for festivals. A lot of programmers like the hard hitting vomiting-babies-and-social-comment type dramas instead of films that entertain. Comedy is always seen as “less intelligent” as, say, a thriller or costume drama. The truth is that a good comedy is bloody hard to make.

So, the e-mail. Most festivals just reject you and send you the standard response but some actually send you the notes that the selection committee made when watching the film (which I think all festivals should do… I mean, you’ve paid your $10-$200 submission fee so why not?). I received one of these emails about the reasons why BEING SOLD wasn’t selected and I thought I’d publish it. I think this is from three different people. Brace yourselves…

1. I thought the film’s premise was interesting, “how much is a life worth?”. It did a good job capturing today’s media frenzy and everyone trying to capitalize by any means possible. There were some compelling issues about fame and it’s consequences raised.

2. This was a clever comedy that hit upon many relevant, contemporary themes—unemployment, instant Internet fame and the callousness of the media.  I thought the film was entertaining and the cast was very good. I think more character development and back-story on John would have added to the film’s impact.

3. A high energy British farce about the desperate times we live in, where a depressed unemployed man would try to sell himself on Ebay. I thought the film did a great job showing the power of the media to take what should be insignificant “news” and blow it out of proportion to generate better ratings. The actors did a good job of keeping this unrealistic situation believable as the story ranged from over the top comedy to the deeper question of what is a man worth and the price of fame.

…umm, answers on a postcard?! I just can’t handle all this negativity… ;)

the real critics

Since the DVD release of THE BUTTERFLY TATTOO and the 200,000+ downloads we’ve been receiving some nice reviews from what I consider the real critics - the audience. I don’t particularly care - good or bad - about what the paid reviewers say because, frankly, they’re not my target audience. Their words are small fry to the word-of-mouth that everyday people generate. I’ve made this film for them and not for the critics.

Anyway, I decided to pull out a few comments from the various message boards, customer dvd reviews and personal emails I’ve received about what people are saying about the film. Thank you all!

“A genuine, heart-wrenching story… really enjoyed the fact that the director respected his audience and didn’t spell things out for his viewers”

“I felt the film was one of the better films I’ve seen this past year… a very good film”

“I enjoyed it. Certainly more than a great many studio films that made big bucks in the box office. The opening scene was beautiful, and the integration of the soundtrack was outstanding throughout. I loved, loved, loved the close-ups of the leading couple. They really tested the actors”

“Just watched this now and it has moved me! Amazing movie!”

“I just finished watching the movie, legally, on Netflix. I thought the movie was fantastic.”

“Brilliant Film… and I want the soundtrack”

“Good film with moments of brilliance”

“I just saw it in LA… it was FANTASTIC”

“I think it was one of the most moving films I’ve ever seen.”

Keep ‘em coming! Join the film’s facebook fan group and send us your reviews. The more people who talk about it, the better the buzz and the more likely the film will be shown in other countries.

Meanwhile, my previous (and most popular) blog to date about the illegal downloading of the movie is still live and active with a great debate forming! Have a read here and have your say about downloading vs. buying.