Want to hear a dirty little secret?  When you hear of the astronomical budgets for some Hollywood movies you can easily get the impression there is alot of money to be made in movies.  Filmmakers rarely like to dissuade people of this notion if they are trying to get investors or just don’t want to seem like “failures”.  But the fact is most films are made because of the passion of the filmmakers and never yield a profit. 

So if you like what a filmmaker is trying to do and want them to keep doing it, how can you support them?

1. ★  First of all, buy the darn thing!   Don’t copy it or download a pirated version.   Almost all official film websites will sell the film in DVD and download form directly and/or link to legitimate sites that do.  If a download site isn’t mentioned on the website it’s probably not legit and the filmmaker will not see a penny from it.
   

1. ★  There are fewer and fewer public venues for indie film.  Festivals and screenings are an important way for the film to get a little publicity in the local press.  We know you have many entertainment options these days, but try to attend if you can.
   

1. ★  If you are a library or educational institution and can afford it, pay for the properly licensed version.  You will be showing it to many people so it’s just the right thing to do.
   

1. ★  Write about the film and link to its website on your website, blog or other appropriate site.  Not only does it help spread the word, but Google takes sites that others link to much more seriously in its rankings. 
   

1. ★  Post a link to it on your Myspace page, Facebook profile or other social network site. 
   

1. ★  Embed any Youtube trailers for the film in your website, Facebook, Myspace etc. page.   On the trailer’s Youtube page to the right you will find the HTML code after the word “embed”.
   

1. ★  If the film is not on Netflix and you have a Netflix account request the film.  The more people that do this, the more likely Netflix will acquire the film.  This is especially important for films without distributors.  To request to Netflix that they carry a title, go to:
   

    Contact Us

    Click on Request and Suggestions

    “Title request”

    Type your message

AMAZON

In the ancient days, wise librarians and catalogers made sure that books and films were put where people interested in the topic could find them.  Amazon depends on customers to do that for them in various ways.  Amazon’s algorithms are proprietary.  However, there are simple steps that can be taken that will increase the likelihood that potential customers will find a film they don’t already know about.  Obviously this applies to books and other media as well you wish to support.

1. 1. Write a good review for the product.
   

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2. 2. “Tag” the movie with as many words as you can.  To do this scroll down  to “Tags Customers Associate with This Product” approximately mid-way down the product page.    This helps others looking for similar products find out about this one.
   

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3. 3. Suggest up to 10  keywords to Amazon.  This is in the same section as the “Tags” section described above.  When people search for certain words in Amazon the product will come up if enough people “tag” it this way.
   

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4. 4. Rate as “helpful” any other 5 star reviews that others have written for   the film.  Amazon considers not only the quantity and quality of the reviews, but how many other people have voted them to be useful.
   

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5. 5. Make a “listmania” that includes the film.
   

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6. 6. Make a “so you’d like to . . .” that includes the film.  These are how to     guides on various topics such as “so you’d like to be a better citizen”, “build a house” etc.
   

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7. 7. Rate “listmanias” and “so you’d like to . .”  guides that include the film   as “helpful” so that they will show up more often in searches.
   

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8. 8. If the film is also available as an Unbox download, do all of the above for it as well there, as none of the information will transfer even if it’s the exact same content.