Wednesday 13 January 2010

Selling My Films at the Christmas Markets – Final Analysis.

Okay, so I spent most of December 2009 at various Christmas markets around Warwickshire furiously selling my Discover Warwickshire video and my first feature film, Written in Blood. It was cold, it was often fun, it was often tough, but was it worth it?

Well, in reality I sold around 600 units, so doing the maths, this was around £6000 I walked away with. Not bad for a months work, I guess. But nowhere near what I was hoping to make, which was around 4-5000 units, which would have pretty well got things rolling on my new film, The Final Reel. But alas, this wasn’t to be. Yet…



But it’s not all doom, gloom and despair, for one, Discover Warwickshire, has had some incredible feedback. People really do love it, and I’m not just saying that. The local press have been extremely supportive, including the BBC local news. This coverage has opened a huge amount of doors, and in the next two weeks, I will be getting a load more local press which should help sales immensely.


The internet sales have been pretty good too. Since December, we have sold 52 copies on-line. Up until now, I haven’t really spent that much time pushing the on-line side, so I am fairly happy with this. I hope to bring in a lot more from this over the next few months.


As I mentioned in my last entry, Warwick Castle, are now selling the film for us, as well as the Shakespeare Birthplace Museum (In Stratford upon Avon), seven of the counties leading Tourist Information Centers have it, ten Libraries have it, Stratford Butterfly Farm have it and the Nuneaton and Coventry branches of Waterstones Bookshop have it.


Each of these are actively pushing the film for us,

some of them have the trailer running with the video (including Waterstones, who have a very impressive display with the video running right in the entrance of their store.) We are also talking to some other big shops about stocking the film locally.


So, in the longer term, I think Discover Warwickshire could be fairly lucrative. And I hope it will drip feed cash into the company, taking the pressure of the business each

month and allowing a little more freedom to raise cash for my films. Once the weather warms up (we’re inches deep in snow here), I will continue selling the film at the local markets, not quite as full on as I have done, but maybe 1 or 2 days a week, depending on my production work.


So, still some way to go yet, but loads of very exciting things in the pipeline. As regards, bringing in the big bucks to get Kaleidoscope Man moving, well, I have plans, big plans and will do everything to get it up and running this year.


To quote Emperor Palpatine in Star Wars – Revenge of the Sith: “I may be scarred, but my resolve has never been stronger…”


Happy New Year!