Join co-founders Presh Williams and Urvisha Patel as they reveal proven strategies from 24 successful U.K.-wide theatrical campaigns. In this engaging session, you will explore the importance of thorough pre-production planning, learn how to shape a winning release strategy, and discover tactics to genuinely engage with your audience. Whether you’re a first-time short filmmaker or a seasoned director stepping into your next feature, this workshop offers invaluable insights tailored for the modern film landscape.

Since 2015, Big Picture Film Club has been committed to connecting films with diverse audiences. With partnerships spanning Odeon Cinemas, Paramount Pictures, and more, this event is your opportunity to elevate your craft and network with passionate creatives.

The post Boost Your Film’s Success: ‘Value Your Film’ Workshop at LIFF 2025 appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

Which film festivals should I submit to? How do I get someone to distribute my movie? Are they trustworthy? Can I distribute my movie myself? What do I need to do legally to protect myself? I’ve won festival awards, but I don’t know what to do next…? How do I market and publicise my film? 

Sound familiar? We’ve heard these questions and more over the last 10 years working with independent filmmakers on release campaigns and marketing strategies, events and distribution. As Big Picture Film Club, we’ve worked with independent filmmakers, production companies and distributors of all sizes from large distributors such as Paramount Pictures & Dogwoof to independent, boutique distributors. Audience development is a big part of what we do as Big Picture Film Club, and since 2020, we have partnered with Odeon Cinemas (AMC UK) to programme for We Are Diverse Cinema – working on over 20 UK-wide theatrical release campaigns to date. 

But making the film is only half the battle. It will take a completely different set of skills and determination to navigate the ever-changing film industry so you can bring your film to market. Although it’s becoming an increasingly challenging environment for independent filmmakers, we’re here to share some of our expertise and experience to ensure you have practical ways to give your film the best chances for distribution. 

Preparation at pre-production

A lack of preparing all the necessary materials can impact the ultimate goal of distribution. Many of the issues faced by filmmakers are, in part, due to issues not fully addressed at the pre-production stage: having a pitch deck and media pack that best sells your film, an appropriate marketing budget, festival and distribution strategy, how to market yourself within the industry and the market research into the most receptive audiences for your film. If those points haven’t been fully addressed at the pre-production stage, then the sooner they can be addressed post-production the more time, money and resources can be saved for things that will actually help you push forward your project’s release.

The film industry is a business.

No matter how creative, unique, or brilliant your film project is, failing to understand the business side of the industry can adversely impact not only distribution but long-term success. Important elements that make up the business of your film:

• Financial planning.
• Marketing strategy.
• Distribution strategy.
• Value proposition.

Common mistakes can be avoided.

It’s easy to forget the little details, but it’s those details that make all the difference and where you’ll find clarity in how you approach distribution opportunities.

• Poor festival/go-to-market strategy: entering film festivals for vanity’s sake rather than a focused go-to-market strategy
• Having the right assets: planning what assets you’ll need to develop your marketing strategy
• Not understanding your film’s value proposition: validating your creative idea and financial viability

The business side of film can be a lot to navigate through, so we’re here to help. Cinnect combines decade-long experience working in distribution and audience development with the understanding of how the film industry operates to help equip filmmakers with the knowledge, skills, and tools they need to drive their creative vision forward in a way that saves you time, money, and energy.

Find clarity and peace of mind with practical and actionable advice by booking a with us, where we will walk you through:

• how to package your film correctly.
• validate your value proposition.
• develop a distribution strategy specific to your film project.

We’ll provide a summary so you can leave the session with confidence and a better understanding of how to create a plan of action and what next steps you need to take.

Also Read: Rethinking Audience Development In The UK Independent Screen Sector In 2024

This article was originally published at www.cinnect.net

The post I’ve Finished Filming My Movie, What Should I Do Now? appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

About I Could Never Go Vegan

“I could never go vegan. Five words uttered around the world by many a non-vegan, but why? On a quest for the truth, a filmmaker sets out on a journey to find out the leading arguments facing the vegan movement, and if they’re justified.”

Also Read: Patagonia’s Latest Documentary “Run To The Source” Explores The River Thames Like Never Before.

The post I Could Never Go Vegan – The Critically Acclaimed Documentary Comes To Odeon Cinemas appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

Besides the flamboyant and outspoken Creed, Weathers is remembered for hunting the Predator (1987) as Dillon with Arnold Schwarzenegger and golf mentoring Adam Sandler as Chubbs in Happy Gilmore (1996). Although with a loaded resumé with films and TV appearances, Weathers found a dignified third act in the Star Wars universe, acknowledged by a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series in The Mandalorian’ (2019 – 2023), of which he directed two episodes.

Born Jan. 14, 1948, in New Orleans, from a young age, Weathers was a natural for sports, engaging in many disciplines among them soccer, wrestling, gymnastics, boxing, and football; the latter two would have vital roles in his adult life.

As a college student, Weathers played football at San Diego State University and aided the Aztecs win the 1969 Pasadena Bowl. Still in the University, Weathers enrolled in theatre arts before graduation the following year; he signed with the Oakland Raiders as a free agent, playing eight games in the NFL as a linebacker during two seasons, in the pinnacle of American football.

After leaving the pitch, Weathers focused on acting and, like his contemporary Black American talents, found minor roles in blaxploitation movies such as Arthur Marks Bucktown and Friday Foster while juggling guest appearances in TV series such as ‘Good Times and Starsky and Hutch. However, in the following decade, Weathers would shine like a few, even while playing supporting roles, and his sports background and muscular build brought realism, furthering the physicality involved in his acting process, which was also regarded by athletes.

Weathers is mainly remembered for playing Apollo Creed, a Muhammad Ali adjacent boxer with many nicknames and natural showmanship who starts as the arrogant antagonist to Stallone’s Rocky Balboa and later becomes a friendly rival and mentor who trains Balboa to face Clubber Lang (Mr. T), after the demise of his first coach Mickey (Burgess Meredith), but perishes in Rocky IV (1985) after heavy blows by the cold Russian Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren).

Among Creed’s memorable scenes is running on the beach with Balboa during their training in Rocky III (1982), after which they share a manly and candid embrace, and coming down dressed as Uncle Sam and dancing to James Brown’s ‘Living in America’ for his entrance to the Drago exhibition match coming out of retirement. Weathers exuded charisma that he would carry to other roles and Apollo’s memory would come back in the saga through the exploits of his orphan son Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan).

In Predator, Weathers portrayed Colonel Al Dillon, a CIA agent operating in South America and friend of US Army special forces operator Major Alan “Dutch” Schaefer (Schwarzenegger). Dillon had more information on their assignment that he would share with Dutch, and he still met his end in the hands of the outer space beast, but later was avenged by his comrade. In 1988, at the height of his fame, Weathers hosted ‘Saturday Night Live,’ a landmark for an entertainer career, and would come back years later to a live sketch claiming that he was running for a political office considering that he was “the Black guy in Predator” after Schwarzenegger and Jesse Ventura, both from his mercenary squad in the picture, entered the political arena.

The fame from Rocky and Predator also led to Weathers’ leading role in Action Jackson (1988), playing the detective that names the picture that, although not well-received by critics, grossed US$ 20 million on a US$ 8 million budget, and made more US$ 45 million in VHS sales. The picture gained a cult following as current critics say that it could have been a franchise with an ongoing character like ‘Shaft.’ The cast also has Vanity, Sharon Stone, Craig T. Nelson, and ‘Predator’ alum Bill Duke. Action Jackson was ahead of its time considering the current conversation on diversity and showed that if studios backed Weathers, he would have rivaled his co-stars Stallone and Schwarzenegger, and different from the mentioned movies, Weathers’s character survived to tell the tale.

As Greef Karga, Weathers was the handler of Pedro Pascal’s Mandalorian, one of the most successful entries in the massive Star Wars franchise, acclaimed by critics and fans.
Weather showed that athletes could have a successful and respectable transition into acting and later work behind the screens as well; his prowess also displayed new sides to Black male representation and with an acclaimed third act in ‘The Mandalorian’ he earned a new generation of fans that alongside the others that already knew his oeuvre mourn him and remember his outstanding legacy.

Also Read: Beyond The Mandalorian: Expanding The Star Wars Universe

The post The Charisma and Excellence of Carl Weathers appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

About Mami Wata

“This genre-bending tale brings to life a futuristic fable that fuses spiritual beliefs with inter-generational tensions. Set in the matriarchal ocean village of Iyi, where West African water deity, Mami Wata, reigns via village leader Mama Efe it uniquely brings to the screen a story of mythology, fantasy, and folklore. When the harmony of the village is threatened, two sisters must fight to restore order, as traditions of the past crash with calls from the future.”

Also Read: The Rise of Pan-African Film Festivals

The post Nigerian Fantasy/Drama “Mami Wata” Comes To Odeon Cinemas appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

About Once Upon A Time In Uganda

A wild documentary that takes you into the heart of the action-packed filmmaking town, lovingly known as Wakaliwood. Set in the heart of Uganda, two unlikely friends, brick-maker Isaac and film nerd Alan, unite over their shared love of Chuck Norris and gonzo 80’s action flicks. With sheer determination and an outrageous sense of humour, they team up to create their own explosive movies, catapulting Wakaliwood to international stardom and bringing laughter and joy to millions.

The post Documentary “Once Upon A Time In Uganda” To Be Released In Odeon Cinemas September appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

About While We Watched

“While We Watched” chronicles the fraught journey of Indian journalist, Ravish Kumar, known for his unflinching critiques of the establishment. Amid an eroding press freedom, rising threats to his life, and his network’s financial struggles, Kumar tenaciously defends the values of good journalism. Yet, the strain takes a toll, morphing him from a spirited challenger to a man deeply concerned for his family and the soul of his nation. The film presents an intimate portrait of the struggle to uphold truth amidst a sea of adversity.

Also Read: Political Thrillers: Between Fact, Fiction, and Hidden Agendas

The post Odeon & Big Picture Film Club Presents: While We Watched appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

There are a number of important factors filmmakers should be taking into account when it comes to production, even before they’ve begun filming including finance, marketing, and sales. The founders of Big Picture Film Club and new licensing platform Cinnect are joined by industry guests Sarah Poole (Goldfinch Studios), Naeem Mahmood (Trailblazer Films) & Anthony Vander (Distortion Entertainment) to discuss their experience and expertise around what filmmakers should be thinking about during the production phase of their projects.

Also Read: Goldfinch Entertainment’s Sarah Poole Discusses Private Film Funding

The post Join Us For A Panel Discussion: “The Toolkit For Your First Feature Film” – London Independent Film Festival appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

About Buck and the Preacher

“Widely regarded at the time of its release as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid with a social conscience, BUCK AND THE PREACHER is an immensely satisfying Western which marked Sidney Poitier’s directorial debut, as well as his first screen pairing with superstar Harry Belafonte. Poitier stars as Buck, an ex-Union Army Cavalry sergeant who becomes a scout for freed slaves heading to the Colorado frontier. Tagging along with him are his wife (Ruby Dee in a scene-stealing performance) and a Bible-thumping con artist known as the Preacher (Belafonte).”

Also Read: The New Frontier of the Western

The post Odeon & Big Picture Film Club Presents: Buck and The Preacher appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

About Ariel Phenomenon

“In 1994, over sixty schoolchildren witnessed an unidentified craft land outside their schoolyard. Twenty-five years later, this incident is still fresh in students’ memories. They continue to search for answers – and the courage to speak their truth. In this first feature documentary about the Ariel School UFO incident, a young woman returns to her school in rural Zimbabwe – the place that, at the age of nine, shattered her reality. We meet a respected BBC war reporter who reluctantly covered the event, ultimately leading him to risk his career on the one story that haunted him the most. Jeopardizing his reputation is Pulitzer Prize-winning Harvard psychiatrist Dr. John Mack, whose validation of the witnesses made this mass-sighting impossible to ignore”

Also Read: The Future Is Now! – How Sci-Fi Imagined The Future

The post Big Picture Film Club Presents: Ariel Phenomenon (Documentary) appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

About I’m Fine (Thanks For Asking)

Recently widowed hairdresser Danny (Kelley Kali) who becomes houseless and convinces her 8-year-old daughter Wes (Wesley Moss) that they are only camping for fun while working to get them off the streets. As Danny works to find permanent housing, Wes grows increasingly tired of weeks in the heat, so her mother promises her that they will go home by the end of the day. With clients lined up, Danny is confident that she will have the final cash she needs to secure an apartment, but a series of mishaps threatens to derail her plans. Under mounting pressure, and with roller skates as her only means of transportation, she has to somehow manage to get the money she needs in order to keep her promise to her daughter.

Also Read: Interview: Ava Vidal Discusses Comedy, Chris Rock’s “Good Hair” & More…

The post Odeon & Big Picture Film Club Presents: I’m Fine (Thanks For Asking) appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

The Sprayer (Dir. Farnoosh Abedi)

“In the land occupied with the sprayers army, no one has the right to grow any kind of plants either in public or private. So many of the people and soldiers do not even know how dose a plant grows or look like, until one day one of the soldiers finds a seed buried deep down in the dust and his curiosity is just the beginning of something extraordinary, something big, something revolutionary“

Dust Devil (Dir. Maya McAllister Demangeat)

“This is a story about a sad and troubled girl who made her world so small and familiar that she now feels trapped and weighed down by all the emotions she’s collected to keep her safe. A wise owl comes to visit and urges her to let go of all the things that aren’t serving her anymore, giving her the courage to sweep them all up and away in a whirlwind.“

Scale (Dir. Joseph Pierce)

“Driving along the motorway, Will loses his sense of scale. As his crippling drug addiction deepens, he struggles to unpick the sequence of events that led to his predicament, before he’s lost forever.“

Triskelion (Dir. Jessica Raes)

“A Celtic fairy tale in stop-motion animation filled with adventure and magic. A story about tribal war and finding peace: An arrow from a rival tribe pierces the chieftain’s heart. With his dying breath, he gives his daughter the quest to end this senseless feud.”

All the above titles are available are part of this year’s selection of films in the Soho London Independent FIlm Festival, taking place between 17th November – 20th November. The hybrid festival takes place both online and London, U.K.

Also Read: Gabriel Shipton Gives An Update On Julian Assange & “Ithaka” Documentary

The post Four Animation Films To Watch At The 2022 Soho London Independent Film Festival appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

What’s The Film About?

“In one of the world’s most populated cities, two brothers — Nadeem and Saud — devote their lives to the quixotic effort of protecting the black kite, a majestic bird of prey essential to the ecosystem of New Delhi that has been falling from the sky at alarming rates. Amid environmental toxicity and social unrest, the ‘kite brothers’ spend day and night caring for the creatures in their makeshift avian basement hospital. Director Shaunak Sen (Cities of Sleep) explores the connection between the kites and the Muslim brothers who help them return to the skies, offering a mesmerizing chronicle of inter-species coexistence.”

Also Read: Patagonia’s Latest Documentary “Run To The Source” Explores The River Thames Like Never Before.

The post Odeon & Big Picture Film Club Presents: All That Breathes + Q&A appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

About Dreamgirls

Dreamgirls is a 2006 American musical drama film written and directed by Bill Condon. Adapted from the 1981 Broadway musical of the same name, Dreamgirls is a film à clef, a work of fiction taking strong inspiration from the history of the Motown record label and one of its acts, the Supremes. The story follows the history and evolution of American R&B music during the 1960s and 1970s through the eyes of a Detroit girl group known as “The Dreams” and their record executive.

The film adaptation stars Jamie Foxx, Beyoncé Knowles and Eddie Murphy, and also features Jennifer Hudson, Danny Glover, Anika Noni Rose and Keith Robinson. The movie marked the acting debut of Jennifer Hudson, who won Best Supporting Actress at the 2007 Academy Awards (Oscars).

Also Read: C.J Sanders Discusses Working With Jamie Foxx on “Ray”

The post Odeon & Big Picture Film Club Presents: Dreamgirls appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

About Music Is My Life

‘Music Is My Life’ tells the remarkable story of the late Dr. Joseph Shabalala, the leader of South Africa’s multi-Grammy award-winning group, Ladysmith Black Mambazo. The film features previously unseen archive and music, including exclusive interviews with the Shabalala family, and stars like Dolly Parton and Paul Simon.

The film discovers how a young man from a rural village called Ladysmith in 1960s South Africa, came to conquer sell-out shows and become a worldwide musical visionary, the film encapsulates Joseph’s musical and spiritual journey. 

Music Is My Life, celebrates the magnitude of Shabalala’s musical influence and his strong rooted musical traditions in the local styles of Isicathamiya and Mbube, a hidden gem of South African culture.

Also Read: C.J Sanders Discusses Working With Jamie Foxx on “Ray”

The post Odeon & Big Picture Film Club Presents: Music Is My Life – The Story of Ladysmith Black Mambazo appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

About Ray

Ray is the story of the life and career of the legendary rhythm and blues musician Ray Charles, from his humble beginnings in the South, where he went blind at age seven, to his meteoric rise to stardom during the 1950s and 1960s. As well as Jamie Foxx in the lead role, with C.J Sanders as his younger counterpart, The film features a star-studded cast that includes Kerry Washington, Regina King, Wendell Pierce, Larenz Tate, Terrence Howard & More.

The screening will also include an exclusive recorded Q&A with C.J Sanders, who plays the young Ray Charles alongside Jamie Foxx’s portrayal of the older Ray Charles. The film won Jamie Foxx his first Oscar for Best Actor, for his portrayal of the musician.

Also Read: The Tarantino Crossover That Never Happened – Django & Zorro

The post Odeon & Big Picture Film Club Presents: Ray [+Q&A w/ C.J Sanders] appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

Also Read: Six Underrated Movie Sequels

The post Eddie Murphy’s Smash Comedy Beverly Hills Cop Back In Cinemas Nearly 40 Years After Its Release appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

About Babylon

“Babylon follows the story of David, a working-class musician and black man in South West London. By day he works as a mechanic, at night David is a Mic controller at a local dance hall. The film centres around the racial divide of London in the 80s, the lack of opportunities available to black people and poverty. David loses his job, gets beaten up and charged by the police, forcing him to go on the run.”

Also Read: The Ingredients Of A Cult Classic

The post Odeon & Big Picture Film Club Presents: Babylon (1980) appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.