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5 Things Sales Agents Look for in Films: Post-Cannes Reflections

Stacey Parks is the author of �The Insiders Guide to Independent Film Distribution� (Focal Press). Her website is www.filmspecific.com.

While at Cannes two months ago, some questions rolled in from people who wanted to try and get sales agents for their films for Cannes, but it didn�t work out. They want to know what�s the next big opportunity. The answer is AFM, which is happening in November in Los Angeles. So if you didn�t get a sales agent to take your film to Cannes this year, don�t despair. Just be sure to get your P�s & Q�s in order so you can get represented at AFM in the fall.

If you�re wondering what sales agents look for when putting together their film market slates, then I can tell you from my personal experience that when I was foreign sales agent, the films I looked for to round out our Cannes and AFM slates were the following:
(1) Niche Films (Family, Christian, etc.).
(2) Films with great campaigns (i.e., Artwork).
(3) Films with marketable casts (B list is fine).
(4) Films with an extremely impressive and eye-opening
trailers (the most critical sales tool).
(5) Documentaries with a target audience (because they�re an easy sell).

Incidentally, I had the most success with these films, too.

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Check out this article in the July 2008 print edition of StudentFilmmakers magazine, page 54.

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