Together Films were engaged by Producer Lindsey Dryden in Spring 2017 to manage the UK Impact Distribution Campaign for Unrest. Lindsey and director Jennifer Brea had spent years cultivating an excellent relationship with audiences around the world who were eager to see the film. Working alongside Jessica Edwards at Doc Society they had also put together a review of the potential impact objectives for the UK, which gave us a brilliant blue print for how a campaign could be realised.
We further developed the UK Impact Distribution Strategy for the title and successfully applied to the BFI for an Audience Award to help reach diverse audiences for the campaign; which would encompass #VirtualScreenings for homebound audiences and a VR Tour of the Unrest VR short.
The Sundance Institute case study covers the various challenges around the release and how the UK and US campaign approached theatrical booking and engagement in slightly different ways. Ultimately leading to the film being Oscar shortlisted, it also shows that it takes an army to pull together all the necessary parts for a campaign as ambitious as this one!
We worked alongside our friends Caitlin and Carla at Film Sprout, a US based non-theatrical screenings partner to ensure that audiences got to experience the film in the setting that most suited them. With the support of the BFI Audience Award we were also able to trial the idea of #VirtualScreenings to involve the many homebound audiences who were unable to make it to live screening events.
You can see a few key snippets from the case study below and we encourage you to read the the entire report to gain insight and inspiration for your own campaigns.
Unrest was released in the United Kingdom on October 20, 2017. Following a two-week UK-wide tour with special Q&As, the film played at over 100 one-off screenings in independent UK cinemas across 50 locations.
Sundance Creative Distribution Fellowship – Unrest Case Study
Both Film Sprout and Together Films have worked on numerous impact campaigns, including the successful outreach effort for The Hunting Ground, and have a deep understanding of how semi-theatrical releases can be the best alternative or supplement to theatrical distribution for documentary films in terms of reach and cost effectiveness.
Sundance Creative Distribution Fellowship – Unrest Case Study
In contrast to the U.S., the UK had the benefit of Together Films presenting Unrest at the Distributor Slate Day in London (an event designed to encourage collaboration between exhibitors and distributors) a month before release to engage the vibrant independent exhibition sector.
Sundance Creative Distribution Fellowship – Unrest Case Study
We are thankful to have had the chance to work on this campaign and hope that Shella Films are able to continue to drive forward further impact through their own #MEAction campaign.
If you have any questions on the report or interested in engaging Together Films for your campaign, please contact us to find out more.
Together Films are a marketing, distribution, and technology company based in London & NYC serving the international film community.
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