A film distributors actual job acts as like an agent between the producers company and the exhibitor. They have to secure the placement of the producers film on he exhibitors screen. The distributor often does this through wide marketing techniques. The marketing they use are things like posters, newspaper and magazine advertisement, trailers, adverts etc… These marketing techniques are to persuade the exhibitor to buy/rent the film because there will be a profit if the producers film is shown on there screen. The jobs inside this main job are: securing a written contract this includes gross ticket sales, making sure the gross reported by the exhibitor is exact, securing the distributors share and transmitting the remainder of the profit to the production company, they also have to make sure the film print is delivered to the exhibitor by the date which has been set. Also monitoring the exhibitor to make sure the film prints are back on the return date. The exhibitor can also be in charge of making sure there are subtitles for foreign films if they are needed to be played outside of that country. I didn’t realise that all of this I done by just the film distributor. That means they have the mot important role in getting the film from the producer to the screen which it is shown on in front of the audience.

Film 4 is an example of an independent film distributor. In Britain they are quite famous for making Slumdog Millionaire but before that not many people had heard of them. Film for was founded in 1982, it is in connection with Channel 4 although they do not share much meaning there profits too. This meant through the economic downturn Film 4 were left on a knife edge. Although Channel 4’s offices stated that film production should be part of it’s work. However not long after Film 4 were finding severely squeezed dues to the fact that Channel 4 were facing 150 million pounds funding gap. This meant that for Channel 4 cuts had to be made in areas which did not fall into the organisations official remit. This left Film 4 struggling with its own budget and in 2002 Film 4 had to cut costs meaning lots of their workforce were lost. Even through all of this Film 4 have kept going and bounced back when they produced Slumdog Millionaire which won 8 Oscars and were named as a vital part of film making. Film 4 are also known for making films like: Looking for Eric, Nowhere Boy and The Lovely Bones. All of these are fairly well known films but nobody relates Film 4 to them, I especially don’t. which is bad but I just assumed they were part of a bigger company. This shows how the little company’s are important.

Much like Film 4, DNA Films are also an independent distributor. DNA films were set up in 1997 by Duncan Ken worthy and Andrew MacDonald. They have produced a number of films including: 28 Days Later, 28 Weeks Later, Sunshine and The Last King of Scotland. Again all of these films are well known but you would never know that they we distributed through an independent distributor because you know of them well. Unlike Film 4, DNA Films have an agreement with Fox Searchlight who specialise in independent films. This is an example of synergy. The benefits of DNA Films working with Fox Searchlight is they are able to get funding and a worldwide distribution network. For an independent film distributor this is impressive because it means they are able to do quite a bit more than others. It is also beneficial for Fox because it means they gain cultural and artistic kudos. The most successful film which DNA Films has made is 28 Days Later, this was released through Fox Searchlight. It took 5 million to make but grossed over 50 million. After this 28 Weeks later was produced in 2007, and then 28 Months Later was produced in Both of these were distributed through Fox International showing the belief that Fox gained in DNA Films and how DNA films have gone from being a small risky business to quite a successful one.

There is a lot to a distributors job, even if it doesn’t seem like it at first once you write it down there is much more. Small independent distributors stills distribute good films and shouldn’t been underrated just because they are a small company. Lastly just because a film distributor is mall doesn’t mean it doesn’t work with big company’s which can often product a better outcome than either working just on their own.