Kristen Dolle.com
We are experiencing a defining moment in the distribution of independent film. Many of the "traditional" models are no longer an option for many of us or simply not that attractive because of their limited reach. With Gigantic, people can watch the film on their home computer in amazing quality for only $2.99. That’s the most powerful thing sites like Gigantic are doing for filmmakers — giving us a way to really make our films available to a much bigger audience, and ultimately, allowing the message of the film to have a much more widespread impact.
How are you branding your film in the digital space?
In terms of digital platforms, we are primarily using Facebook and our website to reach our audience. But the film has such a sensitive subject matter, it’s difficult to get the messaging just right. My new favorite line I use to describe “Motherland” is: "An honest and intimate look at the complexities of grief and healing, 'Motherland' is about resilience, triumph of the human spirit and the power of unconditional love." I strive to get that message out to as many people as possible. I wish I could say I've mastered it, but there are challenges — for example, how do you tweet about grief?
In addition to filmmaking, you run your own production company, Smush Media. Why did you want to start your own company and how did you get it off the ground?
Smush Media is a collaboration with my longtime friend and creative partner Geralyn Pezanoski, the director of an amazing film called "MINE: Taken by Katrina." We were both working in corporate film and video for many years, and we really wanted to find a way to make films that mattered, in addition to just collecting a paycheck. We also knew so many other talented, creative people who felt the same way, so we came up with Smush Media — bringing together all of these creative talents and "smushing" them together into something that could really make a difference in the world. "Motherland" and "MINE" are our first two documentary films; both premiered at South by Southwest this year and won the two Audience Awards, so I'm happy to say we're off to a good start! We have a couple of new projects we are pitching now, so hopefully this is just the beginning for us.
In the past five years, only two women have directed top-10 highest grossing films: Catherine Hardwicke in 2008 for "Twilight" and Vicky Jenson in 2004 for "Shark Tale." As an up-and-coming female director, how do you deal with the inequality between men and women? What do you think can be done to change this?
I think the inequality in the film world is just mirroring the history of inequalities in the world at large, and as people work together to transform society we will continue to see every industry open up to women and other minorities in new and exciting ways. For me, the only real secret is to just keep making films, and to strive to make them better and better every time. There are so many organizations and support structures out there for women filmmakers now; we have to utilize our resources and keep trudging forward. Girls just can't afford to quit on their dreams — as a dear friend and fellow filmmaker always says, “Just MAKE THE MOVIE!”
For more on Jennifer’s movie, “Motherland,” visit Motherland-theFilm.org.
After years of helping other people make movies, director/producer/editor Jennifer Steinman made her own and created one of the year’s indie hits. Her documentary, “Motherland,” recounts the experience of six American women who come to terms with the death of their children while caring for HIV/AIDS orphans in Africa. Read on to learn how Jennifer is using digital platforms to share this moving story with the world and make her filmmaking mark.
“Motherland” has won a number of film awards, including this year's Emerging Visions Audience Award at the South by Southwest Film Festival. Why do you think this film resonates with so many?
Ultimately, this film is a story about the universal experience of grief, which we have all either dealt with or must anticipate dealing with in our lifetimes. We all have questions about what it means to “heal” when you lose someone you love and about how we can find hope and positive meaning after a tragedy. One of the most common reactions to the film is that it’s an immensely positive film, one that inspires hope, and that’s something everyone relates to.
On August 26, “Motherland” was released online through Gigantic Group’s Gigantic Digital Cinema distribution platform. How are sites like this changing the way the world receives film? What does this mean for you as a filmmaker?
5 Questions For... Jennifer Steinman
September 5, 2009
The upcoming issue of NYWICI’s Connect focuses on entrepreneurship. What has starting and running your own company been like for you?
I've only ever been marginally involved in the business side of things, but I’ve certainly been involved through creative and editorial direction, as well as working on crafting our fundraising campaigns and messages. What's really important to me is making sure the magazine's (and now the website's) voice remains strong, relevant and witty. There's plenty of media out there about feminism, and plenty about pop culture, but not necessarily a ton that looks at the intersection of those two. We have a really solid niche, and it's important to us to evolve the kinds of work that we do, but keep our intent firmly within that niche.
In the last few years, we’ve watched the print industry struggle to find its niche in a market of new media. How has Bitch reinvented itself to take this challenge head-on?
It's definitely a challenge, and something we've struggled with over the past several years. We've always wanted to branch out beyond publishing a magazine and work on programming that hews to our mission of feminist pop-cultural critique — lecture series, videos, podcasts — but, financially, we're just starting to be in a place where that's logistically possible. We're in the midst of a re-visioning process, where we're looking at how we want to diversify the offerings of Bitch Media, and planning our fundraising goals accordingly. In the meantime, we're continuing to publish the magazine quarterly and keeping our newly re-designed site as relevant and fresh as possible.
Another hot debate in the new media landscape is how to monetize content; whether sites should make users pay for content or not. What’s Bitch doing to bring in the dough?
Bitch is unique because we use a mix of non-profit and for-profit tactics. When we first became a nonprofit, we did fundraisers very much by the book, but it became clear that we could appeal to our readers in the same voice we used in the magazine. That meant we could approach fundraising in a more immediate and grassroots way, like the member-focused campaign we have going on now. Until recently, the Bitch site was ad-free, but we realized that we could be doing much more to make it a viable secondary revenue stream. So that's something that, again, we're still in the midst of figuring out and building up. We're still not sure whether or how we'll start charging for back-issue content, but we are going to be taking sponsorships, we just recently opened BitchMart and will be adding more Bitch merchandise as time goes on.
Bitch was inspired, in part, by your love/hate relationship with Beverly Hills, 90210. So now, it's time for a burning question: Have you seen the new 90210?
I saw the first episode, and it was like a chore for me to watch. The new version really epitomizes the way in which the lines between teen culture and adult culture have blurred. I have the feeling that this is some serious narcissism on the part of the creators of these shows — they might be old enough to be parents, but they still think of themselves as the cool kids. But someone's got to be square. I miss the square parents.
Indulge your feminist, media-loving soul at bitchmagazine.org.
If you’re a woman in communications and you don’t know about Bitch Magazine, congratulations: Today’s your lucky day. For more than a decade, the quarterly has provided a feminist response to pop culture, existing as one of the few voices of modern feminism. But what about that name, you ask? It’s a reinterpretation of the insult, signifying intelligent, ambitious women who don’t hold their tongue in the face of opposition. But Bitch isn’t only a feminist power; it’s also an interesting case of an old medium becoming new. Learn more about Bitch’s beginnings, its transformation and its future, from co-founder and editorial/creative director Andi Zeisler.
You and your friends, Lisa Jervis and Benjamin Shaykin, started Bitch on a whim, even distributing your first copies from a 1977 station wagon. 13 years later, Bitch Magazine is still around, as a renowned leader in feminist perspective. How does it feel to witness an idea you bred in college become an important force that exists today?
It's pretty humbling — I think that while we all hoped in a vague, abstract way when we started that Bitch would grow beyond a little zine into a “real” magazine, none of us expected it to still be around. We have had the support of so many, both individuals and entities, and there's no way it could have lasted this long without that. I think of it as kind of an endless loop — people care about the magazine because we care, and we care more because we see how much the magazine means to its readers, and so on.
5 Questions For... Andi Zeisler
June 29, 2009
Entrepreneurism Now: A Good Moment
October 5, 2009
From New York Women in Communications CONNECT - Fall Issue
Download Fall Issue of CONNECT: Connect_Fall09.pdf