Promos from DVD Labels/Distributors

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Keith Kawaii · #1 Post by **Keith Kawaii** » Thu Mar 13, 2008 5:04 pm

I currently write for a fairly prominent music review site, and the idea of adding a film section is being discussed.

We get promos from record labels. Do the film companies even work like this, sending out promos? What about with new releases in theaters?

If anyone has had experience dealing with this sort of thing, any additional info would be really helpful regarding companies relationships with review sites/magazine and advertising

Antoine Doinel · #2 Post by **Antoine Doinel** » Thu Mar 13, 2008 5:35 pm

DVD companies will send out screeners.

For theatrical releases, in most cases they set up press screenings in various cities around the country. Only in rare cases (as far as I know) will they send screeners to critics and usually it's only to established writers (like Ebert).

In either case you will probably have to show them you have the readership, demographics etc to make it worth their while. Especially for smaller DVD labels, screeners cost money and they will only send them out if they feel it will make promotional/financial sense to do so.

MichaelB · #3 Post by **MichaelB** » Thu Mar 13, 2008 5:37 pm

Keith Kawaii wrote:We get promos from record labels. Do the film companies even work like this, sending out promos?

Yes - they'll usually send out DVD screeners of some description ("some description" usually means with some kind of onscreen interference, like timecode or other on-screen graphics, to prevent piracy).

What about with new releases in theaters?

Same again in some cases, though with major releases you'll probably have to go to an actual preview screening. But I'd say I review approximately half the theatrical releases I cover for Sight & Sound off a DVD screener.

If anyone has had experience dealing with this sort of thing, any additional info would be really helpful regarding companies relationships with review sites/magazine and advertising

Every distributor will have a PR/marketing department (or person) of some kind - you need to contact them.

Antoine Doinel · #4 Post by **Antoine Doinel** » Thu Mar 13, 2008 5:39 pm

Also bear in mind that these companies receive requests for screeners all day long, so you may want to have all your info and your pitch a bit prepared beforehand.

Keith Kawaii · #5 Post by **Keith Kawaii** » Fri Mar 14, 2008 2:27 pm

So they send DVD screeners. Thanks for the info, my editor has just sent out some emails to PR people.

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