Lately I’ve been exploring the Vimeo on Demand service the launched at SXSW in March 2013 (according to an article from IndieWire). More specifically, I’m exploring the Vimeo Creator Services and how they can help me share Abandoned Allies and other films I’ll eventually finish and distribute. I’m totally fascinated.
I keep looking for other filmmakers (locally) who are talking about the Vimeo self-distribution service, but I keep coming up short — mostly because of this big announcement from Adobe this week about going totally to a subscription-based cloud software. (Read more from TechCruch about it here.)
So where are the conversations about Vimeo on Demand happening? How can I join them? I keep looking.
I’m a big fan of Vimeo. When I began making my first feature-length film, Abandoned Allies, in 2008 I started to pay closer attention to Vimeo and joined in 2009. Now I feel like it’s hard to imagine being an indie filmmaker without ’em. They do a great job making it really easy to upload, share, and embed video content. They also make it really easy to learn how to be a better filmmaker with the Vimeo Video School.
Vimeo is a lot classier than other video sharing sites. There are fewer silly videos, commenting trolls, and ads. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a time and place for a silly video. I’ve watched and laughed every time. But on Vimeo there are more high-quality, experimental, and high-brow pieces of work shared. It’s where I go to be challenged, inspired, and educated as a filmmaker. It’s more of an artists community that encourages and offers constructive criticism, if you will. I need that, you know?
I’d like to jump in and post Abandoned Allies but I want to hear some feedback before I throw down $200 on it. Ultimately, I’d like to put the film online so that it’s easier to access and I’m not stuck in this antiquated process of mailing DVDs out regularly. I want to give my fans a way to watch the film easily and at an affordable price. I have a sneaking suspicion that I’ve just found the means to do that, which is really exciting.
Anywhoooo, if you’ve tried it and loved/hated it, please let me know.