Get Money for Your Film!!! August 10, 2011

Film Meets Finance: at the International Institute for Film Financing

IIFF Townhall Meeting
San Francisco
August 10th, 2011
@ the Academy of Art
79 New Montgomery

Networking & Education for
Filmmakers & Financiers

Seven Insightful Talks by Leading Experts & More

<<< Overview >>>

The San Francisco chapter of the Institute for International Film Financing (IIFF) continues its popular monthly gatherings at the junction of film & finance with a special Film Financing Townhall at the renowned Academy of Art. Their facilities are conveniently located across the street from the Palace Hotel in downtown San Francisco.

This grassroots community get-together is designed to foster & inform productive relationships between attendees. It provides unbiased insight & education about the business of film and film financing in particular. The event features a powerful roster of highly topical speakers from the filmmaking and financial industries. We are delighted to welcome real-world financiers among our guests!

The evening's seven presentations plus panel discussion address key issues relevant to filmmakers, financiers and anyone interested in the economics, business mechanics, and financial dynamics of motion pictures. They are followed by Q&A time. Attendees also have ample opportunity to interact & network with our featured experts and amongst themselves.

An informal après-meeting celebration will take place at a nearby restaurant.

<<< Attendees - Who should attend? >>>

Entrepreneurs, consultants, attorneys, bankers, investment managers, venture capitalists, angel investors and other professionals with an interest in the movie business will find this event worthwhile. Everyone who cares about independent film is cordially invited to join us.

Are you considering taking an active role in film, or would you like to expand your current involvement? Don't miss this high-value yet low-cost learning experience and the opportunity to connect with like-minded peers.

Established & aspiring filmmakers looking to raise capital for their projects, production companies, movie slates, film funds or other ventures are, naturally, more than welcome as well.
Why attend?

New to film finance? Need to brush up your topical knowledge? Want to deepen your understanding? Care to participate in an ongoing conversation & community dedicated to the subject? This uniquely valuable gathering is right for you!

Gain crucial insights from leading experts in their field. Network with fellow film & finance professionals. Meet potential collaborators and future business partners. All this at a price that is hard to beat.

<<< Program Details >>>

Use the Force: Creating a Blockbuster Film on an Indie Budget
Eric Edmeades (bio), successful entrepreneur & CEO at Kerner Group, which has 30+ yrs of film production experience incl. "Star Wars," "Indiana Jones," "Pirates of the Caribbean," "Terminator" & "Transformers" franchises; recently provided studio & FX services for "Avatar," "I Am Number Four," "Transformers III," "Pirates of the Caribbean IV," "Cowboys & Aliens"; etc.

The Film Festival Game: What Makes a Winning Film?
Devyani Kamdar (bio), Exec. Dir. at Palo Alto Institute, which produces Palo Alto Film Festival; began film career in Japan, acting in "Maboroshi no Mizumi (Lake of Illusion)," directed by Akira Kurosawa's partner Shinobu Hashimoto, TV series "Tadaima Houkago" & "G-Men"; Stanford graduate in Int'l Relations & Japanese; etc.

Movie Money: Finder's Agreements & the Private Placement Process
Daniel Riviera, Esq. (bio), Founder & Principal at Riviera & Associates law firm; entertainment attorney with extensive film, TV, music, gaming, trademark & publishing experience; assisted with 100s of movie projects; past clients incl. Carolco, Imagine, Spelling, Groundlings, Keiko Matsui & Gilda Radner; represents many producers with social & political content, both for-profit & non-profit; etc.

Transforming Digital to Dollars: Leveraging Social Media for 'The Cove' (Best Doc Oscar)
Greg Viloria (bio), VP of Operations & Social Media Marketing Manager at creative agency BTrax, a cross cultural web agency, which partnered with Oscar-winning documentary "The Cove" & developed social media strategies resulting in sellout screenings, extended run by weeks & 200% Twitter audience increase in 1 month; fmr. clients include Participant, Viz Pictures, Bandai; etc.

Bits & Bytes: What Goes into a Digital Film Festival
Alexandra Ippolite (bio), Managing Dir. at Palo Alto Institute; fmr. analyst & IT staff member at Sundance Film Festival; brings extensive film industry-specific background in web & tech to Sundance & Palo Alto Film Festival; critical player in development & expansion of Film Festival's mission; etc.

Getting to the Finish Line: Creative Financing for Visual Effects
Tim Eaton (bio), CSO at PolyPhase Productions & Editor at eclecTimEdia with clients incl. Lucasfilm, ABC, Disney & HBO; worked in Editorial Dept. at Bob Zemeckis' ImageMovers Digital; fmr. Sr. Avid/VFX Editor at Sony Imageworks & ILM with movies incl. "Gangs of New York," "Titanic," "Men in Black," "Twister," "Forrest Gump," "Terminator 2," "Back to the Future 2 & 3'; etc.

Journey to the Big Screen: Everything You Want to Know About Sundance
Alf Seccombe (bio), Director of Media & Programming at Palo Alto Institute; award-winning filmmaker screened at Rotterdam Int'l Film Festival & SF Int'l Film Festival; fmr. consultant for 8 yrs at Sundance Institute in Int'l Feature Film Program; MFA in Film from Columbia University; etc.

<<< Featured Moderator >>>
The event will be moderated by Sheridan Tatsuno (bio), an accomplished Silicon Valley business strategist and serial entrepreneur. As Principal of Dreamscape Global, he helped raise $10M for 7 tech startups since 2000. Sheridan is also a seasoned business writer, whose books have been produced by PBS and Central Independent Television, as well as a screenwriter currently working on his 15th screenplay. He advised Oscar, Emmy and Peabody Award winner Steven Okazaki on the producion of "Survivors," which received a PBS Documentary Award. A founding team member at IIFF, Sheridan has also served as an advisor to movie investor group FilmAngels.

<<< Our Host >>>
This month's Film Financing Townhall in San Francisco is hosted by the esteemed Academy of Art, a leading private university founded in 1929 in San Francisco. With nearly 10,000 students that occupy its 30+ buildings in downtown San Francisco, AAU is considered the largest private school of art and design in the United States. It offers both traditional on-campus and online distance-education degree and certificate programs in a wide variety of fine arts-related majors, including Motion Pictures & Television and Animation & Visual Effects. In May 2007, AAU was granted regional accreditation by the Senior Commission of the prestigious Western Association of Schools & Colleges (WASC), one of the six major regional accreditation commissions recognized by the US Department of Education.

<<< Registration >>>
Filmmaker-friendly affordable online registration is available here: http://www.eventbrite.com/event/1316615031/vip/10462912267