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VIDEOMAKER >>> MARCH 2019In 2007 Pasquale Rotella (founder of
Insomniac Events) reached out again
to start shooting other events. Rotella
mentioned that back when their op-
eration was small they often just gave
away the fi lms.
Similarly, the electronic music
boom, known as electronic dance
music, or EDM, was just getting
started in the United States during
that time. Thus, there became a de-
mand for content about this under-
ground movement that had gone
mainstream.Many Pathways
In 2011 they landed a massive dis-
tribution deal for their documentary
fi lm Electric Daisy Carnival Experi-
ence. Soon after, it showed Nationwide
in around 600 theaters.
“What happened at the time of
EDC... was a big push for a one night
experience. It was rare you saw break-
out fi lms of this genre then. [With]
EDC, because of the impact of the
event, the desire was to make a push
to cross over, to fi nd a bigger audience,with iconic rock bands Nirvana,
Soundgarden, and The Ramones. Out-
side of the music world, he has also
made short fi lms and commercials for
brands like Quicksilver and Nike.
His documentary fi lms have
reached large audiences. More-
over, “As I Am” premiered at the
Tribeca Film Festival and was eventu-
ally acquired by Showtime, and “Bad
Reputation” premiered at Sundance in
2018, then launched a theatrical run
and a worldwide release on iTunes in
the fall of the same year.Unique Evolution
For Kerslake, documentary fi lm-mak-
ing evolved naturally from his music
video work and from the short fi lms
he created. Besides that, he was doing
fi lm work for Insomniac Events in
the early 2000s, long before the rave
scene hit.
Insomniac is the company behind
Electric Daisy Carnival (aka EDC),
which went on to become one of the
biggest electronic music festivals in
the world.“BECAUSE OF THE
IMPACT OF THE
EVENT, THE DESIRE
WAS TO MAKE A
PUSH TO CROSS
OVER, TO FIND A
BIGGER AUDIENCE,
TO TELL THE
ANTHROPOLOGICAL
ASPECT OF THAT
CULTURE.”
How do you distribute an independent documentary?
VETERAN FILMMAKERS SHARE THEIR SECRETSBad Reputation (2018)382 F06 Distribute Documentary.indd 32 1/21/19 10:06 AMVIDEOMAKER >>> MARCH 2019 33
Abramorama is an independent
marketing company that specializes
in music fi lms. With their help, “As I
Am” opened in New York and LA in
the summer of 2016. After that, the
fi lm rolled out to theaters across the
country in music-centric areas such as
Austin and Las Vegas.
“Because we are music related and
pop culture based, we work directly
with those entities,” Kerslake says,
regarding his distribution efforts and
partnerships with companies like
Abramorama and NCM/Fathom.In 2007 Pasquale Rotella (founder of
Insomniac Events) reached out again
to start shooting other events. Rotella
mentioned that back when their op-
eration was small they often just gave
away the fi lms.
Similarly, the electronic music
boom, known as electronic dance
music, or EDM, was just getting
started in the United States during
that time. Thus, there became a de-
mand for content about this under-
ground movement that had gone
mainstream.Many Pathways
In 2011 they landed a massive dis-
tribution deal for their documentary
fi lm Electric Daisy Carnival Experi-
ence. Soon after, it showed Nationwide
in around 600 theaters.
“What happened at the time of
EDC... was a big push for a one night
experience. It was rare you saw break-
out fi lms of this genre then. [With]
EDC, because of the impact of the
event, the desire was to make a push
to cross over, to fi nd a bigger audience,to tell the anthropological aspect of
that culture,” Kerslake explains. He
continues, “We were sort of gunning
for, but never started looking for, a
theatrical release.”
As a result, Kerslake and his team
ended up partnering with a company
called NCM/Fathom events. They had
a partnership with major theater
chains across the country. NCM/Fath-
om has the science down for how to
throw these one-night theater events.Solid Partnerships
Of the EDC doc, Kerslake recalls how
the partnership was just the right fi t at
the right time. Looking back, he says,
“It’s such an event based culture, so
we anticipated having great success;
we broke records with pre-sale tickets
for theaters.”
According to Kerslake, “People
were dancing in the aisles, something
theaters weren’t keen on experienc-
ing. It was the model of distribution
we ended up adopting for the DJ AM
doc, “As I Am,” as well, coupled with
longer runs in NY and LA.”
A company called Abramorama
distributed “As I Am” theatrically.“IT’S SUCH AN EVENT
BASED CULTURE, SO
WE ANTICIPATED HAV-
ING GREAT SUCCESS;
WE BROKE RECORDS
WITH PRE-SALE TICK-
ETS FOR THEATERS.
PEOPLE WERE DANC-
ING IN THE AISLES.”
382 F06 Distribute Documentary.indd 33 1/21/19 10:07 AM