Speaker 1: Hello, my name is Brendan Cleves.

Speaker 2: And I'm Johnny Vyvash.

Speaker 1: And this is the Fest Forward Podcast. We just want to do a quick intro as a kind of explanation to why we're doing podcast and hopefully what's going to come up in the podcast over the next few months and hopefully years. So I'm a writer, director, Johnny's an actor and producer as well. And we've been travelling around the world, me for almost 10 years now, going to film festivals, getting my short films into festivals and There isn't just a lot of stuff out there regarding the actual feet on the ground experience of festivals and we just thought it'd be cool to do something as we go around to the festivals and talk to people and just to give knowledge because I know a lot of people don't really know the ins and outs of what actually happens at festivals, there's so many different festivals around the world. I think last time I checked on Film Freeway, there was something like 14,000, which is just incredible. so we just wanted to sort of do the podcast of just to give more information to people. and just I mean the f first thing is encouraging people to submit and go to festivals. I think that's the biggest thing. But also to kind of highlight some of the the the kind of quirks of festivals where you kind of like insider knowledge I guess I'd say.

Speaker 2: As Ben was saying, we've extensive festival knowledge over quite a number of years, both screening, attending, thankfully picking up some awards, both of us.

Speaker 1: I think I'm heading towards probably 250 festivals that I've screened at all the way around the world from LA, New Zealand, Australia, all over Europe. I mean a lot of Europe just because I do like going to festivals and it's a lot easier to go to European festivals than it is to go to the festivals in the United States obviously just for financial reasons. so kind of screened everywhere and been to a lot of variety and also like the the size of the festival as well. Like you know, I've screened some of the bigger festivals and then I've screened at some of the smaller ones. And there is, you know, it's good to know that you don't always have to be go into the mega ones, you know. You there are a lot of smaller festivals that really can give you a lot of I guess got kudos and i in the industry, you know, and experience as well. 'Cause going to festivals like if you're in a filmmaker you spend a lot of time behind the camera and there is a confidence thing. I think especially to go to places and meet people, meet other filmmakers. So literally there's no other way of actually really meeting filmmakers. that's really that open to going to festivals. Like you go to festivals, you're gonna meet filmmakers and

Speaker 2: we're really interested in doing is sitting down with programmers, artistic directors, filmmakers and chatting through their journeys, how they got their film made, what their journey has been like in terms of their strategy to get them to various different film festivals and their bigger and greater plans for other projects as well. But, quintessentially, we're very interested in what it's like being at a festival. and sharing that information and being boots on the ground so people have a reference point to look at because increasingly, and we've had this discussion, when you apply to different film submission platforms like Film Freeway, festivals can seem very homogenised, they all possibly feel like they're the same thing when they're very, very different and they're very, very unique and there's a different identity with a lot of film festivals so it's good to know and understand that and that... you need to do a bit of background work before submitting your film so you know where your film might be best placed. So we're very interested and keen to share that information.

Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean I think going to festivals is a journey as well. Like every film has a life from the second you come up with the idea till the second you stop screening at festivals, that's kind of like and then it'll potentially for a feature film maybe get distribution. But that the festival circuit is part of essentially the filmmaking process really, and that's the kind of way I look at it. and it's a long journey. It's not a thing like it you know, when you make a film generally you don't re-release it for a c it could be even a short film for years after it actually is is is even finished. So you kind of have to if ni if you don't im if you don't embrace that journey, then it's you're not really complete and you're not really getting the most out of your film. And I think that's the festival circuit is something that it's you adding so much value to s you as a creator is going on that journey and learning. And also like just the people you meet, I I said meeting directors, producers, you know, I mean we met at a festival. Yeah. You know, so you know, you meet actors, you know, all sorts of people. So I think it's just an important part of like the just the life of a filmmaker really.

Speaker 2: expanding and embracing the community and the industry that you're part of.

Speaker 1: Yeah, and also off the back of like FestForge is also a platform that we built which helps filmmakers get strategies for their films. So We put the obviously link in the description of for Film Fair Fest Forge, but it's it's a way of filmmakers actually getting creating the most effective and efficient strategy for their film. And obviously, if you're an indie filmmaker, you're probably limited by budget, especially if you're a short filmmaker as well. So we're hoping the platform we built kind of help guide filmmakers a little bit, save them a bit of money, trying to make it like a really efficient and sort of advise them and guide them. them and also they can sort of map their festival run on on the platform as well and which will hopefully allow them to kind of take a broader view of the their festival strategy and the life of their film and hopefully help them kind of like plan it out a bit better because it gives

Speaker 2: and the knowledge.

Speaker 1: Yeah, and it is pretty overwhelming when you like you said you go to Film Freeway, there's thousands of film festivals, you know. there's there's even more product you'd never heard of that are worth submitting to. So so yeah, there's a that off the back of the the podcast is there is a platform that we're gonna try and promote and help filmmakers yeah devise better festival strategies with. So that's our goal. But there is also another thing we want to do is we I have a film that just had its we're actually at Grossman right now and it's called Crack Hack and we're hoping we're gonna follow the journey of the film as well again to give filmmakers a little sort of bird's eye view of of like what a film festival journey looks like. So hopefully the film gets into festivals. I mean it's got into a couple we can't say right now that haven't been announced which are quite good and big for us so I'm pretty pretty happy about that. So we're hoping and we're hoping yeah we can follow that journey with my film as well and sort of have an insider look at what it's like to be a filmmaker and also a guest like at one of these film festivals because you mo a lot of them you do get treated really well and you go Like Grossman for example, where in a vineyard in a wine tasting which is amazing.

Speaker 2: get many of those opportunities at a film festival. Well, Groatsman is undoubtedly a very, very unique experience and a fantastic film festival to be at.

Speaker 1: So thanks a lot.