Page Ostrow, of Ostrow & Co. a leading Beverly
Hills based Producer's Rep is key to obtaining film
finance& distribution.
"For years the buyers were focused on a genre-
talent equation. Projects with stars attached seemed
to be all it took to raise the total financing for
pictures in years past. Nowadays the
market wants a strong story line and talented
filmmakers. It's a healthy trend."
It's every independent filmmaker's dilemma:
Where am I going to get financing? Or, in the case of
those lucky or industrious enough to have film in the
can: How do I get completion funds and/or
distribution?
The industry landscape can be mystifying, even for
those who've been around for a while; and newbie's
are lost in a treacherous sea. Should they seek an
agent an executive producer/godfather, production
company or an international sales company? What's
the buzz surrounding Producers' Representatives?
How are reps making it happen for producers,
writers and filmmakers?
In recent years filmmakers have been presented with
an invaluable option-to hire a Producer's Rep,
sometimes called a finance or distribution consultant.
One such rep, Page Ostrow of Ostrow & Co., also
credited as executive producer and coproducer
on many motion pictures, has participated in the
financing and distribution of over 80 feature films.
Unlike the lawyers, agents and former production
execs who dominate this emerging field, Ostrow
gained her expertise while under contract for
numerous distributors in the 1990's. After 10
years in international distribution and traveling to
major markets and festivals-Cannes, MIFED, AFM,
NATPE, Toronto Film Festival, MipTV, Mipcom,
Sundance etc.-"it put me on a first-name basis with
over 350 distributors".
Graham King hired Ostrow on as a consultant for
Initial Entertainment and has proved to be a
great example of growth over a short time. He
recently won the Golden Globe for "The
Aviator" starring Leonardo Di'Caprio. "It was my
job to arrange financing, to negotiate licensing rights
to completed films and to arrange territory pre-sales
for projects in development on behalf of distributors
until a few years ago when I jumped fences to
represent the filmmakers, writers and producers".
Ostrow, whose gracious-but-direct manner sets her
apart from many in this world, feels her familiarity
with distributors, production companies, and the
ways of international buyers allows her to engage in
an educated dialogue for her producer/filmmaker
clients. "In terms of completed films our success has
been 100%-I have never taken on a film that I didn't
secure a distribution deal for. I know when I watch a
picture what the success will be."
What I love about my representing the creative-side,
is the heart and diversity of people I get to deal
with. All in one morning prior to my departure I
received a range of submissions from an intense
drama with Meryl Streep attached to a
completed film that's a comedy about a woman who
hides her husband's body for two weeks while trying
to collect on his trust fund. The most touching story
I was pitched this week is a true story that came in
from a small town in the U.S. called Shady Side
where a woman took in a disheveled dieing old man
and cared for him; Her and her family were
there for him so he wouldn't have to die alone and
much to their shock and surprise they received a call
from an attorney after his passing stating that he
was actually a multi-millionaire and had left them all
his fortune. SWEAT is the project Ostrow is
representing and executive producing that all the
companies are tracking. It's a true story and feature
documentary about the life of Jim Keady, an ex-pro
soccer player whose coaching career came to a
screeching halt after he refused to accept
Nike's 3.5 million dollar endorsement fee because he
couldn't in good conscience promote the use of
sweatshops. In this film now in post-production
thanks to Ostrow, we see first hand Keady and wife
on location in Indonesia living in huts surrounded by
open sewage and rats, trying to survive on
Nike wages of $1.25 a day and exposing the
nightmarish conditions that are the reality of mass's
of people who work for Nike contrasted by opposing
statements from Nike Exec's including Phil Knight.
Ostrow and Company accepts submissions of projects
seeking financing with a variety of budget ranges in
all stages from concept or development, to
completed feature films and documentaries seeking
distribution. Ostrow has handled major
motion pictures in a variety of genres for theatrical
domestic and foreign releases to TV movies of the
week. For a complete list of titles, submission
protocol or more press go to the website
www.themoviepages.com
Ostrow and Company is located at 100 South Doheny
Drive, Suite 210, Los Angeles California 90048. The
contact telephone number is 310 276-5007.
"The Indie's Page" article was written by Timothy
Ford as Sundance 2005: Industry Insider Page
Ostrow, Makes it Happen!
