Usually, the first thought that comes to our mind while doing anything starting from treating a hobby to doing something for fun ends up with one question- “Is there any possible way that I can earn from this?” Generally, there are a lot of ways for you to earn by listening to your heart and doing what you love to do, however in this particular post we’ll be covering a few points to help out the upcoming cinematographers and short film enthusiasts. So here it goes-
WHAT ARE THE WAYS TO MAKE MONEY VIA SHORT FILMS
Before we start, we would like to inform you that these are only a few (god knows, out of how many) points that we have covered in this post. If you know any other ways for the same, do get back to us and we’ll do the necessary editing accordingly. Well then, that brings us back to the topic in hand, so let’s get on with the first point.
- YOUTUBE
If you’re reading this post on the internet, you very well know what Youtube is. As for the rest, the former is a video-sharing platform on the internet and has made the lives of many including Justin Beiber, Adele and our very own Bhuvan Bam (“hadd kar di #!”) to name a few. However, you cannot just upload the video and start earning directly. There are a few conditions to be taken care of before your video or channel is eligible to generate an income, namely the number of views you get and the number of subscribers to your Youtube channel. Hence, if you are new in the market with practically very few subscribers, there’s no point putting it up on YouTube initially (give it a shot if you’d like, you might just get lucky). Anyway, don’t be disheartened because we still got you covered. No subscribers? No problem. Here are a few back-up options for you to still make it big.
- Partner up with a well known/successful Youtube channel, this would help your video to get the necessary recognition it deserves and help you earn through your partner’s subscribers (*you would definitely have to give your partner his cut*).
- Sell off the rights to your videos to a big shot Youtube channel ($$ if the money is all that matters to you $$).
- You can put in advertisements on your videos and the advertiser pays you a petty amount for every view that you get. So you would still have to have a lot of subscribers and probably a million views in order to generate a reasonable value from just one video.
- CINEMA SCREENINGS
If your film is in the native language, you can approach a local theater or cinema and ask them to screen your film. It might require an initial investment but if the audience likes it you have a pretty good chance of having things worked out your way.
- PAY PER VIEW PORTALS
There are a number of online video portals which help you to upload your film/video on to their website and a fee is charged accordingly from every user who wishes to view or download the film. Bandcamp is an upcoming online portal while Vimeo is older and has a lager user base, thus reaching out to a greater audience.
- FILM FESTIVALS
Be it regional, national or international, a film festival is the largest platform that you can imagine of screening your short film in. If you consider your film to be unique and heart-warming, you should definitely go ahead and take part in a film festival. This would help both your film and you to get recognized amongst the real players of the market. The plus point of joining a film festival is the numerous competitions under different categories with handsome cash prizes.
Making a short film is your choice and wanting to earn from it is totally your decision. Having said that, we believe money matters but what really matters is doing what makes you happy. So here’s to wishing all the upcoming and aspiring cinematographers and enthusiasts luck for what the future beholds. Do what you love and “May the force be with you”.
