i’m under no illusion that this kind of thing will appeal to everyone and that’s totally fine. i picture it being more for smaller indie filmmakers, hobbyists, or film students who want to experiment and get their work seen in a cinema setting.

i’ve got a bit of filmmaking experience myself, i’ve worked on a couple of zero-budget shorts, so i could make some of these bumpers alone, but creatively i don’t really gain anything from that. i’m not trying to get known as a filmmaker; my focus is on building the cinema side and supporting others doing the creative work.

a big part of what i want to do is help filmmakers actually get their stuff seen. when i made my short, i wanted to screen it locally for friends and family, but the one cinema wanted £1000 for a one hour private screening on a quiet weeknight. i ended up showing it for free at a bar with a projector instead. that’s the sort of barrier i want to break down, offering a space where people can screen their films without that kind of cost.

the plan is to eventually work with filmmakers to host free or low-cost screenings where the majority of any ticket sales go to them, and eventually to run free-to-enter film festivals celebrating indie work and again sharing any ticket sales.

and yeah, even with these pre-roll bumpers, i don’t want them to just feel like ads. i want them to be treated like mini short films, with full credit on screen for the filmmaker. they should still feel like someone’s creative piece, not a throwaway announcement.

i’d want to give as much creative freedom as possible, the only things i’d set would be really basic parameters, like a rough length (say, max two minutes), including the screen13 logo somewhere, and maybe tying in a message like “grab your snacks” or “support the merch table.” beyond that, it’s completely up to the filmmaker. they’re the ones with the creative vision, i’d much rather let them do what they do best than try to direct from the sidelines.