A replay of last week’s New Distributors Webinar + Signup for the next webinar, a case study of the film, Big Sonia.
From Crisis to Opportunity: How Four Indie Distributors Are Forging New Paths
On June 25th, I co-hosted a webinar with Scott Macaulay from Filmmaker Magazine titled CRISIS/OPPORTUNITY: Four New Innovative Distributors. 959 of you signed up and over 400 attended – thank you!! We brought together four inspiring companies who are actively building alternatives to the current distribution model.
What struck me most during the conversation is while each company is carving a completely different path, they are all engaging with audiences in new and exciting ways and leaning into the theatrical experience.
There’s no one-size-fits-all model for releasing independent films anymore. But what’s emerging is a patchwork of bold new approaches—each tailored to the stories they champion, the audiences they serve, and the values they bring to the work.
Below is a recap of the session, the strategies we explored, and why I believe there’s room—and urgent need—for all of them in today’s ecosystem.
Why This Conversation Mattered
Too many great films never reach audiences—not because of quality, but because many/most of the old (and new aka global streaming platforms) gatekeepers aren’t taking risks, and the old playbooks don’t apply.
What we saw in this session was the opposite: risk embraced, playbooks thrown out, and a new generation of distributors designing their own tools.
These aren’t legacy players retrofitting indie values into corporate models. These are practitioners—filmmakers, producers, programmers—who have experienced the system’s shortcomings firsthand and are building responsive, thoughtful models from the ground up.
We were joined by:
- WILLA (Elizabeth Woodward)
Elizabeth Woodward is the founder and CEO of WILLA, a production and distribution company focused on socially urgent, impact-driven films. Recognized by Forbes 30 Under 30 and supported by Sundance, WILLA blends traditional and experimental strategies—combining recoupable equity with non-recoupable grants to support distribution. Their titles include Another Body, La Cocina, and You Resemble Me. - Watermelon Pictures (Munir Atalla)
Munir Atalla is the Head of Production & Acquisitions at Watermelon Pictures, a company rooted in creative resistance and committed to stories from Palestine and other marginalized communities. Building on the legacy of MPI Media Group, Watermelon also plans to launch Watermelon Plus, a curated streaming platform for politically engaged audiences from the global south. - Cartuna x Dweck (Ted Schaefer, James Belfer)
Cartuna x Dweck is a partnership between indie film producer-directors Ted Schaefer and Hannah Dweck and animation studio founder James Belfer along with Adam Belfer. Together they support director-driven, boundary-pushing cinema, financing their own P&A and offering flexible rev-share models. Their work spans animation, genre, and arthouse projects—including recent acquisition Dead Lover. - Muscle (Elizabeth Purchell)
Elizabeth Purchell is a film historian, programmer, and founder of Muscle Distribution, a one-woman outfit focused on queer, trans, and repertory cinema. Muscle redefines success through cultural resonance and community connection, spotlighting forgotten or overlooked films that expand and complicate the canon.
Common Threads, Different Paths
Despite their differences, these four companies share a few core values:
- Filmmaker Collaboration: Each treats the filmmaker as a partner, not a passive rights-holder.
- Theatrical Reimagined: They’re all transforming theatrical into something intentional, participatory, and in many cases, joyful or political.
- Diverse Revenue Streams: From campus screenings to Blu-rays, AVOD, and merch, they’re building multi-pronged approaches that make the math work.
- Values-Driven Distribution: Their models don’t treat politics, identity, or form as obstacles—they treat them as assets.
Most importantly, they’re not competing with one another. They’re creating space for different kinds of films to thrive, in different ways.
Why This Matters Now
There are more independent films being made than ever before—and fewer distributors willing to take on challenging material. Social algorithms weren’t built to surface nuanced, independent work and in fact to suppress it.
We need many solutions, not just one.
The most promising innovations are coming from people who believe in the work—and are willing to build infrastructure that matches its complexity and ambition.
If you’re a filmmaker looking for a distribution partner, or someone working inside the system wondering what else is possible—I hope this conversation inspires you as much as it did me.
Dive into the full recording to explore how these bold new teams are redefining what it means to release independent films today.https://jonreiss.substack.com/p/from-crisis-to-opportunity-how-four