Own Your Audience, Shape Your Future: How Filmmakers Are Rewriting the Rules at Cannes
That line set the tone at 'Build Your Audience, Own Your Future,' a panel at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival hosted by the American Pavilion. The takeaway: If you're a filmmaker, your success doesn't depend on getting picked. You can start building your path now.
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Filmmaker Richard Olla shared how her short film 'Cow Heavy and Floral,' a split-screen portrait of a postpartum writer, didn't follow the traditional festival route.
'You wait 12 to 18 months to see if the festivals say yes,' she said. 'But that was unacceptable to us.'
Instead, she and her team built their own screenings, connected with parenting groups and policy advocates, and created a companion initiative called Meals About Motherhood to host conversations around the film.
'We're not trying to do it for the money,' Olla said. 'But we have to make it accessible. And it makes me feel like the joy of creating is back in my hands.'
The result is a film that's now screened in 19 states and never had a festival premiere.
Producer Leila Meadow O'Connor, co-founder of The Popcorn List, took a different approach to audience-building. Her platform, which has been called 'the Black List for undistributed films,' collects strong festival titles that haven't yet found distribution.
'Art houses needed new films,' she said. 'Great movies were out there. We created a signal boost.'
The Popcorn List has already highlighted nearly 40 features, many from first-time directors. Next up: a national tour to bring these films to theaters in 10–15 cities.
'Filmmakers may not have money,' O'Connor said, 'but they have social capital. We're asking: How can we all lift each other up?'
Few people understand the indie landscape like Ted Hope, who's produced dozens of films including 'American Splendor' and 'Martha Marcy May Marlene.' But even he's looking forward, not back.
'I don't need your films,' he said. 'I've already picked every movie I want to see before I die. The only reason I need your work is because it reflects today's world. That's your power.'
Hope now runs Hope for Film, a Substack and filmmaker community focused on ownership, transparency, and sustainability. His big prediction?
'In five years, distribution will be a service,' he said. 'And the core of that shift will be your relationship with your audience.'
He encourages filmmakers to think beyond one project. Post updates. Share lessons. Build a community. Just start.
'Success isn't measured by money,' he said. 'It's about sustaining your practice without needing permission.'
The message was clear: You don't have to wait.
Whether you're making a short, a doc, or your first microbudget feature, you have the tools to reach people now. But it starts with clarity.
'Ask yourself: What's your goal?' Olla said. 'Is it prestige? Impact? Community? That answer shapes everything else.'
As the panel wrapped, Ted Hope handed out QR codes for his newsletter—and reminded filmmakers to give something of value, right there in the room.
'The cinema is no longer just your neighborhood,' he said. 'It's global. Everything you've felt has already been felt by someone else, somewhere else. And they're waiting to hear from you.'
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