This week @guidetofilmtvpost is so excited to speak with Larry Laboe, Executive Director at NewFilmmakers LA, a mentor and major supporter of independent filmmakers.
He describes his role at NFMLA, and discusses the many different forms it takes.
Overall Larry is charged with ensuring ongoing local programmatic excellence, evaluation of programs, governance of finance and administration, communications and protocols, engaging and energizing the organizations board members, committees, alumni, partnering organizations, elected officials and funders and generating revenue and fundraising to support existing programs and operations as well as long term vision for the organization.
Living in New York City as a teenager, Larry discovered NewFilmmakers NY at the age of 15, sparking his interest in film festivals. Within a year, Larry was attending the Tribeca, Havana and Gen Art Film Festivals in NYC, “I loved the opportunity of being able to experience new work and support emerging content creators. The entire ecosystem was very exciting to me,” says Laboe.
“Upon moving to LA, I noticed an apparent void of opportunities for indie filmmakers to exhibit their work and to connect with industry professionals throughout the year,” Laboe explains, “this is what led us to launch NFMLA.”
NFMLA was founded in August of 2007, and has been running strong as the NewFilmmakers Los Angeles Monthly Film Festival ever since. They have never missed an event with their ongoing monthly festival and additional programs throughout the year, but at times they’ve had to get creative in their planning. In March 2020 the festival went viral due to the pandemic lockdown, but they plan to resume their in-person programming by late summer / early fall of 2021.
According to Laboe the focus of the NFMLA is to discover and support new voices, “We’re seeking filmmakers who are hungry to connect with audiences and industry professionals. We look for filmmakers who are still eager to take advantage of new opportunities and connections.” The NFMLA Festival also has a special program called InFocus which is an inclusion initiative that seeks to combat the lack of diversity in the film industry by giving underrepresented groups of filmmakers (i.e. race, gender, sexual identity, region and socioeconomic background) the opportunity to showcase their work and connect with industry during each monthly festival.
When we asked about the festival’s events throughout the year to promote that diversity and inclusivity, Larry explained that each month NFMLA partners with an industry delegation of at least 8 industry professionals. They bring in an array of executives and creatives from all backgrounds. This includes executives from companies including Amazon Studios, CAA, Universal, Disney, MGM Studios, Endeavor, Netflix, Showtime, Paramount, FilmNation, MACRO, HBO, Sony Pictures Entertainment, CBS, M88, Lionsgate, Bad Robot, Skydance, UTA, Magnolia Pictures, AMC Studios, AGBO, Starz, NEON, WarnerMedia, ICM, Zero Gravity Magazine, Hulu, Circle of Confusion, and more, to advance their filmmakers’ craft and careers.
NewFilmmakers LA has six programmers, and all submissions are watched by at least 2 of the programmers. From there, submissions are funneled up to Bojana Sandic, the programming director, who leads the team, and who makes the final selections. They program about 75 days in advance of each festival date. That’s beyond impressive when you consider that their festival is a monthly series, unlike most festivals that occur annually.
NFMLA hosts a filmmaker orientation to make sure their filmmakers are as prepared as possible, so that they can best take advantage of all the festival has to offer. We can attest to that having been those filmmakers in the past. The support, opportunities and guidance are incredible. NFMLA works with the filmmakers on their marketing, publicity, pitching skills and more.
They’ve miraculously maintained their NewFilmmakers LA Monthly Film Festival programming, and they’ve managed to add even more programming than existed before pre-pandemic!
We asked Larry about pandemic lockdown times for NFMLA and how their team and workflows have been affected. They are thankful that their staff remained safe throughout the pandemic, and they are grateful to their generous supporters who helped them to maintain all of their pre-covid staff members. They were even able to add another full time position to support their industry engagement and programming. While they were able to stay connected via Zoom, they missed seeing each other in person. They’re just starting to get back into the offices now that everyone is vaccinated.
In regards to programming Larry explained, “running virtual events is much different from producing a live event. Both are a ton of work, but I’d say the virtual edition has made things a bit more manageable. Post-pandemic, we will move our screenings and Q&A sessions back to physical programming, however, we will most like keep our panels and industry meetings as virtual events. The NFMLA Film Festival looks very much like it did pre-pandemic, minus the drinks and mixers. We’ve added value in producing more industry panels to connect and educate our audiences and filmmakers. The community has found tremendous value in this programming.” They also still have the same access to production and postproduction support they had before the pandemic.
They’ve managed to troubleshoot and creatively manage hurdles along the way. As an indie festival with a nimble budget and limited staff, they have always had to maintain a jack of all trades approach, and handle issues on the fly, with tact and grace! They have a strong team who support and care deeply about their filmmakers and community. They try to embody that in their approach to tackling any issue that may come up.
On a more technical side of things, we asked about how filmmakers deliver their projects. They love files delivered on the cloud. Depending on the venue, they may request a DCP or .MOV file.
Larry believes that the landscape for festivals will change a bit in the future. He believes that Zoom is here to stay, but so are theaters, and in-person programs and mixers (thank goodness)! Most festivals will find a happy medium, and host a hybrid version. He thinks the virtual festival does offer benefits to the entire ecosystem; filmmakers, attendees, industry, festival producers, etc., but everyone cherishes and celebrates in-person programming.
We asked Larry if he had any advice for filmmakers trying to make the rounds of the festival circuit. Here are his words of wisdom…
“For filmmakers looking to submit, do your research! Not every festival is the right fit for you. Find the festivals that really stand out. Take a look at their previous line-ups and see if your film seems to align. Check out who seems to participate in and/or attend the festival. Make sure those attendees/participants align with your networking goals.”
He added, “for those looking to work at a festival, get involved! Volunteer. Attend. Submit. Apply. Start engaging with the staff and community and see how you can grow that involvement! Festivals are always in need of dedicated staff who are passionate about supporting independent artists.”