TPFA MOVIE LLC

We developed and produced the feature film REGIONRAT, which was based on the book Regionrat, by author Richard Laskowski. .

According to data from various sources, only about 1% of independent films ever gets any kind of distribution.  REGIONRAT debuted at the 2018 Chandler International Film Festival, where it won the award for best feature film.  

By the end of 2018, Regionrat was an award winning independent film, receiving several awards for Best Feature, Best Actor, Best Director, Best Cinematography, and Best Ensemble Cast.  

 Gravitas Ventures, one of the largest film distributors in the world, watched REGIONRAT and decided to distribute the film in the U.S. and  Canada.  The film is available for rent on most platforms, such as iTunes, Amazon, Vudu, Vimeo, RedBox, XBox, Direct TV, ATT, Microsoft Network, and GooglePlay.  Regionrat is also available on DVD and Blu Ray at Amazon, Walmart, Target, and Barnes and Noble.  In the rest of all English and Spanish (with subtitles) speaking speaking countries, Regionrat is available through Amazon Prime Video.

Why tell you all this?

When it comes to Hollywood, you are only as good as the last thing you did.   With Regionrat, we delivered what we were set up to do, which was to produce a quality independent film.  It was funded, made, and distributed.   

How did we achieve this?  

• Personal experience.   I have been involved in the film industry since 1995.  By 1996, and under the mentorship of Sony Pictures' Jimmy Honore, I worked  with Barbra Streisand in the Mirror Has Two Faces, where I was able to witness how a high end film with huge expectations was made.  Then I went on to work in independent films, where I discovered how to be watchful of the budget, and how to overcome obstacles.

NOW ABOUT THE NEW FILM:  

THE PALE FACED ASSASSIN

OUR BUSINESS PLAN:

The production team will create a single entity,  TPFA MOVIE LLC, as a startup enterprise with the purpose of financing and producing a single feature length motion picture entitled THE PALE FACED ASSASSIN.

The Project is scheduled to begin production in February 2020 and be released in November of 2020.

OUR AUDIENCE:

The most important element in any successful film project is the audience for which the film is being made. This is the source of the film’s income and all decisions have to be made with the target audience in mind.  The target audience can encompass a number of broad, age demographic categories as well as various niche audiences within and across these categories.  The age demographic categories utilized in the film industry are kids, young adults, and adults. The adult category can subsequently be broken down into various age groups as well as by male and female.  The target audience categories for  THE PALE FACED ASSASSIN would be the same audience that went in droves to see Pulp Fiction, or Fargo. Males and Females 15 – 55.

LOGLINE:

Just as two men disillusioned with their careers — one a criminal, the other a detective — start to accept they are past their prime, a blood-seeking vigilante forces them to resort to extreme measures.

SYNOPSIS:

El Guero is an over-the-hill career criminal.  He has lost his stature within the crime world and is struggling to make his way back to the top, while leading a gang of cruel, yet incompetent, henchmen.   On the other end of the law is Detective Santiago, a frustrated, old-fashioned detective having a midlife crisis. His wife left him, the legal system frustrates him, and he just overall despises humanity. Then we have Sonia Nassir, a mother with a demanding corporate job who is attempting to spend more time with her loving family.   An accidental encounter between El Guero and Sonia causes a chain reaction when El Guero and gang massacres Sonia’s family and kidnaps her son. Rather than expecting justice through the legal system, Sonia, an ex-member of the military, loses her grip on sanity and seeks revenge and her son, but on her own terms.   El Guero’s career is now in bigger trouble than ever as Sonia throws a bloody monkey wrench into his plans. Now detective Santiago has to catch El Guero and his gang, solve the mysterious kidnappings happening in the city of Seattle, fix his family problems, and stop Sonia before she leaves him no bad guys to catch.

GEORGE RUSSO is attached to play one of the two male lead roles, Detective Santiago.  I met George on the set of a short film, and I was blown away by his talent and focus.  Later I was able to witness his performance on stage.  He is an incredible character actor.

Thinking about distribution, we know that even if you have the best movie ever made, distributors ask, Who Is In It?   El Guero,  one of our lead roles, has not being cast for that very reason.   We want to attach an actor that has a well known name.   Since agents from well known actors do not consider film projects that are not fully funded.  Once TPFA MOVIE  LLC is fully funded we will submit offers for the role of El Guero.

The following are images from actors who we are considering:

Ving Rhames (Pulp Fiction, Mission Impossible)

Dean Norris (Breaking Bad)

Danny Trejo (Machete, From Dusk  Till Dawn)

Keith David (Armageddon, They Live)

Michael Madsen (Reservoir Dogs, Kill Bill)

Either one of these, well known, great actors would be be a terrific asset to our film.

OKAY, SAY THE FILM WAS FUNDED AND MADE.  NOW WHAT?  

Regardless of the eventual distribution method, TPFA MOVIE LLC will be responsible for early efforts to market and build awareness for THE PALE FACED ASSASSIN to two specific groups: Distributors and our Target Audience.  Engaging the target audience at the beginning is key to building and establishing a fan base to help bring awareness to the project. This approach gives the company more negotiating power in securing traditional distribution. The Company has devised a comprehensive marketing strategy that utilizes a coordinated effort directed at creating a synergy between the distributor and audience, engaging both groups at the same time.

THE PALE FACED ASSASSIN will be marketed early on by social networking, blogs, and viral video. In addition to our new media efforts, select film festivals will be targeted to gain additional media coverage.

The Company’s marketing plan will drive people to our website and offer exclusive interactive content in exchange for their email address and zip code. We will allow the fans to express themselves and get rewarded and recognized for their efforts. This will build a list of target audience members with the markets in which they reside.  Using this information, TPFA MOVIE LLC will be able to market directly to the target audience and keep them engaged with content.

Some of the marketing work will include:

SOCIAL MEDIA

A vast majority of our intended audience participates heavily in social networking, and so they are particularly marketable via the medium. Social media provides an easy way for word-of-mouth to spread very quickly when the audience responds well to the film. While we will use a wide range of social sites, our primary efforts will focus on the major social networking sites Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and Facebook.

FILM FESTIVALS

The major festivals open to this kind of film are Berlin, Sundance, Toronto, Tribeca and SXSW and we will pursue the opportunity to play at some of these festivals. Acceptance at this level of festival is extremely competitive.  Our goal is to get the most media coverage for our screenings as possible. The focus will be to get reviewers to cover the film. A festival screening may be seen by one or two hundred people, but a review from a festival may be seen by thousands or tens of thousands of potential viewers.  Therefore, we will explicitly reach out to reviewers to cover the film at these screenings.

DISTRIBUTION

The business of producing and exploiting low-budget films is highly speculative, with many risks uncommon to other businesses. No assurances can be given of the economic success of any motion picture. The revenues derived from production and distribution of a motion picture depends primarily on its acceptance by the public, which cannot be predicted. In addition, the competitive nature of the film industry, the possible box office failure of a motion picture, and the potential inability of a distributor to distribute the motion picture properly, collect distribution revenues, or remit funds properly to the producers, make the successful distribution of any motion picture subject to substantial risk. The commercial success of a motion picture also depends on general economic factors and other tangible and intangible factors, none of which can be predicted with any certainty.

DISTRIBUTION MODEL

Securing distribution is the most important factor in the financial success of any film. The primary distribution goal for THE PALE FACED ASSASSIN is a U.S. theatrical release, which has the most significant impact on the film’s ability to maximize its potential for profits in other markets worldwide. The secondary distribution goal is a U.S. DVD/Blu-ray/VOD release on all available streaming platforms.

THEATRICAL

Wide or limited theatrical distribution comes with the involvement of a U.S. distributor that has preexisting relationships with exhibitors (theatre owners) guaranteeing screens for a film and therefore has the potential to reach the widest audience possible.

DVD/BLU-RAY

Even in decline, DVD/BluRay sales are still relevant.  People still buy movies to watch in their players at retailers like Walmart and Target.

VOD/SVOD/AVOD

With more ways to watch downloaded content and new product being offered all the time, VOD is a large and effective way to reach an audience. From Xbox to iPhones, content with major stars are downloadable content across many platforms. This specific technology allows users to rent or purchase a title at the click of a mouse.

STRATEGY

The management team plans to enter into negotiations with certain distribution companies while still in the packaging phase of production. Our goal is to secure a domestic distribution commitment and/or a foreign sales agent commitment prior to commencing principal photography.

By working in collaboration with these distribution companies during pre-production, and throughout production and post-production, the management team can take advantage of these distributors' knowledge and experience in a constantly changing marketplace. Through these relationships, TPFA MOVIE LLC can be assured the product we produce will have as much commercial appeal as possible to our target audiences, which translates into financial success at the box office and beyond.