THE NEXT BOLLYWOOD STEPS!

During the last couple of years, a great part of my free time was taken up in with shooting and editing "Bollywood Steps." Now that the documentary is complete, I'll be working on getting it out into the wider world. In the case of this particular film, I have multiple goals. The most important:

First, I'll be entering the documentary in a number of film festivals, to develop a wider awareness of the project.

Second, I'll be seeking a suitable distributor to bring "Bollywood Steps" to television audiences around the world. Generally, these sorts of projects are sold to individual markets by skilled distributors. It's not impossible to "do it yourself," but I'm not interested in re-inventing the wheel!

Third, I'll be seeking direct sales avenues - there's a wide range of new opportunities for this, which could include online venues (i.e. Amazon.com) and features that didn't exist just couple of years ago, including digital downloads. Not every independent documentary is suitable for this sort of distribution, but this particular film, I believe, has a unique appeal to certain audiences.

As I work on all of these goals, it's critical, at the same time, to develop the Next Thing. What's the Next Thing? Oh, you won't get it out of me that easily!

Bollywood Steps: Background Information

I invite anyone interested in my documentary, "Bollywood Steps," to check out the website of the "Bollywood Step Dance Troupe," the professional dance troupe created by Yogen Bhagat, the choreographer/dancer featured in my film. The website features an in-depth look at Yogen's achievements, and defines the basic elements of the Bollywood dance style. Yogen's the foremost Bollywood-trained choreographer living in the United States. In addition to his professional dance troupe, he also maintains a thriving Bollywood Dance school.

For those of you who aren't familiar with my documentary, "Bollywood Steps" is the story of the relationship between Yogen Bhagat and a group of American-born Indian boys in his dance workshop. Growing up in Southern California, the boys are learning, with Yogen's help, to connect with their heritage through popular Indian culture. You can see the trailer at my website. The hour-long film goes out to festivals in January.

"Bollywood Steps" Update!

I'm currently racing to have a version of the documentary ready to enter in a series of film festivals with deadlines in January - so I don't have much time left. I'm currently tweaking the final cut - making minor and semi-major adjustments as I gauge the reaction of viewers less familiar with the project.

Music is still an issue - I've licensed some music from a couple of online sites, but one of those sites has since gone out of business, so I'm not certain if that has an impact on my ability to use the footage. These sites generally offer music and stock footage that is posted on their site by outside artists. If I can't answer those questions, or find suitable alternatives, I still might commission a custom soundtrack. In the short term, however, I'll use the music tracks as they exist for the festival entries; my concerns are rights to broadcast and distribution.

Bollywood Steps: In Color!

I took precautions when I shot the "Holi" holiday celebration for my documentary, "Bollywood Steps." That's Neil, getting ready to add some color to my life!

Join the "Bollywood Steps" Facebook Group

If you're on Facebook (this is a feed from my blog at richsamuels.blogspot.com), I'd like to invite you to join the group I created for my documentary, "Bollywood Steps." The success of an independent documentary like this depends a great deal on a "grassroots" campaign of sorts, and this group is a way of keeping all interested parties informed on an ongoing basis with all the various aspects of the production.

Facebook users can find the group at:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=55951506862

Thanks!

"Bollywood Steps" Behind the Scenes

My production aide, Dave Guerrero, took this behind-the-scenes photo during production of "Bollywood Steps." This is why I like to use small, light cameras!

"Bollywood Steps" Quote

"You respect your family. You respect your parents.
You respect your dance."
Bollywood choreographer/dancer Yogen Bhagat, on lessons taught to his students, in my documentary, "Bollywood Steps"