Dear IMDB:
I understand your policy on release dates that many people on here have issues with, and there is a huge discrepancy in the way you have stated it.
Many people screen works in progress at film festivals. The filmmaker has the right to change the film after a festival screening. I've done it with mine, I used the festival screenings to learn audience reaction, etc, for my documentary and it was incredibly informative. I played it at a few festivals and being that I got the same reactions, changed the film once I finished, in order to improve it, which I did, then it got distribution a year later, and was released 9 months after that.
So my film was released, on Amazon to the public on August 31, 2018. That's the only release date that you should issue, for anyone. Here is YOUR POLICY:
Exceptions
So I'm begging an IMDB rep to come to this complaint so we can have a dialogue and I can hear their opinion on this very frustrating policy. It states the above info, right there: SO YOU MUST HONOR THAT. yet you do not.
This doesn't apply to "Hollywood Mega-Budget stuff" . I am referring to the thousands of complaints I saw on this page about small time filmmakers, like myself, trying to address their release date issues. It's clearly a very real issue. International markets care about the release date of a film, and everyone trusts IMDB, so this greatly hurts indie filmmakers who work tirelessly to get their projects out in the world.
Yes, I'm one of them and really want to know why they can't address this for us.
The reps on all these chains, say: Nope, sorry, we don't care.
It's infuriating, yet we are all powerless to IMDB, who does not have a call center, just a frustrating antiquated system I am typing on now...
anyone? Can anyone hear me? Is this thing on?
I understand your policy on release dates that many people on here have issues with, and there is a huge discrepancy in the way you have stated it.
Many people screen works in progress at film festivals. The filmmaker has the right to change the film after a festival screening. I've done it with mine, I used the festival screenings to learn audience reaction, etc, for my documentary and it was incredibly informative. I played it at a few festivals and being that I got the same reactions, changed the film once I finished, in order to improve it, which I did, then it got distribution a year later, and was released 9 months after that.
So my film was released, on Amazon to the public on August 31, 2018. That's the only release date that you should issue, for anyone. Here is YOUR POLICY:
Exceptions
- On occasion titles are shown to non-public focus groups to assess audience reaction before making final edits. As such, these should not be considered as release dates.
- Market screenings that are by private invitation only are not considered public releases, therefore should not be considered as release dates.
So I'm begging an IMDB rep to come to this complaint so we can have a dialogue and I can hear their opinion on this very frustrating policy. It states the above info, right there: SO YOU MUST HONOR THAT. yet you do not.
This doesn't apply to "Hollywood Mega-Budget stuff" . I am referring to the thousands of complaints I saw on this page about small time filmmakers, like myself, trying to address their release date issues. It's clearly a very real issue. International markets care about the release date of a film, and everyone trusts IMDB, so this greatly hurts indie filmmakers who work tirelessly to get their projects out in the world.
Yes, I'm one of them and really want to know why they can't address this for us.
The reps on all these chains, say: Nope, sorry, we don't care.
It's infuriating, yet we are all powerless to IMDB, who does not have a call center, just a frustrating antiquated system I am typing on now...
anyone? Can anyone hear me? Is this thing on?


