My commitment to networking filmmakers

After working hard for over a year networking and connecting with
filmmakers, producers, and distributors all over the world, I started
understanding how social media networking works and what it is. I
want to share with you some of the connections and understandings
about the path to social media networking I found helpful.

Every story has a history behind it. Almost two years ago (after
eight years as a glass artist) I felt it was time for me to start
making videos of my work. Shortly after I filed the paperwork for my
production company, Melon Mountain Productions, everything spiraled
into a full blown desire to learn more about filmmaking. This led to
a lot of unpaid work and even some commercial work.

Out of desperation to make some money doing video production, I
started looking on Craigslist for work. That's when I found Dan
Latrimurti and Anthony Dellaflora. The two had created The Filmmakers
Channel --an exclusive movie database using the latest technology in
pay-per-view/on-demand video. It took me some time to understand the
possibilities with this new model of distribution as I learned more
about what possibilities the internet held for filmmakers, musicians,
and artists. I also heard a few internet marketing gurus saying the
current explosion of social media networks are bringing money-making
opportunities similar to the late 1990s 'internet bubble' that made
many people 'overnight' millionaires.

That's when it hit me. Wanting to keep up with where the markets and
other artists were going (to the web) I realized I was going to be
left behind if I didn't jump soon. After a few mistakes and a couple
wrong approaches, I realized how there's a lot of other artists
needing help to be discovered and needing more outlets than Facebook,
YouTube, and MySpace. That's when I discovered small social media
platforms --ones that were catering to filmmakers, musician, artists,
and all walks of life. As I became more involved with these
communities (there are simply too many to mention by name) I realized
that there would be a need for new social media environments. These
communities could help filmmakers and artists in similar geographical
areas.

With the help of Shane Tribolet, a good friend of mine doing all the
graphic work and website development, we went to work to create
Fansoffilm.com. Since the launch of the site in late 2008 it has
grown into a small community of amazing people; a handful of
award-winning, successful, filmmakers, writers, artists from all over
the world. The mission of Fans Of Film is to ofer resources and info
for filmmakers and artists seeking internet distribution.

With Fans Of Film well underway, I got thinking how this could help a
lot of my friends reach new possibilities with their ideas and
businesses. One friend, Nicholas Ward, had a project brewing that
would attempt to create a gathering of artists within a specific area.
I'd known Nicholas Ward for 10 years and knew about his commitment to
the artist community. His almost innocent childish love for art made me
believe his passion and evangelistic mindset are what was needed to
create a social network that would prosper and grow for artists of all
mediums.

Shane said that he would lend a hand with some graphics and web
development again, so I encouraged Nicholas to start a social network
for his project, The Root 66. Nicholas, being a really smart guy,
understood right away the possibilities in creating a social network,
to say the least. Nicholas took to it like a duck to water amassing
over 100 people in less than two weeks. That's a little more than 10
people per day signing up to be on The Root 66

It's been great to work with the friends, acquaintances, and the many
talented people I've connected with over this past year. Truthfully,
there have been so many people connected to this that I started to
lose track a little, but the internet is always reconnecting and
bringing people back together, especially those involved in social
media!