This is an incredibly cool thing to do, Kamal. I haven't seen your movie, and it could suck for all I know, but major props for telling the Hollywood self-preservation society to go f*** itself. Couldn't have happened to a nicer bunch.

Best of luck!

Just a note of support to say what fantastic news this is, and to wish you luck. What next, films released under Creative Commons?

I love this! Yes, the internet is a scarcity killer (as Jeff Jarvis says), and risks like this being taken is an important step for opening the movie industry up, starving the fat cats, and delivering to audiences what they want, when they want, how they want it.

Well done, Kamal, Jim, and everyone else involved.

"In the 21st century, large is no longer in charge. Leverage will belong to the nimble and the swift."

Guess who said that recently? Sumner Redstone, the chairman of Viacom which owns Paramount studios, MTV, CBS and VH1 among other media outlets.

Clearly he's been reading this blog. Way to go, Sumner.

And oh, by the way, what kind of name is Sumner anyway?

I'm with you 100% on the HDTV and the cigar. Well, for me it's a 19-inch black and white on a milk crate and a bowl of Count Chocula, but same principle.

Yes, the writing's on the wall ...

The U.S. box office is sagging. DVD sales gains are slowing. Advertising revenue at broadcast television networks is slipping as ratings drop. And the growing popularity of digital video recorders has advertising and television executives worried.

"If these trends continue, the filmed entertainment and broadcast television segments could pressure the performance of the large-cap media companies over the next several years," media analyst Lowell Singer of investment firm SG Cowen cautioned investors yesterday in a research report.

The variety of concerns along with questions of how much growth potential remains for the industry are reflected in drooping stock prices this year for media giants including Time Warner, Viacom, Walt Disney Co. and News Corp...

The film industry's domestic box office revenue is off 9 percent so far this year, totaling less than $5.3 billion, the lowest level since 2001. Analysts are debating how much of the relative blame lies in high ticket prices, the rapid availability of home videos and weaker movies.

At the same time, the cost to produce and market a film has jumped an average of more than 7 percent a year between 2001 and 2004, according to industry statistics. And the number of films released widely - in more than 3,000 U.S. theaters at once - totals 36 so far this year, compared with 24 a year ago, putting more pressure on marketing costs.

"We remain concerned about the economics of the studio business," Singer said.

Just ordered the DVD, looking foward to getting it and supporting you guys in NY. Anything else I can do let me know, we have a ton of cigar guys here.

Another NYC cigar guy here. Maybe a NY screening and launch party is in order, guys!

Sounds like a plan. Set it up Kamal!

Congrats brother K! You've made blog and movie history in one move!

They'll be reading about this in Marketing classes at USC years from now.

Hey Dan in NY, sent you an email but it bounced. Email me your correct email and I will contact you again.

What next, films released under Creative Commons?

Ani Miles: Actually, this blog already has Creative Commons license, just scroll down, in the left-hand side bar. And we are working on putting it on the film and other details.

Great idea, but you need to figure out a way for those of us who can't order directly off a website to place an order. Maybe put up an address to send payment to.

Kamal:

I have an idea for you:

The Retail Tobacco Dealers of America is having their 73rd Annual Convention and International Trade Show in New Orleans starting today and running through this coming Wednesday (8/10).

Here is the list of exhibitors:

http://www.rtda.org/tradeshowexhibitors.html

I'm sure you worked with quite a few of them on the movie for technical accuracy and whatnot (great cigar "props").

Perhaps you could shoot one of them a line and a few copies of Blowing Smoke to promote at this event. You would be doing yourself and them a great favor.

I can't think of a better way to get the viral marketing campaign going than by going straight to the source!

Best of luck with the launch of your "baby'!

Kamal:

Another idea:

Cigar Aficionado magazine has their 2005 10th Annual Big Smoke Las Vegas event coming up (November 4 -6) at Paris Las Vegas:

Contact the events folks at Cigar Aficionado, and see if there would still be time and resources to feature Blowing Smoke at this premier consumer event or their East Coast edition on November 22.

Again, best of luck in rolling out Blowing Smoke!

Kamal,

Good for you for turning your back on the studios and traditional distributors and giving this a shot. I can relate. My movie, "Working Stiff," (www.workingstiff.org) is a little indie that got good-to-excellent reviews ("clever," "witty," "funny, "a guaranteed crowd-pleaser") and won a few festival awards, but when I approached distributors all I got was, "So who's in it?... Who?" With no "name" actors, theatrical distribution wasn't even considered. I got a very small DVD deal, but I'm seriously considering download distribution via Google Video, which is supposed to come out soon.

Are you going to use Google Video or will you do something like Bit Torrent?

Best of luck to you. Here's hoping a production and distribution channel that excludes traditional Hollywood gate-keepers can be a success!

"So who's in it?...Who?"With no "name" actors, theatrical distribution wasn't even considered.

Greg Joyce: Ah yes! Those famous irritable words. The question of "Who's in it" might have worked in the past but not in the current.
Audiences today care more about the story line and the message behind it and don't care much about who's in it ("My Big Fat Greek Wedding", "Bend it Like Beckham"
and "Sideways") are good examples.
It is not a matter of us against them, that's not the issue, the point is, we think outside the box and are way ahead of the curve while they think "Alexander" ($155M production budget, $40M marketing cost with an estimated domestic gross of $34M).
You want another good one or two? Ok, how about "The Island", $122M production budget. Estimated return of $29M domestic.
"Stealth" $100M production budget, estimated return of $20M domestic.
The future choice for distribution channels is here and it comes in many shapes and forms from the "Blogsphere" to "Bit Torrent" to "Google Video" coming soon, Amazon and Ebay.
And in a week or two, Blowing Smoke can be purchased via Download. So "Who's in it?"...

I think this is a really great idea, but I really wish you would allow for download. Your trying a new distribution model, but your not using that model to it's full advantage, or even using it's best advantage.

You got great blog buzz(working with Adriana Cronin and Jim Treacher sure helped) and got me interested now I wan't to see it, not wait.

If you offer 4 Gig DVD format, or 1.3G Xvid I would buy this movie and be watching it tonight.

Chris, I hear you, brother. We have been pushing for a download and hoping to make it available at the same time as the DVD but it just required a bit extra special hosting arrangements and other technical issues have slowed us down. (Always blame things on technical issues!) :-)

But it's definitely on the agenda and we are talking days not weeks or months here. We have some great people helping us do it, so bear with us just a moment...

Congratulations! I've been working on the same distribution concept so I hope you have a raging success on your hands.

Nice to see that after 7+ years, a film like this can get made outside of the Hollywood system.

I remember designing some sort of script cover for it when I was at Marty Katz's office in the late nineties.

Congratulations, and I look forward to placing an order...

Thanks for doing this, man. While I don't wish that the people in Hollywood lose their job (there are a massive amount of talent there that I hope can still make a living after the studios fall) we need to see this gluttonous distribution/production-monopoly rumble and burn. Let's starve the bastards ...

Very clever of you to pull some viral marketing stuff to call attention to what is apparently a movie the majors probably wouldn't have an interest in anyway. My BSDetector went off big time.

Awesome thing you are doing here. Bravo. We need a way for independents and who-ever wants... to release movies for general consumtion. I would rather watch a movie on my High Def then in a crowded movie theater where I spent $20 for a ticket and a soda.

For the same price, I can buy the DVD, let alone lease a single viewing.

I will definately buy the movie as it looks very interesting. Maybe more people will start releasing thier movies the same way.

PS. I loved Firefly and look forward to the theatrical release.

Odd, as a beginning screenwriter I was wondering what I'd do with my movies if I ever happened to direct one...

One thing is clear: changes must be made not only to movie content but also to its distribution methods. I think the amount of confusion, propaganda and trials people should start to see that things are... *gasp* evolving!

I'm going to go download your movie now and when the DVD comes out I'll go out and buy it, and I won't be the only one.

Pile: Viral? How is blogging viral - it's not anonymous and Kamal is quite explicit about what he is trying to do. As for distribution, well, the current model sucks, so it's just possible that a good movie may have a tough time getting to its audiences.

Also, I'd imagine that you would judge the film on its own merits rather than on your bitterness. Or do you consider the 'majors' the only arbiters of quality? Time to tune your BS detector...

Sippin' rum and "Blowing Smoke" makes a great evening. It's a more challenging movie than it first appears and I recommend seeing it in mixed company, over cigars and with a bunch of folks who'll want kick back and spend the rest of the evening talking about the film.

Hats off to Kamal and friends for doing the film their way.