How to Sell Your Film to Netflix

Selling your film to Netflix has become the new Graal for many filmmakers, including myself, but getting in touch with Original Programmers is anything but easy.

Last year as we were in Cannes with In 5 Years, my producer Muge Ozen attended the Producer’s Network. (I explain here in detailed what it is and how it works.) One morning, a guest table was from Netflix. Because the Producer’s Network is based on a first come, first served basis, Muge arrived an hour earlier to make sure she’ll get a seat at the Netflix table. Only to discover that a line had already started. The custom is that after the regular time talking with a guest at your table, you can go to another table to meet another guest. You’ve probably guessed it by now, Netflix guest got surrounded by producers like a pollen-filled flower by bees.

This anecdote from our personal experience is to show that Jonny von Wallström’s long journey to get his film picked by Netflix is a testimony to his persistence and resistance. Jonny von Wallström sold his film to Netflix after a long and arduous process that took over four years.

The filmmaker explains in details in the video below how it all happened, but here is a sum-up of his journey:

Be crystal clear about your final goal for your film (here, selling to Netflix) and make everything else support that goal.

Grow an audience online to use as leverage later.

Create alternative content (here a web series) to show what you can do and that there is interest in a bigger project

Dedicate time and budget to email and attend festivals to chase Netflix Original Programers over the years

Be patient

Pitching and selling to Netflix has become almost as hard as pitching and selling to a Studio. What makes Netflix a top contender though is that unlike Studios, Netflix looks for original content over a broad spectrum of genres and topics, often going for the alternative road, which gives indie filmmakers more chances in a way to get a deal.

The other power Netflix has is its audience of course. Netflix is closing on 100 million subscribers worldwide. If I can’t tell you how much money a filmmaker gets out of a Netflix deal, I can tell you that this sounds like a dream affair for a filmmaker.

Assuming most filmmakers want their films to be seen by as many people as possible (what a crazy assumption), it’s easy to understand why Netflix has become in the last five years the place to get in touch with. As a filmmaker, you get to see your film spread everywhere in the world in an instant and watch it being promoted for probably a fraction of what a traditional marketing campaign generally costs, with millions of users receiving news about your film straight into their inbox.

Jonny von Wallström played the long game and it paid off. You can watch below the teaser for his Ugandan Transgender Love Story that will become soon a Netflix Original. Kudos to him.