Opening Plenary: “Embracing the Disruption”
We used to decide how and when we consumed media. Now it’s impossible to escape it. Our lives are saturated with media: television, computers, smartphones, tablets, radio, ipods and e-readers. How do these various platforms affect how we tell stories, how we reach audiences, and how we create impact today? Has the glut of media made us more or less media literate? And what does excellence mean in this crowded, 24/7 landscape? These are some of the big issues we’ll explore in the opening plenary session of MMN.

Moderator: Jeff Leifer
Speakers: Charles Sennott, Jesse Shapins
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Panel: “Media-Fueled Impact”
Media has always had the potential to influence and transform society, and today’s multiplexed media world offers more opportunities than ever before to catalyze social action. Come join some of the country’s top media makers and thinkers as they share their methods for engaging audiences to action. Learn about creating transmedia content; designing treetop and grassroots initiatives; forging effective strategic partnerships; harnessing social media; and inspiring audiences to take measurable positive action. These campaigns will not only help your media project change the world – they will also help you attract the funding you need!

Moderator: Anne Zeiser
Panelists: Johanna Blakley, Beth Murphy, Michael Sheridan
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Case Study: “Kickstarter”
Not long ago it looked as if long-form documentaries were a dying art form, with traditional sources of funding all but dried up. Then along came Kickstarter and other crowd-sourced funding models, upending everything. Filmmakers can now hope to raise six-figures funding in a month or two, from the public. Come hear one case study, of how FC filmmaker Bill Lichtenstein raised over $104,100 in just 30 days for his documentary “The American Revolution,” about WBCN radio 104.1 FM.

Presenters: Bill Lichtenstein, Laura Azevedo
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Panel: “Art of the Pitch”
Pitching your media project effectively is one of the most important skills you can develop if you want to be successful at fundraising and audience-building. In this session you’ll watch five producers pitch their films to a panel of industry insiders who will critique the presentations and suggest what it takes to craft a winning pitch. At the end of the day a winner will be selected and will get a modest cash prize!

Moderator: Judith Vecchione
Panelists: Kathryn Lo, Karen Mittelman
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Panel: “Reframing Distribution: Times are a Changin”
Back in the day (like 4 years ago) the film distribution model was easy to understand: find a distributor, and sell cable and foreign rights. Now we live in a Balkanized world with many more options, and risks. There are many alluring new ways of finding an audience, and the filmmaker has more control than ever, if only the clutter doesn’t get in the way. In this panel we will explore where we are headed, and how we can best take advantage of the new opportunities that are definitely out there.

Moderator: Garen Daly
Panelists: Brian Newman, Anthony Kaufman, Paola Freccero
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“One-On-One Networking”
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Industry Expert: Sandy Forman
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Closing Session: “Speed-Dating For New Alliances”
Put any four people together and chances are, with the right questions and incentives, they might discover a viable project that they could do together. At this session, which caps the day at MMN, participants will have a chance to find out what they and three strangers have to offer the world. It could be an idea for a film, or a new way of framing an educational or sporting event. It could be a new distribution platform, or a web business. The sky’s the limit! And there is a prize for the team voted to have the more viable idea.