[Harp-L] This Tugg nonsense for the Pocket Full Of Soul screenings.

[William Lifford <william.lifford@xxxxxxxxx>]

Hello Harp-L'ers,

I have been trying to understand just how the producers of Pocket Full Of
Soul came up with this idea of screening the film for one day only, with
the idea of having the people who want to view the film do all of the work
towards setting up the screening.

It turns out there is next to no time at all to even try to arrange for a
screening on Long Island.  I could see making a serious effort to find a
venue and host a screening/promote the viewing/sell tickets if I had six
months' time, but the screening date is almost upon us.  If I had enough
notice, I'd save up the money and pay for all the tickets myself just to
guarantee that the film will be screened where I could actually go to see
it.

I'd be willing to pay a hundred dollars for a DVD of a harmonica film.
 But, ask me to try to find forty or fifty people to come down on one
specific night to watch a movie?  Especially on a weeknight?  I mean, how
much could the producers possibly make at each screening if tickets are
twelve bucks each?  The New Haven, CT one has about 18 who bought tickets
and needs 36 more to buy tickets just to ensure that the film will even be
shown.  And that's a couple of hours away from me.

I play in a pretty darn good band and we sure can't get sixty people to
show up on a weeknight.  So how do you convince sixty people to hire
babysitters for the night when you don't even know for sure if you're going
out to see the movie or if it will be cancelled?  I know it sounds silly,
but if you have small kids, you might have to plan things way in advance
like I do.

What would it take for this film to be available in a more reasonable way?
 Maybe there could be a pay-to-stream-the-film website?  Would Netflix
carry it?  Could it be downloaded from Amazon or iTunes?  DVD?  I'm dying
to see Pocket Full of Soul but I (like many, I'm sure) am completely
frustrated with the delivery system.

I would think the whole purpose of making a movie is to have people
actually see the movie.  Seems to me that only one screening day, with VERY
limited time for volunteers to organize venues and ticket-buying quotas,
etc., is not going to get the movie out to more than a few hundred people.
 Shame.

Bill