Six Steps to Build Your Own Distribution Playbook
About this Advisor Studio
In Advisor Studio sessions, film and television industry professionals share field experiences and insights into their specific areas of craft, including writing, directing, and producing for TV and film.
Independent film distribution is in a moment of profound transformation. Where filmmakers once relied upon established gatekeepers to get their films bought and distributed, they now have the ability to create their own distribution strategies to get their films in front of audiences. While this newfound autonomy offers unprecedented control over your work, it also demands a mastery of an increasingly fragmented and complex marketplace.
This live, online session brings together two thought leaders at the forefront of alternative distribution:
- Emily Best, founder and CEO of Seed&Spark
- Christie Marchese, founder and CEO of Kinema
Best and Marchese will provide a succinct, six-step plan to develop a distribution strategy for your project. The session will offer distribution tips, tactics, and, most importantly, the economics for every window – from theatrical through video-on-demand (VOD) and beyond. The session builds upon The Distribution Playbook, a resource Marchese and Best created in 2024 for independent filmmakers. The event will end with a live audience Q&A in which attendees can ask Best and Marchese about the future of film distribution.
Join Sundance Collab and the founders of Seed&Spark and Kinema for this invaluable dive into the ever-changing landscape of independent film distribution.
If you would benefit from an accommodation to fully participate in this event, please complete this form, contact us at (435) 776-7790, or email us at accessibility@sundance.org to discuss your specific requests. Every effort will be made to accommodate advance requests; however, requests made within 5 days of the event may not be guaranteed.
A recording of this Advisor Studio will be posted to Sundance Collab on the first business day after the live event. Once it is posted, all registered attendees will find the recording in the “My Purchases” section of their account.
Advisor StudioTeam
Emily Best
Emily Best is the founder and CEO of Seed&Spark, the #1 crowdfunding platform in the world for storytellers on a mission to make entertainment more diverse, inclusive, connected and essential. Seed&Spark’s platform and national education program have helped thousands of bold storytellers raise over $86M and counting. Emily is dedicated to making the resources for creators to build independent, sustainable careers free and accessible: Seed&Spark launched The Crowdfunding Playbook and alongside Kinema also launched The Distribution Playbook, free and open- sourced field guide for independent filmmakers to succeed from funding to distribution. She has produced films, VR, shorts and series that have premiered at Sundance, SXSW, Slamdance, Tribeca and more. She produced Ratified, a feature documentary about the 100+ year struggle for the Equal Rights Amendment, which premiered on Independent Lens October 20, 2025 and her new film Mr Jesus is about to hit festivals. Both were crowdfunded.
Christie Marchese
Christie Marchese is the founder and CEO of Kinema and EVP of Entertainment Partnerships at Publicis Media.
Kinema is a global streaming and screening event platform that leverages the power of community and social interaction to distribute films and series. She was previously the founder of the impact entertainment agency Picture Motion, which was acquired by Publicis Media in 2024 as part of PMCI Entertainment, an entertainment studio that funds and distributes brand-backed original film and TV.
Prior to launching Picture Motion, she led impact efforts for Righteous Pictures, developed digital strategies for the social action group at Participant Media, and managed program coordination and social media for Norman Lear's nonprofit, Declare Yourself.
Christie is also the co-author of The Distribution Playbook and has won several industry recognitions, including being named one of Fortune’s Rising Female Founders in 2023 and Fast Company’s Most Creative People in 2021. She’s currently on the boards of Subject Matter, The Redford Center, Chieck&Egg Films, and The Reinvent Stockton Foundation. She holds a BA from SDSU in International Security and Conflict Resolution (ISCOR) and Comparative Religions, with a concentration in Arabic and the Middle East.
Soheil Rezayazdi
Moderator | Digital Course & Event Producer
Soheil Rezayazdi is a Digital Course & Event Producer at the Sundance Institute, where he produces multi-session courses, master classes, filmmaker Q&As, and other digital programs for Sundance Collab. Prior to Sundance, Soheil served as the Nonfiction Programs Manager at the Gotham Film & Media Institute. He oversaw the Gotham’s core documentary programs: the Documentary Feature Lab, the Spotlight on Documentaries project market, and the Documentary Development Initiative in partnership with HBO Documentary Films. Soheil has worked with emerging filmmakers since 2015, when he began a seven-year tenure at the Columbia University MFA Film Program. At Columbia he managed the Columbia University Film Festival (CUFF), the Dr. Saul and Dorothy Kit Film Noir Festival, and the Carla Kuhn Memorial Speaker Series.
Soheil is also a freelance writer on film and pop culture with articles in Indiewire, McSweeney’s, Vice, Filmmaker Magazine, Documentary Magazine, Paper, Paste, and elsewhere. He has also served as an external reviewer for artist programs operated by Creative Capital, Kartemquin Pictures, Chicken & Egg Pictures, and the International Documentary Association. A native of Iran, he holds an MA in journalism and a BA in film studies from the University of Iowa.