How we work with you
CINELAN is supported by a filmmaker community rivaled by no other in the documentary industry. Morgan Spurlock, Jessica Yu, Steve James, Ross Kaufman, Marilyn Agrelo, to name drop a little, are involved in the CINELAN process.
We’ll partner with you to bring your film to life quickly and efficiently, working together to ensure the process is smooth from story proposal to completed film, providing feedback on your ideas and rough cuts using the insights of our staff, our knowledge of the marketplace, and by leveraging our filmmaker contributors, only some of whom are mentioned above.
To start, develop a list of as many story ideas as you like. Envision new material or draw on footage you’ve already shot and want to repurpose for new audiences. Based on the ideas we agree are most promising and viable, we’ll ask you to produce brief treatments that outline the story arc and describe a plan to complete the film within our delivery schedule.
For each film we agree to pursue, you’ll confirm your delivery timeline in writing and we'll notify our distribution chain that the film will be arriving for enjoyment by their viewers. At this time, we’ll also provide you with our license agreement to review, due back upon delivery of the film rough cut.
Within days of receiving your rough cut, CINELAN will review your film and share feedback with you.
Within a week of receiving our feedback, you’ll deliver final versions of your film to our technical specifications for theatrical and web syndication. You then receive the fully-executed license agreement, and CINELAN releases your film to our syndication network.
We encourage you to review some of the films we have published to get ideas on how to work best within the three-minute format. They are all available here on the CINELAN site. Also take a look around our partner sites, see how they are positioned and how advertising is used to support them, and then make an informed decision about becoming a CINELAN filmmaker.
We hope you like what you see and look forward to working with you for years to come!
To submit a film idea, or for more information, click here to send us an email.