IndieFlix

"IndieFlix, a marketplace for independent films, has launched MyFestival, a new streaming video site that will let film festivals crowdsource the movie selection process. MyFestival is making its debut in conjunction with the Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF), which is taking place from May 22 to June 15.

For MyFestival’s pilot trial at SIFF, users will be able to stream and vote for any of ten films and ten shorts for free from nowPublish Post until June 8. After the deadline, the votes will be tallied and the winning film will be screened during the one of the festival’s most prized time slots. Even the losers get something out of the deal - the site provides detailed demographic responses that let filmmakers tweak their distribution plans. The site has already forged deals with a number of other festivals, and major venues like Sundance are watching the results closely.

Getting a screening at a film festival can be very competitive, even with hundreds of festivals in the United States annually. Even if a film is screened, getting distribution is considerably more difficult - less than 1% of American films find meaningful distribution. IndieFlix CEO Scilla Andreen says that a new voting system could help expose many of these films to a much broader audience, with the ultimate goal of giving the audience a s"