In today’s often overwhelming media landscape, outreach/engagement (or “impact”) campaigns are no longer tangential to a film’s release strategy – instead they are core to generating audience awareness and enthusiasm. Many filmmakers embrace the idea that maximizing the impact of their film is also the best pathway to maximize the audience.
Washington, DC may be a complicated ecosystem, but it is also home to some of the world’s leading experts on virtually every issue. Policymakers, advocacy groups, coalitions, think tanks, diplomats and academics are all based in the Nation’s Capital – and in most cases they have unique professional networks, global connections and a mission to engage the public on issues that matter. If engaged in the correct manner, these organizations and leaders can be the key to effective policy engagement, visibility and audience development.
We are in the midst of a period of government disruption and uncertainty. For filmmakers eager to be in service to the day to day realities of film participants and the advocacy goals of mission aligned organizations, this adds another layer of complexity. How can we balance the need to gain visibility for our projects while taking care to be an effective ally to individuals and organizations engaged in the ongoing advocacy and educational work?
With over 25 years’ experience as a Washington DC based advocate, strategist and connector, Michael Bracy and his Policy in Focus team have developed an outreach and engagement model intended to maximize a film’s impact in the policy sphere while leveraging organizational partnerships, political relationships and earned/social media to generate audience interest.
Building off his experience with films like Food and Country, Inventing Tomorrow and Moonlight Sonata: Deafness in Three Movements, this interactive workshop will introduce the philosophy behind Policy in Focus’ approach and guide participants through collaborative exercises intended to mimic the broader process of effectively defining policy goals, developing partnerships with aligned organizations and implementing digital infrastructure strategies to exponentially scale a film’s universe of core champions and fans.
By the end of the workshop, participants will have insight into how to best align with Washington insiders, how policy goals can be supported through meaningful partnerships with advocacy groups and how audiences can be maximized as a result of these relationships. Participants will share ideas, concerns and best practices through small-group provocative and challenging small-group exercises that will provide ample food for thought for projects at all stages of development.
This workshop is designed for filmmakers or members of the community that either have a project in development, a film that has recently premiered, or an interest in revisiting the strengths and weaknesses of a prior outreach/engagement campaign.
