Following the debut theater run of its first feature film Two Sleepy People, Creator Camp has signed a three-picture deal with Attend Theatrical Marketplace, which connects independent filmmakers with movie theaters and other exhibitors who might want to showcase their projects.
Creator Camp, as we’ve covered, is an initiative-turned-full-fledged-production-studio that was founded in 2021 by creators Max Reisinger, Simon Kim, and Chris Duncan. Its goal is to give digital content creators the funding and production support they need to make big-screen projects without relying on Hollywood.
Two Sleepy People, from writer/TikTok filmmaker Baron Ryan and writer/actress Caroline Grossman, emerged from a recent partnership between Creator Camp and Patreon where 10 creators were given cash and other support to make their own films. All resulting projects were screened at a 1,000-person film festival in Austin this past June. Two Sleepy People was selected to go further, with Creator Camp scheduling a multi-city theater run.
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That run put the film (which stars Ryan and Grossman as “a couple that’s married every night, but by morning–they’re strangers”) in Seattle’s Majestic Bay Theatres, San Francisco’s Palace of Fine Arts Theatre, Los Angeles’s Wilshire Ebell Theatre, and finally El Museo de Barrio in New York City. IndieWire reports earnings per screen were around $10,500.
With Attend Theatrical Marketplace, Creator Camp is sending Two Sleepy People even wider: It’ll open Nov. 14 in 20 markets. As mentioned above, the deal includes two other films, but those haven’t been publicly announced. They might also be films from Creator Camp’s Austin festival, or they could be future projects developed out of the collective’s newly rented studio space.
As for Attend, it was developed by the Fithian Group, a company co-founded by former National Association of Theatre Owners execs John Fithian, Jackie Brenneman, and Patrick Corcoran. The company says Attend “partners with the creative community, movie theater owners, leading research firms and innovators to bring custom, market-ready solutions to the global cinema marketplace.”
Per IndieWire, the Attend marketplace uses machine learning to match films with ideal theaters and audiences.
“Movie theaters are vital places for community. When the movies are there, so are audiences,” Brenneman said. “In partnership with the innovative approach of Creator Camp, we can build on the enthusiastic followers of filmmakers online, connect them directly to theaters, and with Attend create demand-driven theatrical releases.”
“Today’s filmmakers grew up online and they understand their audiences because they engage with them constantly, which has allowed them to build massive, loyal communities,” Reisinger, Creator Camp’s CEO, added. “That direct connection solves a huge challenge in theatrical distribution. Instead of relying on outdated models that guess who will show up, our creators can bring fans to theaters they’ve already cultivated online, turning digital engagement into real-world box office success.”
You can see the full list of theaters showing Two Sleepy People here.
