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What's the cost of being a film journalist?

post #1 of 15
1/14/09 at 12:30am
Thread Starter 
Specifically, i'm trying to pry into the financial affairs of you folks because i'm wondering what the cost is to travel to film festivals like Sundance.
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post #2 of 15
1/14/09 at 12:45am
www.priceline.com
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post #3 of 15
1/14/09 at 5:56am
Sundance will cost me, all told, about 1300 bucks. All of it out of my own pocket.
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post #4 of 15
1/14/09 at 6:03am
Wow. That's actually a helluva lot less than I thought it would cost.

Is that a pretty accurate average, Devin, or did you sell someone's soul for some kind of deal?
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post #5 of 15
1/14/09 at 6:03am
I have a good deal on lodgings.
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post #6 of 15
1/14/09 at 6:05am
So is the majority of that fees paid to Sundance?

...or travel?
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post #7 of 15
1/14/09 at 6:06am
Journalists don't pay the festival anything.
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post #8 of 15
1/14/09 at 3:52pm
Thread Starter 
And do the journalists get that free swag at them? I hope you can recoup. I'm just wondering if someday i'll be able to justify traveling to one of these festivals just for the shit of it.
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post #9 of 15
1/14/09 at 4:07pm
A buddy of mine got a trip to Sundance for his birthday from his wife. He said it's going to cost them about 1500 a piece.
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post #10 of 15
1/14/09 at 4:16pm
I don't think Sundance is worth it for a non-journalist, unless you're interested in getting some skiing in (and then it'll cost you even more). If you want a film festival, do Toronto, SXSW or, and I cannot stress this enough, Fantastic Fest. Fantastic Fest is THE best fest for filmgoers. SXSW and Toronto will have bigger movies, but FF is like going to summer camp for movies. It's amazing.
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post #11 of 15
1/14/09 at 4:18pm
Don't all the spin-off festivals happening all around Sundance give you more choices/added value? Are those fests (Slamdance, Tromadance, whatever else) still going on every year?
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post #12 of 15
1/14/09 at 4:21pm
Yeah, but Sundance is trying to crack down.

I feel like for the expense and the hassle, Sundance is just a little too difficult and the films too hit or miss. There's probably more of a sense of discovery at Sundance, so if that's what you're looking for, it's great. You'll see movies that no one else will ever see. But you'll also see a lot of shit, and without a pass picking the movies to buy tickets for can be tough.
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post #13 of 15
1/14/09 at 4:31pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by The Mechanic View Post
And do the journalists get that free swag at them? I hope you can recoup. I'm just wondering if someday i'll be able to justify traveling to one of these festivals just for the shit of it.
I'd imagine that Devin writes the expense off as a business expense.
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post #14 of 15
1/14/09 at 4:42pm
Thread Starter 
I'd totally go to Toronto or definitely Fantastic Fest over Sundance, for a myriad of reasons. Toronto and/or Austin is much more appealing to me than Park City, Utah. for sure.
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post #15 of 15
1/14/09 at 5:07pm
You always write these things off as expenses, but it's a BIG expense if you have to front it. In years where I haven't been lucky with lodging, TIFF has cost me $2k. In good years when I can use frequent flyer miles and get good accommodations, it's only been $600.
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