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Errors & Omissions Insurance (E & O) acts like a shield to help protect indie film producers from a lawsuits dealing with copyright infringement, using music without proper permission, chain of title issues and a lot of other lawsuits that can come up when distributing a movie.

Without E & O insurance most film distribution companies will not release a movie through retailers. It’s a necessary cost of doing business with a majority of distributors, even at the independent film level.

There are indie film producers that already have E & O insurance in place before shopping their movie to distributors. When they finalize their distribution agreement they submit a copy of the original certificate of insurance to the distributor adding the distribution company as an additional insured on the policy. Indie film producers that complete movies on a steady basis usually have an E & O insurance policy in place before principal photography begins.

A good rule of thumb to remember is that indie films should have E & O insurance coverage not less than $1,000,000 for each claim and $3,000,000 aggregate for all claims with a policy deductible no greater than $10,000. A good E & O insurance representative can explain the entire process based on your movie’s unique elements.

There are those times an indie film producer realizes the original movie budget did not include a line item expense for E & O insurance or they had no idea that it would be a needed to get their movie sold and distributed. When they step to the table to sign a distribution agreement there is no money to pay for E & O insurance policy.

It’s not the end of the world if you find yourself short on money to get E & O insurance. If a distributor is really hot for a movie they can front the cost through a carrier they deal with on a regular basis. The indie film producer will not have to go out of pocket upfront for the cost. But the distribution company will recoup the money spent from any sales, commonly referred to as a “charge back” to the indie film producer.

Be realistic that it’s most likely the distribution company will not get an indie film producer a great rate on E & O insurance. Think of it like buying something on credit you can’t afford and paying a higher interest rate later on. But if an indie film producer’s pockets are light money there is not another choice unless you pass on the deal. Easy credit will cost indie film producers more of their future movie profits down the line.

An indie film producer is better off if they look around for E & O insurance, get a firm quote, and include that real cost into the overall movie budget before shooting one frame. Making indie movies takes a squeeze a nickel until it bleeds approach. Save all the money you can where you can in production! This is indie filmmaker Sid Kali typing FADE OUT.

Point Of Grace singing “All I’ll Ever Need”. This is from a compilation CD called “Girls Of Grace”. It’s got a few songs done by Point Of Grace, but the main contributions are from other female artists like Nichole Nordeman, Jaci Velasquez, Rachel Lampa, Christy Nockels, Joy Williams, etc. It’s targeted for troubled teenage girls. I’m a 56-year old man, and I love the music, too!

Get the Hits That Really Count!

Here’s something to remember: if you receive 1,000 hits a day on your web page, it won’t mean a thing if only one of those visitors is interested in your product. Use your time and energy to generate publicity that brings you a meaningful, targeted audience! Don’t worry about getting thousands of random hits on your site. It’s the targeted visitors who will buy your product that you really want!

Internet Press Release

Why and where?

If you’re doing anything worthwhile at your web site, you ought to be sending out press releases on a periodic basis. These press or news releases can be sent to your music fans, subscribers to your e-mail list (covered in detail later), or the music industry at large. However, be careful who you target your press release to. The last thing you want to do is start sending your press releases to people who don’t want them. The line between an appropriate press release and spam can be a very thin one.

For example, the press release for your band’s new CD would not likely be considered real news to the music industry at large (sorry, but unless you’re a mega-star, it wouldn’t), so you should avoid sending e-mails to announce your new CD to the major record labels and A&R people. That would likely irritate the very A&R people you wish to attract! I myself receive unsolicited press releases from artists that, after the umpteenth time, I really don’t want. Their e-mail address has permanently been placed in my ‘nuisance’ spam filter. That’s exactly the kind of thing you don’t want to do!

If you want to send out a press release about your brand new just-released CD, ask yourself the question, “Who cares about my new CD?” Your fans do, so a news release sent to them would be appropriate. Any time you prepare a press release or news announcement, ask yourself “Who cares?” The answer to that question is a good test to determine whether your news item is worthy of widespread distribution.

When I release my brand new CD, who cares? My fans do, so the news release would be sent to them, as well as those who have subscribed to my personal e-mail list.

So, are you working on a project worthy of widespread recognition? Do you have an event or news you want to get the word out about? Here are a few places online to consider sending your press release:

Mi2N: The Music Industry News Network (http://www.mi2n.com/input.php3) is the first place to go
to find out what’s going on right now in the music industry. Every day, you’ll find dozens of new stories,
and you can submit yours. Some items also get published in MusicDish (http://www.musicdish.com), which is owned by the same people. Don’t miss this one.

Mi2N: Express Release News Service (http://www.mi2n.com/expressr.php3) is the same company as above, but this service is for those who want more widespread coverage and are willing to pay a bit
more for it. For just $55, you can have your release sent out to over 20 music sites on the MusicDish Network.

Beat Wire (http://www.beatwire.com/submit) is a press release service designed specifically for musicians that I’ve consistently heard good things about. Your news is delivered directly to the desktops of over 10 000 music editors at daily newspapers, magazines, news agencies,
top Web sites, radio stations, and other outlets. You can submit your press release to music critics, journalists, editors, and radio programmers. The cost is $99.95.

Finally, EWorldWire.com (http://www.eworldwire.com/) is interesting as you can target very specific groups, which includes major newswires, trade/industry specific, local distribution, top 100 newspapers, European markets, college & university press, and pretty much any ethnic group. Their fees start at only $99.

There are many other press release distribution services out there, many of which overlap in terms of who actually sees your release. Check out the above services and if you want to compare these with others, simply search Google.com for ‘press release distribution.’

Okay, indie is definitely a broad term for people to use but are you comfortable with calling bands by this large generic term or do you like to get more in-depth? One person’s definition of an indie band may be vastly different to another person’s opinion so if you are trying to describe a song or band, it could be worthwhile being able to use more expressive terms.

Have a look at the following genres and think about how many you recognize or can spot: Shoegazing, Britpop,

Grunge, Noise rock, Lo fi, Indie pop, Math rock, Garage rock, Post rock, New Wave of New Wave, Post Punk Revival, Nu-Rave, Folk rock.

And if you were so inclined you could probably list many more. Are these genres genuine or have they been created by magazine editors in order to create a buzz and help some more copies of their publications?

Historical Terms are Easily Definable

There is no doubt that some terms are used to define an era or particular style, with Shoegazing, Britpop and Grunge being largely historical terms now but you will have an idea in your head of what this genre is like. Some of the more recent names are a lot more confusing and harder to place which sort of makes the genre pointless.

The idea of a “scene” or “genre” is to ensure that bands are easily identifiable and can be pinpointed quickly. If you like one band who plays a particular style of music then there is every chance you will like a band that plays a similar sort of music. An example of this would be the crossover between fans of The Flaming Lips and Mercury Rev. Some bands can gain a lot of new fans and publicity from being linked to a style of music with many other bands.

Bands Want to be Seen as Individuals

You will find that many bands are not happy at being pigeonholed into one particular style or genre. When you think about it, it is not a compliment to have your entire musical output summed up in a couple of words. Every band would hope that they have some originality and that they are not instantly recognizable to many other acts.

There are strong commercial reasons to allow your music to be defined with a few easy definitions.

It may open up support slots or festival appearances alongside other bands that play a particular style.

It may allow your music to be placed in record stores / online stores alongside other similar bands ensuring you can tap into other groups fan bases.

It will make it easier for magazines and online sites to write about a band if there are easy points of references to be made.

There are Commercial Reasons for Genres

All of these reasons would appeal to a manager as they would increase the chances of a band being recognized by more consumers which should lead to the possibility of more sales. Deep down performing music should be about the love of the art and doing something worthwhile but bills will always have to be paid and bands need to earn money to stay alive.

It may go against your purist beliefs for being in a band and making music but creating noticeable links between yourself and other acts may generate awareness in your act that could not have been created elsewhere.

Planetshakers – You’re All I Need Lyrics Your grace is all I need Your love is all I ever wanted Your presence in my life Jesus Your touch is my desire My heart it sings for You My every breath is Yours my Jesus I live to worship You Jesus You’re everything You are all I want You are everything I need My soul thirsts for You You are more than life to me You’re all I need You’re all I need You’re all I need Jesus My heart it sings for You My every breath is Yours my Jesus I live to worship You Jesus You’re everything You are all I want You are everything I need My soul thirsts for You You are more than life to me You’re all I need You’re all I need You’re all I need Jesus You’re all I need You’re all I need You’re all I need Jesus You are all I want You are everything I need My soul thirsts for You You are more than life to me You’re all I need You’re all I need You’re all I need Jesus You’re all I need You’re all I need You’re all I need Jesus You’re all I need You’re all I need You’re all I need Jesus You’re all I live for Jesus