Independent Film Analysis

The documentary called “My Date With Drew” has a main character that had a “crush” on her since Drew Barrymore played in E.T. He was even a member of her fan club and had kept a photo of Drew. This is an analysis of an independent film that was created under a production budget of $50,000, whether or not the film found success, and how it was marketed and distributed. The logos that flash on the screen before the film starts are from First Look Studios and DEJ Productions. The territories are in the U.S. and the medium they are distributing is in a theatrical release, DVD, and VOD formats. The names of the directors are Jon Gunn, Brian Herzlinger, and Brett Winn. (Berardinelli, 2005) Brian Herzlinger is also the writer, as he was the narrator as well as the main character. Lucky Crow Films and Rusty Bear Entertainment produced the documentary in association with DEJ Productions. It was released on August 5, 2005, in theaters on April 3, 2004, and on DVD by January 3, 2006. The production budget was $1,110, the box office resulted in $181,041 the domestic market, and $81,729 in foreign markets. (“My date with,” 2005)

The protagonist in this story is Brian Herzlinger as himself. He is a regular guy living in Los Angeles who is broke and won the $1,100 from winning a pilot game show. He works out a deal with his friends and family to help him pay his personal bills as he embarks on a journey to make a documentary about a regular guy with big dreams, his dream is to ask Drew Barrymore out on a date by using the six degrees of separation and his small production budget to make his childhood dream come true. Naturally, Drew Barrymore is the antagonist in this story as she is difficult to reach because at the time of the filming of the documentary, she was out of town. The documentary invokes emotion where the viewers are rooting for the nerdy, film guy to get the date as he goes through a transformation to be the best version of himself during his quest for a date with Drew. The genre of this heartfelt documentary is comedy. (Gillespie, 2005) It is a real-life version of the 40-Year old Virgin movie when he wants to wax his hairy chest off for the first time.

The film was a success because there was a good ending and it provided emotion of excitement and happiness of laughter. Mainly, the success is due to the enormous payout of returns compared to the costs to produce the documentary. Currently, there is no information readily available for the total gross sales earned from VOD rentals or DVD sales/rentals. The impact of the distribution and marketing strategies were significant for an indie film. Their first move to market the trailer was to create a website and talk about it on their local radio station to ask for their help in getting a date with Drew Barrymore. Their time of accomplishing his dream in 30 days was coming near an end. Upon completion of the film, the crew entered into several key film festivals and went on to win many awards. It also received mostly positive feedback from the press. In one film review, he gives the film 3 out of 4 stars. The review is lighthearted and positive. (Berardinelli, 2005)

This documentary won many awards at film festivals, as follows:

“Winner of the Audience Award for Best Feature Film at the HBO Comedy Arts Festival; the Best Documentary Award at the Vail Film Festival; and the Audience Award for Best Feature Film at the New York Gen Art Film Festival, My Date With Drew also swept the 8th Annual Sonoma Valley Film Festival, bringing home the Audience Award for Best Lounge Feature, the Grand Jury Award for Best Feature Film, and the Geller/Devonport Award for Best First Time Feature.” (“Brian herzlinger: The,” 2008)

This is a very impressive awards list for this indie film with a low production budget. Most of the tasks the team accomplished were favors from people who gave him products or services for free just because they supported him in his journey and dreams. Overall the documentary provided emotion for the viewer. There was a feeling of being on the edge of your seat to watch the story unfold.

The documentary also has several stars in it as they used the six degrees of the separation technique. The celebrities in the cast were: Corey Feldman, Drew Barrymore, Eric Roberts, John August, and Jon Gunn. (“My date with,” 2005)  The film had a wide theatrical release. On August 5, 2005, the film was released in 58 theaters with a total gross of $85,222 in 3 days. The film was released again on August 12, 2005, in 38 theaters with a total gross of $121,532 in ten days. (“My date with,” ) Because this is a unique documentary for the big screen, it was difficult to ask for help from the big studios to distribute the film without some proof people would like the film. He had offers to make the documentary a television series, but he was not interested in settling for anything less than a theatrical release. He found the distributors by going through the film festival circuit. After winning many awards, beating out films such as “Napoleon Dynamite” and having a lot of patients, it was able to gain the attention of distributors. (Topel)

The online version of Kerry David’s resume states that she was responsible for the viral marketing and advertising for the documentary.

 “These tools included, but were not limited to contests, promotions, interviews, blogs with talent, guest books, vlogs, constant updates and innovative ideas bringing about ownership of the project to the site members.” (David)

This documentary is a ‘must-see’ for anyone who has a dream they want to fulfill, especially the people who work in the film industry because of the massive financial success achieved on such a low budget. The protagonist in this story is a hero for all of the childlike, dreamers out there. 

References:

Berardinelli, J. (2005). Review: My date with drew. Retrieved from http://www.reelviews.net/movies/m/my_date.html

Brian herzlinger: The writer, director, & star of "my date with drew" – wolfman productions. (2008). Retrieved from http://www.wolfmanproductions.com/herzlinger.html

David, K. (n.d.). Resume – kerry david – film consultant. Retrieved from http://kerrydavid.weebly.com/resume.html

Gillespie, E. (2005, August 05). 'my date with drew': A silly little love song of a movie. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved from http://mo.oxfordpress.com/movies/content/shared/movies/reviews/M/mydatewithdrew/ajc.html

My date with drew. (2005, August 14). Retrieved from http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=mydatewithdrew.htm

My date with drew - box office data. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/2005/MYDWD.php

Topel, F. (n.d.). Brian herzlinger talks about "my date with drew". Retrieved from http://movies.about.com/od/directorinterviews/a/mydate072605_3.htm