They are the No. 1 partner channel for YouTube in India, having 100, 000 plus subscribers, 87 million plus views and adding over 150,000 views daily. Pocket Films, which distributes short films, independent films, animation films and documentaries, boasts of over 3,500 films aggregated from over 1,000 film makers, encouraging independent, upcoming and student film makers.
Saameer Mody, the director of Pocket Films talks about the opportunities that lie ahead for young filmmakers and more.
What’s the criteria behind each film that you feature? What does it take to qualify?
We have always positioned ourselves as the platform providing opportunities for professional and upcoming film makers. With that in mind, in our initial stages, we would accept almost all the films that we received, mindful of the fact that we did not want to stand in judgement of the film makers’ vision. However, given the large following of subscribers, we need to keep in mind the viewers' perspectives and points of view and have thus started filtering the films that go live on our channel. We still are liberal but we reject films which do not meet certain criteria in terms of content, production standards and quality.
What impact do you think short films make at today’s society?
It’s huge and is growing exponentially. The attention span in general is reducing. People want their dose of entertainment immediately and in the time available to them. Short films are the perfect medium not just to entertain but to create awareness about issues without preaching.
Do you have home productions as well?
Primarily we are distributors, however, we have produced two short films till now. We are exploring options of producing a few films every year provided we get some interesting stories. We have started producing animated content for kids for our channel on YouTube ‘Little Kids Channel’.
Tell us a bit about your company? Who are your key supporters?
We are completely self-funded as of now. Our key supporters are our filmmakers and content providers.
How has the growth of Pocket Films been so far?
Pocket Films has consistently grown year-on- year. From one channel on YouTube generating around 3000 views a day in 2010, to a network of channels generating over 750,000 views a day, we have had a satisfactory growth but honestly believe that our best is yet to come.
Which was the biggest obstacle you faced?
One of the biggest obstacles was to get recognition for our content in a mainstream- movie-obsessed country.
The second being the low rate of monetization on the Internet. However, things are changing.
Your greatest achievement as an organisation?
Creating a business and platform for content, which up to five years ago was believed to have no demand, and generating revenues from it was almost unheard of. Having played a small role in helping talented film makers achieve their dreams and career goals, is what matters the most.
How do you think it helps young filmmakers?
Young filmmakers have the talent and also somehow manage to make a film. However, it fails to reach the audience. As distributors, our primary aim is to get the film to the audience.
