The last two years have been an extraordinary education. I often look back at the development process for HEART OF NOW and WHITE KNUCKLES and imagine what choices we at SABI would have made if we were the filmmakers we are today. With a new decade upon us and the promise of a community-defining year ahead of us, it is time to declare some resolutions. It is time to put the talk about broken models behind us and begin to act on it. This downturn offers a real opportunity to re-shape the way things will work.

***Inspired by recent calls to action from Ted Hope and Jon Reiss.

CURATION – SABI has formed our own distribution outfit: CINEFIST. Beyond distributing the work that comes out of Sabi Pictures, CINEFIST will also serve as a curation entity. My first resolution for the New Year is to put my resources into giving filmmakers I believe in an opportunity to exhibit their work, but also an opportunity for them to participate in the box office take. The venue will be The Downtown Independent Theater in Los Angeles and each screening will be shaped into a true event featuring Skype Q&As with the filmmakers projected on screen, audience votes on trailers to decide which film screens at the next event, DVDs for sale in the lobby, prizes for the audience, rooftop mixers, and a live internet radio show at the venue with the guys at Film Snobbery. The first film will be Tom Quinn’s The New Year Parade screening in early February to coincide with its Film Independent Spirit Award nomination.

TRANSPARENCY – This year we are embarking on our first direct-to-audience distribution effort for a pair of art house films. I will share ideas and progress here with the intent to educate, but also to seek input and guidance from the community.

INNOVATION – Learn, evolve and execute. The strategy to this point emulates the methods used by filmmakers like ZEKE ZELKER, HUNTER WEEKS, JUSTIN EVANS, TODD SKLAR and others. But we need to push forward with less emulation in the strategy and work, and more innovation. We will be fearless. We will takes calculated risks. We will experiment with ways to connect with our audience and to give them compelling reasons to buy what we have to offer.

MENTORSHIP – Last year I met a young filmmaker online named Gayle Ye who is an ardent fan of SABI’s works. She expressed an interest in cinematography and had natural talent. Throughout 2009, I was able to offer her some tips here and there, notes on her first short film’s screenplay and even sent her some gear. In 2010, I will seek out more filmmakers in the generation coming up behind me, encouraging them, offering whatever support I have to share, and maybe even produce their next work as we did with the filmmakers behind A SHORT FILM ABOUT LETTING GO.

ELEVATE – This was a tough pill to swallow but in order to raise the bar with the content and structure of our films, music and other creative endeavors I will spend the entirety of 2010 developing new projects for production in 2011 and 2012. As much as I want to be shooting a new film right now, I know its better to spend this time shaping projects that have been given time to mature.

COMMUNITY – Recent opportunities afforded to me by the good folks here at The Workbook Project, From Here To Awesome, IndieFlix, Power to the Pixel and most recently Filmmaker Magazine have introduced me to some amazing people, many of whom have become good friends. And this, more than anything, has been the most gratifying experience for me. These genuine friendships have lead to countless collaborations and discussions that hold a lot of personal value to me. Even if I were to forgo filmmaking altogether, I would still resolve to step-up my involvement in this community by going to more festivals and conferences, seeking out more like-minded people who share in my delight for the cinematic arts.

IGNORE – It’s funny, the most recent private screening of HEART OF NOW only returned three or four negative comment cards. But when presented with a new stack of cards, I inexplicably find myself flipping quickly through all the positive comment cards to find out what those few detractors had to say. Uniformly, these were responses that rejected every single inch of the film’s form and content. Despite the overwhelming praise, I find myself focused on the negative instead – even when I’m getting such heartfelt and sincere responses such as this:

Hey Zak,

‘Heart of Now’ is a terrific film. It is humbling to see good work come through the Indie. This is a film I would be honored to present another time. The issues of abandonment and the subsequent coping mechanisms people employ are dealt with in not only a tactful manner, but also respectably and thoughtfully poetic. What I appreciate even more is the seemingly endless conclusion. It can be ambiguous or sharply conclusive, depending on the beholder.

‘Heart of Now’ has a poignant message that resonates with me personally right now as I deal with similar issues. It was even more striking to hear you talk about the loss of your father as an impetus for the film. My father was taken from me in ‘95. Many of the statements made by both Amber and Gabe reverberated deeply, so it only made sense when you elucidated that fact for the audience.

Thank you for bringing ‘Heart of Now’ to this theatre. I wish you, the crew, the production company, and the film all the best as you move forward in bringing this work of art to others.

So beginning today, I will learn to ignore the ones that are unwinnable. As Ted Hope says: “There are many in the film business who are never going to help you. Many of these will never help you even after you have helped them. The sooner you identify these folks and stop wasting your time with them, the better off you are going to be.” Done.

SUPPORT – I love art house cinema. I already buy DVDs from art house filmmakers. But now, I will make it a point to seek out the avenue that puts more of my dollars into the filmmaker’s pocket. This often means buying it from their own web site, rather than Amazon. Knowing that my main portal (Netflix) doesn’t provide any per rental profit participation for the filmmakers, this also means approaching it more as a discovery engine to find works I want to support with a purchase. No more requests for DVD trades or accepting free copies. I’ll put my money where my mouth is.

NO MORE APOLOGIES FOR ART – In 2010, I will not apologize for aspiring to make art. Art has somehow become a dirty word in may circles that consider it to be mutually exclusive from entertainment. Art IS my entertainment!

I wish there were more american filmmakers that aspired to that level of work without apologizing for it out of fear of being labelled pretentious or elitist. Maybe it’s an effect of knowing intimately how films are constructed that makes it difficult for me to enjoy a film that doesn’t aspire beyond just “a good story, well told”. When I sit down in front of a motion picture I want layers of understanding, I want subtly invoked metaphor, I want social context, I want a fully-realized and artfully-executed cinematic experience. We have an overabundance of folks who can simply entertain us. But the ones that can honestly transcend the medium are so rare, so very scarce. That’s what drives me to fervently seek out art films. I buy art films, I support art film-makers whose work speaks to me. I consider myself a filmmaker who aspires to art. I won’t apologize for it. It certainly doesn’t mean I ignore the audience. In fact, I’ve amassed and incorporated the audience into the final stages of editing HEART OF NOW.

The film artists I admire take risks to be on the cutting edge by experimenting with this evolving artform. But these are the folks whose successes are what the mainstream filmmakers mimic. Many times these artists will fail and the critics will label the work as self-indulgent, but man, when they succeed it is profoundly resonant.

PARTNER, COLLABORATE & ENGAGE – This coming year, SABI will resolve to reach out to partner with a number of companies, collaborate with a variety of artists, and engage our audience/community in a very genuine and meaningful way – all in the interest of moving ourselves and this community forward. As I said at the beginning, I’m getting a little tired of all the “broken model” talk and so I look forward to taking a bold step toward defining and shaping a sustainable model for low budget filmmakers.

AND FINALLY, LOSE WEIGHT – I’m having a blast and would like to be doing this for a long time.

So in closing, I offer these resolutions for a New Year and a New Decade in the hope that they will inspire others to do the same, within the limits of their own means and resources. And thanks to everyone who has been a collaborator, inspiration and supporter in 2009. You know who you are and I look forward to joining you again in the decade to come.