Available in English Current status Active | Website www.filmdoo.com | |
Type of site streaming video / social networking Created by William Page, Weerada Sucharitkul (co-founders) | ||
FilmDoo.com is a UK-based video-on-demand (VOD) platform that specializes in independent and world cinema. The platform has been described by Guy Lodge of The Guardian as "one of the more discerning new streaming services on the block."
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Rather than relying solely on the traditional distribution system to distribute content, FilmDoo chooses to source films directly from all levels of the film distribution chain from filmmakers through to sales agents and distributors. Through this approach they have given international releases to films that had previously received no home video distribution, including films from Southeast Asia and South Africa, as well as giving exclusive UK releases to feature films such as Trinidadian crime drama God Loves the Fighter.
History
The platform was officially launched at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival. According to FilmDoo co-founder Weerada Sucharitkul, "The word ‘Doo’ in ‘FilmDoo’ means to watch or see in Thai, so FilmDoo means to watch a film in Thai." Sucharitkul reports that the name was originally suggested by her mother and that it was chosen "because [they] wanted a non-English word to really reflect the international element of the business from the very beginning."
Later that same year, FilmDoo was selected as one of 90 UK finalists for the 2015 MassChallenge accelerator program.
In July 2016, FilmDoo announced the launch of two new short film channels on new media network, Ownzones: FilmDoo Horror for international horror films; and FilmDoo Asian for Asian shorts, both of which are available internationally by subscription.
In the summer of 2016, FilmDoo also launched a crowdfunding campaign on Seedrs with the goal of raising £95,000. On the 7th November 2016, the site reported to have raised "a total of approximately £235,000 (including investments off the platform)".
In the media
In October 2015, FilmDoo was selected by Forbes as one of "Five Leading Startup Entrepreneurs Graduating From MassChallenge UK".
In May 2015, FilmDoo's acquisition of two new Indonesian titles and their new deal with distribution company Trinity were covered by Variety, with Asia Bureau Chief Patrick Frater writing that, with these new developments, "FilmDoo has bolstered its Asian credentials".
Similarly, in April 2016, FilmDoo received coverage from IndieWire for giving international releases to more than twenty "Vintage South African films" from distributors Retro Afrika Bioscope. In June that same year, Screen Daily published an article on the release of fourteen Southeast Asian films on FilmDoo.
FilmDoo's 2016 crowdfunding campaign on Seedrs received attention from several media outlets, including Screen Daily, Crowdfund Insider and VODzilla.