Yuri Rutman Educates Investors That Indie Film
A lot of investors who are actively seeking to invest in shares of high yield investment opportunities, undervalued small cap stocks, offshore funds and hedge funds, or even pre-IPO private equity investment opportunities follow a crowd mentality of deal sourcing that doesn't always net them the return or value their financial investment was allocated for.
And in most instances, even well capitalized affluent investors, private equity groups, hedge funds, venture capitalists, family offices, sovereign wealth funds, pensions, & endowments can't possibly be in an inner VIP network of ground floor investments that are only accessible to a few. So they are forced to park their internal equity into pre-IPO companies, small cap stocks, or portfolio managers hoping for a different result which doesn't always materialize.
A better option is not to follow the crowd mentality and think outside the box in allocating to overall investment portfolios that are not always traditional in scope. With a specific risk strategy and multiple exits of of profits not directly related to economic conditions, investing in film may just offer that kind of opportunity for both smaller affluent investors as well as hedge funds, private equity groups, family offices, financial and wealth advisers, fund of funds, and others.
Historically investment in film was either structured without any risk minimization or the junior equity was crushed by the repayment of mezzanine & senior debt in large studio film slates. Investors thought that just by having their investment allocated with too many other tranches or based on fantasy mote carlo simulation models, there would a higher propensity for success. Unfortunately the superior returns in film finance and film investing were only successful withing film funds or film production and distribution companies that had a grasp of structured film finance, the commercial viability of a story, as well as international distribution.
While films such as 'Paranormal Activity', 'Hurt Locker' and even 'Avatar' were primarily financed with private equity, the upside in revenues for any private investment in Hollywood comes down to numerous factors that keep evolving every week at the box office.
There are plenty of affluent investors, wealthy families, hedge funds or private equity groups that come into the film business and leave just as quick. Mainly because the partnerships weren't based on precise risk minimization strategies. There are not too many investment right now aside from film that can offer a guaranteed rate of return before profits, especially if hedged not on a one hit wonder, but spread among 10,20, 50 films where there is a also a control of theatrical distribution.
A a lot of wealth advisers, portfolio managers, financial planners, and accredited high net worth affluent investors and family offices are open to be educated about film as an asset class. A lot of former real estate developers, oil & gas speculators, hedge fund managers, and successful Silicon Valley investors seem to understand the model.
Investors are starting to have a reality check that they can go online, have a recommendation from their financial adviser or research the next hot investment opportunities in internet, technology, biotech, oil & gas, or even alternative energy and see that there is a lot of capital chasing deals with only a handful of investors that ultimately have an exclusive windows into wither private investment opportunities or a handful of fund managers than can really have a consistent ROI.
So now investors need to think outside their box and re-educate themselves on other alternative investments, especially media & entertainment, which seems to be immune to economic factors as well as movies still being the number one export of the United States. Plus there is really no longer an absolute need for movie stars to headline indie films as the films themselves seem to be star, especially with niche social media and marketing of films where the upside in revenues from theatrical, DVD, Video On Demand, Cable, mobile, and Internet VOD only increases the potential revenue streams.