Carylanna Taylor, Director of Sales & Acquisitions at The Film Sales Company, will break down what it really takes to sell a film, what distributors look for, how acquisitions decisions are made, and how filmmakers can better position their projects in a competitive market. Drawing on her background as a filmmaker, she’ll also discuss the power of films that share human experiences across cultures, and why those stories resonate with buyers and audiences alike.
Since its inception in 2002, The Film Sales Company has sold over 300 films for domestic and international distribution and has raised financing for numerous fiction and documentary projects. The New York City based Company specializes in both highly commercial movies and critically acclaimed, award-winning films.
The Film Sales Company develops unique strategies for its clients, drawing upon its internationally recognized expertise in sales, financing, and distribution; its extensive relationships with major and specialized distributors; and its experience participating in countless domestic and international film festivals and markets. The company is known for titles including Radical, Waitress, Burden of Proof, Lee Daniels’ The Butler, Fahrenheit 9/11, and more.
Carylanna Talyor
The Film Sales Company
About Carylanna:
Carylanna Taylor is a filmmaker, anthropologist, and Director of Sales and Acquisitions at The Film Sales Company, where she helps independent films reach global audiences. She holds an M.F.A. in Producing from the American Film Institute Conservatory and a Ph.D. in Applied Cultural Anthropology from the University of South Florida. Carylanna has worked in development with Oscar-winning production companies and produced both documentary and narrative shorts and features. As co-founder of First Encounter Productions, she produced the features Anya (2019) and Painting the Way to the Moon (2015), blending storytelling with social and scientific inquiry. Before filmmaking, she conducted research and taught in Latin America on migration, environment, and sustainable development, earning awards from Fulbright and the National Science Foundation. She continues to merge her anthropological lens with film, developing new projects on mental health and migration.
IMPORTANT DETAILS:
This panel will take place virtually over ZOOM. Ticket purchasers will receive a ZOOM link to this panel 2 hours before the published start time. If you don’t already have the ZOOM app, please make sure to download on your device before the panel start time.
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