As some of you may know, I started an open source project for content creators called the Workbook Project. Well, this fall will mark the project’s two year anniversary. The birth of the project stemmed from an unlikely source. I was offered an advance by a publisher to write a book about the production and distribution of my films; THE LAST BROADCAST and HEAD TRAUMA. Instead of writing the book I decided to embark on an experiment. I wanted to see if I could make money from giving away the information for free. The goal was to create an open repository of information and resources that at its core would be new models for funding, creating, distributing, and sustaining one’s self as a storyteller. Well I’m happy to say the project has exceeded my expectations. Not only have I long passed the amount of the advance, due to opportunities afforded to me thanks to the project, but I’ve also met some amazing people along the way. Today the Workbook Project has contributors from all over the world and in the coming months will be growing in some new and exciting ways.

We recently entered a new phase of the project where we’ve put some of our concepts and theories to the test. One such concept deals with a new type of model for festivals. A model where movies can day and date at the time when they have the most exposure – during their festival run. From Here to Awesome is a discovery and distribution fest that day and dates films in theaters, living rooms, online and via mobile devices, with the goal of creating a direct connection between filmmaker and audience. This past spring over 115 projects submitted to the fest which has no submission fees, allows filmmakers to retain all their rights while seeing 90 to 100% of the profit from various outlets. All the films are programmed based on audience demand and outlets include Amazon, Vudu, Joost, Hulu, Heretic, IndieFlix, Vuze, Caachi, and Bside. More outlets will be added in the coming months. The festival kicked off in July and will run until the end of December.

Throughout FHTA’s run we will be experimenting with new models and concepts for the discovery and distribution of films. The picture above is from last week’s San Francisco theatrical on-demand (entitled you’re the festival programmer) experiment where audience members used mobile phones to vote for the films they wanted to see. “You’re the Festival Programmer” was made possible thanks to CineGoGo, myspace, and FHTA. For more details on FHTA visit the official site.

The second part of the experiment is an open discussion about the future of the industry that travels to LA, SF, Boston, NYC and London. DIY DAYS is the sharing of information and ideas in a real world setting. Capacity crowds have filled the first two stops in LA and SF, as an amazing list of speakers have shared their knowledge. The events are all free and are presented by Current TV, the Workbook Project and FHTA.

Each DIY DAYS event attempts to build upon the last, while trying to infuse some aspect of the location where it is taking place. The marathon days are filled with keynotes, panels, workshops, and case studies of people making interesting work. For more info visit DIYDAYS.com

Our goal is to share all our findings at our final stop in London. During the Power to the Pixel conference we’ll present the results and also share the roadmap for the larger open source project that we’re building.

Special thanks to Mike Hedge for all the photos!