For every independent filmmaker the dream is the same: your film on the platforms where millions already watch — Amazon Prime, Apple TV, Tubi, The Roku Channel, and beyond. But the path is rarely clear, and that confusion is where filmmakers get hurt. Here's the most important thing to understand: you cannot, as an unknown filmmaker, simply upload your movie to Netflix or iTunes yourself. To get on those platforms you go through one of two kinds of partners — an aggregator or a distributor — and the difference is the difference between renting a service and handing over your keys.
The fundamental choice
An aggregator is a service provider — the technical middleman who gets your film onto storefronts like iTunes, Amazon, and Google TV, handling encoding, metadata, artwork, contracts, and delivery. Crucially, an aggregator does not take ownership or rights to your film. You keep full control and can usually end the relationship at will. A distributor is a rights-holder and sales agent: when they acquire your film, they control its commercial exploitation for a defined term and territory (say, North America for 7–15 years), do the selling and marketing, and pay you an agreed share. You give up control; you gain their power and relationships.
| Aggregator | Distributor | |
|---|---|---|
| Owns rights? | No — you keep them | Yes — for the term |
| Term | Usually cancel anytime | Often 7–15 years |
| Marketing | Technical only | Real campaigns, buyer relationships |
| Cost | Up-front fee or ~15–20% rev share | 20–35%+ commission, after expenses |
| Best for | Smaller indies, limited budget | Films with commercial potential |
How aggregators charge
Two models. The up-front fee model: you pay per platform — commonly $1,000–$2,500 for the first placement — and keep 100% of revenue after the platform's cut (Bitmax, for example, runs about $2,198 for the first platform plus ~$200 per additional). The revenue-share model: no up-front cost, but the aggregator takes a percentage of gross — Filmhub, the best-known, takes 20% across 100+ outlets; others like Indie Rights, Giant Pictures, and Kinonation run roughly 20–30%. One honest caveat: aggregators are not marketers. Their job ends at clean delivery and metadata; building awareness and driving sales stays entirely with you. That's the trade-off for keeping control — you also keep the work.
How distributors get paid — and why recoupment matters
A distributor deal is a waterfall, and the order is everything. First, expenses: almost all distributors recoup their out-of-pocket costs (delivery, DCPs, QC, captions, key art, trailer, marketing) before paying you — these "recoupable expenses" vary widely. Second, the commission: commonly 20–35%, with some prestige distributors near 40%. Third, your share: what's left, usually paid quarterly or semi-annually. This is why the expense clauses matter as much as the headline percentage. Occasionally a distributor offers a minimum guarantee (MG) — an up-front advance against future earnings — but that's rare today unless your film has strong market signals (festival buzz, a recognizable cast, a hot niche).
Rights, territory, and term — read before you sign
Three clauses deserve your full attention. Rights: a distributor may want all rights (theatrical, VOD, TV, airlines, educational, DVD) or only some; savvy filmmakers carve out rights they can exploit themselves (like educational screenings). Territory: the world, or one region? You can sell different territories to different partners. Term: 7–15 years is a long time to lock your film into one company — the longer the term, the more certain you need to be they'll actively sell it the whole time, not just take it and forget it.
Never sign a distribution agreement without an entertainment lawyer who reads these for a living. The contract is written by their lawyers to protect them, and a single clause about recoupable expenses or "all media now known or hereafter devised, in perpetuity, throughout the universe" can cost you everything your film ever earns. A few hundred dollars on a lawyer up front is the cheapest insurance against signing away a movie that took years of your life. If a distributor pressures you to sign fast without legal review, that itself is your answer.
So which should you choose?
Match the partner to the film. Aggregators are especially valuable for smaller indie filmmakers with limited budgets, no major cast, and few connections. Distributors are highly selective but bring marketing muscle and direct buyer relationships you can't access alone. The honest reality for most unknown filmmakers: the aggregator route is the realistic path to TVOD platforms like iTunes and Amazon, while getting onto SVOD (Netflix, Hulu), AVOD (Tubi, Freevee), and FAST (Pluto, Samsung TV Plus) almost always requires a distributor, because those services prefer curated catalogs and bulk packages. There's no shame in either path — many smart filmmakers self-distribute via an aggregator while pitching distributors for the doors only a distributor can open.
Aggregators: Filmhub, Bitmax, Quiver Digital, Indie Rights, Premiere Digital, Giant Pictures, Kinonation, Under the Milky Way.
Indie-friendly distributors: Gravitas Ventures, Cineverse, Vision Films, Freestyle Digital Media, Breaking Glass Pictures, Dark Star Pictures, Terror Films, FilmRise, Kino Lorber, Gunpowder & Sky — many specialize by genre, so target the ones who release films like yours. Always research current terms and talk to filmmakers who've worked with them before signing.
An aggregator is a tool you hire. A distributor is a partner you marry for years. Choose with your eyes open — and never sign without a lawyer.
Your move before Chapter 14
- Decide honestly whether your film is an aggregator project or has distributor-level potential.
- If aggregating, compare an up-front-fee service against a revenue-share one for your situation.
- Make a target list of genre-appropriate distributors who release films like yours.
- Budget for an entertainment lawyer to review any distribution agreement before you sign.
- Decide which rights (educational, direct-to-fan, territory) you want to carve out and keep.