2025 Festival Panels

Sherman Oaks Film Festival is proud to present expert panels on subjects that matter most to our indie film community.  For the 2025 festival, we held two panels, Indie Film Distribution and Music In Indie Film.

Indie Film Distribution

If you want your film to reach audiences then you need to know as much about distribution as you do about filmmaking.

Panelists – Glen Reynolds, Marc Clebanoff & Danielle Schoenecker

Glen Reynolds
With 25 years in the indie film biz, he has produced, executive produced and co-produced 20 films and sold over 500 films. He founded Circus Road Films in 2006. (circusroadfilms.com)

Marc Clebanoff
As a Sales Agent, Marc Clebanoff has sold films to clients including Lionsgate, Sony, Fox, Showtime, Shudder, Netflix, Starz, Tubi TV, Peacock, Vertical Entertainment, Samuel Goldwyn Films, Well Go USA, and distribution clients in 100+ countries worldwide. (odysseymotionpictures.com)

Danielle Schoenecker
Danielle is with YOW.tv, Hollywood is consolidating, legacy studios are being swallowed whole, and streaming giants are gutting their indie divisions. To combat these shifts, a group of filmmakers and industry professionals have joined forces to launch YOW.tv, a new streaming platform where independent film finally gets the spotlight it deserves. (YOW.tv)

Music in Indie Film

“What is the one thing you would like filmmakers to know about music in film before they start their next project?”  That’s the question we are asking these movie music professionals.

Panelists: Catherine Joy, Robinton Hobbs, Tim Slowikowski & Aaron Hagele, Merchandise Music

Catherine Joy & Robinton Hobbs, Joy Music House. A next-generation score production company redefining the craft of music for film, television, games and other media. Founded and led by women, we provide the expertise, resources and collaboration needed to bring musical visions to life.

Tim Slowikowski & Aaron Hagele, Merchandise Music .  Our love of storytelling + sound inspired us to launch Merchandise Music—a music supervision and consulting company pairing original, underused music.

“Aaron Hagele and Tim Slowikowski delivered one of our most engaging panels at the Sherman Oaks Film Festival. Their ‘Music in Indie Film’ discussion was packed with actionable advice and insider perspective that filmmakers could use immediately. Merchandise Music continues to be an invaluable resource for the indie film world.”
— Jeff Howard, SOFF Festival Runner

Source: SOFF

648. Benjamin Deutscher & Lauren Taggart “The Storm”

I have a great new chat to start your week off right!

Benjamin Deutscher and Lauren Taggart jumped onto Zoom to record this podcast just one month after their film “The Storm” had its World Premiere at Sherman Oaks Film Festival!                                                                 I could go on and on and on about how amazing The Storm is, but instead I will just share this.                                                                                                                                                                                               This animated film took home the Grand Jury Award for Best Feature Film – Animation and the Audience Award for Best Featurette. But we do’t stop there.
Individually The Storm also won Richard Larimore the Grand Jury Award for Best Sound Design and Sylvain Kauffman the Grand Jury Award for Best Score.

In other words, this 60 minute animated film is amazing in every way; visually, sonically, and narratively.                                                                                                                                                                                   You cannot watch it yet, but when it becomes available we will do our best to give you a link here.

In the meantime, I should also mention that Ben and Lauren were delightful attendees at Sherman Oaks Film Festival. I enjoyed every opportunity to talk with either of them at the festival.

Please enjoy the interview and…

Follow The Storm at:
Instagram: @the_storm_movie
Website: https://www.thestormmovie.com/

Follow Lauren on Instagram at @thetaggartshow

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Discover Indie Film Links
DIF Podcast WebsiteDIF Instagram – DIF BlueSky
Discover Indie Film Foundation (nonprofit for the arts) Website
Sherman Oaks Film Festival
Film Invasion Los Angeles

Source: Discover Film

647. 4Qs with Michael May

What are the 4Qs? (1) Three favorite films. (2) An underrated film. (3) An overrated film. (4) A lesser-known film people should seek out.

Michael May brought his feature horror film “Where Darkness Dwells” to the Sherman Oaks Film Festival in December 2025 and took home two Grand Jury Awards! Michael and his co-writer Alexandra Grunberg took home the award for Best Screenplay – Feature Film while Jordan Wayne Long took home the award for Best Production Design – Feature Film.

I was extremely inspired by our chat (posted Wednesday) and couldn’t wait to see what inspired Michael when we moved on to the 4 Questions.

You can learn more about Michael at @Michael_May_official

And, finally… check out Michael’s Podcasts!
A Study of Strange
Fuel for the Future – Americas Automotive Trust

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Discover Indie Film Links
DIF Podcast WebsiteDIF Instagram – DIF BlueSky
Discover Indie Film Foundation (nonprofit for the arts) Website
Sherman Oaks Film Festival
Film Invasion Los Angeles

Source: Discover Film

646. Michael May “Where Darkness Dwells”

Welcome Back, Indie Film Friends!

Michael May brought his feature film “Where Darkness Dwells” to the Sherman Oaks Film Festival in December 2025 and took home two Grand Jury Awards! Michael and his co-writer Alexandra Grunberg took home the award for Best Screenplay – Feature Film while Jordan Wayne Long took home the award for Best Production Design – Feature Film.

“Where Darkness Dwells” is an innovative and entertaining horror feature, made with attention to detail and care for story.                                                                                                                                                          It also features a superb cast!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        This interview will be very eye opening for many, as Michael and his team prove that a dedicated group of collaborators, and it doesn’t hurt if they’re all friends, can outperform far more expensive productions with creativity and grit!

You can learn more about Michael at @Michael_May_official

And, finally… check out Michael’s Podcasts!
A Study of Strange
Fuel for the Future – Americas Automotive Trust

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Discover Indie Film Links
DIF Podcast WebsiteDIF Instagram – DIF BlueSky
Discover Indie Film Foundation (nonprofit for the arts) Website
Sherman Oaks Film Festival
Film Invasion Los Angeles

Source: Discover Film