As streaming services dominate the film industry, a new distributor called Video StoreAge is offering independent films on USB drives, aiming to provide an alternative to both digital rentals and physical media. Founded by former Sundance programmer Ash Cook, the company sells movies on USB sticks that can be played on computers, described as 'like a DVD in the present tense'.
Video StoreAge operates on a subscription model, with quarterly collections of five features and five shorts, but also sells single films or custom combinations. The first drop includes Vera Drew's 'The People's Joker', a trans coming-out story reappropriating Batman elements. Customers own the digital copy permanently, unlike purchases from major platforms that can be revoked.
On the artist side, Video StoreAge obtains only print rights, leaving filmmakers free to pursue other distribution deals, and splits profits 50/50. Cook sees this as a way to 'pay someone pretty directly and get Amazon out of our business'. He notes that distribution is no longer working as it did when Sundance fuelled big-money sales, and wanted to create a practical solution.
Cook's path to distribution began with festival programming, where he learned that filmmakers, executives and agents all agree on the need for new distribution models. He realised festivals are not responsible for solving commercial distribution problems, but that didn't stop him from launching Video StoreAge to bridge the gap between digital convenience and curated physical media.
