Sad news yesterday in the film world as B-side Entertainment announced it had, basically, run out of investment money and with no new prospects at the moment it would be shutting down. B-side for a couple years helps film festivals improve their web experience and recently launched its own distribution arm.

Especially disheartening is the bit of the story that’s a bit further down, where the discussion turns to how filmmakers who might have been considering B-side for their distribution services were, in many cases, turned off by the fact that the company wasn’t focusing on securing theatrical exhibition and wasn’t spending money on high-profile (though low-effective) ad buys to promote the films. Instead it was looking at alternate distribution models and targeted marketing outreach. Unfortunately that’s a sign we haven’t pushed the conversation far enough in terms of making the case for other distribution ideas.

I’m really sorry to see B-side calling it a day. But here’s hoping the mission continues.