An Update on The Film Magazine’s Status

Dearest readers,

Last week (Wednesday 13th April), I asked you for help. The Film Magazine was faced with closure for the first time. Our zero-budget business, with its ever-growing reach in the hundreds of thousands, was on the cusp of going the way of countless other film journalism publications. Thanks to your kindness, that moment has passed.

Thank you. 

It took a great deal for myself and the TFM team to reach out, as I’m sure any prideful individual can understand. We always wanted to do this off our own backs, to grow The Film Magazine through hard work, determination, and our collective knowledge and skills. This was never about building an empire (pun intended). Cinema is, to us, a great and universally appreciated art form, and to place our work behind pay walls, invasive advertising, pop-ups, paid-for articles, and affiliate marketing disguising itself as helpful guides, seemed at odds with that which we cover, not to mention how we see ourselves. In our eyes, we are providing a platform for the sharing of knowledge and information, and we take great pride in being the home of writing from all over the world, for featuring articles by people who offer perspectives less often represented in the wider media.

Whether you liked, shared or replied to my statement last week, I would like to personally thank you. You are the reason we continue to strive for high values in an increasingly low value marketplace. You are the reason I personally edit every single article we ever publish, the reason everything we do is of a tremendously high standard. Working online can be like existing in a chasm, and it can be difficult to understand the power of your own voice – by supporting us like you did, you answered our cry for help with a resounding applause in recognition of our collective efforts, and you filled me with immense pride and great humility. Thank you.

To those who donated to us via PayPal, please know that you are responsible for the maintenance of over one thousand articles remaining freely available to the public; articles that are featured on university reading lists, school syllabuses, and other informational sites like Wikipedia. Thank you.

Moving forward, The Film Magazine will continue to face hurdles that may threaten our very existence. The once great leveller that was social media has become an increasingly monetised arena and has thus begun to serve those with the most financial clout, while our alternative income source of merchandising has drowned under the weight of ever-encroaching sellers fees and ever-inflating costs to you as consumers. As such, our monumental growth as a platform (up 300% in just two years, making us one of the most-visited truly independent film publications based in the UK) has coincided with the issues faced, our betterment tainted by existential threat.

Remember, everything you read on The Film Magazine is free. If you’d like to pay a one-off payment or a continued subscription for the services offered, you’re welcome to do so via our PayPal donation link (PayPal account not required). These links are now available on the right of the page (desktop) and in the menu at the foot of any TFM page/article, so please check back if you would like to help at a later date but are currently unable.

We used to say that the best way to pay for the joy and information you get from a free online publication is to share, comment, like, and interact, and that remains true. What may take you only a couple of seconds can transform the fortunes of a piece, offer great encouragement to a writer, help to grow a publication you admire.

Online journalism is dying. Independent publications are all-but dead. We are not. That’s because of you. Thank you.

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Joseph Wade
Founder | Editor
The Film Magazine