The target of this year’s DIY Convention: Do It Yourself in Film, Music and Books is what its managing director Bruce Haring calls an underserved group of creators.
Hence the theme: “For Mature Audiences Only.”
Directed at the 30-and-over crowd, the 14th annual forum offering free panels at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel on Saturday is aimed at helping seasoned musicians, authors and filmmakers get a leg up and move forward in the digital world. Panel topics include “Not Fade Away: Being Older in a Young Person’s Business” at 1 p.m., “I’ll Try to Make It: Social Media and Marketing” at 2:30 p.m. and “War Stories from the DIY Front” at 4 p.m.
“All these issues come into play for people who started out in a different generation,” Haring says. “These are tricks they have to learn on the fly, so to speak.”
Of course, the digital era has its benefits.
The Web has made it inexpensive and easy to record and distribute music digitally, but getting people to notice it — that’s another story, says Bruce Duff, a 30-year veteran of the music business who joins the “War Stories” panel discussion.
“There’s just so much clutter out there, it’s really hard to get the attention and have it mount up to something that equals actual sales,” says Duff, who handles marketing for the Knitting Factory club in Reno, Nev.
“If the band’s popular, having it available digitally is great. But there’s only a percentage anymore of certainly the younger listeners that even want to buy it and have it in their house taking up space. They’re totally happy to purchase it from iTunes or stream it from Spotify.
“But there’s so many people vying for that, it’s hard to cut through that racket,” he adds.
But not to worry — it’s bound to be a hot topic at the DIY Convention.
When: 1 p.m. Saturday.
Where: Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, 7000 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles.
Admission: Free.
Information: 323-665-8080, www.diyconvention.com.
Featured in Photo: John Anderson, Bruce Duff, and members of Prima Donna.
