When a movie hits theaters or streams online, it doesn’t just show up out of nowhere—it comes with a film press assets, a collection of official materials used by studios and filmmakers to promote their movies to media, festivals, and distributors. Also known as press kits, these packages are the first impression a film makes on critics, journalists, and buyers. Without them, even the best movie can disappear without a trace.
Film press assets aren’t just pretty pictures and a synopsis. They include movie stills, high-resolution images captured during filming, carefully selected to show key moments, characters, and tone, media packs, digital folders containing trailers, bios, director statements, and interview clips, and official press releases that explain the film’s vision. These are what reporters use to write reviews, what festival programmers scan before selecting entries, and what streaming platforms check before picking up a film. A weak press kit means no coverage. A strong one? It turns a quiet premiere into a conversation.
Independent filmmakers often underestimate how much these assets matter. You can have the best script in the world, but if your stills are blurry, your bio is outdated, or your trailer isn’t included, no one will take you seriously. The same goes for studios—they don’t just throw together a press kit. They hire teams to design them, curate them, and time their release to match buzz cycles. A well-timed press release before Sundance can get you a feature in Variety. A poorly organized media pack after a festival can kill your distribution chances.
What you’ll find in this collection isn’t theory—it’s real examples. You’ll see how a microbudget film used simple stills and a tight press release to land a Netflix deal. You’ll learn how trade ads and awards PR lean on press assets to shape Oscar narratives. You’ll understand why festival sidebars favor films with strong visual media packs, and how self-distributed indie films outperformed studio releases by controlling their own press materials. These aren’t abstract ideas. They’re tools used every day by filmmakers who know how to get seen.
Whether you’re pitching to a streamer, submitting to a festival, or trying to get your film reviewed, the right press assets make the difference between being noticed and being ignored. Below, you’ll find practical breakdowns of how these tools work, how to build them, and how to use them—no Hollywood budget required.
A well-crafted press kit is the difference between an indie film being seen or buried. Learn the five essential assets that get real media coverage-no fluff, no templates, just what works.