Archive · 2020
Find your in. A private community for select entertainment professionals.
Paused · resuming in due time
What it was
Hollywood runs on who you know. Quarantine closed the room.
In 2020 the industry went remote, and the parties, sets and festivals where careers get made stopped. Lot Club launched in Santa Monica that August, first as IMDme, as a private community where verified film and TV professionals could meet the right people, keep in touch and find the next gig.
Elliott was its CEO and sole creator. He designed and built the app prototype and the website, and ran the marketing strategy and social media, on a budget he put up himself.
Marketing
One email. 11% applied. 110 times the norm.
A single cold email, no follow-ups, to 45,000 people. The ask was bigger than booking a meeting: at least 15 minutes to make the case for why you belong, with linked profiles and your past, current and upcoming work, and the studios you made it with. One in nine filled it in. Applicants included people who run TV networks, and some of the biggest names behind the camera. All from one prototype, one website and that email.
- cold email to 45,000 entertainment professionals, no follow-ups
- 1
- applied, 110 times the typical 0.1% of cold emails that book a meeting
- 11%
- applications in the first month with referrals, each one 15 minutes or more
- 6,000
- of applicants shared their referral link with friends
- 34%
The app
Built for people who already have credits.
Verified, by hand
Every application was reviewed by a person, against real industry credits.
Profiles with official credits
Past work came from official industry data, plus links and ice breakers.
Next Up
Members posted current goals and needs; others replied with help, or applause.
A feed worth reading
Curated industry news about fellow members, ranked by machine learning.
A graph network underneath
Like Renge’s, but far more powerful and on completely different tech. It found the endorsement paths through people you know to the gig you want.
Early members
They had worked with
- Walt Disney Pictures
- Paramount Pictures
- Warner Bros.
- Universal Pictures
- Sony Pictures
- Lucasfilm
- Regency Enterprises
- Summit Entertainment
- Focus Features
And dozens more, including mini-majors and independents. Members’ past work, not partnerships.
“Oh this is super cool! Especially because I’m constantly trying to crew up for different productions. And I’m really trying to diversify crew as well.”
KL, Producer
“Whoa! That looks amazing! I direct commercials and this looks like the ideal dream for all things film and production. Holy hell.”
AU, Director
“I actually love the sound of this and it’s music to my ears! I’ve already submitted my application.”
DA, Actor
Where it stands
Paused, not finished.
Lot Club was self-funded. That money paid for the launch above and got it into startup programs. At the end of 2020 a dispute with a business partner turned into legal action. Elliott defended it, and the defence used up the budget meant for building the app.
C’est la vie. Lot Club still has its 6,000 applicants, accepted at different membership tiers. The community still makes sense, and it will resume in due time.