Credit: photo by Jana Birchum

B-Side Entertainment, the innovative Austin distro outfit and invaluable film fest tool, is closing its doors, Indiewire reports. 

The Chronicle profiled B-Side founder CEO Chris Hyams in February 2009, when the outlook was significantly rosier (see “All Access
Austin’s B-Side Entertainment rethinks how to get a movie to the masses,” Feb. 20, 2009).

But in a blog entry posted today, Hyams announced the decision to wind down operations by March 1: “Unfortunately, in the face of the lingering economic crisis and ongoing upheaval in the film business, our investors decided to stop funding the company. Under extreme time pressure, we were unable to secure alternate financing, and are left with no choice other than to shut down.”

Perhaps best known for its super-user-friendly festival scheduler, B-Side also made strides as a sort of catchall for social networking / video streaming / stealth buzz building. It’ll be missed.

This article appears in February 19 • 2010.

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A graduate of the Michener Center for Writers at the University of Texas, Kimberley has written about film, books, and pop culture for The Austin Chronicle since 2000. She was named Editor of the Chronicle in 2016; she previously served as the paper’s Managing Editor, Screens Editor, Books Editor, and proofreader. Her work has been awarded by the Association of Alternative Newsmedia for excellence in arts criticism, team reporting, and special section (Best of Austin). The Austin Alliance for Women...