Some small independent films achieve nothing more than critical acclaim at film festivals while others achieve that, as well as financial success. This can happen if a “buzz” is created about a small film. Independent film distribution companies can offer a decent deal for independent films that do well at film festivals. They need to supply movies to hundreds of countries and thousands of cable and satellite TV channels all over the world. The film festival circuit provides them with a lot of good, yet cheap films to purchase. But every once in a while a small independent film gets so much media attention at a film festival that it is purchased by a major film studio and screened in major theaters all over the country. Case in point; The Blair Witch Project. The first official public screening was on January 23rd, 1999 at the Sundance Film Festival. Writer-directors Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sanchez made this film for $25,000. By the end of the festival they sold their movie for 1.1 million dollars to Artisan Entertainment, who then went on to make $248 million dollars with this little movie