Website aims to shine light on moviemakers

Sandy Grushow, who stepped down as head of the Fox television network four years ago, is teaming with movie producer Deepak Nayar on a venture aimed at discovering filmmakers and developing entertainment properties.

Los Angeles-based Filmaka.com is being officially launched today after a “beta” period that began in November 2006. The site hosts online competitions to identify directors and writers for movies, TV pilots, Web series and other projects. Filmaka’s members submit content in response to requests for short films in such categories as live-action comedy, animation or branded entertainment.

Grushow and Nayar, the producer of such films as the comedy-drama “Bend It Like Beckham” and the music documentary “Buena Vista Social Club,” rely on a jury of professionals to pick winners. That panel includes actors Bill Pullman and Colin Firth and directors Werner Herzog, Neil LaBute, John Madden, Zak Penn, Paul Schrader and Wim Wenders.

Grushow, who spent most of his career at Fox and oversaw such hits as “American Idol” and “24” as the network began its march toward ratings leadership, said Filmaka was creating extended contests for serious but undiscovered artists. He called the site more structured than most indie film and video sharing platforms.

“We’ve taken a bottom-up process and turned it into a top-down process,” he said. “The need for high-quality, low-cost content for new and traditional distribution platforms has never been greater.”

During the beta period, Filmaka amassed a community of more than 3,600 aspiring filmmakers from 95 countries, and started production on about 40 Web series. Next week, the site will pick the winner of a yearlong competition to direct a feature film that Filmaka will produce, Nayar said.

FX network and brewer SABMiller have enlisted Filmaka to create content for traditional and digital media and integrated marketing campaigns. The website said it had struck revenue-sharing deals with distribution partners including YouTube and Vuze.

Filmaka is currently funded by advertising companies, film financiers and others who have worked with Nayar. Backers include Tim Levy of Britain’s Future Capital Partners, ad agency founder Tim Delaney, and Kurt Woolner and Steve Ranshoff of Film Finances Inc., which provides production completion guarantees. Filmaka is also funded by individual private investors, friends and family of Grushow and Nayar.

Nayar said he and Grushow started the site as an easier way to find and nurture new talent.

“How many scripts can you look at?” he said. “I wanted to create something more visual.”

For filmmakers, “You can spend time in L.A. knocking on doors and not getting anywhere, or you go online and show your stuff.”

The name of the site was suggested by Delaney, Nayar said. “It can be taken as either ‘Film aka’ or a hip way to say ‘filmmaker.’ ”

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josh.friedman@latimes.com