Film glossary

Pre-Sales

A pre-sale is a contract in which a distributor agrees to pay for the right to release a film in a territory, often before the film is finished.

Pre-sales represent real, contracted demand rather than a forecast, which is why they reduce risk across the whole capital stack. The floor amount a distributor commits to pay is the minimum guarantee.

A signed pre-sale from a reputable distributor can be taken to a lender and borrowed against, turning a future payment into capital available during production. This links distribution directly to financing.

Go deeper

Film Financing guideFilm financing is the work of assembling the money to make a film from several sources at once. Most budgets combine equity, debt and gap loans, pre-sales, tax incentives, and soft money into a capital stack, organized around a written finance plan and a clean data room that a financier can review quickly.

Related terms

Keep reading the glossary

Minimum GuaranteeA minimum guarantee, or MG, is the floor amount a distributor commits to pay for the right to release a film in a territory or on a platform.Sales AgentA sales agent represents a film to buyers across territories, using a mandate from the producer to license rights on the film behalf.TerritoryA territory is the geographic area a distribution deal covers, often a single country or a defined region.Gap FinancingGap financing is a loan made against the estimated value of territories or rights a film has not yet sold.

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This definition is educational and does not provide financial, legal, or tax advice. Consult your own licensed advisors before acting. FILM.FUND is a software and workflow platform, not a broker-dealer. It never handles money, never holds securities, never takes a percentage of any raise or sale, and never predicts returns.