“Always be ahead of the curve.”
The means of how we see films is a rapidly changing process that no one can predict. Stacy Spikes is responsible for some of this disruption. He is an entrepreneur like no other. He developed the Urbanworld Film Festival in 1997—the premier festival responsible for bringing more diverse voices to the big screen. Ava DuVernay, Issa Rae, and Tiffany Haddish have all premiered work at the festival.
Stacy has an appreciation for films and works to make sure everyone can join in on the fun. “I am from Houston, Texas. I specialize in promoting the seeing and attending of movies via subscription or advertising services,” he says. He’s always had a passion for cinema. Streaming cannot replicate the magic feeling of seeing a movie in theaters. Stacy wants to preserve that feeling.
In the early stages of Stacy’s creation, MoviePass, he could see the trend of subscription-based services being a substantial business model on the horizon. MoviePass allowed movie fans to see a set number of movies, for a monthly fee. Unfortunately, after disagreements over price points with new CEO Mitch Lowe and others, Stacy was ousted by the very company he built.
“We are working on some exciting brands that we will be partnering with around some exciting movies that people will get to see for free. We are thrilled to start to have customers use the service.”
Now, Stacy is building something even more exciting and potentially more lucrative—PreShow. Stacy describes the service as “a next-generation platform that allows customers to see movies in theaters for free by using a proprietary ad platform.” As of this writing, the Kickstarter campaign for the service has surpassed its campaign goal by more than 450 percent. Recognized as one of the top African Americans in technology by USA Today, Spikes has a talent for identifying what audiences want to see and putting it out into the world in an easily accessible package. “We are working on some exciting brands that we will be partnering with around some exciting movies that people will get to see for free. We are thrilled to start to have customers use the service,” he says.
When one door closes, another opportunity usually presents itself. That opportunity may not come from someone else, but may come from within.
For more information on Stacy’s latest venture PreShow click here.
