TikTok puts its creators in the Hollywood spotlight at Sundance Fest

“I think because of the way that fans are driving marketing for film and TV, I think we’re going to see more of an integration between creators and their role in the industry,” said the Seattle-based Schendel, who has about 121,000 followers on TikTok after making videos full time for two years.

Saturday’s event was more low key than those for other companies or brands that have long been part of the festival. It took place at a venue between Main Street, where many parties and pop-ups take place, and the theater spaces, where audiences line up to see the films.

But the enthusiasm among attendees was apparent, especially the creators who posed in front of the bedazzled TikTok “T” logo, which was set up adjacent to a step-and-repeat, and cheered as the panel kicked off.

TikTok has both a partnership team and a creators team, and both work alongside studios to help them better engage with creators. But the platform finds itself in a position where Hollywood both relies on it for promotion and also doesn’t yet necessarily consider its creators top-tier talent. YouTube’s creators faced a similar stigma when the video giant first emerged as a space for content.

Brands and studios regularly enlist them to interview celebrities and artists for social media content. They can sometimes be paid thousands of dollars by studios to help promote projects.

Studios should “really allow that creator to do what they do and be themselves — it can be a difficult thing because there’s licensing and other issues to worry about — but as much as possible to do what they want with the partnership,” Kit Lazer, who goes by the moviesaretherapy handle on TikTok, said at Saturday’s panel.

A24 and Lionsgate in particular, Lazer said, have been good collaborators.

Lionsgate, which is behind the “John Wick” and “Hunger Games” franchises, revealed last year that it enlisted TikTok fan editors to help it market its movies, a strategy that the studio says has paid off.

But as creators have become a more vital part of film, television and music marketing, some viral exchanges between a handful of influencers and A-list stars have generated scrutiny over why creators are getting tapped for major entertainment events.

It’s something that Schendel thinks is “going away slowly but surely,” especially as TikTok attempts to integrate itself more into Hollywood.

Focus Features Vice Chairman Jason Cassidy praised TikTok as he spoke on a panel alongside Dawn Yang, TikTok’s global head of entertainment partnerships, on Friday at Adobe House.

“We’re trying to eventize movies and get people to theaters,” he said, adding that TikTok has allowed the studio to “tie in and create authentic fandom,” especially with younger audiences who can be “suspicious of traditional marketing.” (Focus Features is a unit of NBC News’ parent corporation, Comcast.)

Yang touted TikTok’s ambitions while at Sundance, encouraging attendees — particularly independent filmmakers — to collaborate with creators more.

“We think independent film is vital to the business, and we want to help these films get discovered and be distributed widely,” Yang said Saturday. “A lot of our creators have aspirations to become part of the industry, both on screen and behind the camera. So I hope you all here are able to help build that bridge for us.”