FILMMAKING STUFF Filmmaking Stuff provides resources for independent filmmakers. The website includes articles on how to take a story idea from script to screen, including articles on scriptwriting, producing, finance, shooting, editing, directing, marketing, distribution and how to build an audience. Filmmaking Stuff also has articles detailing how to make money making movies – including interviews with Hollywood Producers, Directors, writers and other filmmaking professionals.

A few years back, while flying aboard a loud propeller driven airplane somewhere over the snow capped mountains of Colorado, I heard the guy in front of me talking to his girlfriend about an idea for a movie. Since I had just finished production on my second feature, I felt compelled to chime in. And when I heard his movie pitch, I just had to help. . .

Fast forward to today and filmmaker Rory Delaney is getting a ton of buzz on the film festival circuit for his feature documentary, Toxic Soup. The movie exposes corporate carelessness and profiles everyday people afflicted by the Toxic Soup dumped in their back yards. (And yes, I am one of the producers of this movie. After you see it, you’ll understand why this story can’t be ignored.)

Jason Brubaker
Where did you get the idea for “Toxic Soup”?

Rory Delaney
I got the idea for “Toxic Soup” when I met West Virginian Kyle Stratton Crace in Los Angeles. Being in LA we got to talking about movies of course. I told Kyle that I was from Kentucky and had edited a documentary “Method in the Mountains,” which was shot in West Virginia. In turn, Kyle talked about growing up in Charleston, WV, in what is known as the Chemical Valley.

Jason Brubaker
Chemical Valley? Sounds like a horror movie. Why do they call it that?

Rory Delaney
At one time West Virginia had the heaviest concentration of chemical plants in the world. After Kyle spoke about the health effects that his family and friends had experienced as a result of their residence in the area, I thought it had the makings of a great documentary. Additional research affirmed my suspicions, and then an early test shoot erased all remaining doubts.

Jason Brubaker
As a filmmaker, often the idea you start with grows into something much bigger and often, unexpected. Would you say that your original focus shifted?

Rory Delaney
Originally I thought the documentary was going to be about one specific case involving the water contamination of Parkersburg, West Virginia with the DuPont manufactured chemical C8 (also known as PFOA). I just couldn’t believe that the EPA had found C8 (PFOA) in the blood of 96% of Americans, and that Dupont had covered up the fact for decades, while the state government had turned a blind eye. However, during production we heard a lot of similar stories.

Jason Brubaker
Like what?

Rory Delaney
We heard about a series of explosions and leaks of MIC in Institute, West Virginia, at a Bayer chemical plant. MIC is the chemical that killed over 20,000 Indians in 1984 after a catastrophic leak at a the US run Union Carbide plant. Institute, West Virginia is the only place left in the world where MIC is still manufactured and stored in massive quantities far eclipsing that which caused the Bhopal tragedy, which Time Magazine dubbed the world’s worst industrial accident.

Jason Brubaker
These are deadly chemicals in people’s back yards.

Rory Delaney
Yes. We also learned about the pollution of a community’s well water in Mingo County, West Virginia by Massey Energy with coal slurry containing heavy metals like arsenic and lead. We even visited the radioactive oil fields abandoned by Ashland Oil in Red Bush, Kentucky where community members have been developing brain tumors at alarming rates and a cat was born with 2 heads, 6 legs, and 2 tails. But while the companies and toxins differ, there is a pattern connecting them. “Toxic Soup” was made to examine and question that pattern.

Jason Brubaker
A lot of documentary filmmakers are impacted and forever changed by their subjects. Would you say the work impacted you?

Rory Delaney
Toxic Soup work has definitely impacted me. For one, I’m an official Kentucky Colonel now. For real.

Jason Brubaker
Really? How do you prove that?

Rory Delaney
I got a certificate from Governor Steve Beshear and everything. How awesome is that? But kidding aside, on a practical level “Toxic Soup” has influenced my consumption patterns. I do my best to avoid products associated with different companies, ranging from gasoline. Marathon bought Ashland Oil. And pain killers made by Bayer as well as frying pans.

Jason Brubaker
Frying pans?

Rory Delaney
Frying pans with Teflon. C8 leaches into your food from the nonstick action.

Jason Brubaker
It sounds like Toxic Soup is everywhere.

Rory Delaney
I look at the ingredients in my personal care products. I don’t wear deodorants with phthalates in them also referred to as “Scent” or “Perfume.” That stuff is gnarly for you. Finally, I pay a lot closer attention to politics and corporate campaign donations. I was deeply troubled by the latest Supreme Court decision on that front.

Jason Brubaker
Along the way, you traveled across the country to  meet some very high ranking officials and interesting people. How were you able to plan your days?

Rory Delaney
I scheduled interviews, aerial flyovers and community meetings as far in advance as possible. On off days we shot b-roll and performed additional research and community outreach. We emailed and called countless lawyers, politicians, journalists, filmmakers, nonprofits, professors, activists, and celebrities in search of interviews, stories, and tips. A lot of these phone calls and emails paid big dividends.

Jason Brubaker
Many of the people you profiled have been living in “Toxic Soup” their entire lives. Why do those people choose to stay in polluted land. Why don’t they just move?

Rory Delaney
Polluted or not, where you are born is where you are born. It’s home. You don’t choose it. And most people have an acute sense of that bond. Often they have extended family and friends in the area. They have roots there. So leaving becomes difficult for emotional reasons. Also there are financial reasons. Some of these folks own property, but that property has been depreciated 80 to 90 percent of its value because of toxic contamination in some cases. As a result, many can’t move because they lack the resources to do so. It’s a vicious circle.

Jason Brubaker
What did you shoot on?

Rory Delaney
We shot the majority of footage on the Canon XHA1 at 24p 1080 HD. For three camera shoots we also utilized the Canon HV20, which also shoots in 1080 HD.

Jason Brubaker
How did you find your crew?

Rory Delaney
When I was getting my MFA in dramatic writing from NYU I met director Christina Voros when I wrote the short film “Rosy” with her. “Rosy” played at the 2008 Florida Film Festival and Nantucket Film Festival. In any event, I contacted Christina because she is also a very talented DP, and she recommended her friend Sergei Krasikau who is a sound recorder and still photographer. Later, I met Lisa Bragg and Curtis Baskerville while shooting in West Virginia. Lisa and Curtis are local filmmakers who proved to be invaluable as they could film stuff when the rest of us were out of town. It just kind of came together like everything else.

Jason Brubaker
I know some of your locations did not permit a video crew or a camera. How were you able to capture footage there?

Rory Delaney
For a couple hundred bucks we also picked up a cheap spy camera at the Spy Museum in Washington DC, which we used to film the DuPont annual shareholders meeting in Wilmington, Delaware, where our camera crew had been banned.

Jason Brubaker
How did you get big names like Bill Clinton and Morgan Spurlock in your documentary?

Rory Delaney
Despite being a first-time director, we had a lot of success getting celebrity cameos in our documentary. As we all know, we live in the age of celebrity, and the truth is that you are more likely to get into bigger festivals and achieve wider distribution if you have “names” attached to your project. Although we had difficulty pursuing celebrities through official channels (Many had a protective wall of handlers and assistants), we opted to cut out the middlemen and personally pitch our documentary.

Jason Brubaker
And how were you able to get within talking distance?

Rory Delaney
To do this, we researched their public appearance schedules before turning up with our camera crew in tow. This is how we got an interview with Bill Clinton and Morgan Spurlock. The same strategy worked for cameos by Jim Carrey, Jenny McCarthy and RFK Jr.

Jason Brubaker
Is Morgan Spurlock supportive of Toxic Soup?

Rory Delaney
We believe that Morgan is supportive of “Toxic Soup”. We approached him months ago with a fine cut of the documentary and welcomed his input and advice. However, he is super busy with his FX show “30 Days” and also judging at film festivals like Sundance, so we haven’t had a chance to really connect with him. As we build up more grassroots support for the documentary, I am cofident that Morgan will resurface and assist the movement.

Jason Brubaker
What advice do you have for filmmakers pursuing controversial topics?

Rory Delaney
Talk with a lawyer and possibly form a legal entity. Also get a business card. Other than that make sure the topic is something that you’re passionate about because people are going to flake on you when you start rocking the boat. In other words, if you’re doing it just to be controversial, you aren’t going to have the stamina to finish the project and get it out there for people to see.

Jason Brubaker
You’re taking about genuine passion.

Rory Delaney
Yes. Despite all the obstacles we faced in production and post, I was driven to get “Toxic Soup” made after meeting all the inspirational people fighting for environmental justice in their communities. I also felt like they were depending on me to get their stories and voices heard, so I just put my head down and did it.

Jason Brubaker
Any film festival advice?

Rory Delaney
Initially when submitting “Toxic Soup” to film festivals, I applied more or less blindly through withoutabox with mixed results. After consulting with Toxic Soup DP Christina Voros -- She’s an amazing director who was named one of Filmmaker Magazine’s 20 new faces in independent film -  Anyway, after chatting with her I revised my strategy.

Jason Brubaker
If you don’t mind sharing, could you describe your secret film festival strategy?

Rory Delaney
Christina explained that with her previous films she had had a lot of success writing in advance to festival programmers and requesting fee waivers. I utilized Christina’s idea and approached festivals with a brief pitch of “Toxic Soup” and a plea for fee waiver, explaining that any funds we could save would help us to attend the screening and promote the documentary.

Jason Brubaker
That’s an awesome idea. What was the response from festivals?

Rory Delaney
The majority of the festivals responded positively and granted “Toxic Soup” either full fee waivers or at half-price. Now some folks wrote back and said no, but hey, festivals are like the lottery. You can’t win if you don’t play. But the real brilliance behind Christina’s strategy isn’t the money that you save; it’s that your DVD is no longer anonymous DVD #10-HFX3004, which arrived in the mail one day and is sitting under a stack of a other anonymous DVDs.

Jason Brubaker
Right. It’s like you initiated the first steps to a personal relationship with the festival programmer.

Rory Delaney
Yes. Now you have corresponded with the programmer. They now have knowledge of your project and who you are, and they are waiting to watch your film, giving you an immediate edge over a good 80 percent of the other submissions.

Jason Brubaker
Are you still playing the festivsals?

Rory Delaney
We are still playing the festival circuit. We just sent off to fifteen or twenty festivals who granted us waivers. We even got a call from a festival in Buenos Aires, Argentina, interested in including “Toxic Soup” in their program. So keep checking back to (The Official Toxic Soup Movie Website) for updates on that front. We are also screening at universities. We just played at West Virginia State University in Institute, WV, and at the University of Maryland School of Law.

Jason Brubaker
How is the response thus far?

Rory Delaney
The response has been encouraging. The university screenings as well as our world premiere at the Atlanta Film Festival were well attended, and the Questions and Answers afterward were lively. People really want to do know what they can do to protect themselves and their communities from pollution. Basically, folks are outraged by the inability of our government to protect Americans and regulate corporations hell-bent on profits over people.

Jason Brubaker
What have you learned about the world of distribution?

Rory Delaney
I have learned that nothing happens overnight. There is no fairy godmother, glass slipper, or pumpkin coach. You’ve got to push your movie / documentary into the world yourself, and the more you do to publicize and build a grassroots following, the greater your chances will be of attracting a distributor. Also I’ve learned that when you are presented with deals, don’t jump on the first thing that comes along. The last thing you want to do is sign a three year contract with a lackluster sales agent, and then a year in, find your hands tied after a more recognizable name decides to take on your project.

Jason Brubaker
Where can folks find out more about Toxic Soup?

Rory Delaney
On the official Toxic Soup Movie  Website, you can follow our blog, connect with nonprofits and research what’s in your backyard. You can also join us on facebook, twitter, and YouTube as well as watch clips from the movie.

- Here is the trailer for Toxic Soup -

Posted under Interviews with Hollywood

As president and CEO of From the Heart Productions, Carole Lee Dean produced over 100 programs, including the popular cable program, HealthStyles, and the historical show, Filmmakers, now housed in the National Archives. As an entrepreneur she created Studio Film & Tape, and sold it to Edgewise in 2001. She created a business supporting independent filmmakers in the 70’s with raw stock and coined the name “short ends.”

In 1992, she created the Roy W. Dean Grant Foundation in honor of her late father. To date, Carole’s grant and mentorship programs have provided filmmakers with millions of dollars in goods and services and have played an instrumental role in creating important documentary films. She is the author of The Art of Film Funding: Alternative Financing Concepts and The Art of Manifesting: Creating your Future.

Carole stopped by Filmmaking Stuff to share some ideas about filmmaking.

Jason Brubaker
Could you tell us a little bit about your work and how you got into the industry?

I was married to a cameraman and went to the set each Friday night and watched them unloading those little pieces of film that I termed “short ends.” I started a business of buying them from the studios and selling to independents, thus supporting the birth of the independent film market. I found that studios even sold new film because cinematographers wanted all one emulsion so I took the 10 or 15K feet of new and sold to people like Cassavetes.

Jason Brubaker
Wow! It is amazing how those “little pieces of film” changed the motion picture industry.

Carole Lee Dean
After a few years of selling “short ends” major video companies came to me to market their stocks and I expanded into tape. I started with $20.00 from the grocery money and sold it when my sales were at $9 million a year to Edgewise.

Jason Brubaker
This is an example of taking action on an idea and bringing it to fruition, much like a movie producer.

Carole Lee Dean
Yes, I believe in manifesting. It’s a process of releasing a potential that was already there. That short ends business was just waiting for me. Thank heavens I did not know how to do a corporate business plan or I would have known that I needed a lot more money. My belief that I could do it overcame the lack of money. I bought it and sold it the same day and most importantly I always saw it as a big business.

Jason Brubaker
It’s important to think big.

Carole Lee Dean
Look at a piece of coal; it’s a black rock, right? Well, if you ignite it you have heat and light, that potential was there you just had to release it. The same applies for filmmakers.

Jason Brubaker
Yeah. I think the key to dreams is internal, not external.

Carole Lee Dean
I tell them to realize their genius. How many people would give their right arm to be a scriptwriter? Most filmmakers are writers, producer’s even actors and editors. You are Pure genius and its important to know that so you have faith in yourself and your ability to make and finish your film. By seeing your film on a daily basis, knowing each shot, You are projecting into the future a vision that you can release with your faith and confidence. Fred Alan Wolf, physicist says that when we are daydreaming and visualizing clearly we are creating that future and that a handshake across time occurs and somewhere in the future it happens just as you saw and felt.

Jason Brubaker
I have experienced what you’re talking about. Sometimes things come into my life when I least expect them.

Carole Lee Dean
My father was responsible for the student discount. I spent every Sunday with him and He began this relentless weekly request for me to give a student discount. I agreed to 3%. He said it was not good enough. Then I went to 5%. Still not good enough so finally to keep peace I agreed to 15% discount.

Jason Brubaker
I’m sure the independent filmmakers were appreciative!

Carole Lee Dean
When Fuji gave me the exclusive national distribution of their 16 & 35mm stocks I set a goal for myself to sell in 9 months and Fuji said, “Oh, that’s too high you will never hit that.” I did hit it and I asked them to give me a larger discount and my priority that I told them was non negotiable was a 15% discount for students. I got this discount and after the first ad was printed, Kodak matched that 15%!!!

Jason Brubaker
And that care for supporting indie filmmakers has stayed with you. The Roy W. Dean Film and Writing Grants have become some of the most well known for independent filmmaker. Could you tell us what criteria you look for when you evaluate potential projects for a grant?

Carole Lee Dean
I want great stories with compelling characters. We fund shorts, indies and docs that are under $500K budgets. The films must be unique and make a contribution to society. Look on the site under grants for prior winners for the type of films we fund. We just started taking features and I want to see one win.

Jason Brubaker
How long does the evaluation process take?

Carole Lee Dean
We have the first cut of finalists on the site in 60 days and your name will stay on for a year, which is very good PR. Next cut is made on the site. We highlight the top 15, then top 10, then top 5 and announce the winner. All this takes about 2 to 3 more months. Filmmakers go through 3 sets of judges.

Jason Brubaker
Let’s say you’re a filmmaker and you’re not selected? Do you offer any sort of consultation or advice to those filmmakers?

Carole Lee Dean
Everyone who applies gets a free 15 minute consultation with me. We can talk about financing your specific film or how to improve your package or marketing or, anything you want. This grant is very dear to me and I like to see you improve from entering it. Our aim is to help you get funded.

Jason Brubaker
In your book The Art of Funding Your Film, you provide a very comprehensive overview of the funding process. Given all the rules and SEC regulations, what advice do you have for filmmakers who have never funded a movie – where do they get started?

Carole Lee Dean
It all starts with a great story. That’s the most important part, work on the store, give me compelling characters that I want to spend 90 minutes with. Write and keep writing and rewriting. Send your work out to really good screenwriters for review and listen to them. Read “Save the Cat,” my favorite book on writing. Take your script to the highest level possible.

Jason Brubaker
And once you have a great script?

Carole Lee Dean
Then go to work on your business plan and find good comparison films that you can easily defend. Be honest with your return on investment, always say hypothetical ROI and show one film in comparisons that did not make a profit. Put yourself in your investor’s shoes. Would you take a million from your parents to make your film? Do you seriously think you can pay it back? Keep investors interest your priority.

Jason Brubaker
You have been very passionate about helping filmmakers manifest their dreams into reality. I read your book long before I had produced my first feature. And I can remember times when everyone in my life seemed to think my movie making goals were pipe dreams. What advice do you have for filmmakers who are working to overcome self doubt?

Carole Lee Dean
If you were making movies 20 years ago it would cost you 10 times more to make a film. So ask yourself, “why was I given so much talent and born during the third most important time in the history of mankind.” Here you are with a great opportunity and all that talent. Do you really believe the universe would put you here at this time and not finance you? Of course not.

Jason Brubaker
That is a good way to think. Especially on those days where self doubt creeps in.

Carole Lee Dean
You need to believe in your talents and know that the money will come. Do all those things on your “to do list” and keep seeing your finished film. You will find doors open where there were no doors before. You are your greatest asset.

Jason Brubaker
I know you have been trying to find ways to bring filmmakers together to share ideas.

Carole Lee Dean
From the Heart is now producing events and I will give all of your members a 15% discount on any of our products and events if your people put GRANT in the coupon code.

To learn more about the Roy W. Dean Grant or some of Carole’s upcoming filmmaking events, check out the website.

Posted under Film Financing, Interviews with Hollywood

Guy reading the News! Have You heard the Filmmaking News? Image via Wikipedia

MovieMaker Magazine has published a list of the “50 Best Blogs for Moviemakers.”  Out of the gazillion filmmaking websites, Filmmaking Stuff made the cut.

You might not know too much about me just yet. But whenever I’m not working on my next movie, I put a ton of focus and heart into this website. It is my ongoing mission to provide you with filmmaking advice to help you make your movie.

None of this would be possible without you, dear reader. I am honored that you have taken the time to stop by and take action in your filmmaking career.

I wanted to thank you for your readership.

Now – Get out there and make your movie now!

Sincerely,

Jason Brubaker
Filmmaking Stuff

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Posted under Interviews with Hollywood

Norman C. Berns is an Emmy-winning producer and director. Beginning as a stage director, the full scope of his production work includes features and documentaries, TV series and commercials. As a member of DGA, SAG and Actors Equity, Norman has been creating films and preparing budgets, schedules and business plans his long career.

Today Norman stopped by Filmmaking Stuff to share his thoughts on filmmaking and let us know about his upcoming filmmaking seminars, which will be taking place in various cities all over the country.

Jason Brubaker
Hi Norman, thanks for stopping by today. With all your upcoming filmmaking seminars, are you finding any time to sleep?

Norman Berns
If I got more sleep, I’d stay up half the next night watching old movies. Fortunately, my wife is an early riser and I’m a light sleeper. Perfect combination. Gives me long days.

Jason Brubaker
Over the past five years, technology has become more affordable and distribution is open to just about anyone. For some, these changes are good. For others, not-so-good. What is your advice to those of us looking to make a living in the movie industry?

Norman Berns
Do it.  Suddenly production has been democratized. Everyone can make a movie. Even using a cell phone. Now this doesn’t make everyone an artist and it doesn’t make about 99.9% of the home-made films art. Fortunately, there’s a place for them. YouTube and Ego Sites are fine.

Jason Brubaker
These are great outlets for people who want to get audience feedback.

Norman Berns
The good news is that everyone gets to practice. That’s the important thing. That’s a good thing.

Jason Brubaker
I remember my first camera was an Arri BL. Back then, using an old 16mm camera was the only way to shoot a movie. And getting your work seen and distributed – that was a challenge.

Norman Berns
Suddenly technology has made Do It Yourself distribution possible, too. Most of the world has broadband fast enough to stream videos. The US is about 20th in the world – way behind the curve.

Jason Brubaker
It is an amazing time to be a filmmaker. But like anything else, even with advances in distribution getting your work seen is still a challenge.

Norman Berns
Distribution is still a hands-on job that takes a serious investment of time and money.  I tell people in my seminars that today’s indie filmmaker has to be in this for the long haul. If they’re not, they should sell their scripts to the studios or go into another line of work.

Jason Brubaker
Yeah. One of the things filmmakers struggle with first is actually making the movie. After that, making a return on investment. We aren’t selling ice cream in an Arizona summer.

Norman Berns
It’s that brutal. The universe may have films that will sell themselves, but most of us aren’t that lucky.  We need a plan and we need to implement it.

Jason Brubaker
In your upcoming workshops, you will help filmmakers figure out how to match their scripts and their funding. Can you describe why this is important?

Norman Berns
When I started my very first job (in a drug store), Nate Pickman screamed his gruff but sage “advice.” “You can’t shove two pounds of shit in a one-pound bag!”  I think a lady huffed out of the store before I could bag her toiletries.  But I’ve carried that line with me ever since.

Jason Brubaker
I know at least one producer who learned some of those lessons. (Yes, I’m talking about myself here.)

Norman Berns
You can’t make a five million dollar film for five thousand.  Or even for four million. I work with people all the time who can’t quite raise all the money they need to make their movie.  So they try to squeeze it all in anyway. Something’s gotta give.

Jason Brubaker
Like your lights. Your stunt crew. Your FX folks. Transpo. Craft Services.

Norman Berns
Ha. Yes. Now, of course, if the money is really close, it’s possible to just shoot a few longer days.  Or maybe shoot a bit faster for a while.  Problem is, if you do that for too long, your film just keeps getting worse and worse.  And the more you do it, the worse your film becomes. Until you end up with a broken bag and shit all over the cutting room floor.

Jason Brubaker
I’m so glad you brought us back to that. OK. So let’s say you start out to create a five million dollar epic and you can only raise four million… Then what?

Norman Berns
There’s a very simple solution to this. But filmmakers see it as the worst possible step they could take.  It’s not.  And they’ll be a lot happier if they do it.

Jason Brubaker
Okay Norman. I just hope this doesn’t involve another broken bag of something. What is it?

Norman Berns
I’m not going to tell you that.  That’s why I’m teaching a whole class….

Jason Brubaker
Such anticipation. Come on.

Norman
Okay, I’ll tell. Cut the script.

Jason Brubaker
Ouch. You gotta be off your rocker!

Norman
Right? WHAT! BLASPHEMY, they scream…. Nonsense. Unless you’re shooting “My Dinner with Andre” you have too many characters in your film. Too many locations, too. And unless you’re an old (and successful) hand at this, cut ten pages out of your script right now. I’ve never seen a script – never – that couldn’t be improved with some serious trimming.

Jason Brubaker
Cut the fat.

Norman Berns
Of course! If you have all the money in the world, you can just wait and throw those sections out when you’re in the edit suite. But unless you’re selling grandma’s diamond tiara to pay for your film, the script has to be trimmed before you begin. That’ll get the film back on budget – whatever that budget may be.  And you’ll have a better movie, too

Jason Brubaker
Would you say that projected Return On Investment also plays a part in budget size?

Norman Berns
Well, yes and no.  I mean to say, it shouldn’t. I want to make ART, so I really shouldn’t have to care what the ROI might be.

Jason Brubaker
Wait Norman – I need to remind you that your potential investors can read this.

Norman Berns
Oh, of course. Right. People with money… They care a lot about stuff like that.  So, in that case, the two have to match. I have to prove, at least on paper – that THIS film, MY film is a better investment than YOUR film.

Jason Brubaker
I guess I better get the fancy paper.

Norman Berns
Nothing is simple. Distribution is like the old wild west. There’s a new outpost every day.  And allies are few and far between. But if the projected ROI doesn’t fit the budget, it’s possible that budget is just too high. But it’s also possible the work has been done correctly and there are still more outlets for the film.

Jason Brubaker
More and more every day.

Norman Berns
Who would have thought that distribution on a cell phone would make economical sense?  Who would have thought that a film would be viewable at all on a cell phone? But you know, it does and it is. No, today’s version isn’t made for Avatar. But I routinely watch trailers on my Droid before I go off to the movies.

Norman Berns
ReelGrok is about to start optimizing websites for filmmakers so then can deliver videos on a mobile platform.  (Yeah, there is a formatting problem right now, but the solution is pretty easy.)

Jason Brubaker
You have a lot of experience helping filmmakers prepare business plans for their movie projects. Why is this important?

Norman Berns
Jason, would you give me a million dollars?  Aw, come on, man, please…? COME ON, I said please…. If you had the money and wanted to invest, I’ll bet you’d want to know what I wanted to do with your money.

Jason Brubaker
How about a wrap party and a premiere?

Norman Berns
Ha! Right. But also who’s involved and what the chances are for making a profit. Stuff like that. That’s a business plan. It’s just a simple outline of how someone plans to do business. And what’s for sale. And how there might be a profit.

Jason Brubaker
Thanks for emphasizing the words “might make a profit.”

Norman Berns
It is the right time for the filmmaker to start worrying about all the realities. Why is THIS film going to make money? Who wants to see it? How will income be gathered? Too many filmmakers rush to get started and never asked the most important questions first. Business plans give them that structure.

Jason Brubaker
There are some filmmakers who try to appeal to all audiences with a “four-quadrant movie.” According to some brilliant people in the studios, this type of movie appeals to all audience demographics. Would you also suggest that indie filmmakers try to appeal to everyone for maximum return on investment?

Norman Berns
LOL. Actually, that would be more like ROTFLOL.

Jason Brubaker
I have no idea what ROTFLOL means… Wait. Rolling on the floor laughing out loud?

Norman Berns
I saw a business plan for a film like that. “This film has been designed to appeal to men and women all over the world, from 16 to 60 and older….” I laughed so hard I never got past page one.

Jason Brubaker
That makes sense, since you were rolling on the floor. But all kidding aside, what do you suggest filmmakers do to make sure their business plan is chalked full of realistic expectations?

Norman Berns
I’d suggest that all filmmakers, indies included, appeal to THEIR audience. There are enough people in this world to make a huge audience for almost every possible subject. But try to appeal to everyone and the odds are good you’ll appeal to no one.

Jason Brubaker
A little controversy never hurts either.

Norman Berns
I was delighted to read that the Tea Baggers are out in force, picketing “Avatar” because it’s anti-genocide or some such boneheaded thing. Even a film that good, even a film that simple and direct can’t appeal to everyone.

Jason Brubaker
When raising money for movies, I noticed a lot of filmmakers take an ad on Craig’s List or some other public forum asking for investment dollars. Why is this not a good idea?

Norman Berns
It’s illegal. And investors don’t generally read Craig’s List for financial advice.

Jason Brubaker
What general advice do you have for someone with big dreams but no idea how to get started?

Norman Berns
Filmmaking has a hundred years of history. Start with that, then get back to me. Read every film book you can find. Read the scripts of successful movies. Listen to every film conversation you can hear, watch every movie over and over again until the story is gone and you can see (and understand) the individual shots.  Get a job on a film set. Get a job in an editing room.

Jason Brubaker
Fetch coffee…

Norman Berns
Right! If after all that, you’re still serious about film, buy a decent still camera. Shoot your first film entirely in stills. Lay them out one by one, like a gigantic storyboard. You’ll learn a lot about what you should have shot, what you didn’t need to shoot, what you need to do again. It’s incredibly inexpensive and provides great training.

Jason Brubaker
And it’s good fun.

Norman Berns
I have no patience for people with big eyes and no reality. Everyone has dreams. Only the smart, sharp, hardworking survive.

Jason Brubaker
How can filmmakers find out more about your upcoming Filmmaking Seminar?

Norman Berns
They can call me on the phone and ask me. 612-928-9900. Or send me an email. The stuff in this particular class is especially important. I know if filmmakers take this course, they’ll learn things that will affect their entire careers. It’s that important a class.

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If you’re interested in learning more about Norman’s filmmaking workshop in a city near you, please click the following brochure for more information:

Posted under Interviews with Hollywood