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.

Filmmaking Checklist For Fim Production Image via Wikipedia

As a filmmaker, one of the toughest parts about making a movie is knowing where to start. The following film production checklist will give you an overview of the low budget, independent filmmaking process. If you want a copy for yourself, you can grab this PDF.

1. Read and study everything you can about the filmmaking process. Also study internet marketing. A good place to start is www.filmmakingstuff.com

2. Write or acquire a screenplay you want to produce.

3. Do an initial breakdown, schedule and budget of the project. How much does it cost?

4. Looking at the initial budget, is there anything you can get for a discount, or free, or barter?

5. Talk with a lawyer and figure out your best money strategy.

6. Following the law, go after the money. This will require strategy, persistence and enthusiasm.

7. This will be one of the tougher parts of the process, but it will make the movie possible.

8. Most people will want to know how the money is going to be spent, what they can expect in return and how will you eventually get their money back. Filmmaking is a risky business, full of unknowns and you should never sugar coat the potential risk involved in this business.

9. Have a plan for the movie when it is complete. Will you take the festival route? Will you market it to colleges and universities? Will you send it directly to sales agents and acquisition pros?

10. Were you able to get the money? If not, here are some (but not all) of your options.
A. Choose a new project.
B. Alter the screenplay to cut costs.

11. Get more favors and freebies.

12. Assuming you did get the money, pick a date for production.

13. Hire a lawyer to help you with contracts and releases. If you’re short on cash, do a web search for lawyers for the arts in your state.

14. Since many of these folks will be working for free, expect a lot of “no’s” before you find the right fit for your show.

15. You can make your jobs easier if you find someone with film production experience.

16. Finalize your script. Get it to a point where you aren’t going to keep changing things. Once you get to this point, consider it a locked script.

17. Number your scenes. Then break down your script, grabbing each element, location and character. Create a schedule.

18. From your schedule and breakdown, create a final budget. You probably know how much money you have to work with. If you find you don’t have enough you have two choices:
A. Get More Money!
B. Modify the script and schedule.

19. Get your crew. I suggest working with a seasoned Physical Producer / Line Producer / Production Manager to help you get organized. These folks will probably look at your schedule and tweak it.

20. Additionally, if you’re going to direct and product, having these folks around to help out will open the door to relationships with 1st ADs and crew. These folks will help you hire the right people. They may also know a thing or two about tax credits in your state. This could be invaluable!

21. I know. Money is tight. So instead of hiring a locations scout, you’re going to have to scout and procure locations yourself. This means you’ll knock on some doors and introduce yourself, your project and your goals.

22. It is at this point when I warn you – what can go wrong with a location probably will. So you will want to have a 2nd and 3rd location added to the mix. This way, should something happen, you’ll have a fall-back plan.

23. Assuming you’re directing this sucka yourself, you might find a director of photography who shares your sensibilities and has equal enthusiasm for the project.

24. Your DP will help you design a look and mood for your movie. Given your cost constraints, you’ll most likely shoot in HD.

25. MARKETING: Create a website specific to your movie. Make sure you have a way to get site visitors on your mailing list. Have a place for press, so that they can download your press kit and materials. Check out www.MovieSiteHost.com

26. Then as you get into production, you will be able to add a movie trailer. (Increase the size of your mailing list and establish a website you can later modify into a sales funnel.) To build your audience mailing list, check out www.AudienceList.com

27. If you’re lucky, you already know some talented actors interested in your project and working with you. You’ll have to work out a deal with these folks. LA and NYC offer various websites that help producers find actors. But if you’re in rural USA, you might have some difficulty with these options. I suggest partnering with local university drama departments and local theaters to fulfill your casting requirements.

28. Once you have all of your actors, you will want to find a location for a table read. Go through the script. If you wrote it, now is a time to take some notes for a final tweak. Just know – anything you change in the script also changes the budget and the schedule.

29. Seriously, don’t skimp on food. You will want someone in charge of Craft Services. They should be good at going out and getting deals on food and catering. If you can not find anyone to do this for you, you’ll have to do it yourself.

30. Make sure you have adequate food. If you’re doing a union shoot, there are guidelines and rules you must follow. If you’re doing a non- union indie, then some advice is: DON’T GET CHEAP! GET QUALITY!

31. Do you have all of your permits, releases, location agreements? Do you have production insurance? There are so many different types of insurance, it will make your head spin. Make sure you talk with some experienced professionals to make sure you have adequate insurance for your movie.

32. Meet with your Camera Department and find out how much tape stock you’ll need (assuming you’re shooting in HD or HDSLR). If you’re shooting film, which might be costly for your first feature – you’ll want to have an idea of these needs too.

33. Try to take as many naps as you can. This is a fun, but stressful time. So sleep. Exercise. Eat.

34. Once you have all the above stuff checked off the list, you’ll want to meet with your department heads and make sure everyone’s needs are being met. Assuming you’ve maintained limited locations, with a limited cast and crew, you will probably still be baffled by the amount of questions that come flying at you.

35. Seriously, you would think you’re making a gazillion dollar movie. But this is indication people care about their work. They care about the movie. And they want to make it a success.

36. This goes without saying, but don’t be a jerk. Seriously, you’re making a movie. It’s a real accomplishment and it’s one of those great things you can do in life. In fact, it’s quite awesome. So push forward. ENJOY!

37. Did I mention you need plenty of sleep?

38. Produce your movie. Do well. Don’t loose your temper and have fun!

39. During production, try to constantly get press to profile your movie. It would be great to create buzz, get people to your website and get them to opt into your newsletter mailing list. www.AudienceList.com

40. After the WRAP, have a wrap party. Don’t sleep with anybody or get drunk or make a fool of yourself! You’re a professional. Act like one.

41. After you recover from your hangover, you’ll probably start editing the movie. I suggest sharing the edit suite with another set of eyes.

42. Your first cut will be rough. Screen it with a group of people who have never seen the movie. Get feedback.

43. Take the feedback and refine your edit. After that, take a week off – don’t look at the movie or play around with it. Then, when you come back to the suite, refine and refine again.

44. Have another small screening with people who have never seen the movie. Take notes. Then take those notes back to your edit suite.

45. Add some sound FX to your movie. Clean up actor dialogue and rough areas. Remember, audio is often more important than visual.

46. Screen the movie again with a new, small set of people. Take notes. Go back and refine.

47. When you have a cut you’re happy with, then you can begin to plan your next strategy. For example, will you go to film festivals? Then you should have a target list in mind.

48. You may have several opportunities for traditional distribution. With some qualified professionals, analyze the deal. Find out if the deal will fit your business objectives, if not, move on to the next deal.

49. What if there are no deals? Hopefully you have a strong mailing list, a marketable hook and a plan for reaching your target demographic.

50. As such, refine your website into a sales funnel hub. Upload your movie to one of the many VOD sites and refine your movie poster and artwork. (To sell your movie via VOD, check out www.MovieSalesTool.com)

51. Also, upload your trailer to YouTube and all the other video sites on the internet. I prefer to stream from YouTube because I don’t have to pay the streaming bandwidth.

52. Write press releases related to the release of your movie. Have a blog component that details your movie and allows other people to comment.

53. Play around with your key words and Search Engine Optimization. (My next course?)

54. Create conversations on website forums related to your type of movie. DO NOT SPAM!!!

55. Create both a Facebook and MySpace page for your movie. The purpose of this page is to lead people back to your site.

56. Have a button on your website so people can tweet about your movie.

57. In addition to this, if you have the budget, purchase some offline advertising in publications related to your movie.

59. All of these methods are intended to get people back to your website. The purpose of your site is to get people to watch your movie trailer and click the BUY NOW button. Anything that distracts these visitors must go!

60. If they don’t click, then at least try to get them to opt into your mailing list.

61. Out of all the people who click the BUY NOW button, some will actually buy.

62. Consider using that money to purchase more advertising and repeat the process.

63. Sooner or later, you’ll figure out how to jump- start your next project. And you will realize that making movies and making money making movies is possible.

64. Tips from the trenches: On average it takes 7 meetings to make a relationship.

65. If you aren’t getting rejected every day, you are not working hard enough for your goals.

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If you like this filmmaking checklist, download a FREE copy by clicking here: Make Your Movie Checklist

Posted under Filmmaking

If you’ve been following Filmmaking Stuff for some time, you probably know that this site really pushes non-permission based filmmaking. This concept means that if you’re a filmmaker with ambition and a dream, you should not hesitate… You should not wait for Hollywood to give you permission – but rather, you should pick up a camera and Make Your Movie Now!

For some of you, this is easier said than done. Part of why this seems challenging and impossible is because many of us start our career with the belief that filmmakers need a gazillion dollars, tons of experience and an address in Hollywood to make a living as a “real” filmmaker. While this was once true, the new model of movie making allows you to create and sell movies from anywhere in the world.

For many, this filmmaking evolution is exciting. But the classic elements of filmmaking remain. You still need a great story, the passion and persistence to bring your movie to life, and the guts to share your work with the world. To give you a rough plan of how to get your indie movie business up and running, I’ve provided a few steps. (Where I thought it would help, I also included links to some sponsored filmmaking tools and services.) Ready:

1. Create relationships with at least 5-10 collaborators who complement your skill set. At the very least, you’ll want to find a writer who understands budgets, a physical producer experienced in low budget movie making, a tech guru who understands cameras and modern production gadgets, a sales and marketing professional who can promote the heck out of your movies, an editor with Final Cut Pro, an internet guru who can help you promote and sell your movies online. And you’ll also need a lawyer who can provide you with the necessary legal advice, contracts and advice on setting up a business.
2. Come together as a team and design a movie that can be explained in one high-concept log-line. It has been my experience that original, genre specific movies with a bit of controversy, geared towards a clearly defined target audience will later help you when it comes time to market and sell your movie. And above all, your movie idea should be totally fun and captivating. (Otherwise, why make the movie?)
3. Design a YouTube channel for your “production company.”
4. Once you have a title for your movie, reserve domain name and get a website. I use this company www.MovieSiteHost.com
5. Break down your sceenplay. Out of this, complete your schedule and your budget. Then analyze your budget. Ask yourself: If we do not garner a traditional distribution deal, how many $4.99 VOD downloads will we need to sell to get a return? At this point you can decide to decrease your budget, or not. But once you decide on your budget and the amount of sales you’ll need to make to get a return, you can then begin planning your marketing strategy. If you have money, hire a great Production Manger. If you don’t have money, you’ll have to do your own breakdown. CLICK HERE for a great script breakdown resource.
6. Once you have a concrete filmmaking strategy, you can go after your money. Investors like to see three things in your business plan, who is running the company, how you’ll spend the money and how you’ll make a profit. Unlike years past, iTunes, Amazon and Netflix provides you a somewhat easily accessible distribution pipeline. This will assist you in getting the necessary movie money. If you don’t know how to find prospective investors, see: www.GetMovieMoney.com
7. After you lock down your money, you can go into pre-production full force. Hire a great 1st AD.
8. Make your movie! Edit your movie. Refine your edit. Then…
9. Two things have to happen. You have to spread the word of your movie. This can be done by entering film festivals. Additionally, you have to start building a big audience list, so you can tell them about screenings and ask them to BUY your movie. Get your movie onto iTunes, Netflix and Amazon. Try www.MovieSalesTool.com
10. Once you get your movie out there and selling, focus on fueling your marketing with ads, PR and partnerships with other filmmakers.

And after you do this once, the way to become successful is to create more and more movies. Remember, your goal is to create at least 20 movies in your life time, so that you can get at least 20 checks in the mail each month!

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If you like this filmmaking stuff, you’re welcome to join the revolution by grabbing over $100 dollars in FREE filmmaking stuff here: www.FreeFilmmakingBook.com

Posted under Film Financing

If you’re a first time feature filmmaker, you do not need a gazillion dollars to join the feature club. But you will need to learn how to replace money with ginormous creatively. And once your screenplay is complete, then the next step in the filmmaking process is your initial breakdown and schedule.

Breaking down the script means you go through your screenplay, number each scene and highlight each element, including locations, characters, props, make up, wardrobe, picture vehicles and special FX…

All of these things cost money. And once the script is locked, any modification you make to the story or schedule, no matter how minor or major, will subsequently impact the budget.

My producer friend Forrest Murray always says the script, schedule and budget are the same document. You’ll need all three to make a movie… But in the process, if you change one document, you’re actually changing all three.

I’ll chat about this some more later. For today, let’s focus on your initial schedule so you can eventually get to your budget.

Schedule Your Movie And Save

1.After you highlight each element, you’ll want to figure out when you want to shoot your movie and how long you plan to shoot.

2.You can determine this by choosing how many pages you want to shoot per day. Then you can decide if you want to shoot 5 days on and 2 days off, or 6 days on and 1 day off. Or maybe you want to shoot your movie over a few weekends.

3.Everything in the script will impact your budget. There is software for this. Final Draft offers an add-on called Tagger. Tagger allows you to go through the script and pick out elements and highlight them in various colors. Once all elements are selected, you can eventually import this list into your budget and schedule software program.

4.After giving this your best effort, if you still feel stuck, seek expert advice.

5.Eventually, these elements will have a price in your initial budget. What is the price of each element? How much does your movie cost?

Many motion picture professionals make a living just breaking down, scheduling and budgeting movies. So it’s a pretty complicated and creative area. As a first time feature filmmaker, it save you many headaches if you partner with an seasoned 1st AD or Line Producer who could guide you through the process.

If this is not possible for you, I suggest reading every article on the subject as well as watching every YouTube video. This will teach you how to think like a cost conscious, responsible producer.

Regardless of your decision to complete your own breakdown or hire someone else for the job, the reason you’ll need an initial schedule is because this will give you a good starting point… You’ll utilize this information to figure out your budget. You’ll also be able to figure out if you need to cut an element or two, or not.

Cut Your Budget

Once you have your initial schedule, (and assuming this is your first feature), I suggest you create a budget for your movie in the neighborhood of $500K. Before you go crazy thinking this is a lot of money (or a little money), I want you to know you don’t actually have to spend $500K in hard cash to meet the needs of your budget.

In fact, once you determine you’ll make your movie at $500K, you are going to spend the next few weeks working backwards to see how much hard cash you can replace with sweat equity, discounts and favors from friends and family. Why $500K? Because if you actually have the elements budgeted, there is a good chance your movie will look better than if you budgeted for a mere $50K.

The reason for this is mostly psychological. By setting your budget at 500K, you’re going to start out with goal that forces you to get a higher production value than if you simply settled for pocket cash.

Later, with the application of tremendous creativity, it will be possible to reduce a $500K budget after discounts, free food, locations and salary adjustments quite significantly.

Do you have friends who own locations you can utilize for free? Do you have access to discounted equipment? Can you finish your movie faster than scheduled?

Do you have a friend with an edit suite?

Can you shoot some scenes outside during the day to reduce the need for extra lights? Can you find free food for your cast and crew? These are just some of the ways you can reduce that $500K budget.

One of my buddies was able to do this on the cheap. He had a location budgeted for $5K. However, after my buddy spoke with the owner of the location, the fee was reduced to zero. How? My buddy (a creative producer) agreed to shoot a promo for the owner’s business. Another filmmaker friend got free food for his entire shoot simply by asking.

The food supplier was thanked in the credits.

Deals like this happen. But it takes creativity to find opportunity. Here are some questions to ask:

How much money do I have?
How can I reduce expenses?
Can I get free food?
Who do I know who has the location I’m looking for?
How much money will I need?

The other reason you want to keep your first feature budget low is to allow greater opportunity for return. In the event you get a standard distribution deal (which is becoming more and more rare), your movie should look expensive.

If your budget is $500K and the movie looks like $500K, but you only spent $50K or $30K $15K in ultra-low-budget hard cash, and someone pays you back your budget, then you just made a crazy profit!

Nice work.

And in the event you do not get a standard distribution deal, then you’re not quite as deep in the financial hole as you otherwise would be.

Posted under Filmmaking

As you probably know, there are several different types of movie producers in the industry. With all the different titles, sometimes trying to figure out who does what and why, can be a little confusing. Today, I’m going to provide an overview of the different types of movie producers and what they do.

Deal Making Producer
Often these folks work for a studio, a mid-level production company or a management company with a production arm. They find a script they like and work with the writer (or writers) to push the script through the development process. Then they work with agents, managers studio executives (or financial backers) as well as other industry professionals to get the movie packaged. In the development stage, often a Line Producer (or sometimes a 1st AD) is hired to complete an initial breakdown of the script. This information is then used to create a budget – a budget utilized to raise cash. And while this initial breakdown may be pretty comprehensive, you can rest assured a lot of changes will be made prior to production.

Line Producer AKA Unit Production Manager (title varies by project.)
Once the movie is packaged, then a Line Producer or Production Manager is hired on to oversee the nuts-and-bolts of production. Typically these folks have a vast amount of movie set experience and understand the world of physical production. Often, but not all the time, the Unit Production Manager who completed initial breakdown of the script will be hired to oversee the movie. These folks then hire on a 1st AD as well as many of the below-the-line crew.

Associate Producer
Often these credits are reserved for friends of the production, or perhaps someone who went above and beyond the call of duty to make sure the movie got made. For many indie folks, an Associate Producer credit can often be used en lieu of cash not available in the budget. It’s not the worst credit to have, for sure.

Executive Producer
This credit is a little crazy – it can go to physical producers with lots of clout, financial backers, studio executives or some heavy hitter in the industry who offered to make some calls for your movie.
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In order to make your movie now, my thinking is, it’s best to cultivate both a knack for deal making as well as an fundamental understanding of physical production. In all my meetings, it struck me that this hybrid set of skills does a lot to propel these folks into high ranking positions – with a long list of screen credits to show for it.

If you check out the stuff section of this website, you’ll see my recommendations for books and software. I tried to include a good mix of both physical producing as wells as materials aimed to help you sharpen your business fundamentals. If you find you are weak in either the physical side of production or the deal making side, or if you don’t feel like cultivating your own skills, I then recommend you partner with someone who embodies a complimentary set of skills.

Posted under Filmmaking