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.

Not all filmmakers are ready to make a feature. And some filmmakers have not yet made a short.

From time to time, I get emails from new filmmakers seeking short film ideas.

Over the past few weeks, I have been working to create a new resource for any filmmaker who is seeking short film ideas. It’s called 101 Short Film Ideas.

Even though the name may sound a little generic, the system is designed to help you overcome any creative blocks.

In addition to having an action guide that contains 101 short film ideas, As part of this system, you will also get my ten step audio program for short movie success.

This is mp3 audio that you can put on your iPod or mp3 player and listen to it anywhere. If you are looking for short film ideas, check it out here.

If you are looking for 101 Short Film Ideas, CLICK HERE

Posted under STUFF

As a filmmaker, setting self-imposed deadlines on your filmmaking and life goals can help you get a lot done quickly. And blowing a deadline can make you feel like crap.

You’ve been there… It is one of these things when everything is moving along well with your project. And then life happens.

For the last six months, I have been writing like mad to finish my next filmmaking book. The book will provide you with some new filmmaking information.

I wanted to have a completed eBook by September 1st and then a physical copy by October 1st, but due to some unplanned speaking gigs a last minute article for MovieMaker Magazine and a surprise movie project – I had to alter my schedule.

This makes me feel like crap. While each reason is valid. It does not change the fact that I blew a deadline (even if it is self-imposed.)

What I learned from this experience is this: Your projects will always take longer to complete than you imagine. Make sure you give yourself enough time.

What are some strategies you use to meet your own deadlines?

Posted under Filmmaking News

Independent moviemaking has changed forever. If you are still holding out for the Sundance dream, you are wasting your time. What is the Sundance dream? It’s the thought that you’ll make a movie, get into Sundance and garner a gazillion dollars.

While I encourage you to think big, if you are basing your movie business on the Sundance dream, you are making a BIG mistake in filmmaking.

To help you, I got together with a few other cutting edge modern moviemakers. Together we created a book entitled the Modern MovieMaking Movement  – We think it is a valuable filmmaking resource. And because we are giving it away for free, there is no reason not to grab YOUR copy.

As of today, the Modern Moviemaking Movement has been downloaded around 10,000 times. That is a lot of filmmakers! So I am raising the bar. With your help, I would like to get the book into the hands of 30,000 filmmakers.

But I can’t do it alone. If you would like to help spread the Modern Moviemaking Movement, could you kindly tweet or email or post the following link to every filmmaker you know? >> http://bit.ly/pQSxoG

Thanks for being a Modern Moviemaker!

Posted under FILMMAKING

As a filmmaker, your success relies on other people willing to help you realize your movie projects. The problem is, many would-be filmmakers surround themselves with toxic people.

The great motivational speaker Zig Ziglar always says, “You can’t fly with the eagles if you continue to scratch with the turkeys.”

And I believe this is true.

Take a moment and think of the people you spend the most time with. Are they helping you or hurting you? For some of you, the person you spend the most time with is your significant other. Is he or she supporting your filmmaking aspirations?

If not, then you have to make tough decisions.

Posted under FILMMAKING

If you want to make a movie, you need to stop making mental lists of all the reasons why your movie won’t work. You need to stop pretending that you need more money. You need to stop letting life pass you by…

This is the problem with most filmmakers. They get paralysis of analysis. They make excuses. And then another year passes without a feature.

I know why. You’re afraid of failure. You’re afraid that if you make a movie, everybody will know how bad you suck as a filmmaker.

I get it. But here is the deal. A large percentage of the population is going to hate you anyway. So you may as well accept this and make a movie.

How?

Instead of asking yourself what you need to make a movie, ask yourself this question: “Given the resources that I have right now, what is the movie that I can make this year?”

Posted under Uncategorized

As a filmmaker, you must realize that movie marketing is essential to your success. And while I’m sure you “know” this, you probably aren’t doing anything about it.

In an effort to provide you with bite sized steps you can take to accelerate your filmmaking success, I have listed the top ten things that all filmmakers must include in their movie marketing:

1. Definable hook.
2. Great screenplay.
3. Clearly definable target audience.
4. Cost effective way to reach the target audience.
5. Consistent branding (logos, fonts and colors) on movie marketing collateral.
6. Awesome poster.
7. Great Movie website that helps you “sell” your movie.
8. Marketing plan included in your business plan.
9. Team of people consisting of at least one internet nerd.
10. The willingness to implement your own sales and marketing strategy.

At speaking events, people always ask me questions about DIY or Self-Distribution – usually wondering if these methods are better than handing over all rights for some middle-man to get them into the many VOD outlets.

My response is always the same.

If the deal makes sense (meaning, you are happy with the deal), only you can decide if you should outsource your sales, marketing and distribution to some other middle-man.

But if the deal doesn’t make sense, wouldn’t it make sense for you to do what most traditional business owners do – add a movie marketing division to your production company! Then figure out how to create some movie marketing magic!

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If you liked this article on modern movie marketing, you might also enjoy more info on how to market and sell your movie.

Posted under DISTRIBUTION

To survive the volatility of indie filmmaking, you will have to change your strategy. As a filmmaker, you will need both a short term game and a long term game.

Short term, you will obviously want to finish your movie.

Long term, because the market is saturated, you will need to think of yourself as a mini-studio, continually focused on building your brand and sourcing your own audience. To achieve this, you will need to create multiple titles over time, resulting in a very genre specific movie library.

While creating a mini-studio may seem beyond the scope and scale of what you think is possible, setting your sights high is much more proactive than ignoring the fact that backyard indies are now competing for the same virtual shelf space as mainstream Hollywood movies. This is a time of change. This is the indie movie distribution equivalent of the automobile replacing the horse-drawn-wagon.

You need to man up.

There will come a day when all entertainment will be on-demand and cheap to consume. The question is, will you ignore this movement and continue to play your distribution lottery ticket in hopes of winning the dream deal?

Or will you start sourcing your audience today?

Posted under FILM FINANCING

Image via Wikipedia

Do you ever fight the urge to quit filmmaking? Here is my story:

Picture this! You leave your small town and move to New York City so you could go after your filmmaking dreams.

Because you don’t have much money, you rent the edge of some dude’s cockroach infested kitchen floor – sleeping on an inflatable air mattress.

It gets better.

You start working with an indie producer and things are going well… You are moving towards the realization of your filmmaking dreams!

Then your college girlfriend (who is presently living in another town) decides to get a new boyfriend – without telling you! Then on Monday you go into work, only to find out that the movie project fell apart. You are now unemployed.

And now you’re looking at the last few dollars in your bank account, wondering what’s next…  How do you pay rent?

I am not sure if this sounds like a comedy. But it’s not fiction. I actually described my time in New York City. And believe me, when that stuff was happening – I was NOT thinking about making movies.

I was worried about survival.

The reason I share this is to remind you that all filmmakers are human. And even the most successful filmmakers have probably thought about quitting from time to time. But they didn’t.

Is the price of seeing your movie on the big screen is worth the headaches?

I wish I could answer this question for you. But I can’t. Only you can decide if you should continue fighting the urge to quit filmmaking.

Posted under FILMMAKING

Will Hollywood buy YOUR movie? Image via Wikipedia

Making money as a filmmaker is not easy. I can think of a gazillion other businesses that work much more smoothly than trying to produce projects, source an audience and make some money. Yet despite these odds, serious filmmakers push on.

Assuming you are serious – And assuming you want to make money making movies – here is my advice for today.

1. Do not make a movie unless you know your niche audience.
2. Do not make a movie unless you know how to reach your audience.
3. Do not make a movie unless you have enough money to market your movie.

I know many of you still hold onto the myth that “if I make my movie, Hollywood will buy it for a gazillion dollars.” If that happens for YOU, awesome! Maybe you can help me produce my next movie.

But for the vast majority of filmmakers, the golden ticket does not arrive. And when this happens, you can choose to give up, or work hard as heck to sell your movie yourself. That’s right.

Like any other business, as a business owner YOU will actually have to market and sell your movie, yourself. Welcome to business 101.

If you liked this article, you’ll love the filmmaking newsletter.

Posted under DISTRIBUTION

I know what you’re thinking – Why is this filmmaking, modern moviemaking advocate of internet VOD distribution talking to you about how to design a DVD cover?

Because…

Regardless of distribution technology, your audience still values the visual representation of your movie as a tangible product. And in ways akin to marketing an eBook via Amazon Kindle, you still need a killer design to represent your movie.

To help explain this further, I reached out to my buddy Ian Hannin. If the name sounds familiar, it means you probably read popular comic books. Over the past decade, Ian is responsible for coloring some of the most popular comic books in existence for Marvel Comics and DC Comics.

But in addition to Ian Hannin’s comic book coloring experience, he also designs movie marketing materials, such as movie posters, virtual covers, DVD covers and the actual artwork that goes on a DVD disc to make it look pro.

Jason Brubaker
How important is having good movie art for filmmakers?

Ian Hannin
People judge a book by the cover. Same with DVD or virtual DVD. You need to have high end, awesome illustration.

Jason Brubaker
What components of movie marketing art are most important?

Ian Hannin
Make sure the design complements the subject matter and tone of the movie. A lot of filmmakers fail to think about their target audience when designing movie marketing collateral.

Jason Brubaker
What’s the biggest mistake filmmakers make in their design?

Ian Hannin
The craftsmanship of the DVD cover often leaves a lot to be desired. In the popular marketplaces, such as Amazon and iTunes, your movie will be competing for virtual shelf space with expensive studio titles. Your job is to create high resolution, easy to read and enticing movie marketing materials… Does the movie artwork draw you in and make you want to see the movie?

Jason Brubaker
A lot of filmmakers try to do this themselves. What is your advice there?

Ian Hannin
If you have someone in your team good at graphic art, awesome. Just make sure your art complements the movie and helps you attract your target audience. But if you don’t have a good guy on your team, you can always email me. Maybe I know someone.

Jason Brubaker
You mean like you?

Ian Hannin
Maybe. HaHa!

Jason Brubaker
How can filmmakers hire you?

Ian Hannin
Go to www.IanHannin.com and contact me through the contact page.

Jason Brubaker
How much do you charge?

Ian Hannin
Depends on the package. Just email me at www.IanHannin.com. Let me know what you’re looking for.

Jason Brubaker
Thanks for stopping by Filmmaking Stuff!

Ian Hannin
Thanks. Happy to help filmmakers in need of art!

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Next time you need to make your filmmaking stuff look awesome, reach out to Ian Hannin and see if he can help you. Oh, also, in full disclosure, I am friends with Ian. He will probably buy me a burrito for any business I throw his way.

Happy Filmmaking!

Posted under INTERVIEWS