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.

Because of an eroding DVD market, the modern moviemaking model dictates that you (as a filmmaker) must treat your independent movie business just like any other small business.

YOU have a product (your movie) and YOU must sell your product. In order to sell your product, you must find a customer and convince them that your movie is worth more than their money. Obvious right?

But most filmmakers have no idea how to find a customer.  It’s not your fault. I blame the STUPID notion that filmmakers should concentrate solely on making movies without considering how to source their target audience.  Think about it. Filmmakers traditionally depended on some sort of middle-man distributor to come in deus ex machina style to provide a big fat cash advance. But that was then…

Now, as a result of DSLR technology, you have a whole world of filmmakers flooding the market with awesomely good-looking backyard indies.  It’s an example of supply and demand. There are too many movies! And there are too few traditional deals. And sadly, most filmmakers have no idea how to get their movies seen and selling. As a result, the entire world of indie filmmaking is belly-up.

The only way modern moviemakers can compete and succeed is to learn from traditional small businesses. Filmmakers must focus on finding creative ways to produce movies inexpensively and spend tremendous effort (and little money) sourcing an audience. Which, when you compare the filmmaker’s need for customer acquisition to other businesses, it’s really the same thing.

Welcome to the new movie business!

So who wins? Filmmakers who can source an audience for their movies are in better shape than those who can not. Period.

How do your source an audience: In two words – Internet marketing.

I got news for you. Selling a movie online is no different than selling an eBook! But not everybody knows how to sell things online. That is OK. I explain this in my book. And for those of you not ready to get my book (so you can discover my mad movie marketing methods) – here is a tip as well as an actionable item: Crowdfunding.

By now you’ve heard of crowdfunding. But the little secret that nobody is talking about is this – Not all movie projects will get fully funded by the crowd. BUT, by creating a campaign, you essentially get the word out about your movie. You increase your YouTube hits (because you presumably embed your trailer into your campaign)… And even if your campaign is not successfully funded, anybody who did donate is now part of your future audience. Hmmm.

I know I’m on a bit of a rant today. So I’m going to slow-my-roll. If you like this filmmaking stuff, make sure you click here   >>

And if you want to see me speak or attend any of my workshops, telephone your local film festival and leave this message on their answering machines –> I WANT TO SEE Jason Brubaker LIVE.

Feel free to comment below.

Posted under DISTRIBUTION

No matter how awesome you think your movie is, there are always a gazillion ways to improve it. Yesterday we had a screening of Career Courier. It’s a movie by Kenton Hoppas.

I’m a producer on the flick, with a lot of my duties falling into the range of what Jon Reiss calls a PMD (producer of marketing and distribution). Part of my responsibility is to help Kenton (and other filmmakers) make the best (and most marketable) movie possible. Here is a brief guide on how to have a screening party:

1. Find a location spacious enough to fit at least six people, plus the filmmaker. Obviously you will need a BIG television.
2. Invite friends with passion for movies. Explain that the screening will be a rough cut – and the goal is to provide constructive feedback.
3. Make sure you have snacks and drinks on-hand. And if you’re getting pizza, make sure you get the delivery prior to starting the movie.
4. Make sure everybody has a pen and notepad. The goal is to take notes.
5. At the conclusion of the screening, people will have a tendency to be overly polite. While this is very nice, it isn’t helpful to the filmmaker. So it is your responsibility to ask some very tough questions.

Once you share some constructive (but not always ideal feedback), the ball will start rolling. From there, other members of the audience will come up with a lot of great feedback. While some of the feedback might suck, as a filmmaker, you need to write these ideas down and keep an open mind.  The objective is NOT to settle for a good movie. The goal is to settle for a GREAT movie!

If you like this filmmaking stuff, please spread the word by CLICKING HERE   >> (The link takes you to DIGG – I’m trying to find out if DIGG is any good for filmmaking type articles. Thanks a lot!)

Posted under DISTRIBUTION

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Filmmakers aren’t like normal business people. Marketing a movie is not considered part of the normal day-to-day process. But in other industries, marketing is just an aspect of business.

This makes a lot of sense. In the old days, your success as filmmaker depended on your ability to create an unproven product. And if your product (or in this case, your movie) did well with audiences, it was picked up, marketed and sold. These days, there are less deals. That means filmmakers must take on the responsibility of marketing a movie. And if  this is something you would rather leave to a third-party, then you’re living in the stone ages.

1. When marketing a movie, the first thing you need to think about is your target audience. WHO cares about your movie? If you don’t have an understanding of your target audience, then nothing else matters.
2. If you KNOW your target audience (in this case, YOUR people) then your next step in marketing a movie revolves around uncovering all the places your people shop. What magazines do they read? Where do they hang out online?
3. Then figure out where they watch movies. Do they prefer netflix to iTunes? Or will they shop at Amazon? Obviously part of marketing a movie is getting your title into the appropriate marketplace. (Try distribber)
4. Once your movie is in the appropriate marketplace, then circle back to step number two and target the approprate publications, websites and forums. Not all of this will cost money. Some will.
5. After that, figure out how to build a relationship with your audience.

If you don’t have any idea how to get started, I created an easy to follow guide on marketing a movie. In it, I talk about all this stuff in much greater detail. Click here to find out more   >>

Also, you might say: “Hey, I haven’t even made my first feature. Why should I care about marketing a movie now?” The reason you should care is because – If you don’t know who is going to buy your movie – then you won’t have any idea how much money your movie could potentially return. And if you can’t figure out a reasonably project ROI, then good luck raising money.

Just sayin’

Posted under DISTRIBUTION

If you want to sell your movie on iTunes, quit waiting for some sort of middle-man sales agent to give you permission. Seriously, most producers still base their ROI on traditional distribution deals and I think that is really OLD SCHOOL thinking.

If you are a producer trying to raise money – why wouldn’t you plan a worst case scenario?  What if VOD is the only distribution deal you get? Then I ask you – how many VOD downloads will it take to recoup the initial investment? How do you plan to do this? And if you happen to be a feature producer, with a few titles collecting dust – here is how you sell your movie on iTunes:

1. Visit my friends at www.moviesalestool.com and enter your movie information. (They pay me to promote them. But I would promote them, even if they didn’t pay me.)
2. Grab a copy of the Indie Guide to Distribution.
3. Then follow each step of the guide.

If you need me to help you market and sell your movie, contact me. Depending on the scope and scale of your movie, I’m sure we can work out a deal.

Posted under DISTRIBUTION

Dominant learning style of target audience - Image via Wikipedia

As a filmmaker, I think the idea of producing your own work is good. I don’t really believe in asking anyone for permission to make my movies – including traditional industry executives or other producers.

I see this in Hollywood all the time. People have an idea for a movie, but instead of trying to create their own movie business, they spend days, weeks, months, and (sometimes) entire lifetimes hoping to find someone else to do the heavy lifting.

While this may seem like an easy route, it can be a very difficult path. Why? Because you are relying on other people to do the producing for you. And in my opinion that takes way too long!

Imagine you are someone who desires to open your own business. Would you do it yourself? Or would you rely on someone else to do it for you?

Example: “Hey. I got this great idea for a hardware store. If I tell you my idea and show you my business plan, will you open my hardware store for me?”

Do you understand what I mean? Trying to create a business like this would be crazy talk.

Of course if you want to open YOUR own business, YOU would open it.

So if you happen to be one of those filmmakers with tons of ideas, but no feature credits, I highly suggest you focus less on finding someone to do the heavy lifting and instead, focus on testing the market to gain a realistic approach to your projects.

To get started, ask these questions:

1. What is my Hook?
2. Who is my intended target audience?
3. What is my budget?
4. Are there enough people within my target audience to justify the budget?
5. How do I intend to reach my target audience?
6. How much will my sales and marketing cost?
7. From this, what is my projected return on investment?

If you’re new to the modern moviemaking model, then you will either agree with me or you won’t. In the event you like what you’re reading, then you can become part of the modern moviemaking revolution by grabbing a copy of the official Filmmaking Stuff newsletter. To grab it, go here >>

Posted under FILMMAKING

Quiet please…we have speed…ACTION!

A new website is being launched today that will help take filmmaking out of Hollywood, and put it into the hands of everyday, creative people so that they can combine their life’s ambition of being a filmmaker with owning their own business.

makeyourmovienow.com is the brain child of Jason Brubaker, a Los Angeles-based independent filmmaker and an expert in Video On Demand distribution. He has hosted another filmmaking website, Filmmakingstuff.com for years and is taking his experience to the next level.

“makeyourmovienow.com is focused on helping YOU make, market and sell movies more easily,” he says. “The ways movies finally make it to market has changed. makeyourmovienow.com is specifically designed to help grow your fan base, build “buzz” and create community around your title.

“If you want to make a living making movies, you need to realize that your library and the subsequent audience you source (over your career) are your major assets. And, as a result, your most important filmmaking focus (aside from doing good work) is to acquire and keep a customer,” he emphasizes.

For filmmakers in need, makeyourmovienow.com covers the four key areas of film production: screenwriting, film financing, filmmaking and distribution.

Tell your filmmaking friends!

Posted under FILMMAKING

If you’re already a seasoned feature filmmaker, take a moment and think back: Do you remember when the idea of making movies seemed like a far away dream?

Do you remember when you first got the idea for your movie? Do you remember Your first day of production? Do you remember your first screening and how well everyone loved your work?

That happened to me with my first feature. Like you, I thought our movie would get into Sundance, play well, build buzz and if we were really lucky, we had hoped the movie would garner us a 3 picture deal. But that didn’t happen.

Sure, we got some offers, but they were not “deals.” (A deal actually pays money!)

So instead of exchanging our movie for an empty promise, we decided to try selling our movie on the internet. Little did I know, this one decision has changed the course of my movie making life. That was five years ago…

And since that time, the internet as evolved. If you’re a filmmaker with a movie, you need to get it selling in all the popular internet marketplaces, including Amazon and iTunes.

You don’t need a middle-man to make this profitable. I am going to show you my internet marketing secrets…

You can check out my “How To Sell Your Movie” system by visiting the website here.

Posted under DISTRIBUTION

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As a filmmaker, you are expected to make a product (your movie). The money invested to create your product should be less than the eventual sales of your product. If you can not figure out how to achieve this goal, you do not have a business. You instead have an expensive hobby and probably a good demo reel.

There are a lot of filmmakers who attempt to raise money without first considering how their movie will recoup the initial investment. These filmmakers say things like “I have a vision” or “I’m going to make this for the love of filmmaking. Then I’ll get into festivals, get noticed and garner a great distribution deal!” And while it is true that passion, tenacity and blind optimism play an important role in getting your movie produced and seen and hopefully sold, this alone is not enough to drive the masses to your screenings.

This happens in Hollywood all the time. A filmmaker creates a typical business plan that focuses on film festivals as the most viable distribution strategy. And played out, the filmmaker gets the money, hires a crew, makes a movie and then enters the festivals. But months after wrap, well into the festival circuit, these filmmakers realize that the market has changed. The days of awesome DVD acquisitions deals and huge upfront advances are over. And when the last frame flickers off the silver screen, these filmmakers take their dashed-dreams back to their day job.

The veterans of the industry tell us that all this distribution deal disappointment is a result of improved technology. They optimistically tell us that our lost DVD revenues will be recouped by Video On Demand. Some refer to this as simply a market correction, implying that someday, somewhere, someone will figure out how to once again pay the big bucks for movies. But this is a pipe-dream.

Here is the flaw. Most filmmakers depend on DVD distribution for a return on investment. And with deteriorating DVD sales channels, filmmakers are currently left with iTunes, NetFlix and Amazon as the most prominent VOD sales options. My question is this. Who on earth is going to pay a major advance to get your movie into a marketplace that YOU can easily access without the middle man?

This approach to the marketplace changes everything. Your business is no longer dependent on production and capital gains. Nope. These days, the focus for the filmmaker lies in creating multiple streams of movie income over the long term. And if you want to make a living making movies, you need to realize that your libary and the subsequent auidence you source (over your career)  are your major assets. And as a result, your most important filmmaking focus (aside from doing good work) is to acquire and keep a customer.

Like it or lump it, filmmaking has become a small business. The same rules now apply.

- – -

Jason Brubaker is a Los Angles based independent filmmaker and an expert in Video On Demand distribution. If you are one of the many filmmakers seeking movie distribution, you might want to check out The Independent Producer’s Guide To Distribution.

Posted under FILM FINANCING

Since starting Filmmaking Stuff, many screenwriters have written me, asking if I could provide advice on how they can protect their screenplay from theft. I usually tell screenwriters that most producers will not go through the process of raising a gazillion dollars without compensating the screenwriter fairly.

However, as my screenwriter friend Jurgen Wolff points out, “While most people are honest, in every business there are people who steal. Once in a while you read about such cases in the media but others are kept quiet as a condition of the settlement.”

Jurgen would know. At least twice in his career someone stole, and took credit for  his material.  As a result, he lost hundreds of thousands of dollars because he didn’t know how to handle the situation, and he listened to bad advice.

So when I saw Jurgen’s product focused on helping writers “stop the rip offs,” I thought it would be helpful to you. In full disclosure, this is an affiliate product and I will get a commission for any purchases. But with that said, I know Jurgen personally and can’t think of too many people who are more willing to share their expertise. So if you are interested in finding out more about Jurgen Wolff’s “Stop The Rip-Offs” system, you can do so by following this link.

Posted under SCREENWRITING

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A few weeks back, I came to the realization that selling movies on the internet was no different than any other kind of eCommerce. So using the same forumlas I utilize to market my Action Packs, I plugged some numbers into an internet marketing ROI calculator.

I did this because the prospective investors in my life often ask how their money will be spent and recouped. Given the discriminatory nature of traditional distribution, I wanted to see what it would take to make internet distribution a viable sales channel. So I started crunching numbers with one assumption – if filmmakers can make the numbers work for each project, filmmakers would no longer have to rely on the glaringly flawed: “Gee, I sure hope we get into a film festival and garner a great deal” distribution strategy.

That strategy is a lottery. Not an investment. And it’s outdated.

So I got down to business and crunched some numbers. To my delight, I found some answers – but after publishing my article on internet movie distribution, many people kindly wrote to tell me that my numbers are incredibly unrealistic (and that is putting it nicely.) And I totally agree.

Looking at my results, it became quite clear that recouping even a measly 1M dollar budget by selling $20 dollar DVD’s in Amazon, relying solely on Pay Per Visit advertising  at  $.05 cents a visit, while, at the same time crossing our fingers for a 1% conversion would require that, firstly – you would need to sell 100,000 units (which allows for a 50% marketplace fee). And secondly, assuming a 1% sales conversion, to get these numbers, you would need 10,000,000 site visitors, visiting your website. (Yes, ten Million people) – which WE ALL AGREE is outlandish!

But in all of the debate, despite the negative responses, and the haters who took special care in hating me, and the seasoned producers who took meticulous care in ignoring the math and instead, decided to point out my spelling mistakes and poor use of grammar – Despite all the backlash – very few people (OK, pretty much nobody) even tried to offer a better solution.

So I decided to provide YOU with the chance to save the independent movie industry. If YOU can answer the following questions, you will help push indie filmmaking into the next era. In fact, YOU will help us make indie filmmaking a profitable business.

Are you ready to change the world of independent filmmaking forever – for the better? Here is your chance!

Here are the MAJOR Filmmaking Math Problems:

1. With no promise of a traditional distribution deal, how do filmmakers justify a budget large enough to pay freelance day rates, while at the same time project enough direct DVD and VOD sales to recoup the initial investment?
   
2. And assuming only 1% of your website visitors buy your movie, then how many people must visit your website so that 1% recoups your initial investment? (Don’t forget to include marketplace costs.)
   
3. How much will this cost in advertising?
   

The Formula:

To possibly help you,  I provide my formula (below) in hopes someone with more math experience can test and tweak until this starts to make sense. Here is what I have so far:

Movie Internet Marketing Formula

U = Unit Sales Goal.
A = Amount you pay advertiser per website visit.
C = Projected conversion percentage rate.
X = Number of Visitors Needed.

(X)C = U
EQUATES TO: X= ?
THEN:  X(A) = ?

–>Thank you. Please click here if you would like to comment or offer your own formula and results for the world to see!

Posted under DISTRIBUTION, FILM FINANCING