What if, the studios said F_CK IT and end their contract with the WGA? I’m going to play devil’s advocate for a second. What if the studios cut their losses and end their deal with the WGA? I’m already seeing clever and conniving strategies. I first caught wind of it when HBO started taking films and series out of their library. Residuals hurt their bottom line! Now with the invention of AI, ChatGPT, Deep Fake, Read more…
How a $4,000.00 proof of concept trailer got a $100,000.00 investment! 15 years ago my key crew and I hit a huge milestone. My director/DP friend Daniel Maldonado had an idea for a Texas Zombie movie. At the time I owned the Panasonic HVX 200. To pull it off he needed some high-end lenses, an amazing SFX Makeup crew, and a wicked location! An underrated zombie film produced and shot before The Walking Dead and Read more…
What’s your film producer personality type? As film producers, we need to be honest with ourselves. Ask yourself what I am great at and what comes naturally to me. How is your personality affecting your film funding goals? Do you need to partner with someone who can elevate your weaknesses? Are you a social butterfly, a calculated planner, an introspective creative, or a closer? There are numerous personality tests out there but one I came Read more…
What are you more afraid of? Pitching film investors or not having your film made? It’s a serious question… No one wants their screenplay to go into obscurity. So you have to make a choice. Do I raise the money myself or pitch it to an established film producer? Regardless of what route you choose, there are a few mandatory things you will need to increase your chances. 1. Film Budget – How much do Read more…
WHY YOUR INDIE FILM SHOULD BE BETWEEN $150k to $300k Most indie films, especially dramas, crime thrillers, horror, faith-based, and some action films, can be produced within a budget range of $150,000 to $300,000. When writing, we often don’t have the budget in mind. However, if you’re serious and realistic about making a film, you should aim for this budget range. As a first-time or second-time filmmaker, it’s unlikely that anyone will give you a Read more…
Should you pay for script coverage? The short answer is YES! There are two versions of script coverage. The traditional one is paying for a script consultant to analyze your script based on characters, arcs, dialogue, pacing, structure, and themes. My version is from a producer’s perspective. How will your script do in the film market? Will it get distribution? Budget range? What caliber of actors would it attract? What films are comparable to your Read more…
Hey Crew! What’s the difference between a pitch deck and a lookbook? My version of a pitch deck is a mini business plan combined with a production lookbook. Pitch Decks are what you present to your production financiers and lookbooks are what you share with your crew. A pitch deck is 80% business and 20% visual. A pitch deck should cover the following. 1. Budget 2. Producers (have they managed production funds before) 3. Executive Read more…
Hey Crew! I want to congratulate my personal friends and filmmaker clients Miguel Cantu & Eddie Hill on having their screenplay optioned by an established Executive Producer, on their horror comedy Reefer Creepers! Had a fun time creating their pitch deck, poster, and film budget! I also helped them negotiate the option agreement. We vented the Executive Producer and he had multiple produced films in our budget range and genre. So we knew we weren’t going to have the script Read more…
How much would it cost to produce my screenplay? Have you finished writing a compelling screenplay worthy of being produced? Now what? One of the first things you should be asking yourself is “how much is it going to cost to make my film?” $150k? $250k? $700k? or $2 million? Should it be all union or non-union? Which state has the best film incentive? It isn’t the responsibility of the screenwriter to come up with Read more…
Line Producer. The incognito ninja. Who is this elusive crew member? The Line Producer is responsible for making an accurate preliminary film budget and shooting schedule in pre-production and managing the production once it is funded. Be it a horror film, drama, sci-fi, comedy, or action film we break down the screenplay and go line by line. Once the film is fully funded, the Line Producer starts hiring crew members, sending deal memos, negotiating with Read more…