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Showing posts from July, 2015

PRODUCTION TIPS: 3 Tips to Working With a Tight Budget

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Filmmakers, no, you will not go to jail for bankruptcy. Fraud on the other hand... It is difficult to plan ahead and come up with the perfect budget for a film but the allure of making a film can not be denied. And so, the filmmaker plods ahead come what may to make that film. But for low-budget indie filmmakers all it takes is one misbudgeted item to derail the whole project. So when you gotta make that film even if you lack enough funds then you must be efficient and flexible to make it to the finish line. Here are 3 tips to get there: ATTRACT TALENT WITH PARTNERSHIPS Find the best Writer, Protagonist Actor/Actress, DP, Sound Mixer, Line Producer / Production Manager, Lawyer and Editor you can afford. Develop a professional relationship and friendly rapport with them. Think long term. If you can't afford their fees, put together a compensation package that is more than just credit and deferred compensation. Even low pay is better than nothing. Some other forms of comp

PRODUCTION JOURNAL: Karlovy-Vary Film Festival 2015 Round-Up

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The Karlovy Vary Festival is one of the oldest in the  world  and has become  Central and Eastern Europe’s  leading film event.  Here are 2015's winners: Crystal Globe Winner (Grand Prix) Bob and the Trees  (USA, France) – director, Diego Ongaro Bob and the Trees  is a 2015 verite drama film that won the  Crystal Globe  at the  Karlovy Vary International Film Festival .  Shot in  The Berkshires ,  Bob and the Trees  follows farmer and logger Bob Tarasuk (played by himself), his son and business partner Matt (Matthew Gallagher), and Bob's wife Polly (Polly MacIntyre) as they work to earn money during winter.   The film, Diego Ongaro's feature-length directorial debut, premiered in the noncompetitive Next  section of the  2015 Sundance Film Festival  in January 2015, where it was met with warm critical reception. According to the website, "Bob and the Trees is proud to be one of the first feature films shot on the Black Magic Pocket Cinema Camera." No

PRODUCTION TIPS: Test Screening Your Film + Free Questionnaire Template

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I know, I know... Test screenings seem like an idea dreamed up by studio executives as a way to squeeze the artistry and creativity out of a director's movie and torment him with data that confirms his movie is "shit." But believe it or not, while there are many films that have been test screened from potential greatness to mediocrity , many films we love today benefitted from the comments after a test screening (Exhibit A and B ). Everything from changing the title to changing the ending is possible after a test screening. While few directors take solace in the brutal feedback a group of strangers may give his baby, the executives want the feedback data to see if the film will have an audience and, as a result, make money. It's easy to deride test screenings and " fucking hate them " but think of it from the investor's point of view for a minute. Every movie is essentially a new business start-up. And new business start-ups don't have a readym