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CASE STUDIES: The Best 14 End-of-Year Film Industry Lists of 2014

Among the many traditions that befall us throughout the month of December, the end-of-year-lists can not be avoided. Whether we read them or write them, lists are everywhere. Film magazines and blogs partake in that tradition by putting out their best/worst list of films for the year. I have nothing against them, personally, but I wanted to go deeper and probe the news and trends in the film industry for my own list which would be of strategic use to filmmakers and producers. However, my trip to Cuba for the Festival Internacional del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano and the usual holiday fanfare put to sleep all that. Still, my Catholic guilt insists that I share something with you. Since I did read some really good lists that go beyond the fun but banal topic of what film was the best/worst in 2014, I have compiled them here.  The 14 lists below can either help you understand the industry better, give you a glimpse of where the industry is going, or deepen your love and knowledge for th

PRODUCTION TIPS: A Director Prepares... A must-do 15 point checklist

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For me, there is nothing like directing; the rush of arriving on the set at the crack of dawn, the anticipation to get that first shot in as the crew sets up, the anxiety that creeps in when a scene takes longer to shoot then you expected and the AD looks at her watch for the third time, the high you get when a camera moves gracefully and your actors convince you the world they inhabit in the scene actually exists and the numb exhaustion at the end of a very long intense, decision-filled day.  Directors can relate to this regardless if what they are making is a shlock horror flick, an art-house drama, a hard-hitting documentary expose, a funny commercial, a psychedelic music video or a corporate industrial.  In fact, directors love the work so much they would do it for free (ok, for deferred payment) in the hopes that they can actually make a living, day in and day out, directing.  And the only way to get there is by directing more and more stuff and getting better and better. Thr