How to Make Your Own Indie Film

Backstage.com is running a feature story on "Creating Indie Cinema." While I do not have aspirations to direct a movie, I find the whole industry fascinating. I especially admire the person who has a dream to make a movie and actually does it, against incredible odds.

The "Guide to Making Low-Budget Films" is a great intro into the world of making movies:

The rationales for making films are manifold: an undying passion to tell a particular story, a chance at making millions of dollars, or the hope of creating a "calling card" flick that will result in more work. An actor unhappy with the roles he's been getting (or not getting) might decide to take his career into his own hands by producing a vehicle for himself. A writer unable to sell her screenplays (or tired of seeing her work destroyed by others) may finally direct her own project.

On famous faces that used indie work to launch their careers:

An example: Action star Vin Diesel, the Sylvester Stallone of the new millennium (for better or worse), took a page from Stallone's playbook by writing a vehicle for himself, a short entitled "Multi-Facial." After directing the short in 1994 and entering it into various festivals, Diesel spent a couple of years saving up for his first feature, "Strays." Meanwhile, his short made its way to the Cannes Film Festival, was seen by Steven Spielberg, and soon enough a muscle-bound movie star was born. (Historical note: Stallone opted not to direct his first big break, "Rocky," but he landed Academy Award nominations for both acting and writing.)

On what camera to use:

For filmmakers working with a budget that precludes any of the above, "prosumer" DV cameras are a good alternative, so long as the film's intended aesthetic fits within the strengths of the format -- DV tends to work best with smaller, intimate stories. ("Prosumer" refers to equipment that is of higher quality than that used by the typical consumer: A low-end DV camera may only offer quality comparable to old-school VHS or Hi-8 home camcorders, while prosumer cameras provide professional levels of quality at a relatively modest price.)

What's a film school project cost?

For a film student's final school project -- a thesis film -- budgets typically range from $2,000 to $30,000, depending on the medium being used and the length and scale of the production. The final film is usually somewhere between seven and 27 minutes long. These are decent ballpark figures that a filmmaker can use to base a budget around if he's planning on seriously competing against other short films.

Excellent advice for any career:

"I think the most important thing if you're an aspiring filmmaker is to get rid of the 'aspiring.' How do you do that? You make a film," Academy Award-winning director James Cameron told The Guardian. "I don't care if it's two minutes long and shot on Super 8 or DV or whatever. You shoot it, you put your name on it, you're a filmmaker. Everything after that, you're just negotiating your budget."

Where's my camcorder...

Comments

"Vin Diesel, the Sylvester Stallone of the new millennium"

If I were Vin, I'd sue for defamation.

[Luke]

Hey, I was just doing a Google to see if my article had been mentioned anywhere... and was very pleasantly suprised to find it listed here (this is a site I read quite often). And you chose some of my favorite quotes, as well. Thanks!

[Rockets Redglare]

Filmmakers beware of Mike Broder and Small Planet Pictures. They have been in breach of contract Ie they havent paid for the film Rockets Redglare and have ignored their contractual obligations since November of 2004. Small Planet Pictures are financed in part by Palasades Pictures. Mike Broder is a liar and a thief.

[Rockets]

Mike Broder also ripped off the producers of Gypsy 83 and Way Off Broadway as well his new company Undecided Films is a front for his bankrupt Small Planet Pictures in a desperate attempt continue to rip off independent filmmakers like the Steve Buscemi Produced doc of Rockets Redglare!

[Con officail]

Just wondering if this is the same guy who hosts Florida Super Con and Anime Supercon in the Fort Lauderdale area. If so the guy is not doing to bad for himself but is building a rep as an ass hole

[Con officail]

Just wondering if this is the same guy who hosts Florida Super Con and Anime Supercon in the Fort Lauderdale area. If so the guy is not doing to bad for himself but is building a rep as an ass hole

I'm posting here because your post comes up with my post in a search and like your blog and you might want to know why I'm coming up
I've hacked netflix from the indy/indie side.
only because they lift the door open and I'm working hard to form a network were the filmmaker gets paid not half goes to netflix
or amazon or any other site that wants to rape the indy/indie filmmaker, indy/indie is shortest buzz word for independent filmmakers
and the buzz word for netflix on the net, but
did not bother to secure those url's
indienetflix/indynetflix/or the reverse of that.
I'm hoping by pushing those url's
that I can get a better deal for indy/indie filmmakers
check out this website
http://filmmakershelp.com
Thank you for your blog

It is the same person the host the supercon conventions

[a guy]

yes it is the same mike broder and no hes not doing well for himself he is broke

[David Menges]

Comment by David Menges on 11/04/09 at 5:00 pm
I’m glad I found your Website. We are looking for an outlet to introduce would-be Independent Film Makers to what we think is unprecedented in movie making.

We are finalizing our Website, and should be ready to launch it in about a week.

After spending all the money I could afford to on the movie (Western) we are currently filming here in Tombstone, Arizona (the first full length feature film ever shot IN Tombstone), I was sitting at home trying to find a way to fund the remainder of the film.

A friend of mine has been badgering me about doing a documentary on the making of this movie. I wanted to finish the movie first, but thinking about the documentary and the movie, it occurred to me that the documentary could actually fund the movie’s completion.

We are shooting a behind-the-scenes documentary as we shoot the scenes and will be posting the daily documentary clips on our Website. PayPal is hooked to the site, and for $1, people can watch the documentary from every day we shoot. We will be explaining the ins and outs of the Independent movie making proccess.

With the number of people that would love to make their own movies, and the number of computers in this world, we feel we will reach a very large audience. With the help of Websites (even magazines) such as yours, we will reach those individuals faster. I also have a number of friends that are News Anchors in various areas of the country that will do a piece on what we are developing. The news should spread rather fast.

There was a guy on “60 Minutes” the other night (I only caught the very end of it), and he was saying how “nervous” Hollywood Production Companies are becoming, regarding the Independent Film Makers. And they should be nervous, because we’re on our way!

We would like to form a contengency of Indie Film Makers, and stand at the ready to assist others that follow our lead. Everybody should know that funding a movie project is one of, if not the biggest obstacle they will encounter. By using the format we have decided to use, we feel pretty confident about the future of Independent Movie Making. Everybody we have mentioned this to has said this is an ingenius idea.

If there is one thing that is “reccession-proof”, it’s a good movie. People don’t want to spend $15 each to go to a theater right now, but will spend the same amount for a DVD, and take it home to show the entire family. Therefore saving themselves a lot of money.

Would you folks like to do a short piece on us, i.e., Tombstone Wild West Productions, and pick our brains about this endeavor, and the movies (3) we currently have on the board? By doing so, you might be helping countless people realize their dream. We will encourage them to fund their project exactly as we are, and be ready to assist people that follow in their footsteps.

David Menges
Tombstone Wild West Productions (Website on the way)
Tombstone, Arizona
david@localsbackyard.com
702-280-4552