Moving on… and back to yesterday. So I had been going through hell with this other project all week… terse emails, uncomfortable phone conversations and was feeling like ‘what’s the point?’. So I decided in my mind to just let it go. The best part about letting a project go is the space it leaves for other opportunities to enter into the picture.

So after letting this project go I woke up yesterday to an email in my inbox from an agent that casually stated his A-list client was interested in playing the lead role in another one of my projects. I almost fell off my chair! I quickly replied and confirmed details and before I knew it – bam! – I’ve got a much bigger and better project on the fast track. The best part about getting an A list actor attached to your project is how quickly the other pieces come together. Suddenly people aren’t as ‘busy’ as before and are flocking to attach themselves to your project. My phone hasn’t stopped ringing since. Momentum rocks!

I learned the art of letting a project go and perseverance, patience, and having several irons in the fire at once from studying what other successful producers (whom I admire) do. I’ve never had a mentor or anyone formally say ‘i’m going to teach you how to do this’….rather, I’ve spent years studying what other successful producers do, and then do the same. Success leaves clues.

I think if you want to be successful at making movies – whether you’re a writer, director, or producer – create ‘virtual’ mentors for yourself….. people whom you admire and whose careers you want to emulate, and do what they do. Study how they got their movies made, and copy them. Like I said, I spend inordinate amounts of time every day reading and studying what’s happening in the market and how others are getting their films made. For the types of films I want to Produce, it’s all about attaching A-list talent, and then financing the 2.0 way - and I don’t reinvent the wheel. 

The best is if you can find several ‘virtual mentors’ to study, and try to identify the commonalities in what they’re doing. Inevitably, you will find that some of the habits of successful producers are outside of the normal patterns that most people follow. 

So all this reminded me of what I hear from filmmakers all the time. They’ve spent $500K or $1 million on their film and by golly they want/need to recoup that much to break-even. Well guess what – here’s the cold hard truth: 

Distributors don’t give a rat’s patooty what you spent on your film, they only care about what the film looks like and more importantly WHO IS IN IT. That’s right – distributors will only acquire your film for the market price or what the market can bear at any given time, and most of the time, it’s a lot less than what you think you’re gonna get.

So what can you do about this conundrum? Well first of all, study Sales Projections BEFORE you make your movie. As a former sales agent myself and someone who is in constant contact with sales agents about market trends, I’ve developed a set of realistic sales projections for indie films. You can take a look at them on the Film Specific site HERE. 

What you want to do is get a grip on what the market is paying FIRST before you go building or renovating your condo (in your case, making your movie!). Get in touch with what the market is paying before you pour an amount of money into a project that you’ll never recoup. 

Second you want to only put money into the areas that count – in real estate that’s Kitchens and Bathrooms. In filmmaking it’s CAST and CAST. I had a client come to me the other day determined to make a $500K movie and asking me how he could recoup that on a horror film with no names. I said YOU CAN’T (or most likely won’t). But he keeps trying to fit a square peg into a round hole rather than do the easy thing – lower his budget. Spend less! Like $450K less if you’re not willing to go after ‘names’. Heck, even at the $450K level with names, I know someone who has been trying to recoup for 3 years, and is only halfway there (sigh). You can listen to an interview I did with him HERE.

So the bottom line is this – make your film according to what the market can bear not the other way around (trying to get the market to cooperate with your film). Remember, buyers don’t care how much you spent – they are going to pay what they’re going to pay and could care less if you spent a million or ten thousand. They only care about what is on the screen!

Now over to you. Anyone have an experience like this where they spent more on their film than the market could bear? Or any questions about this topic? Just post in the comments section below!

Additional Resources

1. Learn how to completely reverse engineer your project so you never make a movie for more than the market can bear in my flagship on-demand course Distribution In Reverse. Completely FREE for FS Pro Annual members. Check it out HERE

2. Speaking of FS Pro Annual Membership, our 5th Anniversary Promotion that extended through the month of April is coming to a close on Monday April 30. Join the largest community of serious filmmakers on the web and get access to training audios and videos, sample contracts, sales projections, online courses, get all your questions answered in our private forums, and more! Plus get 3 free months of membership + a 2012 Film Distribution Kit shipped to your house during the last couple days of this promotion. GO HERE TO GET STARTED.

The key to raising money for your crowd funding campaign is to engage your target audience to the point that they want to give and help you make your dream a reality. Not to beat random people over the head with ‘give me, give me, give me’! That strategy doesn’t work and in and my opinion, unless you have a target audience plan…and by that I mean an email list of at least 1000 strong, a FB fan base, a Twitter following and your cast and crew all have the same, then you shouldn’t really be embarking on a crowd funding campaign in the first place.

Yes it takes time! What this means is that you can’t decide you’re going to do a crowd funding campaign and kick it off the next day. I would say you need at least 3 months prep time (assuming you’re starting with an existing email list to promote to)…if you don’t have that existing list, it could take 6 months to a year to develop one. I’ve been working with a particular client of mine for just over a year while he builds up his target audience email list and FB fan base. To build up that base he’s spent money – and lots of it – both in FB ads and in traveling the country to different conferences and gatherings where his target audience hangs out, and he’s collected email addresses one by one that way. It’s been a long slog but guess what – a year later he’s in prime position to promote anything he wants to this audience. They are extremely targeted and interested in what he has to offer….they want to see the film get made….and he’s kept them engaged the whole time.

So I ask you – what is the promotional plan for your crowd funding campaign? I hope it doesn’t involve emailing bloggers in the filmmaking space — as discussed, they are not your target audience. Other filmmakers? They are busy trying to raise money for their own films and could care less about yours! Come on – time to get your hands dirty and do the work yourself even if it takes a year or longer. And if you can’t figure out who your target audience is to even begin this process, then guess what – you probably shouldn’t be making the film.

Over to you….thoughts? questions? comments? Let’s discuss this further in the comments section below!

Additional Resources

Tomorrow, Wednesday April 24 I’ll be holding a Virtual Seminar on crowd funding entitled Crowd Funding & The U.S Jobs Act: What It Means For Independent Filmmakers with entertainment attorney Corky Kessler. We’ll be discussing the implications of the newly passedU.S Jobs Act and now it relates to indie filmmakers. If you are planning to do some crowd funding for your film, don’t miss this seminar! You’ll also have a chance to get all your legal questions answered during our Q+A period. CLICK HERE for more info.

“I’ve got a film with some private equity and B list talent attached, and now I would like to bring on a distributor or sales agent and ease the mind of my investors….how do I go about doing that?”

Well my answer to this question is always the same – what’s in it for them? Why would a distributor or sales agent want to partner with you at this early stage of development – what’s the incentive for them to take a risk this early?

Ironically, I’m actually working with a client right now who is in the financing stages and is signing a deal with a sales agent for future representation – but in this particular case it makes sense (for him) because the deal he’s getting is sweet…and as for what’s in it for the sales agent? The filmmaker has a track record of making successful family films…and good family films are always in demand….so the sales agent is being smart and locking up rights to this now, contract to deliver in Nov so he has a guaranteed family film to launch at AFM. Very smart!

But back to you – do you really need to partner with a distributor or sales agent in the early stages of development? Unless you’re playing the Pre-Sales game, no you don’t. Your best bet is to go make your micro budget film and then look for distributors and sales agents when your film is completed. You’ll have more leverage then, and if your film is good enough, you might be able to get a better deal then you would have otherwise.

With the Cannes Film Market coming up people are more curious than usual about this because they are eager to go to Cannes and shop their project. But what you have to remember is this – unless you’re a known quantity, with a track record, and have major talent and directors attached to your projects, what you’ll likely hear from every distributor and sales agent you meet at Cannes (or any market) is - “Sounds great! Send me a screener when it’s done!”. And that’ll be that.

In Chapter 5 of my book Insiders Guide To Independent Film Distribution, I talk in detail about finding producer reps and sales agents, navigating international film markets, and the three paths to distribution…. and the bottom line is don’t waste your time trying to sign with a distributor or sales agent while you’re financing your film – there’s likely nothing in it for them!

So over to you – what are your thoughts on this topic and have you ever signed with a distributor or sales agent in the financing stages of your project? Would love to hear from you in the comments section below!

Over to you Vic!

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What is the name and log line of your film?

Darkening Sky

When an alien abduction nightmare is revealed to have been much more than a dream, a student finds himself confronted with the reality that not only do extraterrestrials actually exist, but they are taking possession of humans, harvesting the organs, and implanting them with mysterious devices. Now, the deeper he delves into the unknown, the faster a suspicion grows that he is somehow the center of the aliens’ plan.

What is the website for your film ?

darkeningsky.com

What is the budget (or budget range) of your film?

SAG Ultra-Low (<$200k)

How did you finance your film?

Co-producers contributed a little cash and a LOT of time and favors called in.

Were there any ‘name’ cast in your film?

Rider Strong, star of 90s TV series “Boy Meets World” + “Cabin Fever” and other films.

Not at the “get distributors salivating” level, but definitely at the “get people interested in participating and raise the bar of the entire production” level. Made a big difference at many steps of the way. GREAT actor and all-around great guy, too, which meant a lot.

 What was your distribution strategy and subsequent outcome?

Plan: Pitch completed project to distributors, starting at the top and working our way down.

Outcome: Bottom fell out of market at our level…ouch. Process amounted to some interest/interesting rejections, then finally a couple of smaller distribs bidding on the project. We went with the best/simplest deal (worldwide/all-in) with someone who genuinely believed in the project and included a decent advance to boot (at a time when this was unheard of for no-name/budget works).

Are you profitable yet or what is your plan for profitability?

Not profitable yet and likely not going to be (unless it explodes in Belgium or something strange like that!). Advance brought back about half of hard expenses; once we delivered the film I forgot about it in those terms and moved on to the next thing. Fortunately, and this is a BIG plus, we didn’t spend too much at all — nor incur any debts at all — in order to pull it off. For me it was a chance to jump in, show what I can do, and was really the best ‘Film Finishing School’ I can imagine, making all the “unpaid work” required well worth it.

What were some of the obstacles (if any) that you encountered and how did you overcome them?

I think the only impediment really was lack of funds, which meant lots of compromise and free time contribution, especially in post (which I do for a living and handled mostly solo).

What were some of your biggest mistakes or wastes of time/money?

In hindsight, plunging ahead with what was not as developed as other scripts and that wasn’t a solid genre piece. But it’s what caught fire and drew the right people, so we ran with it!

On the practical side, not engaging more interns/free help (especially with post)… A tough thing to get rolling if you’re a DIY kind of person, but definitely very helpful whenever we used it wisely.

What resources or tools have you found most helpful during this process?

For me, experience/knowledge of post-prod processes. My producing partner had experience in distribution and marketing and was very comfortable in that arena, so all in all we were well-equipped to do something this crazy.

If you had to do it all over again, what would you do differently?

For me, that would mostly be creative choices. I’d be more careful about “mixing genres” — a hard lesson when the movie wound up getting VERY wide distribution (not just a few festivals and disappearing, like most first efforts). Turns out that teasing Sci-Fi fans with something that promises “Alien Abduction!” but actually amounts to a quiet/dark/talky mind-game thriller (with no budget!) led to some very angry reactions from the masses… Having Redbox list the film as “Action” probably didn’t help. As a writer I’ve taken the lesson that “films are for the audience and not for me” and worked to progress beyond work that only appeals to my strange tastes.

What are your next steps from here?

Currently working with casting partners to package two projects; remains to be seen which one draws the most interest: vilethemovie.com & thedualmovie.com

Let me know which one looks best to you!

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Got any questions for Victor? Just let us know by posting in the comments section below!

Additional Resources:

• Virtual Seminar Series – Getting Your Micro Budget Film Off The Ground Part 3: DISTRIBUTION

• Film Specific 5th Anniversary Promotion (ends Tuesday April 10) – Get 3 free months of membership when you become a PRO ANNUAL member.

What you’ll notice about Jason’s work in the MIcro Budget space is that he has incrementally increased his budgets as he goes – until now where he’s actually experimenting with his first budget of almost $500K.

Anyway, Jason’s success should inspire you to get out there and shoot something for yourself. You’re doing that already, aren’t you?

Over to Jason!

What were the names and log lines of you films?

1. Rise of the Undead – 2005 “Flee or Face the Creature inside.”
2. Edges of Darkness – 2007 “Three tales of Terror set against the backdrop of a zombie apocalypse.”
3. Trap – 2009 “A middle-aged kidnapper falls in love with his teen victim”
4. Should’ve Put a Ring on it – 2011 (director only)  – “A young, black woman runs into complications when she attempts to propose to her unwitting beau.”
5. Monsters in the Woods – 2012 “A micro-budget film crew finds themselves in the midst of a real horror movie when the trek into the wilderness to shoot a creature feature.”

What are the websites for your films?

www.mylifehasalowbudgetmoviemaker.com is my website.

www.monstersinthewoods.com  is the official Monsters in the Woods website.

What names are in you films if any?

My 1^st 3 movies were all no name affairs. “Should’ve Put a Ring on it” has Robin Givens, Bobby Valintino and Miguel Nunez Jr.  “Monsters in the Woods” stars Glenn Plummer and Lee Perkins.

What were the budgets of your films?

1. Rise of the Undead – 1k
2. Edges of Darkness – 25k
3. Trap – 4k
4. Should’ve Put a Ring on it – 35k (estimated)
5. Monsters in the Woods – 30k

Budgets include everything from production through delivery.

How did you finance you films?

I was a hired gun on “Should’ve Put a Ring on it. The producer has a distribution deal straight through several US outlets such as Netflix, Wal-Mart and Best Buy. He was able to finance the movie based on that.

The rest of movies were all financed by the producers or executive producers that I met working on various projects as an editor, camera op/DP or assistant editor.

How are you distributing your films?

Rise of the Undead, Edges of Darkness and Monsters in the Woods were all distributed fairly traditionally through distributors. ROTU was picked up by York Entertainment, EOD by Anchor Bay and MITW by Osiris Entertainment.

Trap was self-distributed.

Should’ve Put A Ring on it was sold by the producers direct to retail outlets. I guess you could call it self-distribution, but they’ve since become a small distributor that puts out mostly their own product.

Why did you decide on tradition distribution for the three?

I think there’s a certain respectability (real or imaged) that goes along with a distributor picking your movie up. That is the dream, to have your movie picked up and it make you tons of money. No body wants to handle shipping, marketing, legal and promotion on their own.

Why did you decide to self-distribute Trap? 

The short answer is no one would pick it up, at least not for any money. I had made little to no money myself on Rise of the Undead or Edges of Darkness (in spite of them selling well for the distributors.) Plus the budget on Trap was so low that I decided to risk self-distribution. I started with Createspace/Amazon and am slowly picking up other outlets.

How did festival play into your distribution strategy?

Not at all. I’ve submitted different movies to different festivals and got into to a few. The thing about festivals is if you don’t have the money to promote and make them work for you, they’re a waste on time (at least that’s my opinion.)

What are some of the obstacles (if any) that you encountered and how did you overcome them?

Time and money are the biggest. But I’ve also always had to deal with my own sense of scale. I like to try and stretch my budgets and make things on a grander scale. This has at times affected the final products. When you’re working on a micro it’s important from the get to write with that in mind. I’ve tackled many of my scripts like they were studio productions.

What were some of your biggest mistakes or wastes of time/money?

Pre-planning is the most important thing, regardless of your budget. On Monsters in the Woods, we never pre-built our original monsters in order to see how long it would take and how they would look. When we put them together for the 1^st time, on set, it took way too long and they looked like crap. We lost an entire day of shooting and had to hire a new FX crew. The whole incident pushed our budget up by a 1/3.

What resources or tools did you find the most helpful during production, post and/or distribution?

This is going to sound really egomaniacal, but my experience over the years as a camera operator, grip, pa, editor, sound editor and self-promoter. Because I can handle so many large (usually higher paid) gigs on set and in post, I can always keep my budgets reasonable. Do I want to Dp and Edit my own stuff? Not really, and if the budgets were higher I’d hire someone else in an instant. But on a micro, for the money available, I know no one else is going to take the care that I will.

If you had it to do over again, what would you do differently?

Hire better sound people for Rise of the Undead and Edges of Darkness. Shot the movies better, spend more time with the actors, and spend more time on the scripts. The usual stuff.

What are your next steps from here?

I feel like I’ve hit a wall with the budgets I’ve had. I’ve had a few other similar offers budget-wise to Monsters in the Woods, but have turned them down. I’m ready to move to the next level and want the proper budget to back me up.

** Postscript from Jason: 

I am prepping a new movie called “Exit”. On this one, I’m doing things a bit different. My producer and I started by reaching out to the managers of name talent. We were able to attach 3 names and have interest from several others. Using the LOI’s from talent we’ve garnered interest from a few distributors and financiers, who are going over the script now. The budget will be between 350 and 500k, it will be my largest by far. 

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So what about you? Any of you embarking on a Micro Budget journey and have questions? Or questions for Jason on his process? Just post them below in the comments section and we’ll get back to you!

Also, if you missed the other Micro Budget Case Studies in the series, you can get them here:

Micro Budget Case Study #4

Micro Budget Case Study #3

Micro Budget Case Study #2

Micro Budget Case Study #1

Part 1 in the series is located HERE, and Part 2 is HERE.

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Creating an initial campaign for your film has become a critical step during Pre-Production. With the advent of Social Media and the general growth of the world wide web over the last few years, instead of waiting till a film is completed to create marketing materials for your film, the process has been pushed forward to beginning this process during pre-production.

So what exactly do you need to be concerned about creating during this stage? Primarily I want you to think about getting your key art or concept art done and establishing a preliminary web presence.

• Artwork: you will need this to design an initial one-sheet and/or for your main web site and social media pages. Remember this doesn’t have to be the final artwork as it will probably change a few times between now and when your film is distributed. BUT, that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be professionally done and I actually recommend looking at other movie artwork (for example DVD covers of studio films) and adapting something like that for your film. You can even reference these other films’ artwork to your designer to give them direction on what you want yours to look like.

• Web Presence: you should design a website for your film that integrates all the necessary elements – concept art, sign-in box. synopsis, bios of you and your team, and a teaser trailer or sizzle reel if you have one. You also want to have your social media buttons so people can connect to you on places like Facebook. Speaking of Facebook, you should have both a personal Facebook page and a page specifically for your film where you can start building a fan base. If often hear from filmmakers how difficult it is to build up a fan base during pre-production when generally not much is going on to keep fans engaged. I hear you loud and clear and I agree this can be a challenge. So your goal at this stage is to start building the fan base for your film with friends and family and do your best to keep people engaged with what you have going on by posting up your artwork, teaser trailers, website designs, etc. and even asking them to get involved and give you feedback on the process.

A great example of this is what Linda Nelson and Michael Madison did with their film DELIVERED, which they started from the script stage in building up their fan base on Facebook. Take a look at Facebook.com/DeliveredMovie  where during Pre-Production they leveraged their Facebook fan page and community to  hold ‘virtual’ auditions, get feedback on their key art, hold design contests, and other activities.

When you can begin engaging your fans during pre-production like the “Delivered” moviemakers did, you will help build your brand as well as your film’s brand in the marketplace.

BUILD YOUR MARKETING TEAM

No doubt about it that you can’t tackle all the important audience building and buzz building function in Pre-Production alone since you’ll also be focusing on packaging your project, raising financing, and getting into Production. Fortunately there is now a crew position called the Producer Of Marketing & Distribution (PMD) whose job it is to oversea all the marketing and distribution-related duties from the early stages of pre-production all the way through distribution of the film. Here’s an interview I did with PMD For Hire Adam Daniel Mezei on how to start your movie’s campaign.

Interview With PMD Adam Daniel Mezei (www.pmdforhire.com)

In today’s democratized filmmaking universe, just about anyone can shoot a movie. Prove it, you say. Okay, simple:

Yesterday’s industry-insider roadblocks barring filmmakers from their true audiences are now as good as gone. Want to get into show business? Well here’s how:  pen a script, grab a low-cost camera, recruit some of your buddies and family as actors (or yourself), and – voila! – you’re making pictures!

While making a film sounds like snap, the even bigger magic trick is getting folks to watch your movie. Since the middle of last decade, product has simply flooded the market. There’s more competition in 2011 than ever before. Split between iTunes, Netflix, Amazon VOD, and traditional DVD channels (not to mention tens of other avenues), audiences must contend with so much choice with so little time. So how do you get them to even watch your movie?

Well, all this is the playing field of the PMD – the Producer of Marketing and Distribution. PMDs are above-the-line, PGA-accredited (pending) marketing personnel who work directly with your film’s lead producer to tweak your film’s marketing budget, to review its various digital and non-digital distribution sales options, and engage your film’s true audience over the long-term.

Let’s break these components down individually:

The Marketing Budget:

Most filmmakers shoot their movie without thinking about what happens after post-production. This is why a marketing plan is absolutely critical. Given that Hollywood spends over 40% of its blockbusters’ budgets on marketing and distribution (P&A = prints & advertising), marketing is almost half as important as the process of making your film. Filmmakers must now embrace what Jon Reiss has termed “the new 50/50” – 50% of your current budget must now be earmarked — in advance — for marketing and distribution efforts. Why 50%, you ask? Well, there’s film festival submission fees and overheads, press kit expenses, not to mention paying yourself between projects, among other outlays.

Digital and Non-Digital Distribution:

It’s the PMD’s job to know the best and most effective avenues to get your film into the marketplace and revenue back into your pocket. That’s what they spend their days researching, so when you hire one you should be getting the best of their expertise and contacts. PMDs help you to strike a balance between old- and new-world distribution channels to help promote and evangelize your project.

Engaging Your True Audience:

Why re-invent the wheel each time out? Well, this is your career we’re talking about, right? So why cultivate your film’s audience — from scratch — each time out? Better to nurture a fan base which you can “deploy” from project to project. An audience that will not only appreciate your work, but will also help extend the otherwise limited reach of your marketing efforts by seeding your film in their various communities. We’re talking about your “true” fans here, okay?

When’s the best time to hire a PMD?

As early as possible in the filmmaking process, ideally before the cameras start rolling.

So how much do PMDs cost?

Not as much as you think! But given how much effort you put into making your movie, don’t you want people to know about it and pay to watch it? That’s where a PMD can help.

*** What about you? What types of marketing campaigns have you done before that proved successful for your film? Or what questions do you have about a marketing campaign you’re planning? Post any questions you have for us in the comments section below!

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Additional Resources:

1. Starting A Movement – The Ultimate Promotion For Your Film

2. The PMD – Why Do You Need One?

3. The “Insiders Guide To Film Distribution” book (where this excerpt came from!)

Part 1 in the series is located HERE.

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One of the best investments you can make during pre-production of your film is in casting. Since casting can literally make or break distribution for your film, you should budget for casting one or two A-list stars in your movie, even if it is for one day of work. You will certainly get your money’s worth. If you cannot get 1-2 A-list stars, then your next best strategy is to get 3-4 B-list stars to act in your film.

For example, there was a filmmaker who had a dark comedy script budgeted for $250,000. She had initial interest from some private investors who were interested in financing the film however she needed to ‘attach’ star names to the project.

She started by going through the budget and allotting $100K to hire two A-list stars. She made a cast wish list and presented that list to a handful of domestic and international distributors for feedback.  She heard back from the distributors which names had value in their markets. From that feedback she narrowed down the list of which stars were realistic to go after. This ‘distributor approved’ cast list was passed on to the casting director to go and secure the talent. The good news is that she knew going into it that no matter which actors decided to accept from that list, the film was almost guaranteed distribution in certain territories.

The final result was that the filmmaker was able to get two A-list stars attached to the project. This satisfied her financiers and prompted the film getting funded and eventual distribution in several territories.

Another option when it comes to casting, especially if you are dealing with a budget of less than $1 million, is to utilize B-list and current or past Television stars. I have witnessed films packed with these second tier stars that end up selling very well both domestically and overseas. Again, I recommend making a list of potential stars and getting feedback from distributors first to learn which stars will secure financing for your film.

For an example of how second tier stars can be an ingredient to success one need not look any further than John Travolta in Pulp Fiction, or John Ritter in Slingblade. Both of these men were known as has-beens before these films, but their careers were completely resurrected after the films’ releases. If a distributor can “break” or revive a star’s career off your movie you’re basically set.  If you’ve secured a U.S. domestic release and this happens, you can bet the international audience will come flocking.

When all else fails and you cannot even afford to hire B stars for a few days work, at the very least take advantage of SAG low budget schemes and cast professional talent in your film. It will save you lots of time, money, and headaches.  With SAG actors you know from the beginning you are getting professional, experienced talent.  And not too many producers and filmmakers know about it or how to utilize it to their advantage.  For more information do yourself a favor and visit www.sagindie.org.

Paul Bales’ film Legion of the Dead, was made for under $500K utilizing one of the SAG Low Budget schemes. For his directorial debut, he made it a priority to use SAG actors. Under the SAG low budget scheme, he was able to use professional actors at a fraction of the cost. For a total budget of less than $500K, he had to cut corners somewhere, so he stuck to an eleven-day shooting schedule. Although this was definitely tight, he made up for it by using the SAG actors who were able to knock out their scenes faster, and consequently saved time in the end. He also shot on 35mm film. Paul’s film got shelf space in Blockbuster video, and the producers recouped their initial investment and made a profit.

One of the disadvantages however to using any SAG contract, be it low budget or otherwise, is that when your film starts to make money, SAG will be the first in line to get paid, NOT the filmmaker. SAG will have written security agreements with the filmmaker to make sure of it.  And if the filmmaker is lucky enough to have a big hit with their film, SAG will require you to pay up. The devil, as always, is in the details.

Furthermore, from a distributors standpoint they hate having to sign SAG’s distributor’s assumption agreement. Collecting, paying out, and paying residuals on a low budget indie is a waste of time for them. Unfortunately the filmmaker will be left with paying for all this extra work.

The bottom line here is that SAG contracts can work great for your film as long as the budget is big enough for it to make financial sense, with all the deferred payments you’ll have to make later. So be sure to crunch the numbers before you sign any SAG contracts. And remember, even if you are going after A and B actors but not using SAG, always make sure the terms you negotiate with your actors are favorable (ie: watch those deferred payments), so you can avert financial disaster later.

A question I get asked quite frequently is exactly how do I go about casting A list or B list starts for my indie film?  Here are two ways to get started:

1. Hire a casting director

This may seem like an obvious solution, and it is especially if you have the budget to hire someone with experience casting for independent films. What a good casting director can do for you is get your project to the top of actors’ reading piles. Casting directors have relationships with agents and managers so they can actually get to the actor much easier than you can on your own. In fact, most agents and managers won’t even take your call unless you’re a known casting director.

Casting directors also bring a lot of value to the table when it comes time to write offers and handle the paperwork (deferred payments, etc.) since they have experience in this too. They know how to run casting sessions and make listings in the breakdowns. Casting directors also may be privy to upcoming stars that you do not know about and can make creative suggestions to fit your budget.

So in short, when it’s time to go after your A and B list stars, a casting director can make this happen for you and they are worth their weight in gold The way to find an experienced casting director is to look at the credits of some recently successful films in your budget range and even genre. You’ll see some of the same names appear again and again and you can research them through Google or IMDB and contact them directly via their websites.

2. Submit offers to Agents

If you don’t have the budget to hire a casting director, but have some potential financing lined up, you can always make your own cast wish list and submit offers to agents and managers yourself. Be warned though – you really need to know what you’re doing here as you will be disregarded as an amateur if you don’t do it right.

First of all, in order to find out who represents the actor you wish to make an offer to, you can call around to the major agencies (Creative Artists, International Creative Management, William Morris Endeavor, United Talent) and simply ask the receptionist “do you represent so-and-so”. They will tell you yes or no. If the answer is yes, ask who the responsible agent is. If the answer is no, say thank you and move on.

You an also utilize websites like www.whorepresents.com, or www.imdbpro.com, and for $10-$12 per month, have access to an entire database of actors and who their representatives are, along with contact details, etc. Still another option for finding out your chosen actors’ representation is to call SAG Actors To Locate service and they will give you the representation they have on file for up to three actors you request at a time.

Once you find out who the agent is for the actor you wish to submit an offer to, then you call that agent and ask if so-and-so is available for whenever you plan on shooting. They will tell you yes or no and/or tell you the actor’s availability. You can tell the agent you will be submitting an offer for your film.

From there, you will need help from either a lawyer or casting director on how to draft a written offer. You don’t want to seem like an amateur here so make sure you get this part right. Once you get your formal offer on paper worked out, you send it into the agent with a copy of your screenplay and other details of the film. With a written offer in hand they are obliged to present it to the client. Remember that you should always add some kind of ‘condition’ that would allow you to back out of the offer if necessary. It’s like buying a house with contingency (ie: if you fix up the bathrooms, then I’ll buy it).  This condition is usually disguised as “based on the positive outcome of a meeting with the actor”.

And beware that the agent may ask for a ‘pay or play’ offer for their client. What this means is that you pay the actor’s fee whether or not you end up casting them in your film. So be careful of the ‘pay or play’ offers!

After you submit an offer to an agent for their client you wait….and probably wait some more until you hear back yes or no. It may take two days, it may take two months. You can be a squeaky wheel if you want, but you must also be patient.

It is not ok to present multiple offers at the same time for the same role. So unfortunately you will have to wait until you hear back from your first choice, before approaching your second choice. However, you can work on casting multiple roles at the same time, so hopefully you have 3-4 offers out there for the 3-4 roles you are casting with A or B actors. And if you do decide to present multiple offers at once, by all means keep you mouth shut about it. If the agents whom you are dealing with find this out, they won’t be happy and can automatically decline your offer to their client.

A great example of this DIY packaging strategy is with filmmaker Adam Cultraro and his film “Corrado”. For his debut feature, Adam decided to take on casting the main roles himself and ended up with Tom Sizemore as the lead, which ultimately helped immensely in landing distribution for the film. Like Adam says, the biggest advantage of attaching cast yourself is that you make the relationships with agents and managers that you can then use in the future. Adam didn’t have existing relationships with agents and managers before “Corrado” but by the time it was finished, he had made a few key relationships that enabled him to turn to them for his next film “Hanger 14. So you can see the huge advantage in beginning the casting process yourself. Then you can always bring in a casting director later to cast the smaller roles.

Now the disadvantage of this DIY casting approach is that obviously it’s not easy to get through to agents and managers when you don’t have a financed film (otherwise, everyone would be doing it right?)! After all, agents are retained by their clients to bring them paid offers – that is their job. But, here’s a tip -  if you research an actor on IMDB and you can see they have both an agent and a manger, always start by approaching the manager first as they are usually much more approachable and less focused on an immediate paid offer.

Also when you are contacting agents and managers, email them first with an intro to you and your project. Oftentimes they will get back to you right away and if they don’t, then you can follow up with a phone call and at least it’s not a ‘cold’ call since they would have already been briefed in your email what it is you want.

Here’s another suggestion for casting if you don’t have financing in place yet  — raise some initial development funds possibly even through crowd funding platforms (see Section 3) to get a small portion of your budget together and either hire a casting director, or go out to attach cast yourself empowered with some money in the bank to make offers if necessary. You’ll notice everyone from casting directors to agents and managers will take you much more seriously if you have even a small portion of your film’s budget already raised and you will stand out from the hoards of other filmmakers trying to attach cast to their projects with NO budget raised at all. Even 10%-20% can make a difference.

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Got questions or have an experience you want to share? Please let me know by posting in the comments section below.

Additional Resources:
1. Casting For Distribution Virtual Seminar with Casting Director Dan Velez

2. DIY Packaging For Indie Films

3. Packaging Indie Films – A Case Study With Ryan Barton Grimley

4. Get the book: The Insiders Guide To Independent Film Distribution (avail for Kindle for Paperback)

What drives Distribution value? This is a question I get asked quite frequently. People want to know what they can ‘do’ to their film to make it more distribution-worthy and quite frankly, this is a very valid question!

Pre-production is the ideal time to start thinking of distribution for your film.  By planning in advance, there are so many things that you can institute at this stage of the game that will give your film infinitely better chances at distribution later. I like to call it ‘distribution in reverse’ or simply reverse engineering your film for distribution. There are many examples of filmmakers operating with this mindset and finding much success with getting their films made, seen and distributed worldwide. Later on this chapter, you will see some specific case studies of this.

Distribution in reverse has been going on for some time. Historically, this was called Pre-Sales and although they are quite uncommon for low budget films these days, I know of a few filmmakers who have managed to get one or more pre-sales for their films during pre-production, and therefore are guaranteed a certain amount of distribution when the film is completed.

By contrast to today, in the 1990’s it wasn’t uncommon for an independent film to get several foreign distribution deals before going into production, and then U.S distribution was always the icing on the cake. Films of all genres were able to benefit from this, as long as there were a few names attached to the script. Today pre-sales work a bit differently in that they are reserved for films by big Producers and Directors with serious track records. Distributors got burned in the past with films they pre-bought that subsequently never got made or got made very poorly. Hence the necessity of having a track record before a distributor will ‘trust’ you enough to do a pre-sale.

Don’t despair though if you are unable to secure distribution during pre-production because you are not alone. Most filmmakers do NOT secure distribution for their films at this stage and instead, work on things that can significantly improve their chances of getting distribution after their film is completed. Yes, there are some horror stories out there of filmmakers who sink their life’s savings into making their film, only to have it never see the light of distribution. However I am a firm believer that there are precautions you can take in advance, which will significantly increase your chances of making a film that sells.

The following are five ways you can improve the chances of distribution during pre-production:

1. TARGET YOUR AUDIENCE

The first thing you want to ask yourself during Pre-Production is this “Who is the target audience for my film”? You want to focus on who the end user/market is for your film FIRST, and THEN go through the process of creating it (but ONLY when a distinct and target audience can be established).

WHY? For 2 reasons:

1. Before any traditional distributor picks up your film they are going to want to know what their ‘marketing hook’ will be, and that is predicated on having a distinct target audience. Distributors are already thinking about how they can market your film before they acquire it from you, and marketing a film is an expensive proposition that can delay profitability. So it makes sense that a distributor would only choose to pick up films that they see they can market efficiently and cheaply to specific target audiences, and thus decrease their overall spend as much as possible.

2. If you don’t end up getting traditional distribution then you’ll need to know who your target audience is so you can execute a DIY campaign efficiently and cheaply. Just like a traditional distributor, you’re going to be looking at how you can save money on your marketing and promotions while self distributing your film – and it’s a heck of a lot cheaper to market to a specific target audience rather than trying to market to everyone.

Also….

You’ll notice that even at the Studio level films are being made for specific target audiences. Look at films like TWILIGHT and THE HANGOVER. Those are made for very specific audiences. So if you aspire to move up to making studio level films, or selling your films to the mini majors or major distributors, then you need to focus on making films for specific target audiences at a smaller more independent level, and work on building up a track record for yourself.

Let’s face it though – in most cases in today’s market you are going to be doing some sort of DIY distribution whether it’s a hybrid strategy or 100% DIY. Obviously you can’t just get your film on to iTunes or another digital platform and hope the sales will magically appear. Nor can you put a DVD for sale on your website and have traffic automatically show up on your front doorstep. And neither can you do your own theatrical screening tour and people automatically show up.

So this is where having a target audience comes into play and the key thing to remember is you don’t want to wait till your movie is done before you start building an audience because building an audience takes time. You want to start in Pre-Production building your audience — building an audience is like your insurance plan for the film.

How do you start to build your audience?

Look at who the audience is for your film – is it sci-fi geeks? horror fans? do you have a documentary with a social cause? Where do these people hang out online? Which blogs, forums, Facebook groups? Find out where they congregate (both online and offline), mingle, connect, and interact with them there with the ultimate goal of driving them back to your site and Facebook page so you can start aggregating them as your own audience. Do this consistently over a period of several months so you have that ‘insurance policy’ of an audience by the time you’re finished with your film.

2. GET IN TOUCH WITH THE MARKET

The second thing you can do during Pre-Production to improve your chances of distribution later is Get In Touch With The Market.

What does that mean? Well let’s have a reality check. The reality of today’s marketplace is that acquisition prices for films are a fraction of what they were   5-10 years ago and even though new distribution models are emerging and revenue sources are shifting, the new revenue sources aren’t fully developed yet.

In today’s marketplace as filmmaker you basically have 2 potential paths to follow. You either:

1. Make a film and sell it into the traditional system, or
2. Make a film and pursue DIY or hybrid distribution

Unfortunately I find that in general, most filmmakers and producers are out of touch with market realities. And of course they are. It’s not their job to know what particular market forces are in play at any given moment. However, if you spend just a little bit of time studying what kinds of films ‘sell’, you will be able to glean enough insight to assist you in making educated decisions throughout your production process.

Here’s something you can do: this may seem overly simplistic but have a look what’s playing in the theaters, what’s still for sale on the video shelves, what’s showing on cable, and what’s premiering on cable and internet VOD. Look at the quality of these films, the actors they’re using, the artwork used to promote it. It’s cliché but it’s true: there has to be some kind of ‘hook’ in order for your independent movie to find distribution, Whether it’s star appeal, a popular genre like horror, family, or sci-fi or a ‘niche’ film (gay, sports, children, etc.), there has to be a special ‘hook’ that makes your film stand out from the rest.

Here’s a story that illustrates what I’m talking about. I was working with some filmmakers who wanted to make a romantic comedy to go straight to video and cable. Despite potential red flags, the filmmakers were very attached to their story and did some basic market research before even writing the script.  They started by taking a trip to several video stores to see if there were any independent romantic comedies on the shelves that hadn’t already had a U.S theatrical release. Red flag #1 -there weren’t any. Next, they made a target list of 10 cable networks where the movie might air, including HBO, Showtime, A&E and IFC among others. They visited the websites of these 10 cable networks and scrutinized their programming schedules. What they found was that most of these networks aired only films that either had a major U.S. theatrical release, or were one of their own original productions (which are becoming increasingly more common). In the rare cases where we saw an independent film on the program schedule that hadn’t had a U.S theatrical release, the film had either a star-driven cast or was in the ‘family’ genre category (red flag #2).

After researching video stores and cable networks the filmmakers made a list of some romantic comedies they had seen in the last year and indicated what the ‘hook’ was in each of them that garnered them distribution. The most common reason on the list was ‘cast’ followed by ‘remake’ or ‘adaptation’ of some previous film or book.

The last thing they did in the market research process was visit the American Film Market (AFM) and visit the booths of foreign sales agents and distribution companies to see what was being sold at the market. How many posters for romantic comedies did they find? Red flag #3: not many. In talking to a few foreign sales agents and even buyers visiting the market they ascertained that romantic comedies were not a popular sale at the time and incidentally didn’t translate well to overseas markets.

In this particular case, the results of a little basic market research were clear. The only circumstances under which it made sense to move forward with a romantic comedy would be if  they could raise enough money through private investors to attach at least two A-list cast members. Since the filmmakers were so committed to the project, they decided to give it a shot by increasing their budget and reformatting their business plan to raise the money they needed to hire A-list actors.

And don’t forget to carefully consider genre….

Certain genres of films do better than others at certain times. For example horror, action, thriller, and sci-fi films have been doing well for a while in the straight-to-video market (while dramas, comedies, and art-house have not). Therefore, it makes sense to engage in market research for the particular genre you have in mind and if you find there is low demand for it, consider switching to a genre that is in higher demand. Seems like common sense right? Keep in mind that the market is continually changing – one year horror may be a hot commodity and the next year it’s saturated. The market is a fickle place so chances are a project you put on hiatus now can most likely be resurrected at a later date when there may be a place in the market for it.

There are some genres though that I find to be consistently in demand.  Family films, animation, current affairs documentaries, and action films (with B-stars or higher) are generally wildly popular genres nowadays since they can always seem to find an audience.  (Please keep in mind, those genres are just a partial list and represent what is currently happening.  When it comes time to make your film, research the market and find out what the hot sellers are as the results may be different. )

To be continued….

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*** To pick up a paperback or kindle version of the full “Insiders Guide To Independent Film Distribution” just CLICK HERE.

*** For more on Developing a project that sells….. check out my interactive Virtual Seminar scheduled for this Thursday March 8 entitled Financing Your Film Without Pre-Sales – *free* for Film Specific members. CLICK HERE for details.

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Now before you go berserk on me let me just say that I didn’t make these rules, I’m just telling you the reality of the situation.

So the question becomes…what if you have a film that doesn’t fit this ‘mold’. What if you want to use ‘non white’ leads? Or you have a project where the main roles are women? Does that mean you can’t get your movie made? HECK NO…it just means that this particular formula may not work for this project. Obviously there are films being made and distributed and getting into first tier festivals without following this formula…. so don’t fret!

Let’s look at your options: Well if you’re not following the Pre-Sales formula, then you can finance your film the more traditional way of using private equity. The downside to private equity is the enormous risk involved since most independent films don’t return their investment….so you have to find the right investors who are more keen on supporting your work then looking for ROI.

Or maybe you have a film that is ’cause-related’ and fundraising might be an appropriate avenue to financing your film.  I have a client right now who has a cause-related feature (one of the themes is animal abuse) and he just finished a Kickstarter campaign, and is now prepping for a big fundraising event where he’ll present his project to an audience of animal rights activists.

Private equity financing has been around for as long as independent film has been around….it’s the go-to source for getting your film made. However many people (including myself) prefer to finance their films ‘from the market’ via pre-sales. So for me personally, I focus on producing films that can only be made using that Pre-Sales formula, but that’s just me. I come from a Sales background so this is what comes second nature to me….but hey, it may not work for you.

I had a filmmaker write in to me and say she’s ‘depressed’ because the films she wants to make do not fit the $1 Million Blueprint ‘mold’ and therefore is her pursuit of getting her films made completely futile? I told her of course not….you just have to follow a different formula!

So what’s it going to be for you then? Are you following the Pre-Sales formula or another formula for getting your films made? And what questions do you have about the proecess?

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Additional Resources:

Want to find out how to get your film made without Pre-Sales? Join me for an interactive Virtual Seminar on Thursday March 8 where I’ll delve into solutions for getting your films made outside the Pre-Sales mold. Just Click Here for more details and to become an FS member so you can attend for free.