Producing a movie
 

Hi

I am looking to shoot a low budget movie (300-500k) is there any books etc. that go into A-Z whats involved, at this point want to do some research.

Thanks

thats a big range you got there 300 - 500k?

can i be your key grip

Seriously, if you need to ask that question then you have no business doing it. Do you have the screenplay? If so then find a production company (millions of them around) and go to them with your project. If not, find a screenwriter and start there.

lol I had no clue about producing exlcusive sites real niche but I did research and now shooting my 7th site within 6 months, I think I can read up, research pay some people etc. and learn and see if its somethin for me or not.

what type of movie? With the new digital cameras, filming a movie can be fairly cheap...

its more of a comedy then action, meaning no car chases or shootings etc.

Like anything else I do it's a gamble I know but I want to research what it takes to make a dollar off a movie, like say I get it produced what are the next steps etc.

Just trying to find something good on this topic.

i would just study the actual filming of movies
ie: scene angles

get about 4 digital camcorders
set them up in various angles and record
you can make it look good in post production :)

I would hire people who have done it for that, just looking for more of the business end of things

in what releasing the film?

i would actually post them to the major amateur film sites on the net.

If they are good.. the rewards will follow

Yep its that simple. Not.

I knew somebody that produced a movie... I think it cost him $45,000... but he might have had some inverstors joining him...

Blair witch cost $40,000... Just hire a young director coming out of school... you check out his work before hiring him... no-name actors dont cost much.. Assuming you uses digital cameras..you need a video guy/editor.. lighting guy.. etc... I think special effects, travel to certain destination and set design is what cost the most $$....

EB icq me if you wanna talk...I got a idea for you :-)

I sold adult videos for years before the internet.

never said it was simple.

but 300 - 500k aint gonna get u very far the conventional way

Hi EB!

I'm a graduated filmmaker, and if you're looking for some help, hit me up!

I'm also available for any positions you may have in this project; Director, DP, Executive Producer...

I'm producing a film here, in Montreal, in 2 years. A drama movie. Gotta have Alliance Atlantis Vivafilm to release it. It's a movie about the escort business, and it follows the life of a girl in this business.

Contact me!
ICQ: 96699802
Cell: 1-514-824-6477
olivier @ angelcontent.com

Thanks alot guys

Olivier ill get some more details and contact you, really appreciate it.

This is non adult by the way

EB icq me if you wanna talk...I got a idea for you :-)

I sold adult videos for years before the internet.

some links:

http://www.filmtvcontracts.com/overture.html

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...265849-4854402

http://www.b-movie.com/

http://www.soyouwanna.com/site/syws/...makemovie.html

http://www.overstock.com/cgi-bin/d2....88&c id=46822

~Ray

thanks doing some reading up

EscortBiz --

Just get some Film majors over at NYU or Columbia to help you out. I'm sure they'd be interested in helping for a few extra bucks or for some directing credits. Hell, I'd love to be on set to learn too! :thumbsup

$31,000

:)

Shoot it up here in Hollywood North.You will save thousands with the exchange and can hook ya up with people that are involved in the film industry..Fuck the books seriously..Hands on experience with producers and talent agencies will get you what you need to know

Can I get a role in this movie maybe? I'm really funny, look-->

:moon

and they laugh-->

:1orglaugh :1orglaugh :1orglaugh

Hey I recommend going to your local university's bookstore and looking for the film studies textbooks, you'll find everything you need and more!

Is this gonna be a horror movie?
I'd love to work on a horror flick

i was an actor for many years in film and television and am currently an art director

if you are looking into the workings of being a producer than i would recommend buying books on this vocation (any good book store with art leanings will have tons of books on the movie industry)

a great book about the movie industry in general was written by John Boorman (director of Emerald Forest, Deliverance, Hope And Glory, etc) titled, Money Into Light

another interesting person to look into is Robert Rodriguez, a young director who made the enormously entertaining and successful film, El Mariachi, for only $7000.00

the DVD for El Mariachi contains a small 10 minute workshop on how to shoot a movie on a shoestring budget

or go to some of the film schools and talk to people

be prepared to learn from your mistakes and to embrace the challenges and victories that will build your own vocabulary in film making

wishing you success

:thumbsup

i went through a similar phase of interest, after i started to shoot exclusive videos.

still something i'd like to do one day... good luck with it.

I worked in the film biz for a while and made a couple of shorts and worked on a lot of movies. Here is what I would say:

once the movie is shot, edited and mixed then the hard part comes. You have a couple of options.

1. the festival route. You basically submit your movie to as many festivals as you can and show it at the festivals. Some give you money if you win anything at them and it will give you exposure. The ideal situation would be that you would get is distribution company that would see your movie and would buy it from you. You would get a blanket amount plus some of the profit.

2. the 4 wall route. This is kind of like the festival route but more for profit. What you do is go town to town renting out independent theatres ( meaning movie theatres that are not part of a chain ) and you show your film, advertise it and sell tickets. You make money off the ticket sales. If you have a good movie that can get some decent reviews and you have the time and money to advertise it you can make some decent money doing this but it takes a long time because you have to go to each town with your movie and show it.

3. the distribution route via movie markets. One of the main movie markets is the Canne Film Festival. Basically what you would do it rent a hotel room and set up a shop and then sell the rights to show the movie to various markets. At things like this you can sell to a ton of places at once. I had a friend who made a small horror flix for about 50K and went there. He sold the foreign rights to about 35 countries each for about 5-10K so he did pretty well.

4. Major distribution. basically what you do is set up screening for the big distribution companies like universal, miramax, sony, warner bros ect and show them the movie and hope that they like it enough to buy it. This is not very likely in that most major studios only put out 10-15 movies a year and most of those they make themselves but there are smaller distribution companies you can also sell to. With a small budget you don't need a massive release to make your money back.

5. straight to video - simply put you put the movie on DVD and VHS and sell it to video stores.

there are other ways like TV rights, Cable rights ect but it would take me forever to tell you all of them.

as for books I would suggest you go to a good bookstore and buy about 10-15 books on the various areas of film making. this will give you an idea of what is needed to make the movie. Many of the book out there don't talk much about what to do with the movie once it's made but at least once you've read these books you will know how to make it even if you do hire people to do it.

here's a couple of ideas of books

Making Independent Films: Advice from the Filmmakers

Digital Filmmaking 101: An Essential Guide to Producing Low Budget Movies

Make Your Own Damn Movie!: Secrets of a Renegade Director

Feature Filmmaking at Used-Car Prices: How to Write, Produce, Direct, Shoot, Edit, and Promote a Feature-Lenth Movie for Less Than $15,000

The Feature Film Distribution Deal: A Critical Analysis of the Single Most Important Film Industry Agreement


Independent Feature Film Production: A Complete Guide from Concept Through Distribution



hope this helps you out some.

kane

what kind of movie?

www.sleazybeaverpatrol.com

Blair Witch 4?

I have done one and sold it to HBO a few years ago. Not a lot of fun to me compared to music but if you need info just hit me up.

Hollywood film Institute 2 day course - around $500

300 - 500?
Ok, take you VHS, buy some Playmobile Actors and start it :)

Even the Tapes for a 90 Min. movie will cost you about 100$
DVD Authoring: 200$ (low budget)

So, close to nothing left for your movie itself

EB talk to SlainWayne, he's an indie film director beyond his porn work. What I saw of his movie I was impressed with and with a decent budget I think he could do some intriguing stuff. He can
also cast some pornstars who have some ability to act - get some free pub out of casting say 'Aurora Snow' rather than some unknown New York or L.A. aspiring actress.

http://www.crimsondust.com

Crimson Dust Trailer

:1orglaugh

Read his post again. $300,000 - $500,000.

SpaceAce

Ups :eyecrazy

Yeah non-adult, my movie will be a mainstream non-adult film :winkwink:

To lower the cost, you can shoot the film in HDCAM 1080 24p, with a Sony HDCAM Cine Alta Camera.

Another route to go with a budget like that is a series for HBO, Cinemax or other cable networks.

RedShoe Diaries was produced for $10k an episode back in 1993, it's still a successful series. Cable companies are always looking for something new, unique and if there is an r-rated twist to it, you'll do better.

Make a pilot and submit it. You'll have to produce 13 episodes per season (year) when you have a buyer.

The best place to start is by producing your own images and videos for your own sites -

Well I escaped from Hollywood. Finishing a film is just half the battle, it's hard to get a movie seen unless you do the film festival tour and that's if your film is good enough to get accepted. I would suggest getting one big name star who is open to indy filmmakeing i.e. Harvey Keitel who did "Resovour Dogs" for Tarantino. You get more attention that way.

What's the name of it? How did you get HBO interested in your film?