The last three months have been a tornado of activity to say the least. This is the final day of shooting on location of an 18 day, 3 week, 6 day-per-week shoot. We have had tons of challenges, but the production as a whole has come together made good choices and we have been very very very "blessed" (for Our EP, normally I would say "lucky", she has convinced me we are "Blessed".)
In the middle of this show I had to move, quit a non-industry full time job, live out of my backpack, pull many all night work sessions and had a family medical emergency. On top of all of this a business that my girlfriend owns who is also in the business and I help run had a ton of challenges because of the this show.
My point is, as hard as that all was I would do this show again in a heartbeat. It was totally worth it.
No, the money I am getting paid for doing this job is not industry standard or even any kind of scale. That is true for the entire crew. So this is a "for the love of it" kind of job. It's also for two more things, one is experience and the other is the credit at a different job.
A few years ago a 1st AD told me and a group of PA's on set one day that he had only PA'd one show. He never did that job again, he went out and worked on small shows as a 1st AD, a couple times as a 2nd AD then got into the DGA Union and never looked back. 20 years later he is a 1st AD on major TV shows and pilots, he makes good money and lives well. His point was, you have to DO the job you want to be doing. As much as you can, do it at the small level when it has a point.
This piece of advice has never been more relevant than on this show for me. I came in replacing someone else but essentially sharing a credit. After a few days I was running the show. Then at the end of the first month in Pre-Production I find out that a big time Television Show Runner is coming in as my Unit Production Manager or (U.P.M.). It didn't take a week she become the Line Producer and now my credit will read Assistant Line Producer. Originally
it was Co-Line Producer.
This is the business. It's now been months since I started writing this post. I am now looking at this project with hind sight and seeing how it's almost done with post and where everything is. They say that it's 20/20 when you look into the past, that said I feel like my assessment at the time was still on point. When somebody comes in with a better resume than you at a lower position it is often in the show's best interest to put that person above you. Really what that comes down to is your leverage with the person calling the shots at the top. If you have none, like I did then your lucky if you stay on the show at all. I have heard of this where the person in my position is basically let go. What it looks like is they hire the person with the better resume after they hire you already then they offer you an insulting lower position and your basically left with no choice but to quit the show.
In my cast that's not exactly what happened. The bigger name that was hired under and after me when she got elevated didn't force me out. Which I will always be grateful for. She educated me on many things and I was able to turn a seeming bad situation into a learning situation that I still draw from until this day.
Don't get me wrong, it totally stings every time my "screen credit" get's changed or I have to say I "helped Line Produce" instead of "I was THE line producer". If nothing else film is the continual process of refining what you do. Which means, being humbled but not letting that turn into humiliation or self doubt. This won't be the last time something like happens, and it certainly was not the first. I am grateful for the experience and have no regrets. They got a usable product that hopefully will do well at the festivals and I will be able to point to my name and say this was a brick in the wall of my career. Maybe not the biggest brightest brick, not solid gold, but I gave everything I had honestly and am proud at least of that.
Thought thread,
YOU decide what any project is worth. Not every project is worth fighting for, sometimes it's better to walk away. Like the song says, "You gotta know when to hold, know when to fold em, know when to walk away, know when to run!"
Tuesday, April 25, 2017
Wednesday, February 3, 2016
The madness of trying to shoot an non-Indie, Independent feature.
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| for film making... |
What I mean is, it doesn't matter that I know how it works. It doesn't matter that I now know what I didn't know before. At the end of the day "Chicken or the Egg" still rules the world. Now there is tons of great advice by respectable people that are "Coming Up" who will tell you how to get out of "Development Hell".
Angie Gaffney from Black Apple Media, has a great article about "Development Hell" on her blog at angiegaffney.com .
She has some great advice here. I should take her advice, I should do what she says to do. What she is doing herself. I simply don't know if I can.
I met Angie once, at her office inside Cinespace in Chicago. It wasn't more than an introduction but I got the impression that she was really happy with how her world was going and she is absolutely on her way up in the film world. Especially the indie world in Chicago.
That is my biggest problem I think. I know another producer who has been working in film for 20 years and is still "indie". Another guy who says he is a distributor (actually an distribution sales agent, a common trick they use is to call themselves distributors. May be in some sense but none of those guys have relationships with thousands of theaters. Especially not domestically) and he has been in the business for 20+ years and is still indie.
Indie means that you get your stuff into local small festivals, the city you live in puts you in the art based news and media. If your really lucky and really talented and really connected you get into a festival that someone has actually heard of. If that happens maybe you get approached and get your movie sold yada yada.
I have spent the last two years trying to not do this. This system of doing things seems like trying to hit the lottery. Or somebody who thinks they have figured out how to beat the casino at blackjack in Vegas. Without getting kicked out for counting cards. Who am I kidding, the Vegas analogy is what I have been trying to do. I have been trying to either beat the system or join it at a bigger level.
Without an "indie" pedigree it is almost like I am lying to myself that anyone will take what I am saying seriously. Even if I am right. It doesn't matter that the project is good, or that the director has somewhat of an "indie" pedigree. If we have not made a feature film together it means nothing.
So the thing you have to go off of next is the content of the movie, the strength of the script. What is it about and is it well written.
The well written part I think that it is. Although we just paid someone $10k to tell us it's not when previously we had paid someone $10k to help us rewrite it. Ok so then the subject matter. Well we have a story with a built in fan base that has not been over saturated (we are actually ahead of the curve) and a period piece set in a war. So it has layers depth, and interesting set up etc.
But it's market is mainstream. The indie audience won't care. It's not a current or recent past human interest piece. It's pure fiction, yes it follows the character story rules of ark and growth. It has relate-able human elements.
Barring the miraculous at this point it feels like we are doomed. I just don't know anymore, I can't see the future of the project. I have no sense of the horizon. Where will it be in three months.
The bottom line is, follow Angie's advice. Shoot, make it happen, put it up on YouTube, or whatever. Shoot low budget stuff with achievable content. Then, do it again but go a little bigger. Build up one project at a time. Step by step build a resume of features that while they are not in 2500 theaters domestically are still showing up here and there and your investors are getting what they want out of it. Make the pictures as quality as you can. Then write something truly ambitions, move to LA. Work on commercials and what not while you shop your project around town.
If you don't do this, if you shoot for the moon right out of the gate because you KNOW that it's what you should be doing, it will be the hardest, most risky, trying, make-you-get-a-divorce-because-you-are-obsessed kind of thing you can do. Honestly at this point, I don't know that I can tell you it will be worth it. Since starting this project I have not lived in a place I can say is "my place" in over a year. That's right, bumming squatting, or just plain old sofa surfing. Intermittent pay, and lots of missed meals. Phones shut off, credit destroyed, and a broken heart many times. And I don't know if it is worth it...yet!
You see I am afflicted by the disease of being a true believer, a dreamer. I cannot in good conscious leave you on this depressing of a note. I know that the director and myself are right about this film. So we will not stop, we can't. I don't know if it's going to work. But I know for sure that if it fails it won't be because I gave up or I let my friend give up. We keep going, because we know we are right, because I don't want to make a $50,000.00 movie that I wouldn't watch myself. This, this is the madness of shooting an non-indie independent movie. Your not in the indie world and the studio world won't let you in. So you have to make a whole new world...
Monday, January 11, 2016
Give us $10,000.00 and we will tell you how bad your product is.
"Give us $10,000.00 and we will tell you how bad your product is. "
This is a service that many companies is the movie business will do for you. Although they will dress it up as many other things.Also known as justifying there own existence, giving a bad review because the reviewers would not be in optimal position to have the "in-house" project green lit. Of course they won't do this for free, even though you have been working for free for two years on your project. Of course, it will cost $10k, and that's a deal. Even though your supposed to be involved in a collective partnership of companies trying to make movies. The fact is, they have some guy they are paying $30.00 per script because he is still in film school and they can, read the script give notes then pass it to another more qualified person who scans the notes, make some more fills out a form and sends it upstairs. Now your project is in the persons hands who is supposed to be reviewing the script with the rest of the partnership.Almost immediately the FU label is stamped on it in a 30 second conversation that kinda happens and you get 4 sheets of paper worth $10k. The $2,500.00 dollar a piece, sheets of paper are basically telling you that your script is garbage and that you need to bring "professionals" into the project...
The thing that stands out the most to me is the assumption that we wouldn't remember that the Directer/Writer and myself have already vetted this particular project MANY times. Which means we have taken it to other people(producers) of name and value that have said quite the opposite of this. WE HAVE DONE THIS MORE THAN ONCE! This script is over a dozen rewrites and nobody is afraid of that. We can hand a critique, in fact it is encouraged. Whey you get script feedback and project feedback that is this bad, sometimes you just have to laugh.
Especially when it comes with a, "Why are no actors attached?"
Well, let's see. Because your company is supposed to do that for us, we are in fact paying you to give us feedback based on the assumption that the talent you claim is "in house" will be attached. So this question is super stupid...oh wait I forgot you simply don't care. We didn't bring the millions of dollars to the table that you where going to steal from us. So you took the $10k and told us to go "f" off.
Welcome to Hollywood.....again
This is a service that many companies is the movie business will do for you. Although they will dress it up as many other things.Also known as justifying there own existence, giving a bad review because the reviewers would not be in optimal position to have the "in-house" project green lit. Of course they won't do this for free, even though you have been working for free for two years on your project. Of course, it will cost $10k, and that's a deal. Even though your supposed to be involved in a collective partnership of companies trying to make movies. The fact is, they have some guy they are paying $30.00 per script because he is still in film school and they can, read the script give notes then pass it to another more qualified person who scans the notes, make some more fills out a form and sends it upstairs. Now your project is in the persons hands who is supposed to be reviewing the script with the rest of the partnership.Almost immediately the FU label is stamped on it in a 30 second conversation that kinda happens and you get 4 sheets of paper worth $10k. The $2,500.00 dollar a piece, sheets of paper are basically telling you that your script is garbage and that you need to bring "professionals" into the project...
The thing that stands out the most to me is the assumption that we wouldn't remember that the Directer/Writer and myself have already vetted this particular project MANY times. Which means we have taken it to other people(producers) of name and value that have said quite the opposite of this. WE HAVE DONE THIS MORE THAN ONCE! This script is over a dozen rewrites and nobody is afraid of that. We can hand a critique, in fact it is encouraged. Whey you get script feedback and project feedback that is this bad, sometimes you just have to laugh.
Especially when it comes with a, "Why are no actors attached?"
Well, let's see. Because your company is supposed to do that for us, we are in fact paying you to give us feedback based on the assumption that the talent you claim is "in house" will be attached. So this question is super stupid...oh wait I forgot you simply don't care. We didn't bring the millions of dollars to the table that you where going to steal from us. So you took the $10k and told us to go "f" off.
Welcome to Hollywood.....again
Tuesday, October 13, 2015
Executive Summary, Investor next steps
First of all let me say that there is a lot of talking when your seeking money. A lot of the meetings are really about getting other meetings. Eventually if you have done a good job, and investors like the concept and the elements your presenting in a big picture sense. Then people will want to actually get down to work.
This of course means proving everything you have been saying. Sometimes this is a VETT like in politics, fact checking, and seeing who everyone actually is. People's resume and background. Checking to see if your director has actually directed, the Producers who are saying they are attached are actually attached. So on and so forth until there are no questions left unanswered.
One of the big steps in the VETT process is giving the investors information that they request. A summary of what the deal is. This is something you should have ready to go at meeting one. It should be ready at any point. If the deal changes or an element changes be honest with the investor and give them the new information in the same format. No more than two pages with breakdowns that are simple enough for someone to read but have as much relevant information as possible. It's a process, the first one I did went through a dozen revisions before it was ready. The most recent one still is evolving but we have a format that works for us.
As always this is subject to every the situation and the details.
Good luck, and your always 2 meeting away from the money. So stay calm.
Wednesday, September 2, 2015
Emilia Clark is going to destroy Game of Thrones...or somebody else is...
Not on purpose, no but virtue of how Hollywood works and how much everything costs. At least that is one of the better options.
So here it goes, this is not the glorious praise that has been heaped upon the show this last season. With reports showing the greatest market share of viewers of any season.
The reality is, in terms of how television is measured in terms of success this is an overwhelming success. Over 8 million average viewers per episode, fantastic numbers every single episode, the lowest rated episode in season 5 was still higher in terms of viewership than any episode in the first two season and most of the episodes in season 3.
The critics also seemed to love the season as a whole.
Game of Thrones: Critical reception by episode
These are all major deaths, and these big characters now have to have new reasons to exist and have to stay relevant which means interactions with other main characters that are not apart of the original story.
So here it goes, this is not the glorious praise that has been heaped upon the show this last season. With reports showing the greatest market share of viewers of any season.
The reality is, in terms of how television is measured in terms of success this is an overwhelming success. Over 8 million average viewers per episode, fantastic numbers every single episode, the lowest rated episode in season 5 was still higher in terms of viewership than any episode in the first two season and most of the episodes in season 3.
The critics also seemed to love the season as a whole.
Game of Thrones: Critical reception by episode
- Season 5 (2015): Percentage of positive reviews tracked by the website Rotten Tomatoes[58]
Again a dip at season 6 but overall they are almost 100% satisfied with the show.
I agree with all of this, I loved the show. I would sit in my chair turn off my phone and do nothing else eat a good meal and drink Krakken Black Rum and Dr. Pepper. This was my ritual, no parents, no roomates, no girlfriend or job could detour me on Sunday night.
Until Season 5.
A little bit of back ground before I get into the why I am worried about what I am worried about. I have worked in and around major film and television shows in both LA and Chicago since 2005. So 10 years. No I am not the biggest name in the business or am a foremost expert above all others. That said, when certain things stand out to me on a show, that I have been in love with. I pay attention, I have to. If I am working a show and the previous season was garbage I know that the second season needs to do things differently or I won't have a job in the third season.
Game of Thrones Season #5: List of Red flags and concerns about the turn the show is taking. Yes, I know that compared to the books there is a litany of things that are not lined up. The issue now, is that this is having an exponential affect on the show...more on that later.
Red Flag #1: Emilia Clarke is going to kill the series....
Because she: refuses to get naked anymore. No, I don't care for the reason you think...she is dictating terms creatively now. In the final scene of Episode 509 the dragon is supposed to burn off her clothes. When it does this it also burns the people in the arena killing some of her companions and metaphorically burning away Emilila's current life and responsibility, ties to the current world(paradigm) etc.
1a. She has a no nudity clause in her contract. Which means the writers/producers had to rework that entire scene from the book no matter what to work around her contract. Of course she didn't always have this clause it only happened after the popularity of the show went up after season one and she got to renegotiate her contract the people at CAA know their craft. Which is fine, except that now not only does the price of the show go up, but everyone else will want to change their contracts as well. That's not to say that there are not other reasons they rewrote that, but before they even begin that is a consideration. Nudity, is about a state of vulnerability, and it creates instant sympathy and identity at some visceral level with the audience. This, is now gone, unless she changers her mind. This amazing character, who is unafraid to be shown, is now playing princess...and it's lost something.
1b. This whole season, her character had the least amount of dynamic change in terms situation. She is the queen with a stable relationship and unruly subjects (yawn). The Kalesie version of Danni would have killed the troublemakers without question. Her decision to hesitate and listen to the people around her almost had no real conflict or substance. It just was sub par. No, not a bad performance, or bad direction. Writing was even ok. But it was not at previous levels of GOT.
1c. The character did not live up to any of the previous seasons in any respect.
1d. This is kind of attached to point 1a. Emilia Clark is not getting paid on season #5 what she was making on season #1. If her agents are worth anything they are saying, "Look at her pull to the show, the people naming there kids after her...." and then getting her more money. Which makes the other actors on the show(their agents) do the same. This is all expected and deserved. The question is, is the budget of each season increasing to match what the actors are asking for (Mr. Richard Pleppler, let's not pull a Breaking Bad) and for what the show demands creatively? It maybe this that is responsible for the problems in Episode 509 and 510.
I would like to not that Lena Headley performed her nude scene(first one in this show) amazingly, with no words conveyed volumes. Emilia Clark had some opportunities to do the same in terms of what her character had to do, and was 50/50. Which is rare for her, she is a very good actress.
So maybe it's not totally Emilia's fault. I will concede that, that maybe this is a bigger problem. Maybe it goes deeper. This season for her had some red flags, concerns that show that something is happening and that special (grit factor, real factor) on the show has slipped just a little, at the best.
Red Flag #2: Story, story, story
This season has the greatest despairity between people that should be dead/or doing (in the books) that are still alive.
It also takes the largest creative licence with the GOT universe in general.
2a. The people that are staying that should be out of the story because they are popular. Danairis Targerian (she gets picked up by the dragon and sits on an island and is lost.)
REEK- he's dead guys, he doesn't help Sansa. Kind of a producing for content choice.
In fact the girl that is raped by Ramsey is a double for Sansa in the books, placed by Lord Balish as a ruse. Her rape scene was a gimmic, a risk, and the ratings showed what people thought of that. People reacted more negatively in ratings to that than the "Red Wedding".
Breeann of Tarth, is also very dead along with her squire making her Lady Stonehart seems like a mistake.
These are all major deaths, and these big characters now have to have new reasons to exist and have to stay relevant which means interactions with other main characters that are not apart of the original story.
2b. The mountain is not a white walker in gold armor. He is more like a Ring Wraith in Pure white Armor which would be cheaper to do and waaaaaaay cooler. Katelyn Stark comes back from the dead, as a kind of White walker with a purpose, so no, not a cheap zombie. Much more like a Lych Queen. They got rid of that, after nobody in the target demographics of this show knows about Lych Kings or Queens...(nobody plays World of Warcraft...nobody at all).
2c. The Dragons....really, she randomly makes a huge jump with them and locking them up is waaaaaaay too extreme that fast.
2d. The Dragon at the end of 509, possibly the most anticlimactic moment in the show....he's hurt by spears!?!?! These are the creatures that will turn the tide of any war???? "She has dragons...." the army decimating #1 reason everyone is scared of the phrase "mother of dragons".
The biggest one of these beasts, which is almost killed by a bunch of angry rich people in robes lobbing spears. It's basically a whiny VW with teeth and an exhaust problem...it should have been the USS Ronald Reagan. A perfect machine of war...
It's the size of a griffon. Keep in mind, the movie "Dragonheart" which did terribly in theaters had a dragon that would kill all three of her dragons single handed, oh and did take on a castle and win in that movie. This is important because this dragon in Dragonheart is only 3x times bigger, not as big as Smaug, who is probably 10x bigger (approximately).
20 people almost killed this thing, and in the book it's bigger than the arena. So we have Smaug who's wings are a "Hurricane" and killed and entire people, and then two more cities for kicks. Then Drogon the dragon (yes the name is super stupid, sorry George) who can't defend it's self against the no "wind lance" having, stick-throwing-gold-shower-people.
2e. Danariys is now reconnected with the mighty horse people.....not in any book....RED FLAG CENTRAL
Red Flag #3: This is more about a fear than anything I can prove. If this is happening it may not really have consequences until season #7. This is because Season #6 is already shot and the mistakes have already been made so it may be gradual because they shot it the same time as Season#5.
3a. George R. R. Martin does not have the time he requires as a novelist to write and re-write his novels because of the press, and being involved with the shows. This last book has been joked about in terms of it's completion a lot, and for more than a couple years. He probably wrote notes and outlines for he first five or six seasons and had a rough idea of how he would do things in season #7. Now it's upon us and he may only have another year to write it.
If you have ever tried to write a high fantasy fiction novel with this level of complexity then you know that time is definatley the commodity you need, besides air that is.
3b. Producers are changing up how loose ends are sown up using Hollywood stand bys in terms of character instead of doing what is right for the character and the GOT universe in general, a bad case of blurred lines.
Conclusions:
I love this show, still, this is fear talking. The greatest single Fantasy story on the screen besides the one that started it Lord of the Rings/The Hobbit. (Sorry Tom Cruise Legend doesn't count.)
Please let Danni find her balls and feed that baby dragon so it can actually be a size that makes sense.
Please let Emilia be encouraged by Lena and get honest and naked again. The mountain looks ridiculous, Bree cannot be Lady stone heart.
Tuesday, September 1, 2015
Dealing with High Finance Investors, some basic rules.
No you don't really have to do any of that, but if you stay with it. You will have to know a bunch of what the people who do those jobs talk about. At least if you walk this long walk. Some folks have other in's and others just want to do indie projects and then sell them to studio's to distribute or not.
I, am in this for the prize. The big 2500+ theater domestic box office release.
That kind of thing is the hardest to do, the most intimidating and the biggest challenge. Most indie people try it once or twice in a ten year chunk and then stick to the, safer but doable, but still hard "make it then sell" model. For me, and this is not necessarily slamming anybody it's me being honest about my own intent. For me, I have to know how to and be able to execute a film into theaters. I must get a film from thought to theaters globally. Indie is great, but it's just not enough. When I see a great film, I want everyone to see it and have a chance to watch it.
That said:
"Fish Tank" is great indie film. People who love film should watch it. I love it, but I have seen Guardians of the Galaxy way more times then Fish Tank. I can relate to the characters struggle in Fish Tank a ton more than going into space and fighting intergalactic titans...but the second one is a way better escape.
All of the following is for above $3M closer to $10M dollar film
Money People: Usually know nothing about investing in film. They get excited, then they get intimidated buy the dollar amount and THEY DO NOT CALL YOU BACK TO SAY NO...they just all the sudden get busy in a strange way that becomes a "soft pass" and usually wastes 1 to 2 weeks of you time.
I realize some of this is a repeat of an earlier post, that's ok, this is how much this stuff happens.
If your asking for these high dollar amounts you should have some sort of investment vehicle to protect and grow the money while your not actually using it in addition to making a smaller amount get to an amount you need while your in development(ideally).
How do I do that? You fairly ask, and the answer is. Associate with high finance people, take classes about financial products, but your banker, use google. Start watching the finance channels even if you don't understand most of it. Start to pay attention and begin to wire your mind to consider how big money really moves.
My dad told me a secret about teaching yourself stuff that I have never forgot an it has worked for me. He had many year of a subscription to Car and Driver magazine and it would always be laying around the house and bathroom. You read them and you learn car stuff. Dad read them cover to cover, all the time. Asked mechanic, gear head friends of his before doing anything(playing dumb so they talk more) and then trying to apply the knowledge. Testing it out on things that made sense, like a junker that he was fixing to sell.
Same idea here, how does money work? Who knows the answer to that? Where do they hang out?
((Most important question)) How can I get into a position to ask questions that will get real answers?
Entertainment attorneys often are connected to a myriad of these things so it's a good place to start, be warned they don't usually give up the info unless your a client.
Here are some basic rules when dealing with these money folks, they seem to all have the same set of rules they operate on.
1st Rule of High Finance: "Play your cards close to your vest".
Just like anything, get the relationship first with the person then ask the questions that get real answers.
There are many many investment vehicles(products) that can work for film finance people just don't talk about them to non-industry people. Just like car mechanics don't normally tell the lady coming in for an oil change how adjustments in timing can effect your overall horsepower. Certainly not in detail.
So sometimes its for practical reasons they don't talk plainly about the products, other times they are just a paranoid group of folks. You will learn as I did, that every, single high finance person has been ripped off in there business. Just like the film industry, people steal, and take advantage of what the other guy doesn't know.
2nd Rule of High Finance: "Find the part they are leaving out."
If you think film people exaggerate, inflate, or overstate things Wallstreet has Hollywood beat.
Spend the day with a broker, trader, filling agent, or even the clerks for investment firms.
Strategy NOTE:
These guys have made an entire culture out of being 14 still. Most of these people are white, male, English speaking in their 40's+. Don't misjudge the exterior, the quickest way to piss these guys off is to threaten the reputation of their intelligence. Especially about their knowledge with money. So any threat to their ego can be an interesting dance. The next generation of these finance folks are starting to make headway with women and ethnic minorities fighting the good fight all around. If your talking to one of those minorities in the financial world they for sure have stories about the all white boys clubs from when they got started, and even today.
The part everybody leaves out of there financial product is where the risk is. They may have to say it for SEC regulation reasons, but they usually don't get into details unless you ask. So ask if they have answers that don't makes sense or they skirt the question it's a yellow flag, come back to it later. If they refuse to answer it it's a red flag. Remember business is a two way street, you have to be in business with someone you can do business with. If you guys can't talk plainly in the pitch meeting and have a good honest dialog, it will only get worse later.
#1 Rule for you, if you don't understand something in a financial product and your there pitching ASK!!!!
Don't worry about everybody else in the room, they probably had the same question.
#2 Rule for you, Your appearance is the 1st half of the pitch kit!!!
If you can wear a suit. If you can't dress nice. Most importantly, what every your wearing, it should be clean and ironed. That said, knowing what your talking about is more important than what kind of shirt your wearing. I have an associate who has pitched and closed multi-million dollar investments in his shorts and a Hawaiian shirt. He says a suit can sometimes make you look too desperate.
#3 Rule for you, Judge the type of meeting!!
If it's the first time your meeting face to face and your at a bar or restaurant, no suit unless you wear one as a part of your regular day.
If it's at an office of any kind wear at least a polo and nice shoes, clean slacks. If Lawyers are in the room and your signing anything that comes with a check, a suit makes it look good for the picture your gonna take.
If your a director producer you can get away with no suit. Producer Producer, get used to wearing nice clothes.
#4 Rule for you, ALWAYS BE EARLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
If your a producer on a film asking anybody for money, you had better be the first jamoke there. If your early it counts for your group, if your late, you instantly sink the groups entire business credibility, even if the investor is 5 minutes late, if your 6 minutes late it can be devastating. Yes there are exceptions to every rule, but do you really want to bank on that for getting a project funded?! Not worth it, leave early, on time is already late.
I, am in this for the prize. The big 2500+ theater domestic box office release.
That kind of thing is the hardest to do, the most intimidating and the biggest challenge. Most indie people try it once or twice in a ten year chunk and then stick to the, safer but doable, but still hard "make it then sell" model. For me, and this is not necessarily slamming anybody it's me being honest about my own intent. For me, I have to know how to and be able to execute a film into theaters. I must get a film from thought to theaters globally. Indie is great, but it's just not enough. When I see a great film, I want everyone to see it and have a chance to watch it.
That said:
"Fish Tank" is great indie film. People who love film should watch it. I love it, but I have seen Guardians of the Galaxy way more times then Fish Tank. I can relate to the characters struggle in Fish Tank a ton more than going into space and fighting intergalactic titans...but the second one is a way better escape.
All of the following is for above $3M closer to $10M dollar film
Money People: Usually know nothing about investing in film. They get excited, then they get intimidated buy the dollar amount and THEY DO NOT CALL YOU BACK TO SAY NO...they just all the sudden get busy in a strange way that becomes a "soft pass" and usually wastes 1 to 2 weeks of you time.
I realize some of this is a repeat of an earlier post, that's ok, this is how much this stuff happens.
If your asking for these high dollar amounts you should have some sort of investment vehicle to protect and grow the money while your not actually using it in addition to making a smaller amount get to an amount you need while your in development(ideally).
How do I do that? You fairly ask, and the answer is. Associate with high finance people, take classes about financial products, but your banker, use google. Start watching the finance channels even if you don't understand most of it. Start to pay attention and begin to wire your mind to consider how big money really moves.
My dad told me a secret about teaching yourself stuff that I have never forgot an it has worked for me. He had many year of a subscription to Car and Driver magazine and it would always be laying around the house and bathroom. You read them and you learn car stuff. Dad read them cover to cover, all the time. Asked mechanic, gear head friends of his before doing anything(playing dumb so they talk more) and then trying to apply the knowledge. Testing it out on things that made sense, like a junker that he was fixing to sell.
Same idea here, how does money work? Who knows the answer to that? Where do they hang out?
((Most important question)) How can I get into a position to ask questions that will get real answers?
Entertainment attorneys often are connected to a myriad of these things so it's a good place to start, be warned they don't usually give up the info unless your a client.
Here are some basic rules when dealing with these money folks, they seem to all have the same set of rules they operate on.
1st Rule of High Finance: "Play your cards close to your vest".
Just like anything, get the relationship first with the person then ask the questions that get real answers.
There are many many investment vehicles(products) that can work for film finance people just don't talk about them to non-industry people. Just like car mechanics don't normally tell the lady coming in for an oil change how adjustments in timing can effect your overall horsepower. Certainly not in detail.
So sometimes its for practical reasons they don't talk plainly about the products, other times they are just a paranoid group of folks. You will learn as I did, that every, single high finance person has been ripped off in there business. Just like the film industry, people steal, and take advantage of what the other guy doesn't know.
2nd Rule of High Finance: "Find the part they are leaving out."
If you think film people exaggerate, inflate, or overstate things Wallstreet has Hollywood beat.
Spend the day with a broker, trader, filling agent, or even the clerks for investment firms.
Strategy NOTE:
These guys have made an entire culture out of being 14 still. Most of these people are white, male, English speaking in their 40's+. Don't misjudge the exterior, the quickest way to piss these guys off is to threaten the reputation of their intelligence. Especially about their knowledge with money. So any threat to their ego can be an interesting dance. The next generation of these finance folks are starting to make headway with women and ethnic minorities fighting the good fight all around. If your talking to one of those minorities in the financial world they for sure have stories about the all white boys clubs from when they got started, and even today.
The part everybody leaves out of there financial product is where the risk is. They may have to say it for SEC regulation reasons, but they usually don't get into details unless you ask. So ask if they have answers that don't makes sense or they skirt the question it's a yellow flag, come back to it later. If they refuse to answer it it's a red flag. Remember business is a two way street, you have to be in business with someone you can do business with. If you guys can't talk plainly in the pitch meeting and have a good honest dialog, it will only get worse later.
#1 Rule for you, if you don't understand something in a financial product and your there pitching ASK!!!!
Don't worry about everybody else in the room, they probably had the same question.
#2 Rule for you, Your appearance is the 1st half of the pitch kit!!!
If you can wear a suit. If you can't dress nice. Most importantly, what every your wearing, it should be clean and ironed. That said, knowing what your talking about is more important than what kind of shirt your wearing. I have an associate who has pitched and closed multi-million dollar investments in his shorts and a Hawaiian shirt. He says a suit can sometimes make you look too desperate.
#3 Rule for you, Judge the type of meeting!!
If it's the first time your meeting face to face and your at a bar or restaurant, no suit unless you wear one as a part of your regular day.
If it's at an office of any kind wear at least a polo and nice shoes, clean slacks. If Lawyers are in the room and your signing anything that comes with a check, a suit makes it look good for the picture your gonna take.
If your a director producer you can get away with no suit. Producer Producer, get used to wearing nice clothes.
#4 Rule for you, ALWAYS BE EARLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
If your a producer on a film asking anybody for money, you had better be the first jamoke there. If your early it counts for your group, if your late, you instantly sink the groups entire business credibility, even if the investor is 5 minutes late, if your 6 minutes late it can be devastating. Yes there are exceptions to every rule, but do you really want to bank on that for getting a project funded?! Not worth it, leave early, on time is already late.
Wednesday is the new official post day.
Wednesday, tomorrow will be the official day for the posting of the weekly update on this blog.
This week it's going to be a review, critique concern about Game Of Thrones. It's a different take on it, not so much just hating Season#5 but really concerned about some things that are definite "Red Flags" for the series as a whole.
So this is an update on that, and I will add another post today that is about kind of what is going on producing wise for me right now. Again, this blog is about my journey through film as a producer. What works what doesn't and what this experience is all about from my perspective.
Best
~J
This week it's going to be a review, critique concern about Game Of Thrones. It's a different take on it, not so much just hating Season#5 but really concerned about some things that are definite "Red Flags" for the series as a whole.
So this is an update on that, and I will add another post today that is about kind of what is going on producing wise for me right now. Again, this blog is about my journey through film as a producer. What works what doesn't and what this experience is all about from my perspective.
Best
~J
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