The Next Chapter of Filmmaking

Introduction
(This is the first draft which I'll be writing and posting for my members on SubscibeStar. Please, consider subscribing if you're interested in the future of independent filmmaking.)

In 2014 I decided to write and direct my first feature film, The Quantum Terror. I had no money, no training beyond what I had learned from watching behind the scenes of other movies, and no idea of how I would get it out into the world if I could manage to finish it. Most people thought I was stupid or crazy and were eager to jump at the chance to point out every reason they thought I was being unrealistic. Aside from my wife and a select few friends, it was a chorus of “You can't, you can't, you can't.” 

Flash forward to the time I'm writing this and the movie is not only complete but streaming on multiple video-on-demand platforms, generating income, and has just won Best Indie Horror Movie from the prestigious independent film website Film Threat in their fifth annual award show called “Award This!” 

Although I'm going to be using The Quantum Terror as the central case study for this book, that particular story is only part of what I'll be writing about. We're here because my success as a first-time independent filmmaker is the beginning of something much bigger, not only for myself but anyone who is hoping to make a career out of arts and entertainment in the twenty-first century. I can tell you how I did it, how I'm planning to do it again, and how I think other people might do it in the future, but it will still be up to you as to how you're going to do it. Take what you learn here and evolve with it. 

As I write this, the mainstream movie industry is imploding, a disease of incompetence and narcissism is eating it from the inside out, losing money hand over fist, while the last of the truly creative individuals watch in stunned disbelief because they didn't believe it could ever happen. They're wondering now where they'll go to find work and continue to support their passion because they thought that the big studios would always be there to cut them their next check. 

You and I, however, won't have that problem. We saw the writing on the wall and have gone of to make our head start. We knew we had to pick up the tools their unions said we couldn't use, do it with less where everyone insists it has to be done with more, and so now where we are ready to tell the stories they proclaimed we shouldn't be allowed to tell while they spend more time trying to figure out who to blame for not coming to rescue them from the building they themselves set on fire. 

We're ready to build. We're ready to tell our stories and wow our audiences. We're ready to break new ground and spring up like phoenixes from the ashes. 

Okay, okay, that's all a bit melodramatic but it's true. The question is, how? We don't have big studio money. I'm here to tell you that's to our advantage. We don't have big-name actors. Don't worry, we can build up our own. We don't have access to... wait a minute. What's all of this talk about what we don't have? By the time we're done, you're going to realize that we have a lot more than you ever thought possible at our disposal. It's an embarrassment of riches in fact and all we need to make it work is perseverance, vision, and imagination. 

Is it going to be easy? Nothing worth doing ever is and if it was, everyone would be doing it and none of it would feel special. 

However, I can tell you that the first time someone reaches out and tells you that they enjoyed your movie or when you hear your movie's name called out as the winner, you'll feel all that hard work turn into some of the most positive emotions you'll ever know in your life. It'll be right up there with your wedding day and kids being born because those are the things that express why you feel such meaning when you pursue them. 

So, what are we going to be covering in this book? 

Hopefully, more than your average filmmaking book would do. This isn't about Hollywood filmmaking. This is about what the potential of filmmaking in an unprecedented time can be in your hands. I'll be talking about it on many levels from creative, spiritual, business, and practical perspectives. 

I'll tell you where to start with your idea, things to think about when writing your script, storyboards, and all of that per-production stuff. I'll talk about taking inventory of what you have to work with while not hurting yourself financially. There's bringing your cast and crew together and making sure that they have confidence in you and you have confidence in yourself, as you direct them. You may need locations or you may need to build sets. How do you shoot them? How to work with cameras! You may need to edit and do visual effects yourself, or even do your own sound mix. 

After you have a finished movie you need to get it out into the world so we'll talk about that, too, and yes, I'll even address getting that award in your hand for all of your efforts. Hey, awards aren't everything but they're not nothing, either. 

That's not all, though. There's something else. Culture is in flux right now, if you haven't noticed and if you manage to throw your hat in the entertainment ring, you're also going to be entering into the public contentiousness. You have to be ready to deal with what degree you may impact it for better or worse. If you're married, you'll have your family to think about. A work-life balance is important to keep healthy and you'll come across your challenges. 

You're going to lose friends, egos will be bruised, failures endured, and there will be times when you wonder if you'll ever get everything finished. 

Still want to do this? I thought so. I never turned away no matter how hard anyone tried to scare me off and that's good because you're also going to make new friends, do amazing things you never thought you'd be capable of, and become a better version of yourself than you were before. 

So, let's begin. 

Here is your starting point. It's right now.