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On the show today I’m talking with James Insalaco, who made his first feature, a comedy entitled Will Reading, on a shoestring budget over eighteen months. This is one of those DIY stories of a filmmaker putting together a self-funded project with available resources and friends as cast and crew. I think this is a great way to approach a first feature, recognizing that filmmaking is hard and it takes time to develop your voice and your skills. James discusses his festival experiences, his release on Amazon Prime, and his ultimate landing on YouTube. Most importantly, James took the experience gleaned from the release of his first movie to heart, and is carrying it into the making of his next feature. Which is what it’s all about, really.
Saylaco Films
Will Reading
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Today I’m talking with Jason Ragosta, who’s been working on a variety of projects at both an independent and industry level for over two decades. Most recently Jason contributed a short to Sinphony: A Clubhouse Horror Anthology. We touch on a lot of stuff here covering Jason’s rich and accomplished history, focused on his team’s experience promoting and distributing the horror anthology through film festivals and streaming platforms.
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Today I’m talking to Chris de Pretis, an East Bay filmmaker who made his first feature, Death Blood 4, on a shoestring budget, and is on the cusp of releasing his second. Chris’ approach was to use production of his first feature as a learning experience, as opposed to a bigger budget production with equity financing or crowdfunding tying him down to larger concerns. I love this approach to filmmaking as a way to build towards a sustainable career, keeping the stakes low while pushing forward with the long game. Chris brings great enthusiasm and transparency to his story here, we talk some real numbers, and get into some nice details about his promotional efforts, including an honest assessment of mistakes made and lessons learned. This is just one of those great, wide-ranging filmmaker conversations that I love on this show.
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In this interview, Jon Gustafsson tells the story of filming and releasing his documentary, Wrath of Gods. The film follows Icelandic/Canadian director Sturla Gunnarsson through the production of his ambitious historical adventure story, Beowulf & Grendel. Plagued by tempestuous Icelandic weather and unpredictable financing, the production survives by the skin of its teeth. Hired as an extra on the film, Jon was in prime position to document the struggles of the cast and crew, and especially a stoic and stalwart Gunnarsson, in the face of challenge after challenge. Then, what began as a BTS supplement to Beowulf & Grendel, gained a life of its own as a documentary in its own right in the spirit of Burden of Dreams or Lost in La Mancha. Jon takes us through the journey of making and distributing the film, with insight into the filmmaking process on many levels.
Wrath of Gods
Artio Films
Iceland Gone Wild
jongustafsson.com
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UK-based filmmaker Richard Mansfield has been making micro-budget horror features for some two decades. After a few early experiences with more or less traditional distribution, Richard turned to self-distribution for the rest of his movies. He’s now up to 14 of them, and still going strong. Richard’s experience is a case study in ultra low budget filmmaking, with self-financed budgets at a level that present very little personal risk, and yet allow him to continue making these films indefinitely. Although this isn’t the way I’ve chosen to go about it with my narrative feature, I absolutely love and admire this way of making movies. Richard’s passion for what he does with these films shines through in this interview.
YouTube - Mansfield Dark Horror
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Tubi
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Today I’m talking with Peter Hitchcock about making and distributing his feature film, A Song For Us. Peter, a UK native now living in Toronto, boasts a full and successful career working a variety of jobs in film and TV, but A Song For Us represents the fulfillment of a lifelong dream to make a feature film. The pleasantly understated and heartwarming narrative follows a 60s hippie as she reconnects with a former lover from the era. Peter’s experience self-releasing the film through FilmHub touches upon the realities of distribution today in the face of over-saturated streaming platforms and social media promotion; but also upon the joy of filmmaking for its own sake, telling the story you want to tell, and the satisfaction of touching audiences however and wherever they find your film.
A Song For Us
Trailer
Peter On Facebook
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Allen C. Gardner has been making feature films since high school. Now in his early 40s, married with three kids to support, Allen is facing some decisions about how to make his lifelong obsession a bit more sustainable, but that’s not stopping him from charging forward. He has so many feature films to his name I couldn’t keep track of them all in the interview. What strikes me about talking with Allen is how he keeps forging ahead, undeterred by market realities or really much of anything else. His even temperament, unfettered enthusiasm, and dogged determination to keep making movies in the face of changing circumstances seems to me like not only a model for success but a well-earned reward in its own right.
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On today's episode I’m talking with Lisa Downs about her experiences distributing several documentary features which she collectively calls the “Life After” series. Each documentary catches up with the actor who played the lead character of an iconic movie, giving us a look at the paths their lives followed after such a unique and transformative experience. Lisa has put out two of these movies so far, is about to release a third, and is currently crowdfunding for a fourth and fifth. With the first film in the series Lisa had some disappointing distribution experiences, which led to a decision to take the reins and self-distribute the subsequent films. There’s a lot to take away here from Lisa’s journey, especially applicable to filmmakers looking to play the long game and build a fan base for their work.
Life After Movies
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Steve Rudzinski has carved out an impressive career for himself making and distributing a wide variety of indie films. Along the way Steve leaned heavily on horror conventions to sell his movies and build a strong and loyal fan base. Through his scrappy efforts, Steve managed to get to a place where he rejects traditional distribution options in favor of releasing his films himself, and, even more impressively, actually manages to make a living from it. This is a great lesson in career-building for the truly independent filmmaker.
Silver Spotlight Flims
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I’m so excited to bring you this one today … it’s a long one, but I promise it’s worth it. Mark Stolaroff has been making films for over three decades, and in that time he’s seen the state of the industry and independent film distribution go through so many changes. I think that history is very important for filmmakers today to understand, because it kind of sets the stage for where distribution stands today, and indeed where it might lead in the future. While Mark admits openly that he hasn’t yet cracked the nut of making money off his films in a sustainable way, it’s clear from this interview that he has the drive and passion to keep at it regardless. In our chat, Mark compares indie films to prescription medicine, but I’m not gonna spoil that one for you, you’ll have to give the episode a listen. So settle in for a great discussion here, my conversation with Mark Stolaroff.
markstolaroff.com
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Today I’ve got an interesting one for you, kind of breaking the formula of the show a little bit, which is normally talking to filmmakers about their distribution experiences. But in this case we’re going to spread our wings a bit and talk about film festivals … which for many filmmakers is indeed a very important part of the early distribution experience. Rebekah Louisa Smith is a film festival strategist, someone filmmakers might hire to help them navigate the very complicated and very competitive film festival circuit with their film. Rebekah has so much great advice to offer here for filmmakers looking to get a leg up on their festival strategy, if this is on your radar you’ll want to give this one a close listen.
thefilmfestivaldoctor.com
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My guest today is Samuel Calvin Morrison, an independent filmmaker based in Philly, talking about his distribution experiences with his first self-driven feature film, By Deception, and how that informed his later experiences. Sam takes us through the story of making and releasing the film, including some less-than-optimal experience with a -- dare I say it -- predatory distributor. But ultimately Sam was able to turn all that into a valuable learning experience, which he took into making his next projects after that. Sam talks with lots of honesty and transparency here, delivering a story that serves as both a cautionary tale and a demonstration of carrying difficult experiences forward with positivity and a spirit of learning, so important for independent filmmakers working toward the long term today. There’s a lot to glean here for filmmakers facing their own distribution decision, you’ll want to give this one a good, close listen.
Deck of Cards Media
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Today I’m talking with filmmaker Clinton Cornwell about many, many things. Clinton has been making films for many years now, starting out with several shorts and then working toward his first feature, 12 Months, a completely improvised narrative following the ups and downs of a couple over twelve months of their relationship. 12 Months is now on the cusp of its release. In our conversation Clinton and I cover a wide range of topics, centered on his experience making and releasing 12 Months but more broadly focusing on the life of the independent filmmaker in today’s world. Clinton offers a wealth of honest thought, opinion, and experience and isn’t afraid to open up and share the ups and downs of his journey.
12 Months
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My guest today is stand-up comedian and filmmaker Zack Lyman, talking about filming and releasing his two stand-up comedy shows, The Big Laugh and Zen Comedy, through FilmHub. And while we mostly focus on feature filmmakers on this podcast, the efforts and strategies Zack put in to release and promote these shows is remarkably similar. Zack and I talk about the pros and cons of FilmHub as a platform, the notion of building a career through multiple projects, and some noteworthy technical considerations filmmakers need to take into account upon delivery. In the middle of the interview, our talk takes a little twist in that Zack asks me what I’ve learned in doing this podcast - now that I’m into thirty plus episodes - I give it a shot, but there’s a lot to learn and it’s not always decisive and clear-cut, but you get my take on it all in a little spiel that I hope makes some sense. Anyway, this is a great conversation mostly focused on Zack experiences, which is what it should be, there’s a lot to take away here especially for those filmmakers looking to FilmHub for their release.
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On this episode I’m talking with Chris Maes about releasing his sci-fi movie, Hemisphere, which was shot mostly in his basement during the COVID-19 lockdown, and is now available on Amazon, Google Play and Tubi. What Chris accomplished here is a great lesson in DIY filmmaking, where Chris conceived the movie totally based on the resources available at the time: a basement he could build a set in, a relatively simple character-based premise, and a small cast and crew. I guess the only exception to that rule was that his movie is actually set in space … on a space station. But Chris made it work with some clever production design. Chris eventually signed with Indie Rights to distribute his film, but along the way he did some good hard research into his options. In our chat, Chris talks very openly about his decision-making process and the various pros and cons he considered. Although the jury is still out on the ultimate financial success of the film, there’s still a lot to glean here for filmmakers pondering similar decisions.
Hemisphere on Amazon
Hemisphere on Tubi
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On this episode I’m talking with Cort Howell, who, along with his brother Stark, decided to self-distribute their film Mayberry Man after a less-than-optimal experience with a distributor on his previous film. Cort Howell has sage advice for any independent filmmaker seeking to navigate that line between finding a traditional distributor - whatever that means in this day and age - and self distribution. Cort takes us through the entire process of making and distributing Mayberry Man, including a highly successful crowdfunding campaign to finance the film, the community-supported production, and his experiences with DVD sales, theatrical showings, and streaming, ultimately capped off by a more traditional deal from a faith-based distributor.
Mayberry Man
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Cort Howell
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On this episode I’m talking with the highly prolific Omegia Keeys. Omegia has built an amazing career for herself, self-financing and distributing nine features over the past decade, and still going strong. In our conversation, Omegia leads us through her distribution experiences, most of which have actually resulted in recouping her production costs, allowing for a sustainable pattern for film after film after film. Omegia takes us through her strategic approach to promotion, her reactions to a rapidly changing industry, and some well-researched and informed decisions made along the way. This is another one of those conversations that I just love, where filmmakers are totally open and honest about their process and results.
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Fractured
About Face Media
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On this episode I’m talking with Gary Smith about his first feature SkyFly, a sports comedy about a group of skydivers who face off with another group of skydivers in a battle for supremacy in the sport of roller hockey. Yep, lots of adventures and hijinks in this one. This episode is a little different from most of my past episodes in that Gary hasn’t yet put his movie out there, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have a ton of sage advice to offer. It’s evident in our conversation that Gary has done a great deal of research into his distribution strategy, and has put a lot of careful thought into his marketing and promotional plans for the film. I love the idea of doing interviews like this because I can look forward to having Gary back on the show in a year, or eighteen months down the road, and see how these plans all worked out for him. Don’t let this forward-looking interview keep you from listening to this one, Gary is very well-informed and has lots of good insights into the world of the indie distribution today.
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SkyFly
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Today I’m talking with Paul Osborne, who’s been making and distributing his films since the late 2000s and still going strong today. Paul has so many great stories to tell here, with a really wide variety of distribution experiences that span so many of the changes the industry has gone through over the past two decades. One of those films includes his documentary about the realities of the film festival circuit called Official Rejection, and we get some great stories about playing that movie about the festival circuit on the festival circuit. Paul brings such a wealth of experience to bear in this conversation, from self-distributing theatrical to experiences on the festival circuit to DVD releases and streaming platforms … it’s a long one but I promise you it’s worth.
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Cruel Hearts
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On this episode I’m talking with Calvin McArthy of Seventh Street Productions. Over the past decade, Calvin and his team have made six low-budget horror features, and still going strong. Calvin takes us through his filmmaking journey, starting out with his roots as an actor, then shifting to behind the camera with shorts and a horror anthology feature. A few films later Calvin formed a relationship with Breaking Glass Pictures, a Philadelphia-based distributor, who continues to put out Calvin’s films to this day with mockbuster titles such as Conjuring: The Beyond, and his latest, Insidious Inferno. Calvin and I discuss a number of topics relevant to filmmakers wrestling with distribution strategies today, including common pitfalls and what to look for when signing a favorable distribution deal.
Seventh Street Productions
Breaking Glass Pictures
Insidious Inferno
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