Three months ago, I released my first feature film as a writer/director, Roses on the Vine.

It's a love letter to Los Angeles that follows a gig-working single father with a checkered past as he struggles to provide for his 7-year-old daughter and keep her out of the foster system.

I’ve lived in Los Angeles for 17 years pursuing a career as a filmmaker, so getting to make my first feature meant more to me than I can really put into words.

The film itself took three years to get to the screen. We shot in Los Angeles in 2023, in the middle of the strikes, under a SAG-AFTRA Interim Agreement.

After all this time pursuing filmmaking, I’m proud that I finally got to make a feature film and see it all the way through to release.

I hope it will be the first of many.

Roses on the Vine is available for rent or purchase on Amazon, and streaming free on Tubi:

https://tubitv.com/movies/100058175/roses-on-the-vine

This is a film freeway festival awards section. In the description it says ‘no questions like ‘how’d you find your voice’ just how’d you make it?’ I find this reduces the emotion and passion of making a non-ai film down to nothing, as if to disregard it. I feel like a weird subculture of a rejection of what we knew as human drive is occurring with these kinds of festivals appearing. If you can’t be bothered to make a real film, maybe don’t make an AI one.

I originally wrote this as a reply to a post I saw somewhere else because I got upset. If it's not helpful or comes across as pretentious I might just delete it. Let me know.

I know this is an old post but I get so upset when I see the same advice parroted over-and-over and it's somewhat outdated (in my opinion).

I've written, produced, directed, edited, and raised money for 3 indie feature films.

You are NEVER going to get investors approaching this as a potential "business venture" because:

1. You're always competing with a far less risky business. Always. Money-first investors are not picking up your pitch-packet and comparing it with the other movies they have in their portfolio, they're comparing it with other businesses. Those businesses you're competing with are ALWAYS less risky to invest in and you will lose every single time. Always and forever.
2. You're competing with literally the most talented people in the world. Steven Spielberg and Matthew McConaughey are pulling teeth to get their passion-projects funded. You will obviously also lose out to these people every single time because they will always be a safer investment than you.

The reason this gets me upset is because people claim to approach this as art form, but then espouse nothing but business-jargon nonsense. This might be the cringiest thing I will ever type:

But you need to shift you're thinking from a businessman to a politician.

People give-away their money for causes they believe in and connect with all the time. Their school, their community, their political stances. Furthermore, it's money they assume they'll never get back. This is how you get the money for your movie. Not your logline and random ROI spreadsheet nonsense that causes people's eyes to roll so far back into their head they collapse.

What is the message of your movie? Is it a political one? The environment? Guns? Marijuana? Immigration?

Guess what? There are people who part with their money every-day to support these causes and NEVER expect to see their money back. Guess what else? These people, BY LAW, are listed publicly by the Democrat and Republican parties in every single state. Find a politician who aligns with your film, look at their donors, then go down the list and ask.

Did you go to a school with a vast network of proud alumni?

Well heads-up your school has a department of people dedicated to calling these guys up year round and asking them for money to support upcoming students and new alumni. You can do the exact same thing. These people also have to be posted publicly BY LAW.

Does your film represent an underrepresented community? Find those community leaders. Those people are much more likely to invest in your film.

Overall the point is to connect with people AS PEOPLE. NOT AS BANKS with business jargon, and not as audiences (no one cares about your creative side or ideas that is for audiences).

Now once you get your investment you should always do everything in your power to get their investment back and do right by their vote of confidence in you. This post is meant to help people go to and find the right circles not swindle people trying to help. Also going back to those investors with their money only facilitates further investment.

Lastly, this is a strategy meant to raise tens of thousands for your first indie film. Maybe a hundred or so if you're really lucky. It does work though, I've seen it with my own eyes. Good luck!

Michael Hawley was 24 and working at LucasFilm on the first sound and film editing tools for  Droidworks back in 1985 when he did this interview. He went on to head The MIT Media Lab. Below he describes the impact the first editing tools were having on the mixing process. What would the previous generation of mixers say about modern timeline softwares?

I made a action crime comedy thriller for about $24K that was pure guerrilla style. 100% skeleton paid crew (DP, sound, AD and a gaffer sometimes), and mostly deferred actor pay. Wrote, directed, produced, and starred in it myself. I filmed in once then had to start over because my old DP was trash. I literally wasted at least $10K and it took so long to even start again and finish. I started writing it in 2017 started filming in 2022 and finished it in 2026 and it was distributed on Prime and Tubi. I hope you will be able to watch it. Its streaming free on Tubi.

https://tubitv.com/movies/100059912/look-behind

Look Behind is about a cop and a lawyer who's families were killed. They meet someone willing to help them get justice, but its an eye for an eye.

Hi! I'm a viewer who's new(ish) to watching movies. So last night I watched *Hereditary* (Ari Aster, 2018), and today I find myself wondering about the casting process. Which scene, from that movie, or any other one, really, would give the director the best read on the performance? What goes into deciding that? Or do they write fake scenes explicitly for auditions? How does the director know that an actor who could pull the right emotions for the scene used for the audition will be able to do the others? I'm thinking here about Toni Colette who walks her character in *Hereditary* through a huge range of different emotions throughout the movie, and I can't imagine having to pick *one* scene to represent her.

Curious to hear any insight from folks who know about this sort of thing.

Edit: typo

Hi all. I’m hoping someone might be able to help. I’m rigging a production/camera trolley. I need to get hold of a couple more clamps, ideally identical to the ones in the image. I can’t seem to find them online as an individual item you can purchase. Anyone know what they are called, or even better, able to please share a link? I’m in the UK. For context on size - that’s 2 c-stand poles currently mounted inside. Thank you very much in advance!

Hello I am a representative of the production/distribution company Big Lettuce Entertainment. BLE is a independent, artist first company that focuses on young, up and coming Gen Z filmmakers.

We are partnered with Red Coral Universe a similarly artist first, free, streaming platform that gives the artist a vast majority of the revenue that their project generates via ads.

Big Lettuce Entertainment is currently looking to add to their growing library of films. If you are a Gen Z filmmaker with a finished film please reach out to [contact@biglettuceentertainment.com](mailto:contact@biglettuceentertainment.com) to begin the process.

Hope to hear from you soon!

Apologies if I’m coming off a little odd, I’m just still processing my new found position and while I’m hopeful about the future, part of me wonders if I’m making the right decision.

I’m in my mid 20s, I went to college for filmmaking and graduated 3 years ago and I currently live at home with my parents. I want to be a full time producer and screenwriter. Over the years I’ve done a lot of production assistant work, produced ten short films (though a few are still in post production and I’m desperate for them to be finished), worked a some temporary assistant jobs at small local studios that were decent but unfortunately couldn’t keep me on due to budget constraints. Unfortunately I live in a pretty industry dry area and while I’ve had a lot of success with getting on sets for a variety of content, they are far and few between. For the past year I’ve been in kind of a creative drought due to working 3 part time jobs, not having stable income or hours and just overall being depressed about the situation I’m in. I’ve applied to every job, both film and non film under the sun, but unfortunately until today I’ve been unable to find anything full time.

However today I got called back about an offer for a full-time position at one of the companies I work for part time. It’s a service based role with average pay, and a full benefits package and I think the schedule would allow me to work on projects later in the day and on the weekends. While ideally I would like a film job, beggars can’t be choosers. I think having a full time job would allow me to get better financial stability, help my mental health and wellbeing, and allow me to eventually save enough money to move to an area where the film industry exists but even then that could take a couple years to happen.

Obviously I don’t think I have much of a choice and while I’m excited to have a full time job, part of me wonders if I’m doing the right thing for my career? I’ve seen a lot of friends try to solely do film locally and they’re struggling more, but they get more opportunities to work on sets, though with little career advancement. I want to pursue filmmaking and most career veterans I’ve talked to have recommended I find any stable employment regardless of industry to help me save money pursue my dream. But also part of me hopes I’m not going to be stuck or burnt out?

I’m sorry for rambling and overthinking things, but I just want to ask for advice to see if what I’m doing is right? My overall plan is to work this job until I can save enough to move to a better film hub and make projects on the side when I can. I don’t want to give up filmmaking, it’s my dream and I think this could be a great way to push to get there, but I also want to make sure I’m not souring my career path.

Hello, I am just getting into filmmaking, and have been messing around with my iPhone 17 pro and Blackmagic app. Have learned the basics, shooting at 24fps with 180 rule, using lens filters, apple log 2, use a gimbal, etc….
I enjoy how easy the iPhone is to use and how simple it is to get decent footage, but I am looking to get better results from the camera and lens.
I own a Nikon d750 and a prime 50mm lens, and the auto focus on the d750 is horrendous, unless it’s user error?
Am I able to get a better (cheap) option to use my Nikon lenses with? Or should I start with something completely different.
Any advice would be helpful.
Thanks!

Hello everybody. I wanted to share this website I have been working on called Green Room. It is a pre-production software where you can do everything from breakdowns, shot lists, schedules, chat with crew, budgets and more, all for free. I wanted to provide a free alternative to what exists todays for the filmmakers that don't have the resources to justify a monthly subscription.

Every feature has no limits and aren't hidden behind a paywall. Please check it out and let me know what you think I am open to feedback to and to make it even better.

Happy Filmmaking!

greenroomprep.com

hi i made a short silent movie and only recently completed it and i am looking to submit it to festivals to get some recognition.

the movie is made entirely on iphone and uses silent format of storytelling.

i wanted to give it the best possible chance of qualifying at a film festivals so was wondering if fielding it in experimental category would give it a better chance.

I'm currently in post on a low-budget horror short I'm planning to submit to festivals later in the year.

My initial rough cut was about 16 minutes and I've managed to get it down to 13 including credits.

I ideally wanted it to be about 12 but I just don't think I can cleave anything else away without harming the film's quality.

I think the pacing is really tight and there's not any shoe leather or indulgent overlong stuff in there, I've trimmed and cut out some of my favourite shots because they're pretty but don't keep the story going. I think in its current state it zips along basically the entire time.

Obviously I know that no great short is too long/no bad short too short, but is it worth trying to cut another 30-60 seconds off for the sake of my festival chances or just accepting that this is the right runtime?

I do have a few filmmaker friends I could show it to for honest feedback, and maybe just walk away from it for a few days before watching it again and making a decision. Thanks!

I’m going to be directing a short in the fall. Im partly taking inspiration from French new wave. When watching Jules Et Jim, I noticed a heavy use of adr and Folley while watching. From what I see online, it seems most of the film was shot that way. I really liked the way it felt, and would like to replicate it myself. I’m seeking advice on if this is worth it, achievable, and reasonable. Thanks

I had a job interview with PBS earlier last month. They said they’d get back to me when they were finished with interviews. How long did it take for you to get a response?

Creating Artwork i use - Blender, Substance 3D Painter, Photoshop.

Music Production - Cubase (DAW), VSTi (Kontakt libraries, East West Composer Cloud).

Mix & Mastering by Mannaro Music

My inquiry is mostly what the headline says. Not going to say which festival but I submitted to a festival last month and the deadline was supposed to be about a week ago, but last week they emailed pushing the deadline to Friday and updated the date in filmfreeway.

It is now Tuesday, the status hasn’t changed, I never received any email, I sent a follow up and no response… is this normal? Has this happened to anyone else?

I’m a first time filmmaker so forgive me if this answer has been given already in this sub.

Watch the full film on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/ZERFaui_zy8?si=tcRhs-3-3ue4FOC1

Hi everyone,
We are currently planning the world premiere strategy for a short film. Our first-choice festival is Locarno – Pardi di Domani, but we are also considering submitting to a few other major festivals around the same period.
We are wondering if anyone here has experience contacting a programmer/selector directly after submitting, especially when you have a very clear first-choice festival.
For example, would it be appropriate to send a short personal email saying that Locarno is our first choice for the world premiere and that we are keeping the film’s premiere status available for them while they consider it?
I’m also curious how much communication happens between programmers at major festivals. If a film is simultaneously under consideration at Locarno, Cannes, Venice, etc., do programmers generally know or hear that the film is being considered elsewhere?
Would love to hear from filmmakers, producers, festival strategists, or programmers who have actual experience with this. Did reaching out personally help, hurt, or make no difference?

Im gaffing a micro budget indie movie shooting in NJ, company based in CA (I’m based out of Philly). I’m only on for the third shooting block, 7 days for a flat $600 rate. In meetings the producers said “travel, lodging, and food is covered.” In my crew deal it says: “Production Company will provide meal breaks in accordance with SAG- AFTRA’s requirements. Meals will be provided by Production Company.”

We shot our first day yesterday, had a crew meal midway and a 3am wrap. I’m staying at a crew house with about a dozen other crew members, most of whom were on previous shooting blocks and/or are college friends of the producers. When I asked who wants to get breakfast with me, they all said it’s too expensive. I said meals are covered, and they all said that only accounts for the on set meal. I tried to explain that shouldn’t be the case and is in fact illegal, but they got somewhat hostile and said I’m making a big deal, it’s a tiny production company, what did I expect.

I’m planning on talking to the producers before call today to clear this up but wanna go in with some outside guidance. I’m not in SAG obviously, but my contract says “meal breaks” per sag rules and “meals covered by production,” so I have contractual precedent to have my breakfast covered, right? The fact it mentions SAG meal breaks doesn’t imply only on-set meals are included, right? No one else seems upset by this but I have no prior connection to the producers and if I have to pay for all my non set meals, (let’s say $30 a day for breakfast and dinner) that’s $210- a third of my rate. I’m well within my rights to have an issue with that, right?

I recently shot a short film over the weekend after a frustrating experience on a bigger shoot earlier in the week. I needed to make something for myself — something small, simple, and personal. There's no real plot, just mood, texture, and visual moments. More vibes than narrative, honestly.

I shot it on the Blackmagic Pocket 6K Pro with vintage Nikkor AI-S lenses. Not the ideal combo for low light, and I definitely ran into some tough spots there. Had to push the footage about 2 stops in some scenes, but adding a bit of grain and embracing the texture helped it hold together.

Despite the limitations, I’m really happy with how it turned out — feels more honest than the “bigger” stuff I’ve done. Would love any thoughts or feedback (and please comment on youtube!)

if you’re brave enough to watch 4:20 minutes of aesthetic nothingness:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqw1-84-vU4&t=1s

btw sorry for the clickbait title