Indie Film Hustle® Podcast: Filmmaking | Screenwriting | Cinematography | Film School | Film Production | Independent Film

After months of the IFH Tribe asking me, I finally finished the audiobook version of Shooting for the Mob. It was a tough project to finish but I knew I had to get it to you guys. As a gift for being so patient, I am releasing four chapters of the book for FREE for your listening pleasure. If you are unfamiliar with the story of Shooting for the Mob read below.A bipolar gangster, a naive, young film director, and Batman. What could go wrong? Alex Ferrari is a first-time film director who just got hired to direct a $20 million feature film, the only problem is the film is about Jimmy, an egomaniacal gangster who wants the film to be about his life in the mob. From the backwater towns of Louisiana to the Hollywood Hills, Alex is taken on a crazy misadventure through the world of the mafia and Hollywood. Huge movie stars, billion-dollar producers, studio heads and, of course, a few gangsters, populate this unbelievable journey down the rabbit hole of chasing your dream. Would you sell your soul to the devil to m

I've been working on this for a long time guys and here it is. The Make Your Movie Bootcamp! I wanted to bring my 25+ years of experience to a live Bootcamp experience. This Two-Day Bootcamp will be held March 28-29, 2020 in Burbank, CA at the Hilton Garden Suites in Downtown Burbank.Who is the Make Your Movie Bootcamp for?A filmmaker wanting to make the leap to making their first feature filmAn established filmmaker who wants to learn the "Dark Arts" of micro-budget filmmakingScreenwriters who want to finally produce that screenplay that has been sitting on their desktopAny filmmaker who wants to learn how to generate revenue with their feature film or video contentHere are some of the things you will learn at the Make Your Movie Bootcamp>> Ideas:Learn how to flesh out your ideas into a marketable film project.>> Screenwriting Process:We go over the basics of screenwriting and discuss alternative methods of writing like scriptments and improv.>> Finding Money:Alternate ways to raise money for your film.>> Di

Today guest is the legendary writer and educator Judith Weston. Her book Directing Actors: Creating Memorable Performances for Film & TelevisionandThe Film Director's Intuition: Script Analysis and Rehearsal Techniques is a must-read for any film director.Judith consults one-on-one with directors and writer-directors of film and television as they prepare to bring their projects to life. Some of her students include Alejandro Iñárritu, director of The Revenant, Academy Award winner for Best Director, and Birdman, Academy Award winner for Best Picture and Best Director; Ava DuVernay, nominated for 16 Emmys and six Critics Choice Awards, and Selma, nominated for Best Picture Oscar; Steve McQueen, director of Best Picture Academy Award winner12 Years a Slave; Taika Waititi, writer-director of Jojo Rabbit, Thor Ragnarok, Hunt for the Wilderpeople and many more.Literally thousands of film and television directors, screenwriters, writer-directors, and actors around the world have attended Judith's workshops or

I can't believe another year has gone by. 2019 was one for the record books. So many things happened to me and to the IFH Tribe this year. In this episode, I breakdown this past year IFH style and also give you a large dose of TOUGH LOVE to get you revved up for 2020.Don’t wake up Dec 31, 2020, and say"Damn I just lost another year."Don’t let anything stop you from making your dream come true. Don’t let people tell you you can’t do it. People told me I was crazy for jumping into this business. Be smart, educate yourself as much as humanly possible and go for it. Don’t be that angry and bitter filmmaker. Don’t wake up when you are 70 and wished you would’ve taken a shot and your dream. Why haven’t you taken the steps needed to make your dream come true? Let 2020 be the YEAR OF THE FILMTREPRENEUR. Take the power back. Take control of your own destiny and make it happen for yourself.I also go over what to expect from all the companies from IFH Industries. IFH, IFHTV, Bulletproof Screenwriting, and Filmtrepreneur

Today on the show we have minimalist filmmaking guru Matt D'Avella. I had the pleasure of being on Matt's podcast The GroundUp Show back in 2017 when he was still a young and up and coming podcaster.One day I turned around and saw that Matt had built a following of over 2 million followers on Youtube. It was official, he was a Youtube star.  Matt was able to build this business using his filmmaking toolbox. Before his Youtube fame, he directed an amazing documentary called Minimalism. That film went onto to run on Netflix and was sold around the world.Matt and I discuss his filmmaking, building and marketing his Youtube channel and what it's like being a minimalist filmmaker. Enjoy my minimal but EPIC conversation with Matt D'Avella.

I'm here to finally put to rest one of the greatest cinematic arguments of all time, is Die Hard a Christmas movie? I thought I'd tackle this epic question with my good friend Stephen Follows. In this Special Christmas Edition of the Indie Film Hustle Podcast Stephen and I use data to finally put this debate to rest.I believe without a shadow of a doubt that Die Hard is the greatest Christmas movie of all time. Stephen is not so sure so we go to the data to find out. Stephen wrote an EPIC article about this a while ago where he does what only Stephen does. Below are some of the graphs he created for his dissection of this issue.From google trends to actual frames from the film that we see actual Christmas references. We leave no stone unturned in this debate. I promise you after this episode you will be armed to debate and film nerd at the next Christmas party. I wanted to create a fun episode for all the film geeks out there.Enjoy my ridiculous and entertaining conversation with Stephen Follows. And don't fo

Well, it's that time of year again when filmmakers around the world get that dreaded rejection letter from the Sundance Film Festival. Did you read that, 14,200 submissions? Getting into Sundance is a lottery ticket for sure but it isn't as important as it used to be. Here's what Mark Duplass wrote about it:Annual Sundance Film Festival rejection reminder: Sundance is awesome, but Sundance is not everything. So many incredible films don't make the cut. Don't let it get you down. If you believe in your film, keep pushing forward. There are so many new ways to get it there. Good luck! - Mark DuplassMy indie films have played in over 500 international film festivals around the world and it has been a great experience and I've even been to a few big festivals like Raindance and Cinequest. I've also been rejected by EVERY major film festival in the world. SXSW, Berlin, Cannes, Toronto, AFI and the list goes on.Film festivals are great. I loved them so much my recent film, which got that Sundance rejection email,  

The streaming wars have their first casualties and of course, it is indie filmmakers. Amazon announces that they would drop their already low per hour streaming rate from .06¢ to .01¢ in North America. When this news hit the indie film world went nuts. Why would Amazon punish creators like this?Well, there's good news and bad news. The bad news is Amazon dropped their per hour streaming rate from .06¢ to .01¢ but the good news is they raise the maximum possible rate to .12¢ per hour. Check out the chart belowAmazon did this to weed out all the low-quality content that is uploaded tot he platform. The higher quality content will be rewarded while the lower is punished. This is the way Amazon wants to proceed. As I stated in my book Rise of the Filmtrepreneur®: How to Turn Your Indie Film into a Moneymaking Business, "If you play in someone else's sandbox you need to play by their rules."This is why it's more important than ever to control your own revenue streams. In this episode,​ I go into detail on why Amaz

The day is finally here. My new book Rise of the Filmtrepreneur®: How to Turn Your Indie Film into a Moneymaking Business is finally out. I'm so excited to share this with you, the IFH Tribe. I've been working for months to make this happen. I wanted to give you a sneak peek at the book so in this episode, I'll be releasing the first two chapters of the audiobook for your listening pleasure. These two chapters set the tone for the book. In the episode, I even show you a way to download the entire book for free.Here's a bit of what Rise of the Filmtrepreneur has to offer:It’s harder today than ever before for independent filmmakers to make money with their films. From predatory film distributors ripping them off to huckster film aggregators who prey upon them, the odds are stacked against the indie filmmaker. The old distribution model for making money with indie film is broken and there needs to be a change. The future of independent filmmaking is the entrepreneurial filmmaker or the Filmtrepreneur®. In Rise

Today's episode is a big one guys. You need to brace yourself. The film marketplace is going through a major shift. It is as big as when we went from Black and white films to color or adding sound to movies. Movies industry is changing from a product-based business (DVDs, Blu-Rays) to a service-based business (streaming services). Spotify and other music streaming services have devalued music down to basically worthless. What used to cost you $17.99 for one album of 1 or 2 hits and a bunch of songs you didn’t want now cost fractions of a penny from your monthly membership.On Spotify, an artist needs around 337,000 plays to earn $1472 a month (the monthly minimum wage. Amazon Prime pays .6¢ per hour viewed. Streaming platforms are paying less and less and the indie budget seems to be going up and up. This business model is not sustainable.Companies like Disney, Amazon, and Apple have a business model that will ensure their survival in the new film economy. Because their main business is not making movies. They

I know the title of this show is bold but in the course of this podcast I will explain what I see happening in the traditional film distribution model. My trip to this year to the American Film Market was extremely educational. I met some amazing people, industry insiders, and tribe members. I did, however, spoke to many film distributors and sales agents and discover a truth that I had suspected for a long time now, traditional film distribution is dying.Film distributors are having as hard of a time trying to generate revenue with their film libraries as filmmakers are getting their films sold. The world is changing. Many filmmakers are producing films for the 90’s and early 2000’s marketplace. Both filmmakers and distributors have little or no understanding of what today’s customer wants or how to get it to them while still making money.In this episode I discuss:• The DVD/Home Video Crash• The Streaming Wars• AVOD• How film distributors are becoming more predatory out of desperation• The world of data/nich

Today on the show we have the legendary indie film champion, Chris Gore. Chris is the founder of Film Threat, a magazine that's mission is to champion indie filmmakers while giving the middle finger to the Hollywood establishment. In this episode, Chris and I speak about the glorious 90's indie film scene, his time being a part of the geek channel G4, his new documentary Attack of the Doc and the state of indie film today.I've been a fan of Chris' for years. I even ran into him on my first trip to Sundance back in 2005. Chris also wrote the guerrilla guide to marketing and selling an indie film, Chris Gore's Ultimate Film Festival Survival Guide, 4th edition: The Essential Companion for Filmmakers and Festival-Goers.If you love indie films then you will love this episode. Enjoy my conversation with Chris Gore.

Today on the show we have Jonathan Wolf, the managing director of the American Film Market or AFM as it's known. The AFM has gone through many changes over the years. In recent years the world of film distribution has been turned upside down and AFM has been changing along with it. I have the honor to be moderating a panel on Micro-Budget Filmmaking at this year's AFM. The times they are a-changing​. I sit down at talk Netflix, streaming, OTT, self-distribution and how you can screen your film to hundreds of potential buyers at the AFM.Jonathan Wolf is Executive Vice President of the Independent Film & Television Alliance (IFTA®) and Managing Director of the American Film Market® (AFM®). The Independent Film & Television Alliance is the global trade association of independent producers and distributors of motion picture and television programming. Headquartered in Los Angeles, the organization represents and provides significant entertainment industry services to 125 member companies from 20 countries

Today on the show we have filmmaker Cody Meirick. Cody is the director of the documentary Scary Stories, based on the wildly popular book series Scary Stories To Tell in the Dark. We discuss how he leveraged an underserved niche audience, how he piggy-backed off the major studio release of the narrative version and how he was able to get access to the key players in this niche.Enjoy my "scary" conversation with Cody Meirick.

Today on the show we have returning champion Stephen Follows. In this Halloween themed episode, we dive into Stephen's opus, The Horror Report. The report was created by using data on every horror film ever made, a data-driven dive into everything from development, production, and distribution to recoupment and profitability.Stephen Follows is an established data researcher in the film industry whose work has been featured in the New York Times, The Times, The Telegraph, The Guardian, The Daily Mail, The Mirror, The Evening Standard, Newsweek, The News Statesman, AV Club, and Indiewire.He acted as an industry consultant and guest on the BBC Radio 4 series The Business of Film, which was topped the iTunes podcast chart, and has consulted for a wide variety of clients, including the Smithsonian in Washington. He has been commissioned to write reports for key film industry bodies and his most recent study, looking at gender inequity in the UK film industry and was launched on the BBC Radio 4 ‘Today’ program.Step

What is "Hybrid Distribution?"Hybrid distribution is the state-of-the-art model more and more filmmakers are using to succeed. It enables them to have unprecedented access to audiences, to maintain overall control of their distribution, and to receive a significantly larger share of revenues.Today on the show we have a legend in the ultra-low budget indie film world, Peter Broderick. He coined the term Hybrid Distribution in his seminal article Declaration of Independence: The Ten Principles of Hybrid Distribution. Peter also wrote a​ very informative article detailing ways filmmakers can deal with the Distribber debacle and protect themselves if a distributor goes bankrupt.Peter Broderick is President of Paradigm Consulting, which helps filmmakers and media companies develop strategies to maximize distribution, audience, and revenues.In addition to advising on sales and marketing, Paradigm Consulting specializes in state-of-the-art distribution techniques—including innovative theatrical service deals, hybrid

I wanted to release this Facebook LIVE event to the tribe to give them some MAJOR updates on the Distribber/Go Digital debacle. I was on the phone for two hours with Seth Freeman of Glass Ratner, the firm handing the liquidation. I do some mythbusting and drop some painful truth bombs in the episode.

Today on the show we have Todd Jenkins, the filmmaker behind the new horror film Cherokee Creek. Todd went through hell making his film but when he finally finished it and put it out in the world then the fit hit the shan.Todd decided to self distribute his film using, the now bankrupt, film aggregator Distribber/Go Digital. As many of you know the Distribber debacle has caused many filmmakers horrific pain and stress. After the hard journey to bring his film to life only to have his first check taken from him by a company that goes bankrupt is BRUTAL.At this point, he hasn't even gotten his film back from Distribber/Go Digital and is losing money every day. We talk about how this company is hurting so many filmmakers but I wanted to put a face to the pain. I wanted to bring Todd on the show to share his story with the tribe. Making indie films is tough enough with companies like Distribber/Go Digital hurting filmmakers.Cherokee Creek is an 80's style raunchy horror-comedy about a bachelor party in the woods

Today on the show we have filmmaker David Willis. Willis is the first producer in the United States to raise over $1 million and make a feature film by using Equity Crowdfunding. Equity Crowdfunding is a new, disruptive method of fundraising in the United States, from a law that went into effect in 2016, opening a whole new avenue for filmmakers to make their ideas reality. And it's working. Movies are getting made this way.Equity Crowdfunding (officially called Regulation Crowdfunding, or Reg CF) can be used to finance almost any new or existing business. Unlike Kickstarter or Indiegogo, Reg CF campaigns do not focus on donations from friends and family, but instead on the hundreds of thousands of interested investors already on approved platforms. Because of this, the average Reg CF campaign is almost twice as likely to be successful and raises more than eleven times the average Kickstarter campaign -- if you do it right.David is running an Equity Crowdfunding Masterclass. No one who has successfully raised

I have a treat for you today. On the show we have filmmaker and podcaster Alrik Bursell from the podcast Making Movies is HARD! I've had the pleasure on be on his show before and have another episode coming up in Nov where I talk about Rise of the Filmtrepreneur.“Who am I to even have a podcast? Why is my opinion more valid than anyone else? In some ways it’s not, but that’s also kind of the point. We’re just two examples of people making movies in our own ways. We’re not any more special than any other filmmaker. There’s nothing about us that makes us any different or unique. We’re just doing it. And I think that’s the point, just go out and do it, make your movies. And these are the struggles that we face and this is how we’re trying to overcome them.” – Alrik Bursell Episode 87In this episode, we talk indie filmmaking, crowdfunding, distribution, the Distribber Debacle and much more. We also discuss his cool new film The Alternate.Enjoy my conversation with Alrik Bursell.​