Every startup filmmaker stalls out. Anthony Q. Artis shares five things you can do to get a stalled production moving again and raise your odds.
Sooner or later, every startup filmmaker reaches a point where they are stalled out. You start trying to raise funds, but then give up after a few fruitless meetings and near misses.
You shot those 18 hours of footage for your doc so far, but don’t know how you should structure it. Somewhere along the lines you went from pumped up and overflowing with ideas to burnt-out and discouraged that it was ever a good idea to begin with. This is a natural part of the filmmaking process. It’s like getting cold feet before your wedding. It’s normal, and you’ll work through it… much of the time. Here are some tips to help you increase your odds of survival and get back on track.
(1.) Work on Someone Else’s Movie.
Just being in the thick of it again will help you remember why you started your own project in the first place. Working with other filmmakers to achieve their vision will help make your seemingly impossible dream a more plausible reality. If the production team has more experience than you, you will probably pick up some new tricks, some new crew members, and possibly even have a breakthrough revelation about how to jumpstart your own stalled production. If they have less experience than you, you may be motivated by the revelation that if those guys can do it (especially with less resources), you can definitely pull it off. If you can at all see the finished product or at least the raw footage of the project you worked on, it may be just the match you need under your butt to rededicate yourself to your own vision.
(2.) Go to a Film Festival.
If you don’t have time to actually work on another indie filmmaker’s project, try just attending a screening of a new indie with a director Q&A or panel at the end. Just like working on someone else’s set, viewing someone else’s first effort can be very educational and motivational. Often the biggest obstacles in a stalled production are in your head: mental blocks. A lost of confidence in our abilities, our projects, our funding or in filmmaking itself. Going to a few screenings and seeing and hearing other filmmakers live and in-person can help snap you out of your head and back to the difficult but very plausible realities of filmmaking.
(3.) Put It Down Completely – If Overwhelmed
It’s always risky to put a project down, because there’s a good chance you’ll never pick it back up again. However, if you are completely overwhelmed and starting to come unglued mentally, it may not be a bad idea to just walk away from your film completely. Go on a vacation. Start a new art or home project. Go back home for a week and hang out with your old friends. Just give yourself permission to temporarily let go of the project, enjoy something else and clear your head completely. After you come down off the ledge, take the time to really recall why you started making the project in the first place… What drove you when it was still fun? How can you tap back into that original state of mind and enthusiasm? Come back to your film in awhile with fresh energy, perspective and a better and more determined game plan. Let it go, and if you really love it, you’ll go back.
(4.) Bring In Some Fresh Blood
When you are working on a major project for a long time you are essentially “living” that project morning, noon, and night. It’s quite easy to just burn out and loose perspective on your original vision. When that happens it always helps to bring in someone else with a fresh set of eyes and new energy. Every now and then, you will be amazed by the fresh perspective or simple breakthrough suggestion that someone else can contribute to your project. An enthusiastic assistant to help tackle that pile of receipts, a whiz kid editor to completely re-cut that scene you can‘t get right, or even a custom song by talented composer could all help push you over organizational, story, or creative obstacles and re-energize you to persevere until your film is up on the screen.
(5.) Commit to Someone Big or Something With a Deadline
This is simply jumping off the high dive. Put yourself in a situation where it’s really difficult or even disastrous to back out. Choose something with a definite deadline and other people and professionals that you are now accountable too.
Pick something that cost you money, public embarrassment, or some other harsh penalty for not following through on the commitment. See if you can attract the interest of a distributor, sales agent, or media outlet. Give them a definite date when you’ll have something to show them or will premiere the film. Make a poster and heavily publicize the premiere date.
Rent a theater, put down a cash deposit, and email a major announcement and press release to all of your friends and colleagues. Agree to do a benefit premiere for charity. Agree to be part of a group screening. The only real goal here is to put yourself in a corner so that the only real way out is through whatever obstacles remain. You’d be surprised at how quickly many non-swimmers can learn if you push them out of a boat. Anthony Q. Artis (http://downanddirtydv.blogspot.com/) is a veteran guerrilla filmmaker, and author of the book, “The
Shut Up and Shoot Documentary Guide” (Focal Press). His newest educational DVD is called, “Audio Crash Course.” He is the creator of the instructional series of guerrilla filmmaking books, DVDs, and workshops at www.DownAndDirtyDV.
com. Anthony also hosts, along with Pete Chatmon, the one- hour weekly talk show, “The Double Down Film Show” (www.
blogtalkradio.com/DoubleDownFilmShow). Anthony is based out of New York City where he manages the Film and TV
Production Center at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.
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