Greetings, and happy to be here.
Like my username says, I'm an aspiring mogul, and I'm hoping to get some input. This is my situation.
I'm a working professional and when I started my practice a few years ago, I said that I'd like to try becoming an indie producer/director one day. I said that I would learn how to run a business, keep my eyes and ears open, and, in five years, technology may open an opportunity for me, so I can take another look. Well, that five years has passed, and I have quite a bit more experience as well as some money saved up. Not only that Youtube has offered opportunities, and home movies can even be taken from cell phones, never mind web cams, and relatively good special effects can be made on a PC.
I will be going on sabbatical around 2015, and, by then technology will make Youtube far more sophisticated, just as it will make filmmaking easier and (hopefully) cheaper. For my sabbatical, I will be taking a year off, and then I can start (build?) my own movie studio and, over the course of the year, make my movie/series. If all goes well, I'll be the next movie mogul; if not, I'll go back to my practice and continue for another five years, and then try again.
I may be making some rounds, learning about film scripts and casting for actors, and I'm hoping to get some input from everyone around here.
Welcome to filmmaking.net!
=============================================
The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but progress.
Joseph Joubert, essayist (1754-1824)
Thank you very much. 🙂
I don't know what genre I want to get into, but I'm thinking that, by the end of the next decade, I should be able to do a solid quality 90 to 120 minute movie for $200,000.00, and put it on the web. What're your thoughts?
Right now, at the end of this decade, it's possible to do a
solid quality movie for $200,000 and put it on the web. I
imagine that in 10 years it will still be possible.
=============================================
The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but progress.
Joseph Joubert, essayist (1754-1824)
Yes, I'm seeing that, which is why I've decided to start posting here. But the problem is transmission rates, because the broadband may not be wide enough to allow for fast transmission, so the internet can't replace TV just yet. And there's also the problem of rural areas which don't have high-speed access.
You have zoomed past my area of knowledge. I'm a filmmaker.
Transmission rates and rural areas without high-speed access
is out of my depth.
So your plan to wait until the end of the next decade to make your
film is related to transmission rates and reaching rural areas? In
addition, of course, to the building of a movie studio and your
sabbatical.
=============================================
The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but progress.
Joseph Joubert, essayist (1754-1824)
Yes, first, to build up my capital and business expertise, then, to get some idea of how to make and produce films.
I read that a Star Trek fan converted an old car dealership in upstate NY to make fan films of the old series, so I'm thinking of doing the same thing in a few years, to convert it to my private film studio. It's more fun, to me, than a weekend cottage.
The fan mogul's website is below.
http://www.startreknewvoyages.com/
I figured that, around 2015 would be a good time to start pre-production, as in, what genre, if I should get my own studio, and so on. Then, by 2020, we'll be ready. Or I can wait till 2021 or 2022, which is my next sabbatical. I'm self-employed, so I can do whatever I want. 🙂
Any thoughts on my business plan?
It sounds like you have quite a business plan already. Five years to
build capital and business expertise before you start pre-production
appears reasonable to me. Then another five to seven years before
the cameras are rolling.
I'm a filmmaker, not a businessman or studio owner. But it sure
looks like a great idea to have the business part all settled
before starting in on the making of a film.
Do you have any plans to get your feet wet during the next ten
years by maybe making a couple of short films?
=============================================
The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but progress.
Joseph Joubert, essayist (1754-1824)
quote:
Do you have any plans to get your feet wet during the next ten
years by maybe making a couple of short films?
No, and I have no idea how to start. I don't want to spend five years at film school and then apprentice, but I will have to get my feet wet somehow. What do you suggest?
Also, what do you think of renovating a warehouse or some dilapidated building to form my own mini-studio?
Babylon 5 was filmed in a converted wharehouse. They felt they got more floorspace for their dollar. I imagine there are a lot of improvements that have to be made however. Sound proofing and power upgrades and such.
RJSchwarz
RJSchwarz
Thanks for the input, Rob. 🙂
I think B5 was done at a cost of a million dollars per episode, and was after they cut costs to the bone. Whew! This is going to be tough.
Well the wharehouse work was done for the pilot, I suspect the real savings came by reusing the place and not paying the high rental costs of an actual studio set. That and preplanning every episode in advance so there was plenty of lead time to get things done and no (or minimal) overtime.
I can't verify how much per episode it cost to make but I do know that the Production felt it was significantly cheaper than comparable sci fi of the time.
RJSchwarz
RJSchwarz
quote:
Originally posted by Aspiring mogul
No, and I have no idea how to start. I don't want to spend five years at film school and then apprentice, but I will have to get my feet wet somehow. What do you suggest?
You don't need to spend five years at film school.
You could start like almost all of us started - you
grab a camera and make several short movies to
get your feet wet.
During your five years of thinking about starting
pre-production and building up your capital and
business expertise you could make a dozen or
more short films. If you only made 4 a year that's
20 movies finished. Talk about gaining some
valuable experience...
quote:
Also, what do you think of renovating a warehouse or some dilapidated building to form my own mini-studio?
An excellent idea. Even here in Los Angeles there
are a dozen stages built in old warehouses.
=============================================
The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but progress.
Joseph Joubert, essayist (1754-1824)
=============================================
The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but progress.
Joseph Joubert, essayist (1754-1824)
It might be a good idea to start a few short films, as you said, but I'm not sure what genre I want yet. The way I look at it, in five years, technology will be making filming far, far easier and cheaper, so I was going to bide my time. But, if I can start a small project now, perhaps I should do so.
In the meantime, I've been educating myself, learning storytelling techniques and watching the appropriate movies for guidance - I've learned quite a bit over this past year, actually.
But doesn't a short film cost $30 to $50 grand? I don't want to do something cheap and off the cuff - if I do something, I do it properly or not at all. And to make four films a year would cost quite a bit.
With shorts you can try different genres. YOu don't even need to show them to anyone. The idea is to get experience as small a bite as possible rather than punting everything until later.
RJSchwarz
RJSchwarz
