3 ms·

Agreed, the $70 estimate is very misleading. It doesn't include opportunity cost of capital (time), cost of education, his existing equipment, his friends conne

Agreed, the $70 estimate is very misleading. It doesn't include opportunity cost of capital (time), cost of education, his existing equipment, his friends connections etc. etc. Also, I'd like to add: his opportunity cost is actually HUGE - 5 years earlier and he was not qualified enough (guessing - tied down with education, learning the ropes etc.), while 5 years later and he's too old to be doing this (pushing 40) and probably tied down with wife and kids.

wallflower 17y ago
The zombie film flick "Colin" is succeeding on the strength of the filmmaking and the PR made-for-nothing-story. I have two friends who have made documentaries and films. Startups and film-making are very alike. Making films for people to watch is very much a labor of sweat and passion. Even finishing the film is a feat. Making it into a film festival is a success. There is a whole circuit of local/regional/national/international festivals. Everyone has heard of Cannes - but the Big Sky (Montana) festival? Making a film that is accepted into Cannes? That is a major accomplishment. Making a film that gets picked up by a major distributor. Probably the equivalent of an IPO. As Chris Holland of the Film Festival Secrets blogs writes: "I think this [Doonesbury] strip pretty much sums up the indie film experience for many filmmakers" http://filmfestivalsecrets.blogspot.com/2009/02/doonesbury-does-indie-film.html http://filmfestivalsecrets.blogspot.com/2009/02/doonesbury-d... Chris, an indie film insider, on the realities of getting your film distributed: "So while you're on the ground at the film festival, do the following: » Set discrete, measurable, attainable goals. Of course you should think about what your overall goals are for your film and your career, but for the purposes of any one event you need to write down the bite-sized goals that you can accomplish while you're there. "Find a distributor" is not a bite-sized goal. "Talk to ten distributors and establish contact with an acquisition rep at each" is more reasonable." http://filmfestivalsecrets.blogspot.com/2009/01/last-minute-film-festival-prep-tips_7437.html http://filmfestivalsecrets.blogspot.com/2009/01/last-minute-...

wallflower 17y ago

The zombie film flick "Colin" is succeeding on the strength of the filmmaking and the PR made-for-nothing-story. I have two friends who have made documentaries and films. Startups and film-making are very alike. Making films for people to watch is very much a labor of sweat and passion. Even finishing the film is a feat. Making it into a film festival is a success. There is a whole circuit of local/regional/national/international festivals. Everyone has heard of Cannes - but the Big Sky (Montana) festival? Making a film that is accepted into Cannes? That is a major accomplishment. Making a film that gets picked up by a major distributor. Probably the equivalent of an IPO. As Chris Holland of the Film Festival Secrets blogs writes: "I think this [Doonesbury] strip pretty much sums up the indie film experience for many filmmakers" http://filmfestivalsecrets.blogspot.com/2009/02/doonesbury-does-indie-film.html http://filmfestivalsecrets.blogspot.com/2009/02/doonesbury-d... Chris, an indie film insider, on the realities of getting your film distributed: "So while you're on the ground at the film festival, do the following: » Set discrete, measurable, attainable goals. Of course you should think about what your overall goals are for your film and your career, but for the purposes of any one event you need to write down the bite-sized goals that you can accomplish while you're there. "Find a distributor" is not a bite-sized goal. "Talk to ten distributors and establish contact with an acquisition rep at each" is more reasonable." http://filmfestivalsecrets.blogspot.com/2009/01/last-minute-film-festival-prep-tips_7437.html http://filmfestivalsecrets.blogspot.com/2009/01/last-minute-...