The War and Peace of Independent Film Production

I learned from making movies that the war and peace of independent film production can be a creative hell or a creative paradise. It’s cliché, but it’s actually all in one person’s perspective on independent film production, what it will be. Being unrealistic about the kind of indie film that can be made on a budget sets an aspiring filmmaker for creative hell.

I happen to know a very nervous filmmaker whom I meet once on a blue moon in a certain bar. The story never changes. They are producing this independent film that will be a sweeping epic with a small army of production crew and a short list of talented actors rising to the title role. I believe in pursuing your movie dreams, but also in being realistic.

The reality of their situation is that they have a budget of $ 50,000, a 120 page script, the story is set in the 1940s during WWII, and there are many gun games on camera. I ran into them a couple of weeks ago and they were very depressed.

They felt like a failure at movie making because they couldn’t bring their independent film production to life. I did my best to give them some positive words and tried to lift their spirits from one independent filmmaker to another, but they were really in the trash can. What he was saying must have sounded like “blah blah blah”.

It wasn’t my place to tell you that trying to produce a 1940s period set in Italy during WWII on a $ 50,000 budget had independent film production all over the place. They were in creative hell torturing themselves for not being able to make their movie.

There was no point in adding more negative gasoline to the burning fire by telling them they over-shot the movie’s budget creatively and that the movie really had no chance of being made.

Setting goals that are too high for a film production that a movie budget cannot handle is a bad place for any filmmaker. Misery loves company. In a last-ditch effort to show compassion to a fellow filmmaker, I shared with them my worst mistakes and disappointments in independent film production.

The terrible moment in my own film life where I totally let stress and worry take over during post-production on my first feature film. He had created a creative hell for me.

Knowing that other people have not reached their creative mark made them feel a little better. After talking they told me they were going to make a smaller movie with a tighter script today. Hope it works for them.

Personally, I think a lot of us independent filmmakers sometimes create our own creative hells without knowing it. Making movies is stressful, personality conflicts occur on sets, and technical problems are always lurking.

We don’t need to let negative things consume us so much that we go crazy over small movie production issues, get rude to other people on set, or become paralyzed by doubt and fear. When you’re in creative hell during indie film production, the movie will suffer on every level.

When stress, anger, egos, and unrealistic expectations that things are perfect are left unchecked, many filmmakers lose control of their creative acuity. Being stressed out, being an unreasonable bunch, or being unable to adapt to solve production problems has never helped a movie get made.

Sometimes during tough times during indie film production, it’s best to take a few minutes to pause and compose yourself before reacting to the situation. There’s a lot to be said for the benefits of taking a deep breath and not letting anger or fear dictate your cinematic decisions.

Being a miserable rude bastard on set playing the ruler of the set can work in the Hollywood studio system because people are being so much more than anyone else in an independent film production, there are people who even work for free on independent films.

People look the other way when A-list actors, directors, and producers get mad at their people below the line because jobs pay good money and studios make billions from box office hits. Celebrity egos and attitudes aren’t a good fit for lower-budget indie movies.

The wonderful world of independent film production is still really driven by a sense of community between the cast and crew. There is no celebrity policy for playing as who has the biggest honey car in Hollywood and the most personal assistants on set.

Beating yourself up during indie film production is useless and puts you in a creative hell where you don’t enjoy making a movie. Do not misunderstand.

Making films is a difficult matter where problems arise and you have to fight them to finish your film, being able to maintain control of your own personal attitude will help you enormously to overcome the problems of independent film production that are a constant when making a film.

Being a pissed-off filmmaker throwing a tantrum never fixes a problem, sometimes it just makes it worse. No filmmaker is a Buddha who can be calm in everything. We all get angry sometimes on set, but the faster you let that anger pass, the more you can come up with a viable solution. Quiet heads always prevail.

Relax and breathe deeply as much as you can when you feel anger, fear, or stress that is clouding your creative judgment. Even 5 minutes of relaxing guided meditation can help you see the big picture and help you make independent film production calls that save the day of shooting or fix a post-production problem. Pissed off never helps smooth over any situation.

Creative hell is when you are not enjoying making your movie and you feel like you are failing, losing control of the project, or in a bad mood all the time. Avoid being that filmmaker. Negativity is the bile that builds up inside you and harms those around you and yourself.

Creative heaven is when you can go with the flow during every stage of production. It doesn’t mean you’re a push who doesn’t make decisions, keeps the cast and crew on task, and moves the project forward.

When in charge during the production of an independent film, do your best to be open and flexible when script rewriting, changing takes and technical problems arise.

There is no perfect independent film production. There will always be issues to deal with on and off set. When you’re in a good frame of mind, not clouded by anger, fear, or reckless ego, you’ll be amazed at how easy it is to find solutions to production problems that sometimes even make the movie better in the end.

The wonderful world of independent film production is a creative flood that’s exciting because the freedom you have to share your story with movie viewers without studio producers hanging over your shoulder questioning every call you make.

Sure, most independent filmmakers, myself included, would expect to get into the Hollywood studio system and make big-budget movies. That’s the cinematic dream, but for now independent filmmaking is a creative playing field where you can take your chances and push the boundaries by making movies that showcase that uncensored hard-hitting content studios aren’t known for showing.

Embrace the wonderful world of independent film production with a positive and realistic vision of what you can achieve as an independent filmmaker working with a limited budget to make your film. Cinema heaven is when you enjoy what you are doing and even when problems arise you do not lose control of yourself and let anger, fear and stress take over.