IFH 724: What is Maximum Screenwriting with Jeff Schimmel

You knew it was bound to happen. Well the time is here. Please welcome the talented Jill-Michele Meleán to the Indie Film Hustle Tribe. Jill is the star of my debut feature film "This is Meg". She is one of the most talented actors/comedian I've ever worked with and we have worked on a ton of projects of the years. Jill-Michele Meleán, “Jilly” was born and raised in Miami, Florida (aka Cuba). She declared at a young age that she wanted to be like Bette Davis, Joan Crawford and Benny Hill. Jilly started in Theatre and toured with The Coconut Grove Playhouse (which is the Broadway of Miami). In 2000, she moved to Los Angeles and needed to be on stage.She took her natural comedic timing to the Standup Stage, headlining across the country while continuing her Acting career. After many years of hard work, she’s made a name for herself in the Comedy Television world with memorable performances on FOX’s “MadTV” and Comedy Central’s “Reno 911”. However, her first love is her dramatic acting career. As she continues her theatrical Film and Television career, she’ll never stop making people laugh.Which brings us to This is Meg. Take a listen and get a window into how we are creating this "micro budget" film. LINKS AND RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:THIS IS MEG Crowdfunding CampaignJill-Michele Meleán - Official SiteJill-Michele Meleán - IMDBJill-Michele Meleán - Facebook & TwitterIndie Film Syndicate - Filmmaker CommunitySaveSaveBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/indie-film-hustle-a-filmmaking-podcast--2664729/support.

15 Jul 20161h 8min

What do you get when you add a stand up comedian, a fearless actress and a great personality? You get today's guest Jenica Bergere. This is one of the reason we cast here in my debut feature film This is Meg as the bitchy nut job Ruby. Jenica Bergere began her career as a stand up comedienne becoming a paid regular at The Comedy Store as well as the Improv when she was barely old enough to vote. Jenica credits Russell Simmons for discovering and representing her as the only “crazy white girl” on his Def Jam slate. Since then she has continued to hone her craft becoming an accomplished writer, actress, comedienne and now award winning director with her feature film Come Simi for which Jenica co-wrote the screenplay with Doc Pedrolie (2010 Jack Nicholson Award for Screenwriting). Filmed ‘guerilla style’ in only 6 days, Bergere brought the film in for $10,000 and sites being a micro budget filmmaker as something she actually enjoyed. Distributors have called the film “brave”, a word that also defines Jenica Bergere as a director. Willing to take risks and do whatever it takes to get the desired results, Jenica brought her camera crew into the hospital room to film her labor and delivery, ensuring the shots were captured as she envisioned, directing everyone all the whilst.Take a look at the trailer for Jenica's Micro Budget Film Come Simi:Get ready to laugh out load in this amazing interview with Jenica Bergere.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/indie-film-hustle-a-filmmaking-podcast--2664729/support.

12 Jul 20161h 9min

Why You Don't Need a Screenplay to Make an Amazing FilmAs indie filmmakers we throw a lot of obstacles on our own path to creating a feature or short film. No obstacle is larger then the almighty screenplay. How many screenwriters and filmmakers do you know that have been working on the movie script for 3, 5, or 7 years? They keep chipping at it in hopes of cracking that nut or it gives them an excuse for not actually making a feature film.I was no different. One of the biggest things that slowed, if not stopped my filmmaking journey was "the screenplay." I decided to see if there was a different way to approach making a movie with my first feature film This is Meg.In doing my research I came to  realize that in the last few years, some of my favorite films happen to be (almost) entirely improvised. No structured screenplay. Some were huge tent pole studio movies, Oscar winners (Ironically for best screenplay) and small indie films. It certainly seemed to be a more prolific style among independent filmmakers and I find that it can mean success when they cast the right actors. Especially in the "Mumblecore" and "Dogma 95" indie film movements.Iron Man had no screenplay?My favorite "lack of screenplay" story was the Marvel Studios tent-pole Iron Man. You heard me correctly. The film that launched the Marvel Cinematic Universe and that show the word what a great leading  Robert Downey Jr could be. It remains one of the most enjoyable adaptations of a Marvel comic book to date.via Marvel StudiosTake a listen to what Jeff Bridges revealed in a recent interview."They had no script, man! They had an outline. We would show up for big scenes every day and we wouldn't know what we were going to say. We would have to go into our trailer and work on this scene and call up writers on the phone, 'You got any ideas?' Meanwhile the crew is tapping their foot on the stage waiting for us to come on."Although a story and structure was firmly in place, the dialogue wasn't - leading to much improvisation on set, which accounts for the film's energetic, sparky atmosphere."I said, ‘Oh, what we're doing here, we're making a $200 million student film. We're all just fuckin' around! We're playin'. Oh, great!. That took all the pressure off. Oh, just jam, man, just play. And it turned out great!" Bridges recalled.Here is a list of film I mention and discuss in detail in the podcast:John Cassavetes - ShadowsMike Leigh - Vera DrakeDavid O. Russell - American HustleLynn Shelton - Your Sister's SisterJon Favreau - Iron ManDerek Cianfrance -Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/indie-film-hustle-a-filmmaking-podcast--2664729/support.

4 Jul 201625min

How Filmmakers & Artists Should Deal with Haters!Haters, a problem that artists, filmmakers or anybody who puts themselves out there have to deal with. I know of many filmmakers who are crippled by what other people think or say about them. The fact is that you are going to create anything; a poem, writer a novel, make a movie, write a song, cook a meal or build a house, there will be people who have opinions. Now opinions are fine. As they say ever has an opinion and the internet has given everyone with an opinion a voice. Now there is constructive, mature opinions and there are straight up haters. People who want to bring you down for a myriad of reasons. I decide to shine a bit of light on this topic because it is so important on your filmmaking journey to be free of the good opinions of others, as the late Wayne Dyer used to say. You can not allow other peoples opinions or thoughts bring you down or stop your forward momentum when making art of any kind. Take a listen to my experience with haters I've dealt with over the years. I hope it inspires you to continue creating regardless of the good opinion of others. "Don't let compliments get to your head and don't let their criticism get to your heart." - AnoyomousBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/indie-film-hustle-a-filmmaking-podcast--2664729/support.

30 Jun 201616min

11 Golden Rules for Filmmakers on Social MediaWith social media taking over the world it is more necessary than ever to use it to get the word out on yourself, you film project or your production company. Most indie filmmakers have no idea on how to build an audience or how to use social media to promote and engage with that audience.In this podcast I go into great detail on each of the 11 Golden Rules for Filmmakers on Social Media.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/indie-film-hustle-a-filmmaking-podcast--2664729/support.

28 Jun 201615min

So I entitled this podcast "How to Work with a Music Composer" because it is a mystery to many filmmakers. As visual storytellers we focus so much energy and effort to the moving image. For many of us music is an after thought.What would Jaws, Indiana Jones or Star Wars be without the musical score? With technology it has become more and more affordable to have a beautiful score added to your indie film. A computer can't do it alone, you still need a maestro to compose that music for you.A good score can add a great deal of production value to your little indie film. This is why I invited composer Cris Velasco on the show. Cris and I have worked on many projects together. His music has definitely elevated my projects.Here's some info on the man:Cris Velasco is a multiple award-winning composer of epic orchestral, dark experimental and modern hybrid music scores for video games, film and television. After graduating from UCLA with a degree in Music Composition, Velasco pursued his passion to write music for visual media; his first major release was composing for Sony’s blockbuster God of War. A prolific and versatile composer, Velasco has become one of the most sought-after composers in interactive entertainment, scoring many major titles including Company of Heroes 2, Mass Effect 3, Borderlands 2, ZombiU, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine, God of War 3, Tron: Evolution, Borderlands, God of War 2, Darksiders, Clive Barker’s Jericho, and many more.I wanted Cris to go into his creative process and how he likes to work with filmmakers and creatives. Plus you get a bonus "Star Wars" themed music score he created on the Warner Brothers backlot.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/indie-film-hustle-a-filmmaking-podcast--2664729/support.

23 Jun 20161h 18min

Film Crowdfunding CampaignSo today is the day. The THIS IS MEG Film Crowdfunding Campaign is LIVE! Click here to check it out: Down the Filmmaking Rabbit Hole. I've been working for months on the campaign and am very proud of what I and the team has done. So below I wanted to share the Top ten tip I have learned from the many experts, guest and successful campaigns I've reviewed in prepping for my launch. I'll be going in greater detail on all these topics in the podcast so definitly take a listen: Top 10 Tips to Launch a Film Crowdfunding CampaignTop 10 Tips to Launch a Film Crowdfunding CampaignAssemble a Team Ahead of Time: You are not an island! You need a group of amazing people who are willing to help you on this journey. Check out our Launch Team for THIS IS MEG - Click here30 day campaigns works best: Of all the film campaigns that met their goals, 32.71% of them ran their campaigns for 30-39 days, while only 13.87% of successful campaigns ran for 60 days.Keep your campaign page updated: On average, successful film campaigns post 5 updates. Updates can include anything from press mentions, new incentives, celebrity endorsements, events, – anything that you think your community would be interested in. After all, your contributors are giving their money to help bring your film to the screen, so naturally they’ll be interested in any updates you provide. Continually updating your campaign page is one of the best ways to keep your community and fans involved in the process.Estimate Costs Carefully: So many filmmakers just pull a budget out of their butts. Breakdown what you really need for your entire filmmaking journey.Study Successes and Failures: I studied sooooooo many campaigns before we launched. I took courses (see free crowdfunding campain below) and analized both successes and failures.Give Fans An Inside Look: People want to be part of the process. Bring them into your process, your filmmaking craftmanship.Add New Perks through the Campaign: One unique aspect of film campaigns is that filmmakers have an huge range of creativity for your incentives. From signed memorbilia to meet-and-greets to set visits, you have lots of ways to incentivize your backers to help you reach your goal.Include affordable perks: Don't make the incentives for the private sky boxes, create incentives for the bleachers too. Make the journey accessable to all who want to join the trip.Include a pitch video: For God's sake make a good pitch video. I go into a ton of detail on this in the podcast. Check out our pitch video and let us know what you think:Build an Audience & Networking: I can not stress the importance of building and audience before you launch. Not only that but also know where the audience for your film hangs out online so you can reach them.Right click here to download the MP3LINKS AND RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODEINDIE FILM SYNDICATE Membership CommunityTHIS IS MEG Crowdfunding CampaignAudio-Technica ATR2100-USB Cardioid Dynamic USB/XLR MicrophoneTASCAM DR-40 4-Track PorBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/indie-film-hustle-a-filmmaking-podcast--2664729/support.

21 Jun 201626min

Why I Choose Seed & Spark.com to Crowdfund THIS IS MEGWith all the choices out there to crowdfund your film, it can get kinda crazy! Kickstarter and Indiegogo are the two Goliath's in the arena with Seed&Spark.com play David. If you know the story the two Goliaths don't fear David but this David has a hella of a punch. I choose Seed and Spark to crowdfund my new feature film THIS IS MEG, because of a few reasons.They have a 75% Success Rate (2 times any other platform)The average raise is $17K (2.5 times any other platform)There average fee is only 3% (40% Less than anyone else)They guarentee distribution if you hit a certain benchmarkHow is this possible because they focus on one thing...FILMMAKERS. They don't crowdfund for the next transforming coffeemaking pen. Seed and Spark is all about indie filmmakers and creating independence for film artists. Take a listen to this episodes and find out how we are putting our crowdfunding campaign together for THIS IS MEG. When you're done listening to the episode take a look at the remarkable FREE Crowdfunding Course created by Seed & Spark to entertain, educate and make you a truly "independent" filmmaker. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/indie-film-hustle-a-filmmaking-podcast--2664729/support.

14 Jun 201616min