Ask The Entertainment Lawyer!
Have legal questions about your production? Does it seem like there's always another thing you need to know from pre-production to distribution? Contracts, releases, copyright, clearances..on and on...
We've got you covered. In our new ASK THE LAWYER Q&A sessions you can get legal advice from Entertainment Lawyer, and creator of Film Tracts, Chris Edgar.
Join us live to ask your questions or to learn from others!
Set a reminder below and mark your calendars!
A.I. In Production & Post
How can A.I. actually benefit your team when it comes to production and post production? How do you use A.I. to enhance (not replace) what your cast and crew bring to the table?
Join this live discussion and Q&A on the current uses of A.I. for indie filmmakers and how to use them legitimately. From capturing actor images to editing, there is a new world at your fingertips.
August 3 at 12pm PT / 3pm ET
Set a reminder below and add to your calendar!
Producers on Producing: Hiring, Firing, Funding, & Thriving in Indie Film
It's rare in indie film you get to be "just" anything. Most of us are a director/producer, writer/producer, actor/producer, composer/producer....you get the drift... So what happens when your producing team is also wearing multiple hats?
How does a team of multi-hypenates divide who does what? How do they decide on the next project? Who gets to do the hiring? How do they deal with having to let someone go? Who has final say on big issues? We'll tackle that and more in this producers on producing panel.
Director/PGA Producer (and BMC's Executive Director) Jenn Page brings her producing team to the hot seat to get real about producing, answering her questions and yours!
Join us live on Facebook or Youtube by setting a reminder here and marking your calendars!
Short Film Success: The Story, The Team, and Everything In Between
You've probably heard it before, the more personal the story is to you, the more powerful it will be on screen. Filmmaker Sarah Rodenbaugh took one of the worst moments of her life and found a way to tell it poignantly and impact audiences.
Though she's been acting for years, this was her first time doing a project of this size and as a producer and star nonetheless. How did she land on the script she co-wrote? Who were the key players that helped her pull it off? How did she raise the money? What were her biggest challenges?
Join us for this live discussion, bring your questions about your own projects, and support a fellow filmmaker on her very important journey.
Set a reminder right here and mark your calendars for July 18 at 11am PT!
Five Big Shifts You MUST Make to Finance Your Indie Film
Are you currently looking for financing and having trouble securing deals? Are you going to go into the financing phase and feel completely lost?
Join us for our conversation and q&a session with Producer/Director Scott DuPont. Not only has he successfully raised financing for his own films, as the host of the Finance Your Movie Podcast he's gathered intel from other producers who have gotten their films made. Bring a notebook and your questions!
More on Scott:
Scott duPont (aka www.MovieFinanceGuy.com ) has raised millions $ over the past 25 years for over 2 dozen features. He was the LA based producer of Movie Money CONFIDENTIAL (documentary about raising movie money) and is a member of the Producers Guild & the Int’l Documentary Association. duPont hosts a free podcast called Finance YOUR Movie (now in it’s 5th Season) which premieres each week on MillionaireFlix before releasing to all major podcast platforms. Scott also consults with indie filmmakers challenged with raising the “equity” portion of their projects budgeted between $100K - $1M and over the last two years they have collectively raised millions to get their projects financed. His mission is “to help filmmakers get their money, so they can make their dream project a reality and to the screen!” For more info visit: www.FinanceYOURMovie.com
Twitter: @RealScottduPont
Instagram: @duPontScott
How To Excel As A TV Director
Are you currently pursuing directing for TV? Do you want to level up your game when it comes to directing for networks and streamers?
You've probably heard how to be a better director from other directors, cinematographers, and even show runners; but we are going to get the scoop from the woman who sits at the monitor with all the guest directors and find out what makes someone great, what makes someone get asked back, what drives the crew crazy, and more! Bring your questions cuz we are answering them live at this event!
More on Jennifer:
In 2008, Jennifer Carriere began her script supervising career after she caught the bug for film and TV production in New Orleans. She left a successful career in civil engineering and has script supervised hundreds of episodes of television, and dozens of feature films, leading her into producing. Today, she's mentoring people to earn a six-figure salary to hobnob with Hollywood's elite by becoming script supervisors. Should you learn the trade, too, and travel the world? Learn more at her website, scriptsupervisorceo.com.
Creating a Narrative TikTok Series
How can you use platforms like TikTok to get your work seen?
“Mountain Murder Tapes” is an innovative approach to creating content for new audiences and expanding the scope of content on a platform like TikTok. Benjy and Jacob’s work approaches the crime and thriller genres from an unconventional angle, such as science, sexuality, and religion.
Aside from his work on “Mountain Murder Tapes,” Benjy was most recently a staff writer on season three of ABC’s Big Sky. He is also a Sundance Institute Fellow, having won the Sundance-Sloan Episodic Fellowship for his spy thriller series pilot The Professor and the Spy. Additionally, he is a member of the Writers Guild of America West.
Set a reminder right there on Facebook or YouTube.
How to Stop Being Afraid of Networking
Would you rather stick forks in your eyes than network with strangers? Do you get excited about going to an event to meet people but end up speaking only to people you already know once there? What about online? Do you know how the way to best use the tools at your disposal?
Networking is the key to success. People have to know you exist to hire you. Whether it's reconnecting with old acquaintances or making new ones, being bold and making genuine connections is a must. Join us when we talk to Husslup's founder and CEO H Schuster about all things networking and how you can better grow your network.
More on H:
HUSSLUP Founder and CEO H Schuster is a senior media executive with more than 20 years of experience producing TV and leading divisions at major media companies. She founded HUSSLUP to democratize and diversify access to the entertainment industry.
Prior to HUSSLUP, Schuster was Founder and CEO of Morocco Junction Entertainment, a production company financed by All3Media. Earlier, Schuster headed unscripted television for premier production companies, including Ryan Seacrest Productions, Reveille, and Shine America. Schuster helped shepherd high profile hits including the Kardashian franchises, "The Biggest Loser," "MasterChef," “Tabatha’s Salon Takeover” and others. She also served as the CCO who scaled Detour, a location-aware podcasting company that was one of Apple's “Top 10 Apps” of 2016.
Schuster earned a PhD in cultural studies at NYU and attended Stanford Law School. She served multiple terms on the Outfest Board of Directors, is a founding member of Chief, and is a member of the Producers Guild of America and the Television Academy.
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Demystifying Production Insurance
What is Production Insurance exactly? How do you get it affordably for smaller projects? What exactly do all those terms on that certificate of insurance even mean?!?!?
Production Insurance is a non-negotiable when it comes to filmmaking. You need it to rent gear. You need it to book locations. You need it to keep your crew covered. Filming without it is a risky business. We'll be joined by Alan Schlaifer who has been helping indie filmmakers get insured for over 2 decades. We plan to demystify production insurance and help make it more attainable for filmmakers at all levels.
More on Alan:
Prior to starting his agency Alan Schlaifer began his career working in post-production. He moved up the ladder from the role of assistant video editor to sound designer and music editor. Recognizing that there were a number of opportunities for calamity in the production process, he transitioned into the field of production insurance. He spent a few years with the John Hart Agency to learn the ropes of handling production insurance needs. Eventually, he started ASIS Entertainment Insurance. It is interesting to note that Alan’s mother was a studio teacher who brought him to the set with her, so he has literally been in around the industry for his entire life. From that beginning, an entry into the industry wasn’t an unexpected leap. In his early years, Alan worked as an extra, body double, hand model, on-set P.A., and assistant to a director where he experienced the production process from script to screen. Alan believes that – for better or for worse – every frame of film offers a learning opportunity. If the worst happens, you want the comfort of knowing that your insurance policy covers the solution.
Set a reminder right here!
The Colorist-Director Relationship
How soon should you be talking with your colorist? How can you help them understand the look you want?
Our guest: Tashi Trieu (Avatar: The Way of Water, Star Wars: The Force Awakens).
When it comes to color there's a whole gamut from incredibly vague, almost inactionable direction, and overly micro managerial direction. Inexperienced filmmakers sometimes mistakenly think they're paying for a result, when really they're paying a craftsman for their time (not unlike editing). They aren't paying for a miracle worker or for someone to read their mind, and they are ultimately responsible for coming prepared, knowing what they want, and if they are in an exploratory phase, understanding that it comes with a cost and they have to manage their time accordingly, that's not up to the colorist, just as it's not up anybody else on the crew.
Let's dig into how you can have a better relationship with your colorist and get a better result. Set a reminder to join us here live to ask your questions!
More on Tashi:
Tashi Trieu is a film and television colorist and finishing artist with over 10 years of experience in post-production. He’s worked on everything from indie features to tentpole studio films like Avatar: The Way of Water, The Jungle Book, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. He’s taught color grading and color science at film schools around the world and co-authored Modern Post, a handbook on post-production finishing. In his spare time he’s an avid bicyclist.
How do you direct live TV? Whether 21 cameras or three, a live audience or not, there are so many considerations that differ from narrative filmmaking. What are those things? Filmmaker Sharon Everitt shares how she does it on this episode.
MORE ON SHARON:
SHARON EVERITT is a 3-time Emmy nominee and has directed over 100 episodes of television, including “That’s My Time with David Letterman” on Netflix, “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” on ABC, NBC’s “World of Dance”, and NBC’s “A Little Late with Lilly Singh”. Sharon is also an accomplished narrative writer/director whose projects frequent the film festival circuit. Her 2019 musical comedy “Brentwood” played dozens of festivals around the world and won Best Short Film at the Independent Filmmaker Showcase in Los Angeles. Sharon’s original sci-fi “Polybius” premiered at Fantastic Fest in 2019, and her sci-fi fantasy “Below the Root” was optioned by Walt Disney Pictures. Sharon began her career as a television editor, and was the Executive Producer of ABC’s long running Disney Christmas Day Parade special. She was part of NBC’s Alternative Directors Program, was named one of the “Future Women of Television” by Blackmagic Collective in 2020, and is part of the 2022 DGA Women’s Mentorship Group.
