Last night I texted a filmmaker friend to check in on how his “turn-a-proof-of-concept-short-into his-first-feature-film” process was going. His response gave me pause. He said, and I paraphrase, “I don’t really get involved with the business stuff, I let the producer(s) do that.”
I wanted to respond saying that he should be involved with all the business — knowing it intimately, and frankly how to do it as well as someone who is just a producer! But I didn’t say anything because in knowing this person and where they’re at in their journey, I sensed that they’re not ready.
Then about an hour after having that text exchange I thought back to a college film professor job I applied for a few months ago. I’ve always had a fraught relationship with film school programs — mainly because they don’t prepare people for the realities of the film industry and seem interested in selling false hopes and dreams (or just being schools that want to profit off of creative desires). But in reflecting upon my own journey, and having authored an film school Op Ed previously, I’ve realized that I do want to teach someday — namely so that I could help others better navigate the landmines, roadblocks and stupidity of the film business than I have. I’ve learned a lot the very hard way and so as I put together my Teaching Philosophy for the film professor application I began with a holistic understanding and definition of what makes someone a filmmaker. An ethos that comes from my own lived and learned professional experience and something I’ve realized that might help other filmmakers as they set out on their journey.
Because after hearing my friend’s response last night I thought “there are too many filmmaker houses built on bad foundations” and maybe I can be a part of a solution by sharing that philosophy so folks can put themselves in a better position to succeed (however you define that…more on that in a little bit).
So here we go:
A filmmaker is a storyteller. Humanity needs stories to help understand the world. And stories need storytellers — people who both know how to tell a story, and which stories to tell. Filmmakers are part of this ancient and grand tradition.
A filmmaker has “vision”. A filmmaker identifies what story they are going to tell and not just why they are telling it, but why they are the only person for the job.
A filmmaker is an entrepreneur. The film industry is a business. Every filmmaking endeavor is a new business enterprise. And every business enterprise has its own economy. Every new film or television series that one endeavors to bring to life will be a new business that they need to build from the ground up. Each of these enterprises will need to be accomplishable at their respective budget, and be an enterprise that pays for itself while also generating revenue. Having a great idea for a business (read; having a great creative idea/story to tell in film or television form) is one thing, but knowing and understanding how to build each new enterprise from scratch, within its own economy, is as important as knowing why filmmakers tell stories.
A filmmaker knows their audience. With respect to the grandest of traditions, and understanding that filmmaking is a business, a filmmaker tells stories for audiences. But that being said, there’s also the greatest difference between what a filmmaker personally wants, and creatively what the story needs in order for it to connect with its intended audience. Part of a filmmaker knowing how to translate the story they want to tell into a realistic and accomplishable business enterprise means knowing what their story needs to accomplish in order to reach their intended audience. At every phase of the filmmaking process, knowing who you are telling a story to/for and why you are telling that specific story to them, influences every decision and aspect of both the creative and entrepreneurial process. Filmmaking is actually a very non linear endeavor whereby a filmmaker needs to understand the end of the business enterprise, knowledge which actually informs the strategy for its beginnings.
A filmmaker serves the story. Too often we see filmmaker egos and hubris motivating choices and a leadership style. Instead I have learned, and believe, that all of our choices and actions as filmmakers need to be in service of what the story needs to connect with an audience while supporting the underlying story, themes and characters organically. We are not making movies for ourselves, or an audience of one (unless you have the good fortune and privilege of being in that unique position, but few realistically do); we are making movies and television for others to consume. That understanding doesn’t mean disregarding our individual vision or creative desires along the way — after all, we are filmmakers making strong choices and executive decisions — it just means that we need to constantly be thinking about how to reach and connect with an audience. And to do that, we need to know who our audience is.
A filmmaker is a good leader and selfless collaborator. There’s always been a classical misconception in our industry that filmmakers have to be self centered, egotistical jerks — people who yell, scream, are rude and are emotionally volatile. We’ve all seen an industry that historically rewarded those types of behavior and so the myth has become pervasive. These are character flaws and are not required to be a visionary or an auteur. Operating that way simply alienates a filmmaker’s collaborators and peers. Filmmaking is about surrounding yourself with creative collaborators you know and trust, people whose choices and input you respect because you know it will elevate the story you’re telling and who you’re telling it for. By the time the filmmaker gets to set — physical production — they’ve empowered their collaborators with the tools and passion to iterate and execute the declared goals. A filmmaker is meant to inspire and lead, trusting in the collaborators they’ve surrounded themselves with. As great leaders of any ilk do.
A filmmaker makes plans. Filmmakers spend as much time as they can in development, planning and pre-production. Filmmakers need to make their project on paper before they make it on set when they’re spending finite time and money. By the time a filmmaker gets to physical production they’re there to make sure that everyone is aboard the same metaphorical train, headed towards the same goal. A filmmaker is there to solve problems when they come up (as they surely will). A filmmaker’s ability to solve those problems in a level headed and precise manner — trusting, respecting and empowering our creative collaborators, and reassuring everyone that their “train” is still headed in the right direction — all comes from preparation, experience and thorough planning.
A filmmaker knows and understands every granular component, process and element of the development, pre-production, production, post-production, distribution and marketing periods. A filmmaker must know how to take any creative idea from inception to completion. Part of this study and practice is not just so a filmmaker can be self-generating and self-reliant, but so that should a filmmaker choose to focus their path and work on one area of the filmmaking process, a filmmaker still knows where every other piece of the puzzle comes from and how they fit together. This will also allow a filmmaker to empathize and understand their collaborators, their process and what they are navigating as they work to support the filmmaker’s singular vision. Take the time to learn everyone’s names and walk a mile in their shoes. That way when a filmmaker challenges someone to extend themselves or rise to the occasion, they will both respect and understand each other. This is also part of being a great leader.
A director must also be a producer. Holistic producers, as defined by the Sundance Film Institute, are unfortunately a dying breed. Instead of expecting to find, or relying on a gatekeeper to help you push the boulder that is your film up a hill, a film director must know how to produce not only because they will have too, but also so they know and can anticipate how a producer works once they have the opportunity to collaborate with one. In this way a director will have agency and can be their own best advocate, instead of depending on or expecting someone else to do everything for them.
A filmmaker ideates endlessly. There’s no such thing as a bad idea, only ideas that lead to better ones. Don’t worry about discarding ideas and projects that don’t add up or worry about getting frustrated by work that falls into Ira Glass’ “the gap”. Like any other craft and job, the more one practices, the more experienced they become. Because film costs a lot and depends on the corralling and coalescing of so many disparate voices and collaborators it’s not possible to always “just go make a movie”. Ideating offers an affordable solution and a way to continue to grow and learn as a storyteller, leader and collaborator. Constantly ideating forces one to analyze underlying narrative needs and find creative solutions to novel and/or expensive problems in the stories you aim to tell. A filmmaker is also not afraid to finish a project, even if it’s not perfect and to move on — while also knowing when an idea is good enough to set aside or conversely, knowing when to quit a project. A filmmaker knows that quitting is not a pejorative word. It’s a useful and empowering reality.
A filmmaker defines success themselves. Success means different things to different people. It’s up to every individual filmmaker to determine whether critical or financial or peer recognition — or something else entirely — means that they’ve “made it”. Don’t let anyone else define this for you. By maintaining agency over your own goals you’ll be doing what you love, precisely because you love it for reasons only specific to you.
A filmmaker sends the elevator back down. When you can, take the time to help others out. Our industry is already hard enough and full of bad apples. To assist the future film maker in navigating their own path through the industry, remember how hard it was for you to get started as a filmmaker. Filmmaking is not a competition and a high tide raises all ships in the harbor. In this way we can make our industry a better place for future generations of storytellers — especially those who have been disregarded and disenfranchised for far too long. One is never too old to learn something new and one of the most beautiful things about making films is that those lessons can come from anyone.
All this being said, as much as my ethos comes from my professional and practiced experience, it also comes from what I wish I had been told — instead of figuring it out the slow and painful way. It’s already hard enough to be a working filmmaker but it does not have to be hard to get started on the journey of becoming one. It just takes looking at the challenge of it all from a different perspective. And even then, it’ll still be hard, but just maybe a little more navigable.
Lest it go unsaid, many others have said things like this before. The most inspired though is Mark Duplass’ incredible keynote address from SXSW 2015. If you haven’t seen that address, it’s 55 minutes long and worth watching every minute of. Also, I’m straight up borrowing his phrase “the calvary aren’t coming” for the title of this article. No shame.