Independent Filmmaker's Guide | IFG

Send us a text Passion, performance, and planning. Creating an independent feature takes all of them. From knowing how to get from your actors both planned and improvised performances, to knowing how to light a room and prepare camera rigs, there is always a need for a plethora of knowledge, experience, gear, and even budget. But as we hear from both the cinematographer and director of the new ind...

Send us a text As the world continues to return from the effects of the Corona Virus and the associated stay at home orders, the film and television industry is bracing for what life on set will be like. Today we are joined by two veterans of the industry to talk about what coming back looks like and what we should expect as we call “action”. The production technology specialist for the cinematogr...

Send us a text When Oscar winning screenwriter Kevin Willmott decided to make his next movie, he teamed up with star of the hit show Empire, Trai Byers, who joined not only as the lead, but also as a co-writer and co-producer. Together, they created a movie with themes as relevant today as they were 100 years ago, the new historical drama The 24th. We sat down with them, just as the film is being...

Send us a text When one thinks of a romcom we usually think of films from the 80/90s. But more and more, those films seem to reflect a time more in line with our history than our present. Our guests today are sisters, taking aim at the Romantic Comedy genre in an effort to make it resonate more with the actual experiences of Millennials and Gen Z with their production company Clean Slate Productio...

Send us a text Starring in movies like Snatch, Lock Stock & Two Smoking Barrels, X-Men, and a hundred other movies can’t prevent the trials of independent filmmaking - as actor Vinnie Jones has recently learned on his first producing venture with the film The Big Ugly. Teamed up with writer/director and friend Scott Wiper of The Condemned, these two very established artists overcame countless...

Send us a text What do film and art schools look like this coming school year and beyond? What do drama and other performance art school programs look like? Joining the discussion today is Meri Weingarten, the Director of Digital Media and Technology at the University of Southern California; Charles Haine, the Acting Program Director for Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema at Brooklyn College; and...

Send us a text Faran Tahir and the cast of the indie drama I'll Meet You There share their experiences of what it was like to become, as they describe, a working family on set. If you haven’t heard our main episode on I’ll Meet You There, check it out. In it, we get in depth with the pre-production, production, and post-production journey. In today's episode, we speak with the cast of th...

Send us a text Premiering your film at top tier festivals is often at the heart of turning a great film into a successful one. Today we talk with the director and cinematographer of the film I’LL MEET YOU THERE- about their experience creating a feature that was over a decade in the making, getting it into SXSW, preparing for its world premiere there, and then ultimately being canceled due to the...

Send us a text Photography and documentary filmmaking have always been extremely important when it comes to telling stories of major events and social shifts, and can even be the catalyst for entire movements. But Photographers need to be mindful and prepared in a number of ways. We’re joined by 5 visual storytellers from around the US to speak on what the photographer's role is. IFG is creat...

Send us a text When it comes to finishing the last stages of your film, many filmmakers can run into surprises. If you didn’t plan accordingly to have enough funds and time to properly color, mix, master and deliver the film, you find yourself scrambling. Today we talk with a senior colorist Rob Sciarratta and finishing producer Stephanie Pacchiano from Sim International about their journey overse...

Send us a text One of the most impactful artists that helps create the aesthetic of a film is the Director of Photography. They have direct access and impact to the look of the film and therefore must have a thorough working-knowledge of all things lighting, lenses, camera, and composition In addition to that, they must also be able to communicate seamlessly with multiple departments. Not to menti...

Send us a text On IFG we talk about independent film from development through delivery. By featuring discussions with creators and collaborators about their experiences, we form a roadmap to help you have the most success with your projects.  Mastering the short film medium is a skill in and of itself, so for today’s episode we brought in the filmmaking team who have certainly shown their mastery...