Indie Film Hustle® - A Filmmaking Podcast

In this episode we have Racer Max and Rebel Rodriguez. The sons of the legendary filmmaker Robert Rodriguez and film producer Elizabeth Avellán . Racer, Rebel and I had an amazing conversation about what it was like being raised by two master filmmakers, what it was like to be on set, but also what they've learned along the way, what they are doing differently than their predecessors have, and the...

Richard Walter was born on July 11, 1944, in New York City, New York, USA. He is a writer known for Group Marriage (1972), The Cinematographer (1969), and The Production Manager (1969). He has been married to Patricia Sandgrund since 1967. In 1988, he released his first instructional book Screenwriting: The Art, Craft, and Business of Film and Television Writing (Plume). This was followed a decade...

Brooks Elms has written more than 25 scripts over the term of his career for companies like Gold Circle Films, Base FX, and Broken Road. We connected through a mutual friend and I couldn’t wait to have him on the Bulletproof Screenwriting podcast. Elms is a member of the Writers Guild Of America and a part-time screenwriting instructor at UCLA Extension where he's shared his filmmaking and plot st...

Scott Myers is a screenwriter and educator known for his work in the film industry. He has written numerous screenplays and is the co-writer of the 2006 film "K-9: P.I." starring James Belushi. Myers is also the founder of the website Go Into The Story, which is a popular resource for aspiring screenwriters. Myers has been involved in the film industry for several decades and has worked as a scree...

The impact that Blake Snyder's Save the Cat® book series has had on Hollywood screenwriting is incalculable. Rarely does a book change the way screenwriters approach story and structure. In his best-selling book, Save the Cat! Goes to the Movies: The Screenwriter's Guide to Every Story Ever Told , Blake Snyder provided 50 “beat sheets” to 50 films, mostly studio-made. Now his student, screenwriter...

Since he was eighteen years old, Johnny Martin has been solely working in the film and television industry. He began his career as a stuntman, and within a relatively short period of time graduated to being a stunt coordinator and second-unit director. In those capacities, Johnny has worked on over 260 films, TV shows, and commercials, and even won the award for Best Stunt Coordinator of the Year...

Today on the show we have studio veteran, story consultant, and best-selling author of The Script Selling Game- 2nd edition: A Hollywood Insider's Look at Getting Your Script Sold and Produced Kathie Fong Yoneda. The Script-Selling Game is like having a mentor in the business who answers your questions and provides you with not only valuable information but real-life examples on how to maneuver yo...

Thunder Levin was born and raised in New York City, graduated from Hunter College High School, and received a BFA in Film from NYU before moving to Los Angeles at age 23. He credits the original Star Trek television series with opening his mind to both the wonders of science fiction and filmmaking as a child, while the original Star Wars solidified his desire to make movies when he grew up. Mutant...

Kim Hudson grew up in the Yukon, a Hero’s daughter with a Cinderella Complex. Basically life taught her many of the things she needed to know to write this book. Kim spent the first half of her career exploring her masculine side, first as a field geologist and later as a federal land claims negotiator. Exploring her feminine side became important to her as she raised her two daughters. This lead...

Alvaro Rodriguez has been writing since childhood and, in fact, did his best work when he was 11. Without a movie camera in sight, Rodriguez relied on the written word and a Polaroid Button to storyboard the films in his head. A crash course in entertainment writing and editing at the University of Texas student newspaper and seminars in creative writing supplied more tools for the toolbox. When h...

Today on the show we have comedy legend, author, and writer Steve Kaplan. For years, Steve Kaplan has been the industry’s most sought-after expert on comedy. In addition to having taught at UCLA, NYU, Yale and other top universities, Steve created the HBO Workspace, the HBO New Writers Program and was co-founder and Artistic Director of Manhattan Punch Line Theatre. He has consulted and taught wor...

Klaus Badelt is a renowned German composer and music producer, celebrated for his extraordinary contributions to film scores and soundtracks. Born on June 12, 1967, in Frankfurt, Germany, Badelt's exceptional talent for music was evident from a young age. With an extensive background in classical training and a deep appreciation for various musical genres, Badelt's unique ability to fuse different...

Today on the show we have Hollywood Story/Career Consultant and former Studio Executive Jen Grisanti. Grisanti is also a Writing Instructor for Writers on the Verge at NBC, a former studio executive, a blogger for The Huffington Post and author of Story Line: Finding Gold in Your Life Story , TV Writing Tool Kit: How To Write a Script That Sells , and her recent book Change Your Story, Change Your...

David F. Sandberg is a highly talented and innovative filmmaker who has left an indelible mark on the world of cinema. Born on January 21, 1981, in Jönköping, Sweden, Sandberg's passion for filmmaking began at a young age when he discovered his father's VHS camera. Little did he know that this simple encounter would shape his destiny. After completing his education, Sandberg embarked on a journey...

Today's guest is screenwriter Allen Johnson. Allen has taken a unique path to become a working screenwriter. He has been able not only to sell ten screenplays but has been able to do it without an agent and living outside of Hollywood. Allen lives in South Carolina, not exactly a mecca for screenwriting. In this episode, we dive into how he was able to make a living writing screenplays and discuss...

Chad Archibald and Cody Calahan are Canadian film directors and producers known for their work in the horror genre. They have collaborated on several projects together, often through their production company, Black Fawn Films. Chad Archibald and Cody Calahan co-founded Black Fawn Films in 2007 with a focus on creating independent horror films. They have since produced and directed numerous feature...

Today on the show we have writer and showrunner Michael Jamin. Michael has been writing for television since 1996. His many credits include Just Shoot Me, King of the Hill, Beavis & Butthead, Wilfred, Out of Practice, Rules of Engagement, Lopez and Tacoma FD. He’s also served as Executive Producer/Showrunner on Glenn Martin DDS, Maron, and Rhett & Link’s Buddy System. Michael currently liv...

Our guest today is producer, director and screenwriter Marshall Herskovitz. Many of his production projects have been in partnership with his long-time filmmaking collaborator, Edward Zwick whose films, he’s produced and written half of. Their decades-long filmmaking partnership was launched as co-creators of the 1987 TV show, ThirtySomething. Now, Marshall had already written for the TV show, Fam...

S.S. Wilson, the screenwriter of such films as Tremors and Short Circuit, has just finished his second novel Fraidy Cats. Wilson also wrote a book on special effects, stop-motion animation, PUPPETS, AND PEOPLE. In 1983 Wilson and Maddock sold their spec script SHORT CIRCUIT. Directed by John Badham , it was their first produced feature. In quick succession, they wrote SHORT CIRCUIT 2, BATTERIES NO...

Today on the show we have screenwriter and best-selling author Alan Watt. Alan Watt is the author of The 90-Day Novel, Amazon’s #1 book on writing, as well as The 90-Day Rewrite: The Process of Revision and The 90-Day Screenplay: From Concept to Polish . He runs the publishing company, The 90-Day Novel Press which has also published The 90-Day Play. Watt has written screenplays for numerous produc...

Darious Britt is a filmmaker, YouTuber, and educator known for his work in the film and online video industry. He is popular for his YouTube channel "D4Darious," where he shares filmmaking tips, tutorials, and insights to help aspiring filmmakers improve their craft. On his channel, he covers various aspects of filmmaking, including screenwriting, cinematography, directing, and post-production. Da...

Alexander Dinelaris is an Academy Award and Golden Globe winning screenwriter for "Birdman (or The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)", a co-producer on the three time Academy Award® winning film "The Revenant", and the book writer for the Broadway musical "On Your Feet! The story of Emilio and Gloria Estefan", as well as "The Bodyguard Musical" which began on the West End and now performs worldwide....

Today on the show we have Lucy V. Hay from Bang2Write. Lucy is an author and script editor, living in Devon with her husband, three children, and six cats. Lucy is the associate producer of Brit Thrillers Deviation (2012) and Assassin (2015) both starring Danny Dyer. In addition to script reading and writing her own novels, Lucy also blogs about the writing process, screenwriting, genre, careers a...

Today on the show we have Miles Chapman, the screenwriter behind the successful action franchise Escape Plan starring the legendary Sylvester Stallone. The premise was simple but great. When a structural-security authority finds himself set up and incarcerated in the world's most secret and secure prison, he has to use his skills to escape with help from the inside. Then add Sly and another legend...

Brendan McCarthy studied Painting and Film at Chelsea school of Art under the celebrated British Pop Artist Patrick Caulfield. Brendan is one of the UK's most gifted graphic novelists. His ground-breaking comics of the early 80s (Strange Days, Skin, Rogan Gosh) as part of 'The British Invasion' paved the way for comics’ increasing popularity in Hollywood. He was also one of the pioneers of compute...