Making Movies is HARD!!!: The Struggles of Indie Filmmaking

This week we welcome writer and director Laura Moss to talk about their first feature Birth/Rebirth, how they got the film made at such a high level and how they are dealing with not working during the strike. After that we play another round of You Are the Expert, enjoy! Website: Retrospecter Films https://www.retrospecterfilms.com/ Instagram: @mxlauramoss https://www.instagram.com/mxlauramoss/ T...

This week we welcome writer/director Jeff Graham on the show to talk about directing his first feature, Always Lola which came out on August 1st, getting started in the world of podcasting, then switching focus to writing and directing, while still producing and co-hosting a podcast. After that we play another round of You’re the Expert, enjoy! Check out Casting Calls America, it's casting made ea...

This week we welcome producer Mel Miller on the show to talk about her time in distribution, moving from Gravitas to Samuel Goldwyn as the Executive VP and stepping away from that role to focus on her own films, which lead her to winning an Oscar for Nalvany earlier this year. After that we play another round of THE GAME, enjoy! Check out Casting Calls America, it's casting made easy at www.castin...

This week we welcome documentary filmmakers Tommy Hyde and Aaron Woolf on the show to talk about their new documentary Underdog about a Vermont farmer who risks it all to go Dog Mushing in Alaska. FYI ticketing is live for the opening of Underdog, here’s a link to get your tickets for the premiere on Thursday August 10th! https://www.laemmle.com/film/underdog After that we play another round of TH...

This week we welcome producer Stephen Gibler on the show to talk about his career producing indie films, what lead him to producing Liz’s first feature Bread and Butter, how he finds funds for projects and his new app logline.ai which is using AI to create pitch decks in a matter of seconds. After that we play another round of THE GAME, enjoy! Check out Casting Calls America, it's casting made eas...

On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 183 back in November 2018 with three different listener call in's where they talk about their filmmaking struggles, which I think is a good match for Jhenn because she is somewhat of a Jill of all trades. After that we play another round of You’re the Expert, enjoy! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://...

This week we welcome producer, editor and production accountant Jhennifer Webberley on the show to talk about forming her company, wearing multiple hats, film fundraising and much more! After that we play another round of THE GAME, enjoy! Check out Casting Calls America, it's casting made easy at www.castingcallsamerica.com! Watch The Alternate on Tubi Out Now: https://tubitv.com/movies/702632/the...

On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 334 with filmmakers Stacey Maltin and Margarita Zhitnikova back from September 2021 who talked about willing their film into existence which seemed similar to the way Juan and his team just pulled their film family together to make their special movie. After that we play a round of You’re the Expert, enjoy! Hosted by Si...

This week we welcome writer/director Juan Felipe Zuleta on the show to talk about his film Unidentified Objects which played Stiges and Fantastic fest and is out now on all platforms. Juan talked about how he made the film during the pandemic and what drew him to writing this story. After that we play another round of THE GAME, enjoy! Check out Casting Calls America, it's casting made easy at www....

On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 312 from March 2021 with Sana Soni who was at 1091 but who is now the Director of Sales and Distribution at Giant Pictures! I thought this was a good match for Mia since they both work in distribution, although one is a freelancer and one works for a larger company. After that we play another round of You’re the expert,...

This week we welcome Film Distribution and Marketing Strategist/ Impact Producer Mia Bruno on the show to talk about how she got into distribution, her time working at Gravitas and moving out on her own as a consultant. After that we play another round of The Game, enjoy! Check out Casting Calls America, it's casting made easy at www.castingcallsamerica.com! Watch The Alternate on Tubi Out Now: ht...

On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 156 with producer Jeffrey Allard from May 2018 who came on the show to talk about his prolific career producing indie feature films, our work together on The Alternate (which had really not even started yet) and much more! I thought this was a good pairing for David because I imagine Jeff as future David in some way, wi...

This week we welcome producer David Lawson Jr. on the show to talk about producing indie features, his process as a producer and what he looks for in a project. After that we play another round of THE GAME, enjoy! Check out Casting Calls America, it's casting made easy at www.castingcallsamerica.com! Watch The Alternate on Tubi Out Now: https://tubitv.com/movies/702632/the-alternate For 20% off yo...

On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 338 with documentary filmmakers Nick Scown and Julie Seabaugh about making their feature documentary Too Soon: Comedy After 9/11 which I thought was a good companion piece to Cynthia and Christines story because while the circumstances of them working together are much different, it seems like the collaboration and the...

This week we welcome director Cynthia Hill and producer Christine Delp on the show to talk about their HBO documentary series The Burden of Truth, which they made together across eight years. They talk about how they discovered the story, how they formed the series and all the hard work that went into those eight years. This week special guest host Eric Toms joins us for the interview and the segm...

On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 311 from March 2021 with Anthony Scott Burns where he talks about making his first feature after quitting a feature he had already been hired to direct. I think this is a good match for Bomani because they both worked with established producers on their films and had amazing film festival success! After that we play ano...

This week we welcome writer director Bomani J Story on the show to talk about making his first feature film The Angry Black Girl and her Monster, how he got the project set up at Crypt TV and what it was like to premiere at SXSW! After that we pay another round of THE GAME, enjoy! THE ANGRY BLACK GIRL AND HER MONSTER will be available in Theaters on June 9, 2023 and it will be on Demand and on Dig...

On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 317 from May 2021 with director Jen McGowan who talks about the circumstances leading to her second feature film and how she kicked off her TV directing career! I thought this was a nice pairing for Sylvia because they both started working as crew before their directing careers took off. After that we play another round...

This week we welcome Producer and director Sylvia Caminer on the show to talk about directing her latest feature, Follow Her and her impressive producing and directing career, starting as a PA and working her way up. After that we play another round of THE GAME, enjoy! Check out Casting Calls America, it's casting made easy at www.castingcallsamerica.com! Watch The Alternate on Tubi Out Now: https...

On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play a conversation with Timothy and Alrik talking all about unions, what they knew about unions at the time and why they both weren’t members of any entertainment union at the time (and still aren’t now!) Since Rob talked all about the strike this seemed like a good match after that we play another round of You’re the Expert, enjoy! Hosted by Simplec...

This week we welcome WGA Writer and Strike Captain Rob Forman on the show to talk to us about everything regarding the WGA strike! We get to hear about what a strike captain does, the strategy behind picketing and all the details of why this strike is so damn important! After that we play another round of THE GAME and we read yet another Itunes review! Check out Casting Calls America, it's casting...

On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 241 way back in December 2019 with production designer Rob Riutta right while we were in the middle of shooting The Alternate which we talk about the design of quite a bit. This one is a good match for Garo because we talk about set building which ties into the set talk we had with Garo, plus we focus our talk on a sci-...

This week we welcome writer director Garo Setian on the show to talk about making of his second feature film Space Wars: Quest for the Deep Star, how he raised the budget for the film and we get into a bit of the current climate of franchises and have some nerd debates. After that we play another round of THE GAME, enjoy! Check out Casting Calls America, it's casting made easy at www.castingcallsa...

On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 305 back in February 2021 with writer/director Anna Biller about the making of her feature The Love Witch, which we felt was a pretty good match for Emily since they both had long periods in between projects, although the circumstances are a little different. After that we play another round of You’re the Expert, enjoy!...

This week we welcome writer director Emily Abt on the show to talk about making her first feature film Toe to Toe and her experience premiering at Sundance, her fourteen year break to making her 2nd Narrative feature Thirsty, getting reps, losing reps and making three documentary features in between, all while raising two kids! After that we play another round of THE GAME, enjoy! Watch The Alterna...