Show Don't Tell: Micro-Budget Filmmaking

In this episode, I'm joined by Aidan Leary and C.R. Thompson, the writing team behind Monkey's Magic Merry Go Round . A micro-budget horror feature pitched as Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood meets Evil Dead 2, produced by mumblecore legend Joe Swanberg. Throught the episode Aidan and C.R. share the wild origin story of the film, from a screenplay written in just two weeks, to them living in the back of J...

In this episode, I'm joined by actor and filmmaker Hannah Barefoot to talk about building a career as a working actor, her recurring role on NCIS: Origins , our new short film Crow , and the leap into producing and crowdfunding her own first feature,  Wyoming Christmas Carol. Throughout the interview Hannah breaks down how she went from a string of day jobs to 80 film and TV credits, and how that'...

In this episode, I'm joined by writer-director-actor Cory Thibert to talk about his debut feature Mild Life , a coming-of-age film that premiered at Woodstock Film Festival and went on to win Best Canadian Feature at the Victoria Film Festival. Mild Life follows Lawrence, a drummer whose world gets thrown off beat when his girlfriend wants to leave their hometown just as he's stepping into a careg...

In this episode, I'm joined by filmmaker and graphic artist Jason Laurits to talk about his debut feature Love's Company (starring Rachel Dratch), and the unique two-decade creative journey that led him to directing his first feature in his 40s. Jason breaks down how the film started with a single absurd thought ("what would happen if you actually kidnapped a celebrity?") and grew out of his love...

In this episode I'm joined by filmmaker Nick Toti - one half of the DIY filmmaking duo behind the viral 80-second short Dead Grandma , the TIFF Midnight Madness sensation It Doesn't Get Any Better Than This , and the upcoming feature Homebody. Throughout the episode Nick breaks down the decade-long origin story of Dead Grandma , from an improvised game he invented while working as a nursery school...

In this episode, I'm joined by actor, filmmaker, and musician Nathan Xia to talk about his unconventional path into the industry - from making YouTube sketches with a flip camera to acting in studio projects, getting repped as both an actor and writer-director, and developing his deeply personal feature Adam's Song. Throughout the conversation Nathan shares how he fell into acting out of necessity...

In this episode, I’m joined by filmmaker and YouTuber Blake Calhoun to talk about his new feature film  Casey Makes A Mixtape , his long-running channel iPhoneographers, and his highly entrepreneurial approach to building a sustainable filmmaking career. Throughout the interview Blake shares how he got his start selling work to Warner Bros. after finding an audience on YouTube, and why he believes...

In this episode, I sit down with filmmaker Wade Patterson to discuss his micro-budget feature  Death Cipher  - a contained thriller shot in just 12 days for only $4,000. Throughout the interview, Wade shares how multiple failed feature attempts led him to radically simplify his process, why he embraced a single-location concept shot in his own apartment, and how limitations ultimately became the f...

In this episode I'm joined by filmmaker and entrepreneur Stefan van de Graaff, whose $75,000 micro-budget feature Simmer landed on HBO after going viral on Facebook. Stefan also co-founded a video agency that grew from a two-person team into a 100-employee business before selling for $17 million, which we discuss at length. Throughout the episode we talk about Stefan’s unconventional path - from M...

In this episode, I sit down with Academy Award nominee and ASC Award-winner Curren Sheldon to discuss his gritty new narrative feature Beatdown - a boxing drama made for just $60,000. Throughout the interview, Curren shares how his background in vérité documentary shaped the film’s style, why he cast real fighters and non-actors, and how they filmed key fight scenes inside a live event with 4,000...

In this special episode, we celebrate today’s release of our new feature film Teacher’s Pet - Now available where you rent or buy movies! Two days ago, we hosted a special advanced screening for members of my filmmaking community, and they took part in a virtual Q & A afterward. This episode includes the full live session with myself and lead actor / producer Luke Barnett. Topics covered inclu...

In this episode filmmaker Alec Goldberg joins the show to break down how his micro-budget comedy pilot Soft Boil went from a bootstrapped production to a blind submission acceptance at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival. We talk about Alec’s path from documentary and commercial work into scripted narrative, how a key creative partnership with lead actor / co-writer Camille Wormser shaped the project,...

In this episode, I’m joined by filmmaker West Eldredge to break down how he made his debut feature  Take From Me on a budget of $80,000 - and turned it into a real-world release on major platforms. We talk candidly about what actually moves the needle on an ultra-low budget feature: prioritizing casting, building a crew that can adapt under pressure, using festivals as a testing ground, and levera...

In this episode I’m joined by filmmaker Anna Elizabeth James, whose psychological thrillers  Deadly Illusions  and  Held Hostage in My House  both found major success on Netflix, including top-chart placement on the platform. Throughout the interview we break down Anna’s unconventional approach to building a sustainable filmmaking career outside the traditional studio system. We dive deep into int...

In this episode, I’m joined by filmmaker Mark Hensley, whose new feature Clown and Out in Valley Village was shot entirely guerrilla-style over the course of a year, for just $4,000. Mark shares how he wrote, shot, lit, and edited the film with no crew, no permits, and no safety net, all while working full-time as a re-recording mixer for major network shows. We dive deep into micro-budget filmmak...

In this episode, I’m joined by Steven Bernstein, ASC - the legendary cinematographer behind films like Monster, Bulletproof , and The Waterboy - to explore his extraordinary journey from BBC-trained writer/director to one of Hollywood’s most insightful visual storytellers. We discuss Steven’s unconventional path into cinematography, how he developed his philosophy of the “20 languages of cinema,”...

On today’s episode, I’m joined by filmmaker Hudson Phillips, who returns to share the incredible story of how his first appearance on the podcast led to getting his feature film financed (via one of our listeners) Throughout the discussion we take a deep dive into the realities of making micro-budget features profitable - Touring films like bands, selling merch, building community city-by-city, an...

In this episode I’m thrilled to be joined by Luke Barnett to discuss our viral short film OVATION , made for just $50 over a two-hour shoot. The film satirizes the never-ending standing ovations at major festivals that have dominated the trades in recent years. Within days of completion, the short caught fire online and even landed a feature in Variety - proof that the smallest, most spontaneous p...

In this episode I’m joined by filmmaker Jon Bregel, who recently DP'd the new Jay Duplass feature film The Baltimorons - which premiered at this year's SXSW film festival, and was released theatrically in September via IFC Films. Throughout the interview we trace Jon's journey from leveraging Vimeo as a tool to launch a successful commercial career in New York, to stepping away and redefining what...

In this episode I am joined by longtime friend and fellow filmmaker Ryan Oksenberg, here to break down the making of his debut feature FOIBLES - a darkly comic, surreal satire about codependency and addiction. Throughout the episode we take a behind the scenes look at this feature - How Ryan greenlit the project himself, pulling off big set pieces on an indie budget, the 13-month post pipeline, mu...

In this episode filmmaker and novelist Mick Lexington joins me to unpack the development phase for his debut feature Mr. Jack - an existential New York drama adapted from his own novel. Through the interview we dig into the process of raising a ~$400K production budget, why he brought on a dedicated fundraising lead, and how his “agile filmmaking” approach allows him to start elements of productio...

In this episode, I am joined by filmmaker Matthew Freiheit, whose career has spanned work with major artists like Wu-Tang Clan, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Nicki Minaj - and who has now broken into feature filmmaking with his debut Iconic. Shot for just $40,000 in his Los Angeles apartment and across more than 25 locations, the feature film blends arthouse style with run-and-gun energy, and has alr...

Filmmaker Emily Elizabeth Thomas joins me this week to break down the making of her debut feature film Keily: Homecoming Dweeb , a YA romance that bridges classic rom-com elements with bold visual experimentation. Emily shares how the project grew out of a Candy Jar–financed vertical web series, why she embraced an unconventional format to connect with Gen Z, and how she maintained her distinctive...

In this episode, I’m joined by director and photographer Dave Hill to discuss the making of his second feature film — a visually dynamic, deeply personal story shot with virtually no crew in the Arizona desert. All on the Blackmagic Pocket 4K. Throughout the interview we dive deep into Dave’s tactics and workflow, and explore how they empowered him to fully own the visual language of his film. Top...

In this episode, I’m joined by filmmaker Julian Sol Jordan to talk about his self-made debut feature Real Life — an 82-minute hybrid narrative-documentary that was shot, directed, edited, colored, and mixed entirely by himself. The film, which screened recently at the Texas Theatre in Dallas thanks to a generous grant from David Lowery, is a raw, poetic exploration of early adulthood, nostalgia, a...