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feature film Archives - S-Films

Jun 12
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the keyman adam baldwin

First Time Filmmaker – Lessons Learned

By Corporate Video Production, Tips/Techniques

Making the Feature Film “The Keyman” It’s been 17 years.  20 if you count the birth of the script—which was in the summer of 1997.  I worked in corporate and commercial videography and always dreamed of being a filmmaker.  The idea for the movie “The Keyman”  came to me in the parking lot of a grocery store.  It was a huge “what if” question to something that had just happened to me.  We shot the film in September of 2000, and released it in 2002. After my first film “The Keyman” (now available on iTunes and Amazon Prime) , I went on to direct four more movies over the next decade.  But the first film is usually special and it was no different for me.  Here are some of the biggest things I learned. First Time Filmmaker Needs to Hire…

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Jun 04
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Greenlight

Greenlight Your Own Film

By Seminars

I break the phases of filmmaking into six distinct areas: The Idea; Development; Pre-Production; Production; Post Production; and Distribution.  Most new filmmakers spend most of the research and education in the production phases.  But the biggest hurdles are in the two “D’s”– Development and Distribution. Development is where you raise the money and build the right team.  Distribution is where you make money to pay back the investors and enough for you to keep going.  These two areas are woefully lacking.  That’s why I started teaching the Greenlight seminar several years ago. Often people have a story they want made into a movie and they either write the screenplay or commission the writing of the screenplay.  Then it’s an upward climb to get the script sold to a production company.  Then it’s an uphill battle for the production company to…

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Feb 21
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Business Plan

How To Start A Feature Film

By Tips/Techniques

First Steps to Making Your Own Feature Film How do I get started? One of the questions I get asked by new filmmakers is exactly how to get started.  They want to know what their next step is.  Here is an extremely practical, where the rubber meets the road answer to that question. What’s my First Step towards making my feature film? I usually start the answer by asking a couple of clarifying questions.  Do you have a screenplay written?  (If no, then that’s your next step).  It doesn’t have to be polished and locked for production, but needs to be complete.  Do you have any funding?  Usually the answer is no.  Have you set up the entity?  Usually, the answer is a look of confusion. So here goes.  First,you need to have some development money ready and able to…

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Dec 08
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Audition in NYC for Rising Stars

Audition Tips from a Working Film Director

By Tips/Techniques

In addition to our corporate video productions we do in the Dallas, Fort Worth area, SFilms has made five feature films over the years starring Adam Baldwin, Mimi Rogers, Lou Diamond Phillips and others.  In today’s post, we talk to actors about quick tips to instantly impact their auditions and give a better chance for landing that role. The Dilemma for Local Actors When I was casting for Rising Stars in New York City, the producer that hired me (as well as most producers in LA and NYC) had a bias against local actors.  They were fine for bit parts and dayplayer roles, but not for principles or leads.  And as we auditioned back at home for these roles, I thought about this dilemma and why the local actors are handicapped right out of the gate. So how can a local actor…

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