Thanks for considering me as a producer for your feature!
I’ve been hired to consult on projects, putting in as little as 10-20 hours total, and I’ve been hired to totally take over movies starting at conception and ending at distribution. Obviously what you want/need, and how long it will take me, will determine how much I need to charge. After you have read everything on this page, email me at Joel@BeYourOwnHollywood.com and we’ll discuss your project.
Here is what I will, and will not, do for you:
The one thing I will not do for you is raise the financing for your film. As detailed below, I’ll give you a lot of tools that will help you do this, but it simply doesn’t make any sense for me to do this for you. If you’re not already financed, I’ll charge a reasonable consulting fee upfront, then I’ll help you build the package you need to attract investors. I’ll help you with your investor package, star attachments, distributor and sales agent attachments, and professional third party sales projections.
Script notes and writing – Let me help you get a script that will get distributor’s interested in you right off the bat! I can help you pick out a script, rewrite a script, or possibly I’ll even write a script for you from scratch. I will steer you towards the correct genre, then mold your script so it further fits what distributors want while making it easier to shoot and reducing our total costs.
Budget – There are many right ways to do a budget. We’ll have to talk extensively about how much you want to spend, where you want to shoot, and if you want to fly above or below the radar. Once I have all these answers either I will review and comment on your budget, I’ll do the budget, or I will help you hire a line producer (the position that typically does the budget on larger films).
Funding – I will give you a lot of help here, but understand that the one thing that I will not do for you is fund your film. I will help you put together a rock star investor presentation. I’ll be the casting director for name talent and pull known actors into your film. I’ll attach a domestic distributor and a foreign sales agent, and I’ll get them to do sales projections that you can put into your presentation. It is then up to you to find the investors. Once you have contacted them, I’d be happy to talk to them via email or phone to help you close them.
Casting – Which actors I recommend to cast will be entirely based on the budget. Certain actors are gold in a 100k film but are a huge setback in a 2.5 million dollar film. Some actors are a waste of time to go after in a $500k film as they simply will not work on a low budget film and/or with an unknown director. Others actors have very well known names, but they do so many movies that distributors no longer see them as having any value. I’ll help you navigate these waters.
Hiring of crew – Really depends on our budget and the type of production you would like. Generally a line producer does this, but on smaller film the producer is the line producer. I’ll have some crew size recommendations, and names, based on budget.
Schedule – I’m very good at scheduling a film. This is typically a job for the 1st AD. I never trust anyone except myself to do this. Twice I used a professional AD to schedule my films (two different films, two different professional ADs) and twice they screwed it up. I always do this on my own film, and I’ll do it for yours should you want me to.
Directing – I’d honestly rather not direct as I already have a lot on my plate, but if need be we can talk about it. Along with you (and everything is ultimately your call) we’ll hire a director, I’ll direct, or you’ll direct. The director must stay on budget and on schedule!
On set – I can essentially take the job of both 1st AD and UPM making sure that we stay on schedule and on budget. Extremely important. Both of these jobs are, frankly, a pain in the neck. I’d rather float around set looking important, chatting up models, and visiting the craft service table. But the movie must stay on budget and on schedule. If I have to UPM and 1st AD, I will.
Post – I will help you hire an editor and composer. You have final cut, but I will be very involved with editing notes. I believe that editing is where movies are made or lost. Everything is ultimately your call, I’ll give my detailed opinions and you take it from there.
Marketing materials – I know what distributors are looking for. I’ll make sure that your movie has the right title, poster, and trailer to attract distributors and maximize sales.
Sales – getting the right domestic distribution deal and the right foreign sales agent is key to making money. Most distributors and sales agents exist by stealing from indie producers. I’ll bring you to people I trust, and I’ll read the contracts and make sure you don’t get your pants taken down.
Let’s talk!
Joel@BeYourOwnHollywood.com