Written By April | May 2012 : Page 21
Hulu, Amazon and iTunes. Now Mark is repped by ICM. Don’t assume you must create only features or web series. Writer-actor-director Bob Gebert launched Beckinfield.com, a mass-participation project in which folks from throughout the country play characters living in a strange small town. The multimedia website allows performers to submit their own homemade videos, with Bob giving them guidelines as to the continuing story. (This is after Bob’s previous self-funded feature Eleven Minutes Ago, shot entirely in one day, allowed him to raise millions on his next project.) Not everyone who makes their own feature or web series does so hoping for fame and fortune. Jane Espenson already had a robust career with such credits as Buffy, Battlestar Galactica, and Game of Thrones when she teamed with Brad “Cheeks” Bell to co-write and produce Husbands, a comedic web series about gay marriage. Her reason was simple: to do the show exactly as she and her partner envisioned it, with no network notes and a cast they knew the network would not have approved. Convinced? Okay. So here’s what you can do, from soup to nuts: to make it. Which one comes first really is a chicken or egg proposition, either one viable. In one scenario, you decide precisely how much money you (or friends and relatives who really like you) have available to put toward this project, fac-toring in other production-value elements readily at hand (an apartment—perhaps yours—that you can shoot in; a car— again maybe yours—that the hero can drive, etc.). Craft your script to suit these factors. The flipside is first selecting a script (one you write or ac-quire) and then pulling together the funds to make it. This can be via such sites as Indiegogo and Kickstarter, selling shares to investors, having a yard sale, whatever. The key is pulling it together immediately. Don’t waste 10 years attempting to raise $10 million. If you’ve got three grand an elderly aunt just left you, make it for that. Whichever method you choose, the story you shoot should be entertaining and something you can reasonably pull off. Don’t be underambitious (two people droning on in one room) or too grandiose (that estimation totally de-pends on how many friends you have who can do effects). If it’s comedy, it should be funny. If it’s drama, the characters should be credible and connected in some way to reality. If it’s science fiction or fantasy, it needs to have gosh-gee-whiz. Horror should be scary and, ideally, fresh. Which brings us to the side issue of quality. Often you’ll hear folks—usually agents or studio/network execs—say, “All you need is a great script.” Bullshit. All you need is something you can shoot. Remember: Half-assed is better than no ass at all. Get into action, get moving, do something. Momen-tum and commitment make things happen. Which isn’t to say you shouldn’t strive for quality. Better is better. But get to the finish line. StepS 1&2: Choose a project and Gather the funds Step3: plan your pr, marketing, and distribution. That’s right, do this before you shoot your project. Most folks don’t put any forethought into this and are screwed after they’ve moved heaven and earth to make their project, only to be-latedly find they have no clue how to get anyone to see it. You don’t need every detail nailed down in advance, but you should ask yourself these questions: What is the promotional media hook to this story that will get it press and the public interested? (An Afghan War veteran-turned-actor doing a web series addressing the alarm-ingly high suicide rate among returning soldiers.) How will I market this piece so word gets out? (Paid ad-vertising, viral marketing on the Net, festivals, etc.) How will I distribute this? (Internet, theatrical, DVD, VOD, etc.) To each of the above questions, add, “And whom do I know with personal experience on this subject who might be willing to advise me?” Step 4: Get a camera. Borrow, rent, or buy. The format should be HD. The Canon 5D is good, uses 35-millimeter lenses (which gets you a film look) and costs about $2,000, but there are many other great options at a similar price. If you want to go higher end (and you don’t need to), you can get a Red or an Alexa. Never shoot on film; it’s too expensive and totally unnecessary. Step 5: Gather a team. Look around you—who’s talent-ed? Invite them aboard to play. Make sure it’s win-win, that there’s something in it that serves their needs and ambitions. And let everyone get their fair share of credit. Most important, make sure they’re not flakes. Ask people who’ve worked with them. The last thing in the world you want is for the guy with the sound equipment not to show up on shoot day. To that end, ask yourself these five questions regarding anyone you plan to work or affiliate with: Do I like this person? Do I trust this person? Do they do what they say they’re going to do? Do they finish what they start? Have they previously successfully done what I’m asking them to do now, or do they have transferable skills that make me rea-sonably certain they’ll be able to pull it off? You don’t have to be able to answer “yes” to all five of them, but you should be able to answer yes to at least three. And, ask the same questions of yourself. Keep your crew as small as possible, but make sure it can get the job done. Feed your cast and crew well, and don’t work 20-hour days. You’ll drive everyone into the ground, and no one will want to work with you. In terms of their past credits, anyone—from a talented teenager with an impressive reel to an octogenarian who continues on page 52 APRIL/MA Y 20 12 WG A W Written By • 21
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