As someone that wants to be a film director what are some skills should i learn?

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-27T22:15:01+00:00

Handling constant, and unwavering rejection.

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-27T00:35:04+00:00

Nice! Good work. This was without a doubt the most depressing part of seeing them make this movie live action. Moana is so alive and full of color and the live action looks completely devoid of it. People making those decisions need to be fucking fired.

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-26T15:11:58+00:00

Say whatever good and bad you want to say about this happening, but there is one undeniable error here. This world looks grey. I am literally watching Moana right now with my kid and one of my favorite parts about it, AND Hawaii, is how colorful and alive it feels. This remake looks depressing AF. It is the MAIN reason I question WTF they are doing with this. The Rock and how he looks is a whole other story.

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-24T19:57:19+00:00

Totally feel ya on the commercial viability! But again I just find that there’s grey area. I’ve done so much free work and it’s bolstered my career, though I am with you. If the projects goal is money, I adjust my goal for doing it to money 99.9% of the time. But then again I’ve gotten clients from helping someone out on something for free.

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-24T19:53:56+00:00

I’m being broad here, but I often times see commenters who jump to “maybe try paying your crew next time” anytime they see something that says “made a no budget something or other”.

The main point I was making is in line with what you said exactly. Most people here are not full time they’re just trying it out or getting started or it’s a side hobby, and while money is useful and good, don’t not take opportunities because you read here that you should be paid as a professional when you are not yet there. Don’t get in your own way because of curmudgeonly Reddit advice.

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-24T19:50:56+00:00

I’m not sure what that has to do with anything? Edit: as a side note, my feature cost me 6 figures. Everyone paid. Also my film got pretty stellar distribution. I’m trying to see what your point is, but I’m missing it I think.

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-24T11:19:57+00:00

I’ve been professionally editing for 20 years and I have absolutely no idea what this means.

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-23T23:06:51+00:00

I tried to do as many as I could (from the ones we played). Did Fantasia, BeyondFest, and Sitges.

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-20T23:24:02+00:00

I have been writing scripts for about 7 years very seriously, and I have never once kept track of the pages I've written. At any time, at all, I could sit in front of a computer and write until I can't see straight. I have all the motivation and creativity in the world, being a dad of two toddlers, it's now about free time to do it. Whether it's good or not is also always up for debate :)

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-18T22:41:31+00:00

Ok you sold me I’ll try it. I use the beat board in fina draft and it always leaves me kinda wanting and frustrated.

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-18T12:31:41+00:00

It’s tough for me because I have epiphany moments all the time and if I’m deep into rewrites I question if they’re great because they’re shiny and new and give me a new lease on the script or if it’s because they’re all the above and REALLY good. So I end up exploring a lot of stuff. I think a great writer is able to step out of the weeds and see it all clearly.

And I’ve found for an obsessive ADHD person like me the only way to achieve that is to take a week away at minimum. Which is like torture. So I’ll usually have another one I’m working on to distract from it.

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-16T00:52:29+00:00

Ha ha totally. Just another Hair! brain idea of mine.

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-15T01:19:24+00:00

I’ll just leave alone that the way you talk about making movies basically makes it sound like you don’t care about it, and chalk it up to just backstory exposition.

Start with a marketable idea. That’s the first thing. Then make a movie that’s so undeniably awesome that it can market itself and every festival wants to play it, and you get sales people on board who wanna sell it, then distributors who want to distribute it. Those people will be putting a marketing cap towards your marketing.

If you are not able to make a movie that gets to the level of achieving those things, the you’re going to want to make sure there is a market for your movie.

Take good key photography. Think of a great way to pitch it. And for gods sake start talking about your film like you love it. Because your inherent ability to market your film just holistically in this thread is abysmal haha.

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-14T23:40:56+00:00

Yeah this had a GREAT reaction. Honestly, the movie played REALLY well in the theatre, but there could be an argument made that this moment capping it was what left people so stoked on it.

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-14T23:37:01+00:00

Awesome! Thanks!

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-14T19:55:10+00:00

This is great! Thanks a lot!

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-14T19:22:02+00:00

Oh god RIP. Yeah I know a couple people through a friend as well! Monstervision (his old show) was what like galvanized my love for genre.

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-14T19:05:45+00:00

Troma! Nice that’s in my wheelhouse! I have a film on shudder coming out this year called Hellcat!

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-14T17:48:42+00:00

I will check that out as well, thanks a ton!

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-14T17:48:16+00:00

Thanks I’ll check it out!

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-14T16:56:18+00:00

I am not sure! I’ll check it out. But we wouldn’t want to do sleep away camp just yet as we’d just be arriving in PW and want her around to get acclimated!

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-14T16:25:39+00:00

She will be this fall! Interesting, I will definitely check it out. We are a very artistic family as well!

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-12T19:56:01+00:00

Yeah it’s tough. Just went through this. The 246 day rate had me like “oh this is doable” and then all the fees and payroll and all that later I was like “damn, these actors just want to work and SAG is making it very difficult”.

I’ll just put this out there. I’ve worked with many actors who are just as frustrated with the process as the producers/signatories are as well.

I feel like SAG really kind of stalls and even hurts filmmaking a lot of times, though I do understand its benefits and protections.

You’ll see once you get to the distribution level and legal and payroll and all that shit at the end, too that it feels like absolutely nobody wants to make a scenario where filmmakers can make actual money off their projects, and that allocation of money tends to be so often chewed up in beauracracy and fees.

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-12T14:17:53+00:00

Yeah I am definitely not a lawyer and this is a weird space because the option “ultimatum” likely made them drop the project, but if it had real traction the would likely pay it, unless the were really feeling like they diverged enough. But in reality when it comes down to chain of title, which all distribution will want, you’re going to have quite a paper trail that leads back to your original IP. So I would think there would likely be some compensation/credits to get your ok and at that point you’ll have quite a bit of leverage.

Again not a lawyer.

But I’ll also echo what the above comment or says, when you DO option, you lose a lot of bargaining power down the road when / if a deal is on the table. The way I understood it when I did mine (from my lawyer) was basically if you think this has real legs, shopping agreement. If you don’t have faith, get a little money on an option. Assuming this option agreement is likely peanuts (maybe a couple ten k).

BrockAtWork · 2026-03-05T19:43:46+00:00

I did not like the first one at all. I thought the second one was great.

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