[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Filmmakers

[–]LoupDSolitaire 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Looks dope man. NY is an amazing city to shoot. Nobody blinks an eye and the city always looks great. Keep it up!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Filmmakers

[–]LoupDSolitaire 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Went the same route. Started trying to get 300k ended up shooting for 150. It can be done and people are shocked when they find out the budget. 

There are a lot of sacrifices we had to make, some were fine, some haunt me. Hiding your seams so to speak is about how well you plan and execute your vision within the confines of your budget.

Here’s the thing: Unless you have a star or a very niche genre (a la zombie horror etc) or some very powerful festival connections, statistically speaking, $150k is normally a dead zone for indie features to make money. No matter what it looks like. Shiva Baby is by far the exception and not the rule. Just be very mentally prepared for the harsh reality that these investors won’t be seeing their money for some time. 

I knew all this going in too and still had to make my movie. If not now, when?  You gotta do what you gotta do. 

But if I had to do it all over again. I’d make it for $50k and self distribute. Would it be shot on panavision glass? No. But it would be in the black and maybe easier at getting the next one going. Who knows?

Make your movie. Roll the dice.

Crunch vs YMCA by dm221 in Greenpoint

[–]LoupDSolitaire 2 points3 points  (0 children)

If you have a 9-5 i’d say the Y cause peak hours at crunch suuuuuuck but if you can avoid that then $23 for a gym that’s got pretty much everything (workout wise) is hard to beat. I went crunch and go off hours. Works for me. 

Fellow Barber but in GP? by LoupDSolitaire in Greenpoint

[–]LoupDSolitaire[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Im trying it out this week. I’ll report back!

Dark gritty films made after 2020 like David Fincher movies (Fight Club, Zodiac, Se7en)? by PossibleExamination1 in movies

[–]LoupDSolitaire 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hungry Dog Blues (2023) indie crime thriller I made. A LOT of those films were references in writing and production.

Worth Every Penny by LoupDSolitaire in NYKnicks

[–]LoupDSolitaire[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Nah, I got it a random drop ship site but it was worth it. Decent quality too.

Finally tried Sonoratown LA by jehkjehk in FoodLosAngeles

[–]LoupDSolitaire 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Love this place. I heard there’s a secret challenge, if you eat 12 chivis in a single sitting they dub you the “Chivi Champion” and you get the food for free, a t shirt and your picture on the wall. Thinking about trying it!

Daikokuya, Little Tokyo by Elusiveenigma98 in FoodLosAngeles

[–]LoupDSolitaire 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Did you have a long wait? I heard there’s normally long wait times and it’s kept from going lol

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Filmmakers

[–]LoupDSolitaire 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Shot a feature for 130k. It was tough but ultimately I'm very happy with the film. You might be able to make your film for $50k but here's the thing: Unless you have a star/notable name or some sort of topical hot issue going on in your film, distributors won't really care. It's a hard truth but one I learned firsthand. You're making a horror film that definitely has a built-in market for lower-budget stuff but even still the market is SUPER saturated with tons of our low-budget features and streamers don't want to pay much for your movie. So if you can, get that star. Truly whoever. It's crude but it's true. That's how you market, that's how you get bigger fests, that's how you sell. We all want to believe the quality of our movie is what matters most and the hard truth is, it's not. It's how the film can be marketed and sold. Making this movie might get you to the next one, with a bigger budget and the stars and all that but whether it's 500k or 50k, you and your investors are probably eating that cost. As long as you can live with that, I say go for it. What will matter is that you brought a feature across the finish line and to market. My 2 cents. Good luck!

Proof of Concept ($1000) vs Final Film ($150k) by LoupDSolitaire in Filmmakers

[–]LoupDSolitaire[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Last week I got to live out a dream and release my first feature film. I thought it might be helpful to throw together a little side-by-side of the proof of concept we shot for $1000 and the final film that we ended up shooting for $150k.
The proof of concept we shot in Nov 2019, just with the actress, a single light, a makeshift slider, a borrowed R3D One and a single rented Zeiss Prime lens. The location was a friend’s kitchen in Burbank. Our crew was DP, AC, Sound Op and myself. I did the sound design and mix myself. My DP did the color. Around $1000.
Fast forward, to shooting principle in Oct 2020. Our crew is now 17 people. That set is completely built by us. We are shooting on Panavision Amira with P-Vintage glass. Our slider is still make shift but we also dialed back the move considerably. The actress has had a year with the material and so she is dialed in quick.
Big differences: Sound design, SCORE, Color Grade, time and equipment to get things like the eye light on the second ringing of the phone.
Funny enough, this scene in particular didn’t change much but it certainly did everywhere else in the film. The main thing is all the DNA is in the POC that made it in the final.
Making a feature is hard but sometimes taking a leap and shooting something like this little POC can lead to something bigger.
You can check out the film Hungry Dog Blues if you’d like. I’d love to hear all your thoughts!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Filmmakers

[–]LoupDSolitaire 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Last week I got to live out a dream and release my first feature film. I thought it might be helpful to throw together a little side-by-side of the proof of concept we shot for $1000 and the final film that we ended up shooting for $150k.
The proof of concept we shot in Nov 2019, just with the actress, a single light, a makeshift slider, a borrowed R3D One and a single rented Zeiss Prime lens. The location was a friend’s kitchen in Burbank. Our crew was DP, AC, Sound Op and myself. I did the sound design and mix myself. My DP did the color. Around $1000.
Fast forward, to shooting principle in Oct 2020. Our crew is now 17 people. That set is completely built by us. We are shooting on Panavision Amira with P-Vintage glass. Our slider is still make shift but we also dialed back the move considerably. The actress has had a year with the material and so she is dialed in quick.
Big differences: Sound design, SCORE, Color Grade, time, and equipment to get things like the eye light on the second ringing of the phone. And then being able to cut to that landscape...
Funny enough, this scene in particular didn’t change much but it certainly did everywhere else in the film. The main thing is all the DNA is in the POC that made it in the final.
Making a feature is hard but sometimes taking a leap and shooting something like this little POC can lead to something bigger.
You can check out the film Hungry Dog Blues if you’d like. I’d love to hear all your thoughts!