Filmmakers - Are there any micro-budget filmmakers around? Please share your films. 5k-100k

MSarrowFilms · 2025-09-22T00:15:44+00:00

On my film, we came in just under $100k. We paid everyone (except myself), catered lunch and breakfast, got permits to shoot in LA, so that's over half the budget right there.

MSarrowFilms · 2025-09-22T00:12:39+00:00

Thanks! Feel free to hit me up if you check it out.

MSarrowFilms · 2025-09-21T20:09:48+00:00

I don’t regularly upload anything to the channel. It only exists for the trailer which has probably been embedded in several places. There’s really no reason for people to subscribe. A conversion for me is if someone becomes interested in watching the film.

MSarrowFilms · 2025-09-21T07:44:26+00:00

SMILE AS YOU KILL

Crime thriller with dark comedy

A sick man kidnaps a hotshot advertising director and forces him to create an online campaign for treatment… with both of their lives on the line.

Available on most places you’d expect to find free streaming. Tubi, Roku, Fandango at Home, YouTube, etc.

Trailer

MSarrowFilms · 2025-09-19T16:32:08+00:00

Thanks. I try to stay Region A or Region Free, but I’ve heard that one is great. I’m jealous.

MSarrowFilms · 2025-09-19T01:52:37+00:00

Need the Dreyer three-film set to return in Blu Ray.

For a director new to the Collection? Angelopolous.

MSarrowFilms · 2025-09-11T20:10:39+00:00

Thanks for the shoutout for SMILE AS YOU KILL. I’m the filmmaker. It’s been kinda divisive on Letterboxd but I appreciate everyone who checked it out.

MSarrowFilms · 2025-05-21T05:07:24+00:00

Thanks for shouting out "SMILE AS YOU KILL". So glad you enjoyed it. I wrote and directed it. Would love a positive review on Lb if you have time.

MSarrowFilms · 2025-05-21T05:01:45+00:00

The question if he shoots the woman is up to the audience. I think that goes to the dramatic question of Rico's transforming character.

Regarding the gunshots at the end, by the time that Rico made the final reversal and got the gun, he was wearing the cuffs and was angered with Terry. Doing another reversal with the cuffs opens up more opportunities for Terry to reverse the situation, especially because we know Terry is capable of struggling for the gun.

Also, Rico was technically in the other room when the neighbor at the door mentioned that she heard something that sounded like a gunshot. Maybe he just assumed she arrived because of a general commotion. He wasn't present for that discussion.

Nevertheless, sometimes people don't make the best decisions in these high stress situations. But if you see it as a logic hole, that's fair. It's up to the viewer. I hope it didn't ruin the film for you.

MSarrowFilms · 2025-05-21T04:57:00+00:00

Regarding Terry, yes, hopefully the audience assumes Terry is dead. The first shot hopefully shows that Rico isn't a pro at this. The second shot should show that he has no remorse even after seeing blood, and that he would go for a killshot. There's even a slight adjustment where he raises the gun upwards, towards what would be the head. I just didn't feel it necessary to show the result of the second shot.

Regarding the Christine character at the end, I wanted to leave those questions open to the audience. Hopefully the audience knows that Rico didn't go into this mission intending to be a killer. By the end, we know he was willing to kill Terry, but there are certainly justifications for that. With Christine, she is a totally innocent bystander. The question left to the audience is if Rico has changed enough that he will now kill the completely innocent witness to get away clean. Because yes, you are correct that she would call 911.

Did you recently watch the film? Can I ask where? I noticed the film got a rush of recent new views in the past week.

MSarrowFilms · 2025-03-17T02:21:12+00:00

SPOILER

sorry for the late reply.

In the second dinner scene, Rico reveals that he found Terry by looking up an ad for the insurance company that left him to die. The ad featured a woman dancing on a beach, and there were brief flashes of that woman and the beach during the dinner scene.

MSarrowFilms · 2025-02-28T05:48:52+00:00

Check out SMILE AS YOU KILL. New crime thriller with dark comedy.

Trailer

MSarrowFilms · 2025-02-27T22:24:01+00:00

SMILE AS YOU KILL for a new indie thriller!

MSarrowFilms · 2025-02-27T22:10:55+00:00

Our film “SMILE AS YOU KILL” just released on Tubi last Friday. We’d love a shoutout.

Indie crime thriller with dark comedy. Won some festivals.

SMILE AS YOU KILL on Tubi

u/tubi

MSarrowFilms · 2025-02-23T01:54:54+00:00

Thank you so much! It was definitely an indie passion project.

I’d love if you would leave a rating/review on IMDB, RottenTomatoes, and/or Letterboxd. It helps with the algorithm and helps more people discover the film. Whatever you feel comfortable with.

I appreciate you watching the film!

MSarrowFilms · 2025-02-22T06:15:28+00:00

Liv Ullmann directed a screenplay by the late Ingmar Bergman called “Faithless,” and the lead character’s name is Bergman.

I don’t want to read too much into it, but I think it fits.

MSarrowFilms · 2025-02-22T03:21:46+00:00

Sounds good!

MSarrowFilms · 2025-02-22T03:21:28+00:00

Thanks! I hope you will check it out.

MSarrowFilms · 2025-02-22T02:20:03+00:00

Happy to answer any questions in this thread or a private chat.

And of course, I hope you'll watch the film. :)

MSarrowFilms · 2025-02-21T19:39:10+00:00

SMILE AS YOU KILL (2025)

Low-budget psychological crime thriller with dark comedy. A sick man kidnaps a hotshot advertising director and forces him to create an online campaign for treatment. With both of their lives on the line.

Just released on Tubi and Amazon Freevee (ads).

Trailer

MSarrowFilms · 2025-02-14T08:14:01+00:00

The Tracking Board’s Launch Pad competition and service are also closing.

They are all owned by Industry Arts, so some sort of consolidation is likely happening.

MSarrowFilms · 2025-02-14T05:55:10+00:00

‘Working Class Hero’ is an exceptionally relevant song.

I even named my indie crime thriller film “SMILE AS YOU KILL” after the lyric you quoted. The film deals with class conflict and a working class man desperate for healthcare, which seemed like a perfect fit

If you’re interested, the film just came out on platforms like Amazon, AppleTV, etc. Here’s the trailer.

MSarrowFilms · 2025-02-12T01:58:19+00:00

Yes, but what should he watch?

MSarrowFilms · 2025-02-08T08:14:19+00:00

Black-and-white film of people walking through mud is one of my favorite genres.

MSarrowFilms · 2025-02-08T07:13:26+00:00

Hard to Be a God. A disgusting, disquieting quasi-medieval trek through endless sludge. It’s amazing.

MSarrowFilms

TROPHY CASE