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Just finished my first 35mm Feature film


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Freya, of course Orson Welles was somebody before directing but he didn't have previous "film experience", he had directed plays and worked on radio but no "film", that's what I meant.

 

It is a very similar case to that of Iñarritu, who started in radio stations thanks to his voice and how he talked and opened his own film production company with the money that the radio and Televisa were paying him and with his production company he started experimenting making short - films and then commercials and then movies and then.. :)

 

Have a good day!

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Oh, this sounds like it could go in so many different directions...

 

Why you seem to have taken this to be some sort of insult, I have no idea.

 

What's the name of your last 35mm feature btw?

 

Oh, of course we were going to go here.

 

To answer your question directly, I haven't attempted to make one because I simply don't have that kind of money.

 

The real question is, why are you being so defensive when you've been getting nothing but valuable, free advice from forum members as well as people wishing you the best (myself included, if you look back at the first page)?...

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I was having a dig at negative phil really. Moan moan moan.

 

 

Why you seem to have taken this to be some sort of insult, I have no idea.

 

 

Oh, of course we were going to go here.

 

To answer your question directly, I haven't attempted to make one because I simply don't have that kind of money.

 

The real question is, why are you being so defensive when you've been getting nothing but valuable, free advice from forum members as well as people wishing you the best (myself included, if you look back at the first page)?...

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It's funny, when I read this the first thing I thought was, "does Make a Wish have a CEO? Never really thought about that." But, this was a ten year old boy's wish to be a ninja superhero in a movie, not a commercial for the foundation.

Yea, but if you knew how much the CEO made... you'd be disgusted. Like most charities, the money doesn't go towards the wish, it goes towards the top 1% of the company.

 

It's one thing to help a friend or an up and coming film student, it's another to help a multi-million dollar organization without ANY compensation. Heck, I've done A LOT of work for credit, meals, travel and per diem, but on projects where the producers truly had zero money and the project would get A LOT of exposure.

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Phil does have a point about everyone shooting "test" films. It's pretty ridiculous, when you search anything related to lenses, cameras or stocks, you're most likely going to have MORE test films then finished products. Plus, those test films are always staged in one way or another, either just shot in someone's back yard or under heavily controlled lighting situations. What, do people have no imagination? It's very frustrating because the last thing I want to see is a static shot of some person sipping tea when I'm checking what your camera looks like. People have no imagination, they don't bother putting together something that is even remotely close to what a practical shoot would look like.

 

I just did a camera test and instead of wasting a roll of film, I shot stuff I'm going to use in a promo. Yes, it's not complete, but it's a start to a final product and it's not getting posted on Vimeo, even though it looks amazing, until it's a completed product.

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Some people should stick to creating Vimeo camera/lens test movies. Some people should grow some balls and self finance a 35mm feature. And if it fails. Who cares, because I will be on my death bed saying, I DID IT. I made my own 35mm feature film and did it exactly how i wanted too. I didn't cry on internet forums that i wasn;t supported by the industry and no body cares about me. waaaaa waaaaaaaaa waaaaa

Yea, well... I feel you there. It's great to have "succeeded" at completing a project, no matter what the final outcome is. However, in this industry the "success" isn't necessarily based on completion, it's getting people to see what you made. If what you make isn't watchable (quality, story, not enough eyes on it), then in reality, it's not a success.

 

Ya know, I have a great script, all the film necessary in my refrigerator, all the equipment necessary, actors chomping at the bit to get going and a producer who pressed the green button months ago. However, I learned 20 years ago not to invest in your own projects unless there is a guaranteed pay off (which doesn't exist). That may sound counterintuitive, but its the lay of the land around these parts. Investing in equipment so you can work, that's one thing, but investing in a feature... that's hard. I've seen SO MANY really decent first features fall by the wayside because the filmmakers thought they could do it all. Great scripts that are ruined by lack of art direction, sound design, poor acting/bad casting and other very fixable things. So in my eyes, there aren't very many positives to investing in your own feature.

 

So sure, it's very cool to say to people "Hey I made a feature in 35mm", you'd think that would get people really interested. However, unless those people have seen it in the theater or on Netflix... they really don't care. You could have told them you shot it with IMAX and it wouldn't make a lick of difference. You can make anything you want, but if you actually CARE about filmmaking, you'll realize there is far more to it then simply going out and shooting/completing something. Unfortunately, a lot of films like yours, do wind up going to the grave with the filmmakers.

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Very true. But Im sure we will get it on Netflix. It's loads better than most of the crap on there. This is gonna be a classic!!

 

Yea, well... I feel you there. It's great to have "succeeded" at completing a project, no matter what the final outcome is. However, in this industry the "success" isn't necessarily based on completion, it's getting people to see what you made. If what you make isn't watchable (quality, story, not enough eyes on it), then in reality, it's not a success.

Ya know, I have a great script, all the film necessary in my refrigerator, all the equipment necessary, actors chomping at the bit to get going and a producer who pressed the green button months ago. However, I learned 20 years ago not to invest in your own projects unless there is a guaranteed pay off (which doesn't exist). That may sound counterintuitive, but its the lay of the land around these parts. Investing in equipment so you can work, that's one thing, but investing in a feature... that's hard. I've seen SO MANY really decent first features fall by the wayside because the filmmakers thought they could do it all. Great scripts that are ruined by lack of art direction, sound design, poor acting/bad casting and other very fixable things. So in my eyes, there aren't very many positives to investing in your own feature.

So sure, it's very cool to say to people "Hey I made a feature in 35mm", you'd think that would get people really interested. However, unless those people have seen it in the theater or on Netflix... they really don't care. You could have told them you shot it with IMAX and it wouldn't make a lick of difference. You can make anything you want, but if you actually CARE about filmmaking, you'll realize there is far more to it then simply going out and shooting/completing something.

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Children! Please!

 

 

 

It's great to have "succeeded" at completing a project, no matter what the final outcome is. However, in this industry the "success" isn't necessarily based on completion, it's getting people to see what you made. If what you make isn't watchable (quality, story, not enough eyes on it), then in reality, it's not a success.

 

That's sort of my position in a nutshell.

 

P

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Very true. But Im sure we will get it on Netflix. It's loads better than most of the crap on there. This is gonna be a classic!!

I hope so! That would be a great outcome.

 

When you get me the trailer, I can give you some insight on who to talk with next.

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Sadly,

 

 

 

If you are submitting a film for consideration: unfortunately, we do not accept or review unsolicited materials or ideas. For that reason, we will not consider any materials or ideas we receive that were not specifically requested by Netflix or submitted via an aggregator or established agent through the appropriate channels.
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But Im sure we will get it on Netflix.

 

 

I hope it does as well, but be careful, they reject far more indie stuff than they actually pay for. It will have to go through a US distributor that feeds NetFlix, so you need that deal first, and this is going to be tough no matter how you slice it.

 

Getting the money, if any....will be the next trick. If the movie is packed with sex and violence that is a plus for NetFlix, also...a sad fact. Naturally they prefer a US theatrical release, even if platform in select cities.

 

Ah Phil just submitted the NetFlix policy.

 

R,

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The policy of Netflix and of everyone else, too.

 

Put it on YouTube and beg for patreons. It's the only way you'll ever see a penny.

 

This is why I get so annoyed by all this stuff. The attitude of these companies is plainly advertised. They will not accept unsolicited material. Nobody will. The content and quality of your film is irrelevant. You'll never even get to that point. It's a brick wall

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Yea, but if you knew how much the CEO made... you'd be disgusted. Like most charities, the money doesn't go towards the wish, it goes towards the top 1% of the company.

I made a movie for a ten year old boy with a brain tumor. I didn't give Make a Wish any money, nor did anyone else involved.

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Phil I'm sure you tried to approach Netflix direct with your student short shot on hi8 but I've got a feature film with the guy from saving private Ryan who played steamboat Willy in it yeah !! Trust me this is next level not genre crap.

 

The policy of Netflix and of everyone else, too.

 

Put it on YouTube and beg for patreons. It's the only way you'll ever see a penny.

 

This is why I get so annoyed by all this stuff. The attitude of these companies is plainly advertised. They will not accept unsolicited material. Nobody will. The content and quality of your film is irrelevant. You'll never even get to that point. It's a brick wall

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Hey guys, just calm down a tiny bit. I can help Phil because I have all the distribution connections. Nobody takes solicited material, you can't just call them either. You need an insider who talks with guys on a regular basis and I'm one of those. Plus, I have a great sales agent and if she likes the trailer, I'm sure she'd love to talk with you. So please... no more bickering about the "quality" of Phil's film. Lets see a trailer and then I'm sure we can all put together helpful advice.

 

Ohh and Phil.. I know how exciting it is to have finished something and you wanna get it out there. I'm just telling you, there is FAR more to the puzzle then you know about. I've seen people in your shoes, spend $50K trying to get their films bought and nobody buys them. The other lads on this forum are just trying to express what they already know is a long hard road. I'm telling you from experience, I've seen films with all-star cast's, great stories and very well made (some of them shot on film) not get bought and disappear into obscurity because of one mistake made in this critical process. I'm not trying to be a negative nanny, I just want to help you as much as I can because I think what you've done is cool, even though maybe not wise. :)

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