With the emergence of digital video, making your own independent film has become financially feasible. Despite the low cost of digital video, there are still skeptics that think it is not financially possible for someone to make their own feature film for under $100,000, much less under $20,000. However, I have worked on a feature film that cost only $17,000 to make and all the actors were paid.
If you are thinking about making your own independent film, the first order of business is to come up with a budget. This doesn’t have to be a detailed breakdown of all costs by category. A simple “I have a credit card with $15,000 available on it” will suffice.
Once you have a budget, you can choose your camera/cameras. Will you be shooting with one or two? Do you want new or used equipment? How of your budget do you want to go towards the camera? For the project I was on, it was most important to have double coverage, meaning two cameras, which ruled out the possibility of new equipment due to costs. After researching cameras online and looking on eBay at prices, we ordered a Sony PD-150 and PD-170 for a total of $4400. One of the same models was used to film the Katie Holmes movie “Pieces of April,” which helped us make the decision as we knew it was of good enough quality for a Hollywood film. You will also need to buy tripods for the cameras to sit on, as well as microphones. The tripods can be cheap photography ones that you can get at Wal-Mart for about $20. For microphones, do some research online and then go to a music store for best quality and price. The film I worked on used a couple of condenser mics from Sam Ash Music Store. Get the best ones that you can afford – and don’t forget to buy the cables to hook them up. There is no need to buy expensive boom mics and stands as Sam Ash also carries nice adjustable mic stands for $10 each.
Almost any movie-making book or guide that you pick up will tell you that you need an expensive lighting package. Not likely. The best and least expensive lighting can be found at Target in the form of a $20 spider lamp. These are the lamps that have five to six adjustable arms that each holds a light bulb. They are perfect for directing light in multiple directions.
To get quality actors, you should pay them something. The film that I worked on was shot over 7 days with the actors making $350 total. You also have to feed your actors. The easiest way to do this is to have someone go to the grocery store and make everything instead of paying for catering. Another option is fast food. Have someone that can run out and grab fast food for everyone when it is mealtime. For snacks, you can buy in bulk at Sam’s or Costco.
When the film is finished it will be cheaper if you can edit it yourself. If you are not a student, then find someone who is and use their student ID to buy cheap editing software like Adobe Premiere. A good site for student software is JourneyEd.com.
You will need music for your film and a good place to look for that is on MySpace. There are loads of unsigned bands on there just waiting for their big break. Find some that you like and email them to see if they will work for free up front. Just don’t forget to get something signed saying that they are working for free on the front end but that they will get paid once the film recoups all the money spent on it.
After you cut your trailer, you can put it up on YouTube for free! Buy yourself a cheap domain name for the official website where you can sell copies of the movie and you are good to go.
Remember to have some wiggle room in your budget because you can have unexpected expenses come up during filming.
