Filmmaking

Do you have a friend whom you dearly love, but who just can’t seem to tell a story that doesn’t leave you wondering what’s for dinner or what you’re going to watch on Netflix? Maybe your friend tells stories like this: “and then...and then...and then...and THEN…” -- as if just raising the pitch and volume of each subsequent “then” raises the intensity of the story? Or maybe they’re so vague you’re not sure you know what they’re talking about -- or perhaps they get bogged down in so many detai...

It’s now 21 years since the birth of Napster and widespread digital piracy of content, and people are consuming content in more unrecognizable ways than ever before. Film consumption has of course evolved wildly over the past two decades, and particularly now in a world dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. Streaming services and VOD (Video-On-Demand) platforms are moving to the forefront of film consumption, and film piracy has matched those changes along the way. In this blog, I’ll try to s...

Hey, Stage32-ers! It's been great to meet so many of you, and I love the conversations we've been generating in the Lounges! Sometimes when we chat online, though, we still feel the distance between us. With so much of our social interaction being virtual now, camaraderie's uplift seems more crucial than ever. Luckily, our fearless leader RB Botto and our fantastic team are here to keep you going! As your Community Manager, I want to assure you that our members are real. No matter where we are...

Happy Sunday Creative Army! Welcome to August. How was your July? What did you create? I have some great content for you this Summer Sunday that is guaranteed to stir up some creativity. Grab your coffee and let's dive in.  First up, YouTuber ponysmasher (aka David F. Sandberg, Director of Shazam!, Annabelle: Creation, & Lights Out) has put together an awesome video detailing the tools he uses to make his movies - plus even cheaper alternatives that still give you a cinematic look and feel....

Welcome to Atlanta! Where the Actors Play. Waaaay back in 2005, if you were living in Atlanta and looking to jump into this crazy business called acting, conventional wisdom would have told you to make the move to Hollywood and start there. And even as recent as 2012, if you came to Hollywood and mentioned you were from Atlanta, you would be met with a shrug of the shoulders, and maybe even a look of disgust. Flash forward to 2020, and if you were to move from Atlanta to Hollywood, ears would...

One of the most uncomfortable experiences that anyone can have is pitching something that they have written to those who will either accept it or reject it. Just like delivering a speech for the first time, pitching a screenplay can be quite nerve-wracking especially the first time that you do it. All too often, a good screenplay does not get produced because the pitch was not delivered in the right manner. Why We Get Nervous? Why does anyone get nervous when they are presenting their wor...

Always Be Writing Michael - At the beginning of the pandemic, like most of us, I was suddenly rich in the commodity of time. For some friends, this proved difficult. But writing is its own form of isolation, so this seemed to play into my hand. One morning, I jotted down some thoughts and posted them anonymously across my socials. My friend Connor Pannell, who I’d met at Catalyst Stories in October of 2019, responded with a scene for a new concept he was developing. I immediately connected t...

Who would’ve ever thought a simple smile could change everything. That’s right, just a smile and nothing more. That’s not so hard, right? Did you know that smiling releases endorphins and dopamine in the brain? A natural antidepressant and all you have to do is turn that frown upside down. I’ll admit, that was a bit cheesy but hell, you get the point. What if I told you, a smile could also help your neighbor. Did you know a smile is contagious? If you don’t believe me, next time you have a mo...

Feature and television projects from diverse writers, and stories with traditionally unheard perspectives, are essential to art, entertainment, and advancing the conversation in a way that has largely been ignored by Hollywood. However, these days, much to our contentment, things are changing. With the powerful evolution of new voices in both features and TV, projects like QUEEN AND SLIM, THE FAREWELL, ATLANTA, CRAZY RICH ASIANS, BLACK-ISH, POSE, LOVE SUGAR, INSECURE are thriving and leading the...

Happy Sunday Creative Army! Here's hoping you had a happy, healthy, and creative week. I've got some fresh coffee in hand and some amazing content coming in hot. Let's dive in, shall we? First up, The Hollywood Reporter has an all-star roundtable all about creativity featuring some of the biggest names in entertainment. This video features Lin-Manuel Miranda (Hamilton the musical, In the Heights), Donald Glover (Atlanta, Community, and hip hop superstar Childish Gambino), Damien Chazelle (La...