Filmmaking
Filmmaking Stage 32 Blogs
Vulnerability, Strength, and Resilience in the Life of the Artist
As an artist, you live in a very unique world. You get to express the fullness of who you are. You have the opportunity to leave something meaningful behind that will impact generations. It’s a privilege to bring value to the world simply by expressing and living your passion. At the same time, you take on unique challenges. Your artistic life is filled with pressure, rejection, competition, and unknowns. You have to have courage, show up, and take risks... You also have to know when to say “...


Coffee & Content - How to Shoot a Cinematic Intro & 5 Tips for an Epic Sports Video
Happy Sunday, everyone. Hope your day is off to a fantastic start and that you've been active, contributing, and making some invaluable connections right here on Stage 32. This Sunday we want to offer an edition of Coffee & Content that focuses on capturing the dramatic and fast actions of sport. Films like I, Tonya and the iconic Rocky films capture some powerful and theatrical moments on camera, and need to do so without losing the fast action or art of the shot. So first up, How to Sh...


Creatives and Depression: Are They Linked?
When the book Van Gogh Blues was brought to my attention, I read it with fervor. I was still in my 30's and struggling to understand why creating, writing, and being artistic made me so damn sad sometimes. Not when I was in it, but when it seemed to reach an "endpoint." I allowed myself to accept that creativity and depression were linked, and carried on through my creative endeavors with as much positivity and freshness as possible. Of course, there are times I still struggle. Perhaps we...


Celebrating our Regular Contributors [Posts that Are Upleveling Careers]
The fireworks are over and it's a brand new day, but we still have lots to celebrate here at Stage 32, not the least of which are our regular blog post guest contributors. We are, in fact, grateful for every single post that has ever come our way, regular contributor or not. All of our contributors selflessly offer their time and expertise to all of you, so that our community can grow with inspiration and education. Without these posts, so many of us would still be browsing other sites seeki...

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"Night at the Museum" AD on How to Become an Assistant Director in Hollywood
Marty Eli Schwartz is an Assistant Director on films like Night at the Museum and The Leisure Seeker. Stage 32 caught up with him at Film Con in Hollywood where he shared advice on how to become an assistant director in Hollywood. Click Here For Marty's Advice! Remember, if you haven't subscribed to our YouTube page, make sure you do so you don't miss any of our announcements. Let's hear your thoughts in the comments below! Got an idea for a post? Or have you collaborated w...


Bullshit Lies My Film Professor Taught Me About Hollywood
I had a professor who worked on the show Prison Break and I went to visit him on the set one year. I was on the call sheet! Intern. First day of the shoot, my professor, the director of the episode that week, asked for me to get him a “coffee.” All right. Coffee. Um...I don’t drink coffee. Nor did I at the time. My past experience with coffee was nil. Perhaps if I had thrown it down my gullet in high school, I could have elevated to a loftier university than Arizona State, but I digress. I...


Coffee & Content - 6 Rules for Video Composition & Cuts and Transitions 101
Happy Sunday, Creative Army! Summer's here, the coffee's on, and we've got some great content to go with it. So let's stir it up, shall we? First up, for those focusing on documentaries or a single subject, a strong reminder of the importance of the rule of thirds. The rule of thirds divides the frame into a 3X3 grid, with each intersecting point offering an ideal place to frame your subject. This, and five other video composition techniques are covered in our first video from B&H Photo Vide...


Exploring Death in Dark Comedy
As writer's we continually search for fresh perspectives and angles when we put pen to paper. It goes without saying that "everything" has been written about, but what makes a serial drama worth watching is a unique angle with colorful characters who are willing to go places that we haven't been to in a long time, if at all. Like death. Some would argue that Dead to Me an Russian Doll do just that. On a personal note, I think Dead to Me speaks to death in a way that we haven't seen before...


Why Some Filmmakers Are Broke, Lonely, & Beaten Down [And How to Change It]
I entered 2019 completely broke. I live for free in a guest house with my fiancé, so my expenses equated to my insurance and groceries. I couldn’t afford them the following month. That’s how broke I was. I never thought I’d be that person. Why was I broke? it wasn't long before I realized my lack of cash was anchored in the false argument of ART VS. COMMERCE. How did I get in this position? I had a movie that was premiering on SHOWTIME in two weeks, DVDs were in Walmart, eight projects produc...

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Is There Room for Micro Budget Films in Hollywood? (by Richard Botto)
During his free 'Ask Me Anything' webinar, Stage 32 CEO Richard "RB" Botto fielded a question regarding micro budget films. Is there room for a micro budget film under $500 thousand dollars in today's marketplace? The answer is yes, but there are some things a writer needs to know before moving forward with his or her script. To learn what those things are, listen to the video below. Click Here For RB's Advice! Remember, if you haven't subscribed to our YouTube page, make s...

