Filmmaking

I started acting a little later than most of my fellow thespians. I’d always been a creative person: writing, drawing, and playing music, but acting was something I feared. “Who am I to act?” “Who would possibly be entertained by my performance?” So, out of fear, I never tried acting. That was, until my 30s. My career in the toy industry had stalled and I was feeling less connected to myself. I was getting sick a lot, and I was having trouble finding direction or inspiration. In other words, I w...

I have been screenwriting for many years but always had difficulty making any serious progress, even after winning major screenwriting awards. As a UK-based screenwriter specializing in Science Fiction, there seemed to be the added issue of sci-fi being perceived as too expensive and thus easy to disregard (at least in my small part of the world). I began using Stage 32 Pitch Sessions as there was a clear appetite from many of the professionals for genre material. To date, I have received 5 full...

Happy Sunday, Creative Army! Have you had a creative weekend so far? I have some content here for you that is sure to get the creative juices flowing, so grab your coffee, and let's dive in. First up, in this video from Letterboxd, THE CREATOR director Gareth Edwards (also the director of ROGUE ONE) explains the cinematic and visual references that he utilized and was inspired by while working on the new film about a future war with A.I. One of the most interesting moments happens about half...

You’re a filmmaker, a writer, a director, maybe even an actor. You want to keep working, but the phone’s not ringing so… you decide to shoot a short film. Before you start down the rabbit hole you may want to ask a few questions. Why do I want to shoot a short film? What resources do I have at my disposal? What resources will I need to obtain? And the most impactful question: What’s it going to cost? Anyone who has ever taken on the challenge of shooting a short knows that there ar...

Hi, Stage 32 Community! Our Stage 32 Team has been working diligently to bring in as many new resources and opportunities as possible to enrich your experience here in our community! At Stage 32 you have direct access to industry professionals who’ve written, authored, developed, produced, directed and represented acclaimed projects like BROOKLYN STORY, THE NIGHT OF, HIS DARK MATERIALS, A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES, THE BEAR, THE AMERICANS, EVERYBODY HATES CHRIS, MY FRIEND DAHMER, MY TRUE CRIME...

As creatives, we sure can take some hard knocks. We put our work out there, hoping someone will like it enough to bring it to life. Then, we may find ourselves hoping again that there will be a distribution home once our project is made. Often, we, or I sure do, feel vulnerable when hitting send on anything you have written or uneasily sit as you watch something you created with an audience. You squirm, feeling like maybe you are not as good, smart, or creative as you thought. Over the years of...

Hey, Stage 32 Community! Happy Fall! Over the past month, our Stage 32 Education Team has been hard at work to bring in some incredible education opportunities and resources for this fantastic community. This October, you'll have the chance to learn from knowledgeable industry executives, video game writers, award-winning filmmakers, NYT best-selling authors, acclaimed producers, financiers, screenwriters, distributors, and representatives. Impressive creative professionals who have worked o...

Back in 2010, I shot my first feature film in HDV on miniDV tape. Once finished I formatted the hard drive to make the next project. Unthinkable really, but I did this as I knew HDV wasn’t a great technical standard and I couldn’t afford a new drive. More recently, I watched sixty or so hours of those tapes imported back into Final Cut Pro 7 for a potential remaster. It flashed me back to how naive I was when it came to the data created by film production. Whatever your role in production is,...

I’ve always told myself and heard the phrase, “Never give up” (then he sat down speech). Which is why I have continued to seek out different producers and others in the film industry for years here at Stage 32. Wanting to write music since my 30’s, I’ve been going to different schools, starting in Ohio. I started in Music Ed. At Wright State University – for two years, I learned music theory and ear training. Then I had an opportunity to perform ‘on the road’ with a group for a year, called Am...

Happy Sunday, Creative Army! Have you had a creative weekend so far? I have some content here for you that is sure to get the creative juices flowing, so grab your coffee, and let's dive in. First up, audio can often make or break the quality on a film (even if more and more people are watching things with captions). In this video from the Standard Story Company, you'll see tangible ways you can get the audio you need on your productions, no matter how limited your budget. Next up, we're l...