Filmmaking

No matter where you are based as an actor, given the state of the industry the past two years you have undoubtedly submitted a self tape audition (or 1,000). If you're based in LA or NYC, before COVID you may have only occasionally been required to self-tape, and when that happened, perhaps you used your cell phone or went to a buddy’s house to have them tape you. I, on the other hand, am based in Atlanta. And in addition to being a full-time actor for almost 20 years, I have co-owned a taping...

For the last few years, I have been working on my screenplay, THE POSTCARD. It is based on the true story of my Great Grandparents and all I wanted to do was write a little thing about their story, that wouldn't take too long, I thought around a 20/30 minute short... Two years later, I'm still writing it.   The postcard my Great Grandfather Harry sent to my Great Grandmother Rebecca from the Titanic in 1912.   I was doing okay, but as I was writing it, I found that if I was going to...

    On the heels of our announcement last week about offering more opportunities to our filmmakers and cinematographers, Stage 32 is thrilled to partner with Pond5, the leader in royalty-free stock media. Together we are combining our efforts to serve the global creative community and give you all the tools you need to bring value to your filmmaking and succeed.           What is Pond5? Pond5 is the world’s largest video-first content marketplace, with over 30 million royalty-fr...

We prep. We plan. We come up with moments before, inner dialogue, the character back history and emotional ties. We’re off book, the pitch deck is set, and then…wait, what!? Plot twist. Something interesting happens the moment we step into the audition room, or the camera hits record. Any of our prep or scene-work often times goes out the window and fear sets in. Instead of letting anxiety get the best of the opportunity at hand, or what could happen into the future — which is the cause of anx...

Making It Soft rolling hills stretch endlessly before my bedroom window. The sky is grey most days, but sometimes it explodes in the brightest blue. Just there, beyond the trees, the Irish Sea thrashes endlessly upon the shore, wave after wave, beckoning… Ah… Ireland. So far away from anything even remotely Hollywood. And just a 5 minute walk from where I live, my little village hosted one of the biggest productions of 2021. Disney came, spent 10 million dollars on set design and left m...

To say we just started our writing careers would be an understatement. Before Carol and I met, we were both heavily involved in our separate writing careers; Carol as an Artist Development coach and founder of The ArtEstate, a boutique marketing firm and myself as a professional Chef and International Food & Beverage Consultant. Carol recently signed a publishing deal on her second book. Although I had never completed any screenwriting, Carol encouraged me to write my stories and follow my pa...

Happy Sunday Creative Army! I've got my coffee in hand and your weekly dose of content coming in hot - grab your coffee of choice and let's dive right in. First up, Film Riot shares an insightful video about the hardest lesson they have learned in their filmmaking journey. Additionally, this video answers other filmmaking questions such as how to make your film stand out, whether or not a DSLR is a good investment, and more.  Next up, actor and Stage 32 member Mathew Cornwell has a great s...

For decades, the film industry has been dominated by studios, large distribution channels, lawyer firms and big agencies. The traditional Hollywood power structure has created many issues. This includes many legal, agent and financial intermediaries; a lack of transparency; piracy; inadequate protection against violation of intellectual property rights; cumbersome and lengthy processes for financial payment of funds and a general lack of transparency in financial and legal information. Is...

IMDb- Internet Movie Database, is the top search engine for Hollywood. The first place we go to validate someone’s credentials and experience is IMDb. Whether you are an actor, director, writer, producer, grip, makeup artist, cinematographer, or editor- more than likely you have a profile on the site with your resume. However, the main website only goes so far, and so deep. The membership component of IMDb Pro gives you access to more proprietary information that is not known to the general pu...

It all started so well. In October 2021, I was on a call with a Director of Programming from a European broadcaster (small but very interesting for my target audience). He said “I like your concept, I want to spread more awareness about renewable energy. Your project fits perfectly”. OH MY GOD! It was happening.   Then, he finished the meeting with “I want this for April 2022 and we can’t really fund the project. So you need to find the money.” While my mind was still dancing, my mo...