Filmmaking

Steven Bernstein is the cinematographer of White Chicks and Oscar-winning Monster, writer/director of Last Call with Rhys Ifans and John Malkovich is also a screenwriter, an actor, teacher, the author of the best-selling book “Film Production”, a writer for various film magazines, a lecturer and a motivational speaker. With over thirty years of experience in the biz, he is creating Instagram posts that are a “film school” goldmine to any Stage 32 member. I know a lot of people have an Inst...

I remember watching Jane the Virgin for the first time three years ago. Do you remember the flashback when Jane meets Rafael for the first time? If you’ve never seen it, just stick with me for a sec. Rafael asked Jane about what she wants to be in her life. She replies, Well, it depends. Am I being practical or brave? He says, Practical. She says, I'm a teacher. Then he says, Brave. She says, I'm a writer…I have never said that out loud before! He smiles at her and leans in for a kiss, and wh...

Happy Wednesday Creative Army! I am incredibly proud to announce that Stage 32 is partnering with Stage 32 educator and writer Mike Gauyo (Insecure, Ginny & Georgia) and Black Boy Writes Media to bring you the Black Boy Writes & Black Girl Writes Mentorship Initiative. Launched at the beginning of 2021, the Black Boy Writes & Black Girl Writes initiates aimes to bring industry access and resources to budding WGA Black writers.  The application for the class of 2022 open November 15, and cl...

Welcome back, filmmakers of Stage 32! Most of you know me by now, either for my achievements or for my infamy, so I’ll spare you the branding prologue. If anyone needs a little reassurance that I actually do know what I’m talking about, I can tell you I’ve written two screenplays since my last blog and that I was paid to my satisfaction for both of them. If you’d like to check my receipts a little more thoroughly, I’ve got a brief bio and a list of all the articles I’ve written for Stage 32 at t...

As writers, we sometimes tell ourselves that we will, “get back to writing later “, or “there will be plenty of time to write later". My later lasted twenty-seven years. I love reading and writing, and during my teenage years and into my early twenties, I spent many a day doing both. I wrote short stories about superheroes, medieval duels, animals with telepathy, and treasure hunts in my own neighborhood. My need to write burns like a fire that can’t be extinguished, but it was. Responsibilit...

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, Film Independent recently hosting an Q&A with Jessica Chastain and producer Kelly Carmichael about their new film The Eyes of Tammy Fay. In this exclusive interview, Jessica talks about how she first got the rights to the projects back in 2012, the process of preparing for the role, and more. The...

Happy Autumn Creatives! Growing up, I was known for my tiny stature and enormous personality, pretty much what I’m known for now. I loved making friends, family, and old people smile. I spent most of my time with my grandmother, the best storyteller, seamstress and soul fool chef on the planet. I enjoyed the sweet smells of sweet potato custard and homemade biscuits baking in the oven while she taught me how to sew lace on a doll dress. When we were finished, I’d follow her to the front porch...

Every day in this crazy LA film world I learn something new. I have been here for over 7 years now and have been able to go from a position of not knowing anyone to being able to produce a film that is doing the festival circuit all for a budget of $1,000. I also made 6 feature films in just two years.    Being British has also made things harder.   How do you even start when you need to get a social security number a home address and a cell?   It can seem daunting. If I can do it, though,...

This is my second blog in a series concerning blockchain and the film industry, if you missed part one you can check it out here.  TRANSPARENCY/SECURITY/DECENTRALIZATION Blockchain is a decentralized ledger in which all the transactions are verified and recorded within an encrypted and fully secure platform. Transparency, security and decentralization are a number of its most important elements.     DECENTRALIZATION The major component of blockchain is through its ability to provide...

In February of 2011, we went live with the first iteration of Stage 32. For me personally, this was the culmination of 3 years of plotting, planning, executing, and, ultimately, fully forming and realizing an embryonic idea that had been living in my head and keeping me awake at night. As you might imagine, it was an exciting moment. Still, I didn’t know how people would take to the idea. From a business standpoint, I had done it backwards. Normally, you take (what you believe to be) your fab...