Producing

It was lunchtime on a Wednesday afternoon. Finished eating at my desk, I sat in my car, in a nearby parking lot, about to crack open a book that would help change the direction of my life. A book so powerful that it would open my eyes, helping make things clear that I once couldn’t see. A book on screenwriting. Reading Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting by Syd Field was the first time I had been introduced to three act structure and specifically the hero’s journey. I had made two sho...

You’ve heard the saying “Jack of all trades, master of none”? I’m going to start with something controversial, I hate that quote. This quote has been preached to me on many occasions throughout my career and I can imagine it will continue for the rest of my years. Why this quote? Because my creativity is hard to grasp, I do many things, and can do many things well, does this sound like you?. Your creativity doesn’t fit in the societal norms of occupation, the idea that we decide to be or do o...

How To Wake Up on the Right Side of the Writer’s Desk: Ideas on how to get re-motivated to work on that script you’ve been ignoring this entire pandemic. If your quarantine has been anything like mine, then all the grand plans you had for finishing that script, taking that online class, and working on your yoga game have turned into finishing that pint of ice cream, taking that random personality quiz, and working on your watching everything in your Netflix queue game. It’s sucked. You want t...

CONGRATULATIONS!   HERE ARE THE WEEK 5 WINNERS!   FORCES OF DECADENCE by Phillip Hollins "A military cop chronicles a series of incredible events as a lawyer preps a high-profile international smuggling court-martial involving an attempted assassination case against one of the most decorated Green Berets in U.S. history."   THE NIGHT WITCHES by Steven Prowse "With wood and canvas biplanes, no radio, no lights, no defenses and no parachutes, just bombs, these WW2 pilots terrori...

Back in 2006, a buddy of mine had an idea. He loved horror movies, he knew someone with a camera, and he had been writing horror-themed stories since he was a teenager. He’d also been acting in theater productions around the region, and figured he could get a few people together for a weekend here and there. And that’s exactly what he did. He turned one of his stories into a script. He pulled a few folks together. He started filming. Many people do this sort of home-grown filming now, but a...

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, Apurture shares how to nail cinematic film lighting in your next project. They talking using key lights, shadows, camera placement, color contrast, and fill lights to make your subject beautifully cinematic. You will see examples from commercials and films like Atomic Blonde, The Social Network,...

Black Creek originated as a writing exercise during quarantine. Now, it’s an independent TV pilot with network actors, Sundance Fellows, and a cutting-edge health and safety solutions company attached. Michael Goitanich and Connor Pannell, the Canadian/American co-production duo behind Black Creek, discuss what they learned throughout production, virtual post-production, and their plans for distribution. This article focuses on what we learned during production, to learn how we handled pre-pro...

As you may recall back in February, long-time Stage 32 member, blog contributor, webinar teacher, and international film & distribution aficionado, David Zannoni began a series of blogs and vlogs to keep you up-to-date on the business of film across the globe. Today, David is sharing some amazing insights into the world of international co-productions in his exclusive Stage 32 vlog. David will answer the following questions:  What is an International Co-Production? What are the benefits...

One of the things I’ve noticed as I’ve created books and scripts is that no matter what the project is or what your role in the project is, you leave a piece of yourself in everything. We can’t help it. Any undertaking leaves a piece of us, a signature of sorts. With filmmaking, projects come and go and sometimes, you have to walk away. Sometimes, it’s before the project sees the light of day. And to be honest, that’s when it can be the hardest. Today, I’m going to share my experience and...

Good morning Stage 32 Creative Crew! I hope you had a fulfilling weekend and carved out some time to introduce yourself to the Stage 32 community during “Introduce Yourself Weekend” while enjoying the remaining days of summer. If you did not get a chance to say “Hello” yet, there is still time! Can you believe in this whirlwind year, we have blazed right through summer and it has been incredibly busy for members of our Stage 32 community, even while the industry is going through a disrupting per...