richrotella

Hi peachstained, Not a stupid question at all. At the same time, legally I can't go into to many details regarding this. I would say the payment structure can be based on views, hours of content watched, etc. Think of Netflix, Amazon and Disney+ ... they track who's watching, then have algorithms and systems to determine how much should go to filmmaker xyz. Hope that helps my friend.

Thank you, danimation88. The most important aspect I have learned by being a filmmaker thus far is to TELL YOUR STORY... don't worry... there's over 8 billion people in the world. There will be plenty of people who relate to you and your story; no matter how bizarre. The truth is your audience will find YOU... but only if you put your art into the world. For example, many people told me I was crazy to make "Marlo Lasker" because it's very 'Napoleon Dynamite' meets 'Ernest Goes to Camp' etc ... but I didn't care - I have always loved slapstick - goofy, feel good comedies. There is so much evil and horror in the world, I decided I wanted to help humanity by giving them one of life's greatest gifts - that I personally believe (no offense intended) God has ever given us - and that's simply the ability to LAUGH. So my tip for any new filmmaker is to stay true to your vision and make the project come to life - stop waiting - who says you're going to live to be 80, 60 or even 50? You are not promised tomorrow - none of us are. So get up and DO IT. Don't worry if you think your movie sucks. That's the beauty of film - it's not theater (though theater is where I started and it rocks) ... FILM, you can do 10-15 takes and then clean it up in editing. Finish your first cut and show it to a private group of 15-20 people for feedback. Here's another friendly tip. If one person says it, it's an opinion. If two people say it, it's a rumor. If three people say it... you'd better listen because if they're saying that scene, character or etc is GOOD then great KEEP IT... but if they're saying - individually to you - that it's BAD. That's a red flag that you should respect especially if it's coming from someone who has also made high quality content; that you have personally seen. I only take director advice from other directors at my level (yes I have much to learn) and above but I listen to everyone. That's not arrogance by the way; it's respect, wisdom and common sense. The strange thing about being a filmmaker is that - people who have literally never made a movie - will tell you HOW to make one. It's insane but it's reality. Crazy business, right?

HEAT. There was a day in Riverside, CA ... that I will never forget. We were filming a lot of scenes that day - mostly exteriors, on the side walk and road. The weather man said, "86 degrees and sunny." I thought... 'Okay, we'll get a tent and we can stay cool in the shade'. Well... the weatherman was WAY OFF... as the temperature raised to literally 103* without a single cloud in the sky. This affected everything from crew and actor moral... to the make up melting on our faces. Although, I think it helped Jeff Jeffers (who played "Carl the Bum") --- he was suppose to be grumpy and angry... the heat definitely helped him get and stay into "character" LOL. We also had to deal with the COPS... 3 different times. Why? Because - yes, three separate cop cars rolled up - one after the other - and NO --- we did not have any permits. But I talked my way IN and OUT of the situation with the police and finished our shots.

Hey emmydolll, The best situation is when you KNOW who you already want to cast. That takes time to see others people's work in Hollywood and etc but you will build a group of about 30-50 actors you know can actually deliver a solid performance but no one is right for everything so yes, auditions have to happen. You create a list of characters and mini-bios (3-5 sentences) of each character - maybe a 2-5 sentence write up of the story. Then you post that on certain acting sites - actors come flooding in and you SELECT them from your computer and schedule auditions. If you're smart... you'll watch their reels so, instead of bringing in 40 people to read for a specific character you bring in 10-15 TOPS... and believe me, each actor takes 5-10 minutes in a room so, you're in for a marathon of interesting characters - no pun intended. The one thing I can say is that when I hold my casting sessions - I understand what the actor is feeling - the pressure, the awkwardness of reading lines off a paper with a reader in front of producers so... if it's a comedy project - I get them to laugh and relax by talking to them for a little BUT... if it's Drama. I ask them if they'd like to do the scene asap (get right into it - because they might be in the proper head space 'ramped up & ready') and do the "interview" AFTER they perform. I have seen for YEARS... Casting Directors want to talk about the actors day, their cat, life etc... and then want the actor to just FLICK on like a light and jump right into a dramatic scene where they have to yell or cry etc - making this mental switch within 15 seconds or less... It is ridiculous and in no way honors the craft of the actor who odds are, prepared a character to display and may need a moment to gather themselves 30 sec - 1 minute is far. In fact, you usually get a bad performance when you bully or rush an actor. So much wasted time and effort... I could go on about this but the bottom line is this... Give the actor a moment to take in the room and relax and at least 2 takes because they might have two different ways of performing the scene or character. In fact, give them three (if they're good; which you'll know after the first two). I also try to toss them a polite curve ball and have them do some improv in the room. How so? I put their character in a situation that's not in the "sides/script" and say GO. They will either fly or fail... but I'll see what they're made of - it a good way. I am very delicate and respectful with actors and take my time in an audition room. I'd rather see 6 actors (10 min each) in an hour... then 20 in an hour. Slow Down to Speed Up... that's how you find a Diamond.

I hope you choose not to do that - many people worked very hard on it. It's also streaming for free in HD. Cheers :)