Why don;t you guys just find a rich guy to fund you(and hire his daughter)

Seriously. I took a 3 month hands on intensive direction course and I almost got two guys to shell out 500,000 dollars for my movie with the catch being I cast their beautiful daughters(who were my classmates and into acting) as lead. I can still literally call one guy and hold a meeting. I told them the film will have artistic sensibilities but it may not recuperate the costs(it could also) but I am certain that it will be well received and the daughter will be noticed. If you can sell this shit I guarantee you there are many folks out there willing to lend.
 
Keep us posted!
Especially when you are past the 'almost' and 'I can still call' points of no return :)

Great idea, though...
 
Seriously. I took a 3 month hands on intensive direction course and I almost got two guys to shell out 500,000 dollars for my movie with the catch being I cast their beautiful daughters(who were my classmates and into acting) as lead. I can still literally call one guy and hold a meeting. I told them the film will have artistic sensibilities but it may not recuperate the costs(it could also) but I am certain that it will be well received and the daughter will be noticed. If you can sell this shit I guarantee you there are many folks out there willing to lend.

I suppose one of my bigger concerns with this mode of thinking is that you want to make a film, or two, and yet you're willing to compromise your vision "cast-wise" in order to appease your backer's interest in having their daughters featured in your films. Plenty of films have had to do that in the past in the studio system. But personally, on the Indie-film side, I wouldn't do that. Because even though you're getting $500,000 to use to fund the film's budget, and even if these daughters can reasonably act (which is never a sure thing until you're in rehearsals), they just might not be right for any of the parts in the film (although I assume these backers want their daughters to be in a lead or supporting role).

Then again, you still said you "almost" got the money from either of these people. So you might not want to post something like this here unless, and ONLY unless, you actually got it to happen, and the film is already in post-production. Because that at least shows that the film was written, cast, shot, and is now ready to be edited, rather than it just being a potential film that fell through after the first few days on set.

But even then, the only way I can see any of us getting a similar deal is if our potential backers were also wealthy philanthropists with daughters who wanted to be in the movies, which usually doesn't lead to good results on camera.

Besides, not every idea is going to entice the right people, and not everybody is going to know how to contact "the right people." Plenty of people have secured small loans and such from strange and unique individuals, who you would never guess would be interested in funding an unusual indie film. But it probably depends on how much money you're asking from people, and whether or not the film will result in a decent return for them, perhaps more-so than if they themselves will like the final product. And yet, there are also those people out there who like you more than your idea, or they genuinely like your idea, and they don't care if they get a return. They just like you, and/or your work so much that they want to help you succeed. But that's likely the rarest kind of financial support one is to come by. We can only dream.
 
Seriously. I took a 3 month hands on intensive direction course and I almost got two guys to shell out 500,000 dollars for my movie
So you didn't get the money?

My first feature was financed by a guy who wanted his wife in
the movie. I accepted the offer. We don't always get to have
full, total creative control of the movies we make. I would rather
get the movie made with a cast member who isn't my choice
than wait until I have total creative control.
 
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Dentists. :)

Somewhere, Bruce Campbell, I'm pretty sure, said to hit your dentist, or dentists in general, up for funding.

Makes sense. There are a lot of 'em and they're loaded.
 

I made the proposition to him whilst still studying and because my shorts were winning the first prize everyone was gaga over my work(Our final thesis film I came last:lol:, lesson learnt on modesty). This guy who happens to have 16 factories running across the country has a turnover of 400k a day(!!!) came to me and we had a discussion.

I told him everything I could(that the film will probably not make a profit, or it could just as likely but I will be recognized and his daughter would have a launch pad) and he was more than happy. But I was a bit hesitant then.

The ball is still in my court, I can go and talk tomorrow. But let me just sort things out.
 
what's the point of this thread other than to flex your "almost" having gotten funded by someone who clearly doesn't give a shit about the content of the film (other than that their offspring will play a major role)?

clunky troll is clunky.
 
"Why don;t you guys just find a rich guy to fund you(and hire his daughter)?"

1. Rich guys are rare. Rich guys with daughters are rarer still and rich guys with daughters who want to be film stars (and their fathers agree) is even rarer.

2. Rich guys usually know how manage and use their money effectively or can afford top consultants to provide this advice.

3. Investing half a mil in a student film is almost guaranteed not to be an effective use of their money. If they have enough money to throw away half a mil on a student film then they have enough money to invest in a commercial film and get more bang for their buck, both in terms of recouping their investment and in terms of coverage for their daughter.

If you are unbelievably lucky enough to have found a rich guy (with a daughter who wants to be in a student film) who is stupid enough to invest half a mil in a student film, then jump at it. It's not exactly a course of action which every aspiring filmmaker can follow though, as there aren't near enough rich people who are stupid enough with how they invest their money!

G
 
This sounds like a movie in itself - cocky student filmmaker gets proposition from rich guy and ends up making powerful enemies after the film does not meet the exact ego-stroking requirements of the rich guy and his family...
 
what's the point of this thread other than to flex your "almost" having gotten funded by someone who clearly doesn't give a shit about the content of the film (other than that their offspring will play a major role)?

clunky troll is clunky.

And how am I a troll you idiot? It was a genuine query. I see so many frustrated folks and the primary concern is a lack of funding. My point wasn't to put forth my experience but to ask if others haven't thought of something similar, and if not, why not. Jim Cameron made Xenogenesis(his first short) by borrowing money from dentists. Filmmaking is all about money, unfortunate, but true.
 
Ed Wood borrowed money from evangelists (or some other religious group) to make Plan 9 from Outer Space. (The idea was that the profits would make it possible to make several movies about the gospels.)

So yeah, it has been done before.
 
And how am I a troll you idiot?
Really? Was that necessary?

It was a genuine query. I see so many frustrated folks and the primary concern is a lack of funding. My point wasn't to put forth my experience but to ask if others haven't thought of something similar, and if not, why not. Jim Cameron made Xenogenesis(his first short) by borrowing money from dentists. Filmmaking is all about money, unfortunate, but true.
I don't see how it's unfortunate that filmmaking is about money.
I love making money making films. Not unfortunate at all in my
opinion.

Your point of not putting forth your experience got lost when you
put forth your experience of almost getting money. But the good
thing is, now you know that others before you have thought of
just trying to find a rich guy to fund a movie. I think all filmmakers
think about finding a person with money (a rich guy) to fund their
movie.
 
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