Crafting the Perfect Film Business Plan

JohnnyDrama

JohnnyDrama

Hey guys,

I'm 3 quarters of the way through shooting my first feature film (16mm). It's a documentary about a couple who fed up with modern day life, quit their jobs, sell all of their possessions and move into the woods!

The shoot has gone great so far (been at it about a year).

The film has been financed entirely by ourselves with credit cards etc, but we're now at the stage where we don't have enough funds to develop our remaining stock, or complete our shoot planned for later in the year. Luckily we do have a few avenues to which we can turn to for financing, but they have requested a business plan... It's not something I've ever done for a film before, so I'm a little lost, and certainly don't want to mess it up.

Does anyone have any experience in this area? Point me in the right direction? I'm not really sure what it needs to be. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
 
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I have the same problem. When I said that to my banker, she suggested I put up notices as a freelance assignment in the Business Administration majors department.

If you can come up with some money, chances are you will find business students in a local college who can do it. My only concern is they do not have the knowledge of the film industry to taylor it the right way for film investors. But, if they know how to write it for angel investors or VC (venture capitalists), that is a plus. That is who the studios approach.
 
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JohnnyDrama said:
Luckily we do have a few avenues to which we can turn to for financing, but they have requested a business plan
Click to expand...
First you sit down one on one with each of the people who
have expressed interest and asked you for a business plan.
You are in a unique situation that very few filmmakers find
themselves in. You ask them what, exactly, they are looking
for, take detailed notes and then follow them to the letter.

Second; there are dozens of sample business plans available
on the net. To narrow down your search use "motion picture"
or "film" in the search.

I've created several dozen business plans and have found that
when someone asks you for one, they have something specific
in mind. They already know you and know about your project
so they do not need a "general" plan but something more specific
to their needs and their relationship with you.

In general a business plan will consist of exactly how much you
have invested, exactly how much you need and for what and
exactly what your plans are for the final product. And, of course,
how you will return the investment.
 
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In the above mentioned book, and most of the other stuff I have read, lots of focus on "comparable" films.
Take "comparable" films (similar genre, target audience, budget level, etc...). Then you show how they got distributed, how much box office they did, how they made money. That is then used to show how YOU plan to make money in a similar way.
 
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But never, ever show the vast majority of comparable films
that never even got distribution.

The harsh, unfortunate reality is, no matter what other
comparable films have done there is no indication that another
comparable film will come close. Real investors know this and
are not usually interested in those numbers. They know that
for every comparable film a filmmaker can site there are 1,000
comparable films that didn't earn back anything.

A good film business plan should emphasize other accepts then
what past, similar films have returned. They are tricky things,
these film business plans.
 
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