The ISA Podcast

In a special Facebook Live broadcast of the ISA's Wine Wednesdays, Felicity Wren and Max Timm join forces with a Wisconsin company named Geneva Supply who hosts a free career planning and mentoring program for high school students called, Biz Tank. The program is designed to offer high school students insights into various industries and business practices in order to help and foster their entrepreneurial spirit. We give them advice on what to expect when moving into the next phases of their lives, and the back and forth conversation with them is a ton of fun. This interview is a great way to meet and get to know the ISA's Max Timm and Felicity Wren, as they share their own stories on how they traversed the tricky waters of post-high school and college life, eventually making their way into the entertainment business.

This is a podcast recording of the ISA's Facebook Live broadcast of Wine Wednesdays. Please note that some promotions offered during the live broadcast are not offered to the participants listening to the recording. We can, however, assist you if you wish to find out more information regarding ISA events, contests, or consulting offers. Just reach out to [email protected] and we will be happy to help.

Join ISA staffers Max Timm and Felicity Wren for our regular Wine Wednesdays Facebook Live broadcast. We'll talk screenwriting and take your questions about the ISA and the art, craft, and business of writing screenplays, all while enjoying a nice glass (or two) of wine.

Subjects and themes change from week to week, so stay tuned for the live broadcasts that occur on most Wednesday evening at 7:00pm Los Angeles time. For a specific schedule and set of announcements, "Like" the ISA Facebook page and keep up to date.

Join the ISA's Felicity Wren and Max Timm as they sit fireside and celebrate the holiday spirit by discussing great Christmas movies, themes, and list of their favorite timeless classics. Christmas movies tend to follow a particular type of theme and a relatable approach to character development. Felicity and Max discuss how such elements help shape our favorite holiday movies, and how writers can take advantage of such an approach.

This is a podcast recording of the ISA's Facebook Live broadcast of Wine Wednesdays. Please note that some promotions offered during the live broadcast are not offered to the participants listening to the recording. We can, however, assist you if you wish to find out more information regarding ISA events, contests, or consulting offers. Just reach out to [email protected] and we will be happy to help.

Join ISA staffers Max Timm and Felicity Wren for our regular Wine Wednesdays Facebook Live broadcast. We'll talk screenwriting and take your questions about the ISA and the art, craft, and business of writing screenplays, all while enjoying a nice glass (or two) of wine.

Subjects and themes change from week to week, so stay tuned for the live broadcasts that occur on most Wednesday evening at 7:00pm Los Angeles time. For a specific schedule and set of announcements, "Like" the ISA Facebook page and keep up to date.

IFH Episode 198: The AFM Wrap Up (Indie Film Hustle Edition)

I had the pleasure of attending this year's AFM (The American Film Market). This was my first time actually walking the entire market. I met a ton of people, made great connections and really got the inside look at how films are sold internationally.

In this episode, I discuss the major take-aways from AFM, what an indie distribution pipeline looks like, and why EVERY filmmaker in the world that ever wants to sell an indie film needs to attend. Enjoy!

IFH Episode 197: Sundance Wants to Help You Distribute Your Indie Film...REALLY!

Yup that's right the Sundance Institute wants to help you distribute your film. Liz Manashil (listen to her interview here), the manager of the Sundance Creative Distribution Fellowship reached out to me to get the word out on the fellowship. It turns out that, believe or not, they haven't been getting a lot of submissions. Crazy I know. My feeling is that when filmmakers see Sundance in the title they feel that their chances are thin.

Well, now is your chance IFH Tribe. SUBMIT NOW! We go over all your questions in the interview. Here's some info on the program.

The Creative Distribution Fellowship Overview

The Fellowship - inspired by the Institute’s longstanding artist labs and entering its second year - is an immersive, rigorous program for entrepreneurial producers and directors seeking new ways to build and reach audiences with their finished work. We are now accepting applications for films preparing for a 2018 or early 2019 release who are open to a creative release - i.e. without a traditional distributor.

The Fellowship is a curated program that includes grant funds, access to premium pre-negotiated distribution deals, and connections to experienced industry mentors with the Institute’s Creative Distribution team playing a strategic advisory role. We’re currently engaged in the Fellowship’s pilot year, and supporting two films: Columbus, a fiction feature; and Unrest, a documentary. Both films have excelled with the framework provided by the Fellowship and we are thrilled with the results. Case studies will be finalized on each film in early 2018.

We are seeking films at all budget levels featuring distinctive, singular voices. We will select three or four films on a rolling basis, and we will support fellows during their initial release period (6 - 12 months). Films will be selected by a committee comprised of the Creative Distribution team along with key representatives from the Institute’s Feature Film, Documentary, and Festival programs. Our evaluation process will have two stages. We will initially review applications reviewing essay questions and a trailer or clip. After this initial review, we will invite select applicants to submit their feature in its entirety, and notify others that their project has been declined.

Episode 193

Eddie Renner Talks About His New Horror Film, Crepitus.

Episode 192: Writer/Director Keir Burrows

Keir Burrows Talks About His New Grounded Sci-Fi Thriller, Anti Matter.

Episode 191 - Writer W. Bruce Cameron

W. Bruce Cameron Talks About His Transition From Writing A Newspaper Column To Screenwriter.

Episode 190: Irish Director Brendan Muldowney

Brendan Muldowney Talks About His New 13th Century Irish Adventure Film, Pilgrimage.

“The Disaster Artist” delivers laughs without digging deep.

James Franco does a superb imitation of Tommy Wiseau in “The Disaster Artist”, but the movie doesn’t dig deep enough into who the failed filmmaker was and why his 2003 dud “The Room” was such a debacle. Sure, it mines lots of laughs out of how god-awful the cult classic is, but the script Franco directs fails to expose enough of what drove Wiseau. Who was he? Where did he come from? And what made him think he had any talent whatsoever? These questions remain unanswered as Franco’s film spends more time being sweet and sentimental than savaging. It should have been another “Sunset Boulevard” but it fails to illuminate the dark delusions of the Hollywood dream factory.

Episode 196: Total Transparency: How Much Revenue a $100K Film REALLY Generates with Liz Manashil

Have you ever wondered how much revenue a real indie film can make in the marketplace? Wouldn't you like to see the real and raw numbers for a nontheatrical film with no major film festival premieres? Today's guest has been brave enough to do just that. Filmmaker Liz Manashil decided to open up the accounting books on her debut feature film Bread and Butter, starring SNL's Bobby Moynihan and Lauren Lapkus.

Liz Manashil earned her B.A. in Film and Media Studies at Washington University in St. Louis, and her M.F.A. from USC's School of Cinematic Arts. Post graduation, Liz spent several years as a film critic for the PBS/Hulu series JUST SEEN IT (which she also helped produce and direct). Overlapping this, Liz worked with distribution guru Peter Broderick.

Her debut feature, Bread and Butter, was called “an absolute must-watch for women everywhere” by HelloGiggles. It was released by The Orchard and can be seen on VOD nearly everywhere (including Hulu!). Liz is currently in pre-production on her next feature film, SPEED OF LIFE, and lives in Los Angeles with her dog, Laura Palmer, and her partner, Sean Wright. She is the Manager of Sundance Institute’s Creative Distribution Initiative.

Here's the breakdown (taken from her amazing article on Moviemaker Magazine:

Our film, Bread and Butter, is a digital success. A digital success you’ve never heard of.

Let’s break it down.

Our film cost $100,000 to make

We grossed $96,000 a little bit more than a year into our release (and we’re still making deals)

Our distributor did have a marketing spend but we invested in no other resources outside of that (other than me running our social media campaigns and newsletter)

We got two airline deals, two SVOD deals, and decent promotion of transactional and cable VOD

We’re operating in the black with the distributor’s marketing spend and heading toward eventual recoupment in terms of our expenses

In an age where people debate the utility of making independent feature films, there is hope.

I had a ball speaking to Liz and we get into the weeds on traditional distribution and self-distribution. If you want to sell you film in the marketplace perk up your ears and take some notes. Enjoy my conversation with Liz Manashil.