The Risky Business of Making Documentaries w/ David Paterson

A successful playwright for many years, David Paterson broke into the film industry when he adapted his play FINGERPAINTING IN A MURPHYBED to a film where it was accepted into the 2005 Sundance Film Festival. In addition to the film being nominated for the Humanitas Award, David successfully sold the film (now entitled) LOVE LUDLOW, to the Sundance Channel, STARZ and Warner Home Video. He soon followed with the 2007 Disney hit BRIDGE TO TERABITHIA. In addition to producing award-winning documentaries (DON'T STOP BELIEVIN/EYE OF THE SPIRAL) David continues to work as a stuntman in films and television. 2016 had David's tenth film release, the feature: THE GREAT GILLY HOPKINS.   This show is sponsored by Experiment 27. Get the discovery call script & questions template HERE.   In this episode you'll learn: [01:15] How Don't Stop Believin' came to be [04:00] How David joined the project [05:43] 'There's always a thousand documentaries that need a final push.' [08:00] Why are some documentaries budgeted higher than others [14:40] Investing in documentaries is very risky [18:30] About Bridge to Terabithia [24:13] Why David passed on the sequel [31:00] Never count on the studio for promotion [36:45] What are you not allowed to do to promote your film [41:23] What raised the price of independent films [46:00] Finding a director is not enough Links mentioned: The Great Gilly Hopkins Don't Stop Believin Open Air Brought to you by Experiment 27. Find us on Youtube.   If you’ve enjoyed the episode, please subscribe to The Alex Berman Podcast on iTunes and leave us a 5-star review.   Get access to our FREE Sales Courses.