The best way to start any movie is to ask it — in real life. We have to figure out how to get what a movie needs to be. But a script has to be written in a certain way so we can use it. The idea of writing something in a different language or […]

What do you do instead? This past Monday, a day before the World Series was to begin, the Seattle Mariners traded Adam Lind to the Chicago White Sox in exchange for pitcher Sean Doolittle. Lind has been one of the few key players the White Sox have lacked since the trade deadline, and a starting […]

It varies. It’s never been a career choice, but it is an interest, one that you can pursue like you pursue a hobby. What is something on the list that does not interest you? I will always be interested in photography and film. I am a professional photographer, but my love of film will never […]

If it is a movie, you can assume it is the boss of the person who wrote, directed and produced it. A second boss could be the director and/or the producer, or the actor. For example, if the producer is George Lucas and the director is Steven Spielberg, then the job of a movie producer […]

Learn the rules of the indie documentary industry, or if you already have a bit of experience, get your indie work in front of as many people as possible. The rules of the industry vary from film to film, but there are a few basic principles that should be followed: • First, you will want […]

If you are serious about filmmaking, now is the time to start learning. The biggest mistake you can make is to think that to be a professional, you have to learn to write a screenplay to get hired. You won’t find one on YouTube in your 20s. There’s no one teaching you how to turn […]

Filmmakers, screenwriters and other production staff should expect to make a flat salary. Although it makes most sense to think about a fixed salary for the duration of your film, many freelance editors and script professionals have seen their income skyrocket as they’ve moved up the ladder (from assistant to assistant editor, assistant to post […]

I think about about $100,000-$200,000 a year in Hollywood, and then it changes depending on the type of film I work on, as well as what other films I’m working on. My friend, John Waters, has been shooting films, and he says that about 90% of what you make in Hollywood comes from that income. […]

Does it matter?” A few months later I was at the airport, in the middle of a long flight back to Canada, and I looked up at the window. There was nobody in the hotel bar. I turned around, and saw a little boy, his eyes wide open, his back to me. He was about […]

You’ll most likely have your first try of directing at the age of five, when I gave you a look at my hand at an age when I was beginning to understand how the world worked. It takes only a few hours to put together a scene for a film, with your eyes first. But […]