Indie Film Hustle® - A Filmmaking Podcast

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IFH 331: Hollywood Screenwriting with Screenwriter John August Jul 11, 2019

Show notes

Today on the show we have Hollywood screenwriter, director, producer, podcaster and novelist John August. He is known for writing the hit Hollywood films Go, Charlie's Angels, Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, Big Fish, Charlie, and the Chocolate Factory and Frankenweenie, the Disney live-action adaptation of Aladdin and the novel Arlo Finch in the Valley of Fire.
He hosts the popular screenwriting podcast Scriptnotes with Craig Mazin, maintains an eponymous screenwriting blog and develops screenwriter-targeted software called Highland 2.5 through his company, Quote-Unquote Apps.
Enjoy my conversation with John August.
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IFH 330: To Film and Die in L.A - Micro-Budget Misadventures with Adam William Ward Jul 09, 2019

Show notes

Today on the show we have writer/director, Adam William Ward. His new film is called Wally Got Wasted. I brought him on the show to discuss the crazy misadventures he had shooting guerilla-style in the City of Angels, Los Angeles. L.A. is probably the toughest city in the world to shoot a guerilla-style film. His stories are not on filled with knowledge bombs but are entertaining as hell.
"Wally Got Wasted" is like "The Hangover" meets "Weekend at Bernie's." It follows the adventures of 3 friends who accidentally kill a scumbag, then screws up getting rid of the body, so they are forced to pretend he is alive as they are chased through downtown LA in one crazy night.
Enjoy my entertaining conversation with Adam William Ward.
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IFH 329: Shooting a Micro Budget Film in a War Zone with Benjamin Gilmour Jul 02, 2019

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Today on the is one of the bravest indie filmmakers I've ever had the pleasure of meeting, writer/director Benjamin Gilmour. His film Jirga was shot with a tw0 person crew, a Sony A7s Camera he purchased at a local camera shop and an ever-changing screenplay. Did I mention he shot this film in Afghanistan?
Three years after an Australian army helicopter raid on a small village led to the killing of an unarmed man, former Australian soldier Mike (Sam Smith) returns to Afghanistan to find the victim’s family. He sets off on a perilous journey over a terrain where both the Taliban and ISIS are active. Mike is determined to make amends and so puts his life in the hands of the Jirga – the village justice system. Jirga is screening in US cinemas in August
This unconventional film about the war in Afghanistan became Australia's submission for the Oscar's Foreign Language category in 2019. As we spoke on this episode my mouth keeps dropping on the floor. One issue after another, with crazy stories and life-threatingg situations this episode has it all. I dont't want to hear any excuses. If you want to make your film you find a way to do it.
Enjoy my inspirational conversation with Benjamin Gilmour.
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THROWBACK FRIDAY: How to Direct the Character, Not the Actor with Mark Travis Jun 28, 2019

Show notes

This week I have the pleasure of having directing coach Mark Travis on the show. I was introduced to him after I watched his stellar workshop Hollywood Film Directing, which he co-instructed with Gil Bettman (he'll be on the show soon).
Mark Travis has developed a new way to directing actors called The Travis Technique. Mark teaches directors how to direct the character (not the actor) in order to create instantaneous authentic performances, even on tight schedules and tiny budgets. Here's a bit on The Travis Technique.
Acting is too often just pretending. And most directing is demanding and controlling and result oriented. And consequently, the final product suffers. But it doesn’t have to be that way. When you use The Travis Technique, you can achieve instantaneous and authentic performances from actors that are deeply felt by audiences. The Travis Technique is an organic approach to directing actors that are guaranteed to create authentic characters and performances by shifting the focus from directing the actor to directing the character.
Mark Travis first created his techniques out of the necessity to generate the most authentic performances within actors under a tight schedule and often an even tighter budget. In the last 20-years, the Travis Technique has grown and is now used by some of the best directors, actors and writers in Hollywood and the international film market. Mark has taught The Travis Technique to students all over the world in over 50 film schools.
When actors, directors, and writers use the Travis Technique, it’s not just a performance anymore. It becomes REAL! The Travis Technique creates organic authenticity in every performance and under all circumstances. This translates immediately onto the screen and gains enormous attention for the director, actor, and writer.
Most directors make a critical mistake: They direct only the actor, not the character. And that is just one of the many techniques directors must master. They also must learn how to expertly stage scenes, understand exactly how camera angles intensify or diminish a shot amongst hundreds of other skills to become a renowned, in-demand, and working director.
Winner of over 30 directorial awards, teaching internationally in 50 prestigious film schools, for the past 20-years Mark Travis’ workshops and seminars have covered the entire filmmaking process including all stages of preparation, pre-production, production, and post-production. Mark has been instrumental in launching successful directorial careers in the US and internationally.
Sought out by the most experienced directors, Mark now teaches his signature Travis Technique: a simple, immediate, and powerful Directing Tool, directors can use to achieve instantaneous authentic performances that translate brilliantly onto the screen.
Here's some info on Mark Travis:
Mark Travis is regarded by Hollywood’s top brass and international film professionals as the world’s leading authority on the art and craft of film directing. All of his techniques stem from the pursuit of organic authentic performances that are deeply felt by audiences.
He is currently on the faculty of HFF (Munich), HSU (Kiev) and has taught at AFI, UCLA, The Binger Institute (Amsterdam), PU (Pixar University), FAS Screen Training Ireland and many other internationally acclaimed institutions and film schools. He has served as He has served as a directorial and creative consultant to Mark Rydell, George Tillman, Cyrus Nowrasteh, and dozens of Independent filmmakers in Hollywood and internationally. He is respected and recommended by top actors such as Beau Bridges, Henry Winkler, and Bill Pullman.
Enjoy my conversation with Mark Travis.
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IFH 328: Producing Terrance Malik & Build a Mammoth Empire with Tanner Beard Jun 25, 2019

Show notes

Today on the show we have renaissance filmmaker Tanner Beard. I Had the pleasure of meeting him at the Mammoth Film Festival this year. His adventures in Hollywood are pretty amazing.
Tanner Beard is a film and television actor, producer and director as well as CEO of Silver Sail Entertainment and Mammoth Film Festival. SSE was created during the industry strike of 2008 with a concentration on cultivating professional media content without sacrificing the integrity and artistic vision of the content creators themselves.
Tanner has since produced various projects including a travel show, award-winning short films, award-winning documentaries, commercials, music videos and multiple seasons of a web-based television series. His feature film producer credits include critically acclaimed 'Hellion" starring Aaron Paul and Juliette Lewis, and 'Legend of Hell's Gate,' which he also wrote, directed and starred in alongside Eric Balfour, Henry Thomas, Jenna Dewan Tatum, Summer Glau, Kevin Alejandro, and Lou Taylor Pucci. Mammoth Film Festival was named by the press as "the biggest first-year film festival ever created" in 2018.
In early 2015, Tanner Beard entered into a four-film partnership with iconic Oscar Nominated Director Terrance Malick and producer Sarah Green. 'Knight of Cups' stars Christian Bale, Ryan Gosling, Cate Blanchett, Michael Fassbender, and Natalie Portman. The only documentary of the partnership, 'Voyage of Time,' was produced alongside Brad Pitt, who also narrates the film. It recently premiered at the Venice Film Festival and had its North American Premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Enjoy my conversation with Tanner Beard.
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IFH 327: Directing Films for Netflix and Mark Duplass with Alex Lehmann Jun 21, 2019

Show notes

Today on the show we have returning champion director Alex Lehmann. I asked him back on the show to discuss his new Netflix film Paddleton starring indie film legend Mark Duplass and Ray Ramano. Paddleton is about an unlikely friendship between two misfit neighbors becomes an unexpectedly emotional journey when one of them is diagnosed with terminal cancer.
I know, it sounds hilarious. The film is beautiful, touching an actually pretty funny. I wanted Alex to come back on the show (Listen here to Alex's first appearance on the show) to discuss the process of working with Mark Duplass and Ray Ramano and to breakdown how a Netflix feature film is shot using a Scriptment and not a traditional screenplay.
We also discuss his other amazing film Asperger's Are Us and how making that passion project led to him working with Mark.
This is an inspirational talk with some knowledge bombs thrown in. Enjoy my conversation with the talented and ever humble Alex Lehmann.
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IFH 326: Can You Help Me with IFH's Dream Guest List? Jun 19, 2019

Show notes

So I'm conducting an experiment. Can the IFH Tribe and I get some of the most amazing filmmakers in history on the IFH Podcast? Well, let's see if we can make that dream come true. There is a list of filmmakers and screenwriters I would love to have as guests on the show. This list is pretty ambitious but hell if you are going to dream DREAM BIG.
If anyone out in the Indie Film Hustle Tribe knows or has a way to contact any of these amazing filmmakers please email me at ifhsubmissions@gmail.com
I know this might be a pipe dream but wouldn't it be astonishing if one or more of these filmmakers actually came on the show to share their filmmaking and/or screenwriting knowledge? I want to prove to everyone listening that if you want your dream to come true then you need to put it out into the universe and have the courage to do so.
Like I said, this is just an experiment but man wouldn't be cool? Here's my humble list.
Dream Directing Guests
Robert Rodriguez
Quentin Tarantino
Steven Spielberg
James Cameron
Martin Scorsese
David Fincher
Christopher Nolan
Kevin Smith
PT Anderson
Francis Ford Coppola
Steven Soderbergh
George Lucas
Guillermo del Torro
JJ Abrams
Ron Howard
Spike Lee
David Lynch
Richard Linklater
Mark and Jay Duplass
Lena Dunham
Tim Burton
Mel Brooks
Dream Screenwriting Guests
Aaron Sorkin
Joss Whedon
Shane Black
Robert McKee
Dream Producer Guests
Robert Evans
Jerry Bruckheimer
Gale Anne Hurd
Kathleen Kennedy
Frank Marshall
Brain Grazier
I know there are so many other amazing filmmakers out there that I would love to have on the show so the faster we can fill this list up the faster I can come up with the next list. LOL.
Email me at ifhsubmissions@gmail.com if you have the ability to reach any of these guests.
Please share on social media and help get the word out. Thank you for your help IFH Tribe. Let's see what happens = )
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IFH 325: What Negative Filmmaking Story Are You Telling Yourself? Jun 18, 2019

Show notes

We all tell ourselves negative stories. I'm not good enough. I can't write that. I can't direct a feature film. These stories are killing us day in and day out. It took me 20+ years to finally change the story I was telling myself about being able to direct a feature film. When I finally changed that negative story I was able to make This is Meg, self-distributed it and even sold the film to Hulu and overseas.
Once you change the stories you tell yourself you will change your life. In this episode, I do a deep dive into the negative stories we tell ourselves as filmmakers, screenwriters, and creatives.
Buckle up. There are a TON of truth bombs in this episode!
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IFH 324: What Makes a Great Screenplay with Stephen Follows (CROSSOVER EVENT) Jun 12, 2019

Show notes

What if someone could read over 12,000 scripts that were read by professional script readers, who gave the scripts an overall score as well as scores for specific factors including plot, dialogue, characterization, theme, and voice. Then looked for connections and correlations to discover what professional script readers think a good screenplay looks like. Well, today on the show I have that man, Stephen Follows.
It's a monster of a report -- 65 pages to be exact -- that examines data from over 12,000 screenplays - mostly written by amateurs, but some of them written by professionals and major Hollywood actors. Using rigorous data analysis methodologies, Stephen and his team found some fascinating correlations.
Stephen Follows is an established data researcher in the film industry whose work has been featured in the New York Times, The Times, The Telegraph, The Guardian, The Daily Mail, The Mirror, The Evening Standard, Newsweek, The New Statesman, AV Club, and Indiewire.
He acted as an industry consultant and guest on the BBC Radio 4 series The Business of Film, which was topped the iTunes podcast chart, and has consulted for a wide variety of clients, including the Smithsonian in Washington.
I just love Stephen and his amazing ability to crunch numbers for the benefit of the filmmaking community. He's truly doing God's work. Get ready to go down the rabbit hole and see what makes a great screenplay.
Enjoy my conversation with Stephen Follows.
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IFH 323: How to Become a Filmmaker Who Edits with Sven Pape Jun 11, 2019

Show notes

Today on the show we Sven Pape. Sven is an A.C.E. Award-nominated editor who cut for James Cameron, Mark Weber, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and James Franco. We get into the weeds on editing, storytelling, the business of editing and much more. Oh, did I mention Sven worked with James Cameron for three years? We definitely go into that. Sven Pape's YouTube Channel This Guys Edit is an awesome resource for filmmakers and editors alike.
Enjoy my conversation with Sven Pape.
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