The feature film, Anchorage, is a true indie film that was shot in 5 days and created on a self-funded, budget of only $54,000. The film, which was originally planned to be a short, has gone on to receive 11 awards and 10 nominations across 17 festivals. The film’s team has been independently producing a theatrical tour, across the US and in the UK.
In today’s episode, No Film School’s GG Hawkins speaks with Scott Monahan, Dakota Loesch, Erin Naifeh, and Spencer Showalter to discuss:
- Getting coverage in big publications like The Guardian
- Developing a short into a feature using the same budget
- Selling family heirlooms in order to finance the film
- The process of shooting in the high desert for five days
- Letting actors move around and do what they wanted to do
- Putting your crew together based on personality not talent or budget
- Learning how to do an assembly cut before bringing on the editor
- Cutting and editing depending on what feels right to the story
- Playing at Music Box Theater alongside Oppenheimer and Asteroid City
- The 3 most powerful words you can say as a director
Memorable Quotes
- “The movie changed from a short to a feature, but the budget was the same.” [7:40]
- “We had structure but we also had freedom to improvise and be organic.” [9:35]
- “Sometimes it’s more important what other people bring to your project than what you are bringing to your project.” [35:07]
- “We’re not good will hunting, we are bad will hunting.” [41:37]
Resources:
Anchorage | Official Trailer
Anchorage IG/FB/X: @anchoragemovie
Anchorage | Deeper Into Movies Screening (FREE)
YES, Manchester | September 6th 7:30pm
https://dice.fm/event/gax26-anchorage-qa-6th-sep-yes-the-pink-room-manchester-tickets?lng=en-US
Anchorage | Deeper Into Movies Screening (FREE)
TT Liquor, London | September 9th 3:30pm
https://dice.fm/event/l5d6r-anchorage-qa-9th-sep-tt-liquor-store-london-tickets?lng=en-US
Anchorage | Curzon Q&A Screening
September 12th Curzon Hoxton 6:40pm
https://www.curzon.com/ticketing/seats/HOX1-12139/
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The No Film School Podcast