Making Movies is HARD!!!: The Struggles of Indie Filmmaking

This week Liz and Alrik welcome writer/director T. Arthur Cottam on the show to talk about the re-release of his feature film Carbuncle which is now out on Amazon Prime, Plex and Vimeo on Demand. T. talks to us about finding success with short films and how that lead to making Carbuncle for four thousand dollars which was completely funded from film festival prize money. We also talk about his latest feature film One Hour Outcall, how that project came together and how T. balances making his art and paying the bills. This is really great conversation about how you can make a life for yourself as an artist and how there is no one way to make that happen. We also have filmmaker and listener Earl Martin on Get Shorty to talk about his short film LISTEN and Liz and Alrik read a listener letter from a friend of the show!  Get Shorty Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjuU12sUqZY

Alrik and Liz have a wonderful, substantive and vulnerable conversation with filmmaker Tom Putnam about the trajectory of his career (from massively popular shorts to a razzie nominated feature, to his most recent award-winning film, THE DARK DIVIDE). We also feature Nicole De Meneses' latest short, BLOOD BOND.  

This week Liz and Alrik chat with writer/director Craig Moss about his latest feature, LET US IN. This film was a bit of a departure from his previous films, and Craig goes into taking on producerial duties as well as how he made a career by NOT going to film school. Also, Liz is in the hot seat for GET SHORTY while Alrik and Ritesh Mehta discuss her short, THIS IS SHORT WE'RE SUBMITTING TO FILM FESTIVALS. Finally, we read a brand new iTunes review. Enjoy! 

This week, Liz and Alrik chat with screenwriter and comedian Mishna Wolff. Mishna talks a lot about process, how enjoyable this specific project was, and goes into her love of genre films. We also have a special GET SHORTY where Liz and Ritesh Mehta review Host Alrik Bursell's short film, CONFLICT. Finally, we read a letter from editor of the show, Cameron Caves! Enjoy!

This week Liz and Alrik invite editor of the musical, In The Heights, Myron Kerstein on the show to talk about his two years editing the film, re-opening the edit during the pandemic to make some key changes to the film and how making this film with a 50 million dollar budget felt like a big studio crew making a movie on an indie budget. Myron gets into a lot of details with us, including the amount of VFX shots that are in the film, the challenges of editing a musical that was shot on location and what he and director Jon M. Chu changed when they reopened the edit. Don’t go away after the interview, because we have another Australian filmmaker on the show to talk about their short film, I’m Your Fool, and Liz and Alrik talk about the Get Shorty segment and what purpose they hope it’s serving!

This week Liz and Alrik welcome star and co-director Kate Forsatz and editor Meredith Veach to come on the show to talk about their first feature, Threebound which they shot in NYC in eleven days with a large amount of locations and a pretty sizable crew. Kate and Meredith talk about how they originally spent $14k on a teaser trailer that they were hoping to raise a million dollar budget with and when that didn’t work out, they pivoted to making the whole film for around $70k. This is a great conversation about perseverance and really making sure you bring the right group of people together to make a film. We also have filmmaker Roy Ellis IV on the show to talk about his short film POME (Product of My Environment) and Liz and Alrik read an Itunes review and some youtube comments!

This week we have documentary filmmaker and director Michelle Boyaner on the show to talk about making her latest: It’s Not a Burden, about adult children taking care of their elderly parents. Michelle talks about why she decided to make this film, how they raised the funds and her process of getting this story onto the screen. This is Michelle’s third feature doc and she talks about why she keeps returning to documentaries, the struggle to raise funds and how she is able to live off of storytelling. We also have another Australian filmmaker Ambrosia Miller on the show to talk about his first short film, Banana Peel Man which is really a lot of fun. Liz and Alrik read a listener email, Alrik gives an update on The Alternate and Liz and Alrik discuss pitch decks for features, if you need them and how to present them at and/or after meetings!

 This week Liz and Alrik welcome Writer/Producer Hudson Phillips and Director/Editor Jordan Noel on the show to talk about their feature film This World Alone which they made out in Atlanta on a budget of $30k. They talk about how they came up with the idea for the film, how production was prepped in a very short amount of time and how they were able to make the film happen with such a small budget. This is a great conversation if you want to hear about a team who decided to stop asking for permission and just went out and made their film. We also have Australian filmmaker Jennifer Gareski on the show to talk about her short film ‘The Non-Love Story’, we read another listener's letter and Liz and Alrik continue their deep conversation about being filmmakers. 

This week Liz and Alrik welcome writer and director Anna Elizabeth James on the show to talk about the making of her smash hit Netflix film, Deadly Illusions starring Kristen Davis, Greer Grammer and Dermot Mulroney. Anna talks about how the film was conceived, how they secured the funding and the amazing story of how it was sold, skipping festivals altogether. This conversation really shows that if you put intention behind your career you can make your dreams a reality, along with a ton of hard work of course! We also have filmmaker Cassandra Warner on the show to talk about her short film Night Light which she made as a student four years ago and we read a letter from a listener!

This week Liz and Alrik sit down with filmmaker and commercial director Chelsea Christer to talk about her first feature film, Bleeding Audio, which she made over the course of six years and which played at the 2021 Slamdance Film Festival, winning the George Starks Spirit of Slamdance Award. Chelsea talks about the evolution of the documentary and how the story changed over the years. She also talks about how she always thought she would make a fiction film as her first feature and that Bleeding Audio just was the right film for her to make first. This is a great conversation about the grit and grind that goes into making a film and how things don’t always end up the way you planned. We also welcome filmmaker Leena Pendharkar onto the show to talk about her latest film Awaken and we have another edition of You’ve Got Mail!