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post #31 of 43
7/26/09 at 6:35pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by SField View Post
The dynamic of the film industry is changing, such that one does not necessarily need to be in LA or NYC to be a participant, or that it even be your first career. The studio system will not endure as it is now, and someone who does film as a hobby is quite likely to produce better work than someone who has a bunch of MBAs with no creative credentials or abilities whatsoever to answer to.

Yeah, I agree. But the problem is that doing good work is not a guarantee of earning good money. That's why I'd like something else that I could support myself with if need be.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Piobaire View Post
Jekyll, willing to relocate to Bollywood?

Possibly. I don't know much about it, but it might be pretty cool...

I've wanted to live in SF since I was a little kid, but it's crazy fucking expensive.

I've also been thinking about Toronto recently, since it has a pretty large film/tv presence and is supposed to be a nice place to live. I dunno how expensive it is though. Worst thing about that would be that the weather wouldn't be any nicer than Michigan.
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post #32 of 43
7/26/09 at 6:42pm
Toronto isn't too expensive, depending on what your expected living standards are. If you're willing to share a place, it's fine. I would say that nice condos downtown start at around 1600 if you want to live alone.
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post #33 of 43
7/26/09 at 6:59pm
Good luck with the film. I've met so many people who have tried to break into the industry taking classes at film school and Univserities, only to come out with no job and and bunch of student loans needing to be paid off.

You could whore your self on youtube. Some of the more popular youtube whore's are bring in $100K from Google for just a few videos a week. Most seem to be around 20-28 age bracket.

$200K?

If the economy was better I might suggest something with real estate, loans and sales.
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post #34 of 43
7/26/09 at 7:02pm
California would probably be your best bet for film studios (big and small). SF is way to much unless you've got a developed career. But some of the areas around it are more affordable. Maybe just move out to the area (suburbs around Los Angeles or SF) find a cheap foreclosed house to buy, then work your way to SF.
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post #35 of 43
7/26/09 at 7:20pm
If you're looking to get into 'The Biz', take anything you can get, be it mailroom, getting coffee, etc. People will often not look outside of their companies to hire because it often turns costly, instead they look from within their ranks, who they may already have a relationship with and their personal qualities proven. Don't become one of those hoping to be discovered, instead go out there and make it happen. Don't expect an overnight success, it may take years, or even a whole lifetime. Don't take no for an answer. You might not hear back immediately from people, but they will always remember the hard working person with a go-getter attitude when a job opens up. I'm no expert by any means, but I've been picking the brains of people who got there. Sometimes it helps to be optimistic.
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post #36 of 43
7/26/09 at 10:38pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jekyll View Post
Yeah, I agree. But the problem is that doing good work is not a guarantee of earning good money. That's why I'd like something else that I could support myself with if need be.

generally people who want to make films aren't the types who worry as much about money. Like someone else said, real estate used to be how people in hollywood who didn't have steady jobs would earn a living between jobs, but in general if a life of a 9-5er appeals to you the movie business is likely not what you're looking for. In general it's the producers and agents and distributors who are the money hungry guys, but in general fledgling directors, ADs and DPs don't have the same goals as someone who for instance, wants to be a programmer and earn a steady income.
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post #37 of 43
7/26/09 at 10:41pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by SenorMatador View Post
If you're looking to get into 'The Biz', take anything you can get, be it mailroom, getting coffee, etc. People will often not look outside of their companies to hire because it often turns costly, instead they look from within their ranks, who they may already have a relationship with and their personal qualities proven. Don't become one of those hoping to be discovered, instead go out there and make it happen. Don't expect an overnight success, it may take years, or even a whole lifetime. Don't take no for an answer. You might not hear back immediately from people, but they will always remember the hard working person with a go-getter attitude when a job opens up. I'm no expert by any means, but I've been picking the brains of people who got there. Sometimes it helps to be optimistic.
I don't mean to be a prick but you just wrote an entire post filled with platitudes that mean absolutely nothing but somehow are always uttered by tired, nearly suicidal highschool guidance councilors. "Don't take no for an answer". "Don't expect an overnight success, it may take years, or even a whole lifetime." "Sometimes it helps to be optimistic." Jesus christ. You're like one of those inspirational posters they have up in gray cubicle hells.
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post #38 of 43
7/26/09 at 10:42pm
Thread Starter 
A 9-5 life doesn't appeal to me. Money does. I'm hoping to shoot an indie feature within the next 2-3 years. Mebbe I will become instantly rich and famous. But if not...
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post #39 of 43
7/26/09 at 11:06pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jekyll View Post
A 9-5 life doesn't appeal to me. Money does. I'm hoping to shoot an indie feature within the next 2-3 years. Mebbe I will become instantly rich and famous. But if not...

If you're in film to make money (and aren't on the business side of it), then you're so in the wrong business it isn't even funny.
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post #40 of 43
7/26/09 at 11:14pm
Thread Starter 
I'm in film because I love film. But I also like having money and buying cool shit. Get it? I'm trying to figure out a way to do what I love and still be able to support myself.
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post #41 of 43
7/26/09 at 11:38pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jekyll View Post
I'm in film because I love film. But I also like having money and buying cool shit. Get it? I'm trying to figure out a way to do what I love and still be able to support myself.
And I think that most people who love film and do it as a career also would like to have money, but you seem to want to have money very fast, which leads to me question whether or not you really know much about how the film industry works. It certainly is possible to have overnight success (though even that will take 2-5 years from the inception of a project), but that's the exception rather than the rule. People who do love film and are good at it often do end up having money but a lot of the time it's later rather than sooner. Based on you liking "cool shit", you might want to find another way to make money, because the likelihood of it being in movies isn't very high. If you're a fantastic writer you may be able to sell a spec and get a staff writing job, or if you write features you could get enough mine to keep you afloat, but even that is unlikely.
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post #42 of 43
7/26/09 at 11:59pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by SField View Post
Based on you liking "cool shit", you might want to find another way to make money, because the likelihood of it being in movies isn't very high.

That's kinda what this thread is all about. The $200,000 in the OP was a joke. I know that's not remotely realistic. I'm just trying to find something that I can learn alongside of film that I can support myself with. Even $50,000 wouldn't be bad starting out, for someone with my background.
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post #43 of 43
7/27/09 at 12:29am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jekyll View Post
That's kinda what this thread is all about. The $200,000 in the OP was a joke. I know that's not remotely realistic. I'm just trying to find something that I can learn alongside of film that I can support myself with. Even $50,000 wouldn't be bad starting out, for someone with my background.
Well there's a ton of jobs available in Hollywood, IT being one of them. You could be a camera, you could be any number of things on a set. There's a ton of jobs out there, but unless you work on reality shows which tend to be non-union (and pay less), the people doing the hiring are protective. There's certainly a way for you to make a living in LA if you aren't the typical person who dreams of being an actor. If you are actually capable of physically or intellectually doing something that people need, then you aren't so badly off. Obviously the job market there are shrunk a bit, and people are hiring less. You just had two major agencies merge (WM and Endeavour)... The Firm folded etc... so just make sure that you have technical skills you could offer someone, or be prepared to not make too much money at first (but it shouldn't be long until you can find a decent paying job for a non-creative position). If you have no qualms about porn, they're always looking for crew members (sound, visual, production), in Chattsworth and that's what some people are doing to earn a living while they work on their projects.
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