How to Start a Film Production Company
A film production company is responsible for nearly every aspect of the movie-making process. Once a movie has been given the green light, the production house goes to work. For smaller companies – or...
Category: Learning 101
Original Movie Ideas: Is my idea good enough to be a movie?
It’s been said, most recently by Christopher Booker, that there are just seven basic plotlines in all of the storytelling. Booker’s book, The Seven Basic Plots: Why We Tell Stories, was written in 2004...
What do Movie Production Companies do?
Usually operating under the umbrella of a major studio like 20th Century Fox, either as a sister company, subsidiary, or division, production companies are responsible for getting movies made. Production houses are tasked with...
Here’s how to write a movie.
Writing for movies is a specialized skill—it differs greatly from “normal” writing (i.e. writing a novel). Books and movies both start with a story idea. From there, the process of writing a movie is...
The film industry: What you should know before you start.
Every year some 800 movies are released in North America. On average each of these movies spent five months in pre-production, two to three months in production and ten months in post-production before it...
A Day in the Life of a Screenwriter
We recently asked longtime Film Connection mentor Ron Osborn (Meet Joe Black, Moonlighting, Duckman, The West Wing) to tell us a bit more about how he manages his day-to-day life as a screenwriter. What...
Filmmaking: Why Smaller and Intimate Can Be Better
Today’s average Hollywood feature film has a budget that’s north of $100 million dollars. Not only is that a daunting figure, but it pretty much means that unless you have a proven track record in...
Learn to Direct
If you want to learn to direct films, you need to understand that much of what it takes to be a director cannot be taught. A director needs to be a creative visionary—they need...
How to be a Film Director
If you want to be a film director, here’s some great advice: “Pick up a camera. Shoot something. No matter how small, no matter how cheesy, no matter whether your friends and your sister...
How to Get Original Music for your Film
Music is an integral part of many movies. It can create the mood and atmosphere of a film; it can build anticipation for what comes next and it can signal flashbacks and transitions. While...
