I am really heartened when someone decides that they are not going to just sit around and wait for someone to deliver something to them (other than take-out that is). I am even more heartened when someone takes such action, not just for themselves but for the community at large. I truly believe that we are missing out on both vibrant work and a vital community of truly free film work by those in their 20’s.
I was recently hipped to a new endeavor that, although they may not have mandated to focus on such new work, their energy, spirit, and age gives hope that it will lean such a way. Brian Geldin of The Film Panel Note Taker let me know of NYC’s new”Big Vision Empty Wallet” that launches tomorrow! Today’s guest post is by Alex Cirillo & Dani Faith Leonard, Founders and Creative Directors of Big Vision Empty Wallet who have been gracious enough to let us know what they are up to.
Recession. The signs of it are everywhere – teachers losing jobs, restaurants and stores that were once NYC staples closing, fashion labels hiring Lindsay Lohan to design for them instead of actual designers (it’s not only Ed Hardy). The recession is always a top story on the news and is brought up in daily conversation. We can only come to one conclusion about how our industry will fare in this climate and here it is: what an exciting time to be an artist.
In this tough economic climate of limited budgets, creativity is key. We live in the greatest city in the world filled with more creative people per capita than anywhere else. The NYC independent film community is so vibrant and our friends and colleagues are creating amazing work.
Together, we run a weekly series of film screenings and events called Industry Power Play, where we aim to foster a sense of camaraderie among the members of the NYC film community. We recognized the need for an online independent film presence that reflects our fresh and excited tone, is visually interesting, and contains all of the resources artists need to create films in NYC, as well as a forum for them to promote their completed work. Most of all, we want people to make films in our city.
All of these things have lead us to launch BigVisionEmptyWallet.com, our new one-stop blogazine for film in NYC, on May 1st. The site will contain news stories and other features, funny blogs, profiles of local artists, film and event reviews, videos, web series, and a jobs and gigs board. We are also compiling a full independent film resource guide, including: a vendor directory, sample production forms, information for shooting in NYC, union information,
organizations, schools and festival deadlines.
Through BigVisionEmptyWallet.com, we will provide original content that is entertaining and useful, but never boring.
We are two hard-working women in our 20s who have a blast pursuing our careers and working in film and our site will reflect our fun, and often snarky tone. Most of all, we are excited to feature the work of up-and-coming filmmakers and artists, while encouraging people to make films in the city that we love.
One feature on the site is a weekly Top 10 list (Dani’s first one is “The Top 10 Things You Should NOT Do if You Are a Fake Producer and You Are Trying To Sleep With Me”). So, in that spirit, here are:
The Top 10 Things You Will NOT Find on BigVisionEmptyWallet.com:
#10 – A visually uninteresting interface
#9 – Mildly entertaining video content
#8 – A resource guide featuring only companies who have paid to advertise
#7 – A writing staff consisting only of middle-aged white men
#6 – Content for the sake of filling up space
#5 – Boring “How To” articles
#4 – The same film and event reviews you can read anywhere else
#3 – Profiles and interviews with the same questions everyone has been asked before
#2 – Film reviews written by a person who has never made a film
#1 – Any reason not to make a film in NYC
