What was so beautiful about newspapers was that most people bought them for the horoscopes, felt connected to the world at large, and then stumbled upon things like revolution in the middle east and cool movies like Dark Horse, Starlet, & Holy Motors.
The collapse of print has been devistating to art film in particular. Indie worked as a business model when you did not have to spend so much to get attention but could rely on the critics to drive people to the theater.
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[–]lil_snail 3 points 13 hours ago
Hi Ted! Thanks for doing this AMA! As a young producer I am really interested in learning about what your biggest challenges were (and are) and how you overcame them. Thank you!
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[–]DarkHorseFilm[S] 1 point 13 hours ago
Survival and lack of community. I got lucky early on as I was not burdened with student loan debt — in that I organized the tenants in the building I live in when the owners took it coop. We held out until they paid us each $50K. Tuition was not as insane then as it is today so I could pay off my debt and have a life in the arts. We suffer now because young people have to first chase salary to get out from under — and everything you do changes you and most corrupts if you are not strong and hv a great group of supporters.
THat is the second challenge. Our culture encourages indivualistic and narcisistic behavior, and producing in so isolating that only encourages us to withdraw further. Finding great collaborators is always a challenge. I was incredibly fortunate to find the filmmakers and crew and investors and all the folks at GOod Machine and This is that. Most fortunate was finding some one to share my life with who shared my mission and believes in the values I hold dear (ie. my wife Vanessa). Support is so important. When you find good people keep them near.
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