brave thinkers – Hope For Film

I wasn’t sure what to call this post. “Top Posts”? “Most Popular”? They are not necessarily the most engaging, as they don’t always correspond with the “most commented” — if that qualifies for engaging that is… But I thought it would make some sense to see what was the most viewed. I thought I would learn from it.

One of the things that I am proud of regarding this blog is the fact that it has become a community forum. I learn from the comments people post. I have made new friends from such comments (and identified a few I hope to avoid!). It’s been really great how much people contribute, and I love that almost half the most popular posts are from folks other than myself.

So, what were HopeForFilm/TrulyFreeFilm’s most read post of the past year? Surprisingly, they are all quite recent.

38 More Ways The Film Industry Is Failing Today – With over 10,000 views this clearly hit a nerve. Everyone likes lists, but I like to think so many folks went to this for a dose of preventive medicine. We are going to conquer this right?

Ten Things To Do Before You Submit A Script – Getting your script read by the right people will always be a challenge. As will making the best film you are capable of. We all need advice, and I probably can come up with a few more posts like this. You certainly want it. I have listened. I hope the advice was helpful!

The Hard Truth: Filmnaking Is Not A Job – I aim to be 100% truthful about what I do. I want to demystify what producers do. I think the readers of this blog and the community around it that you have built wants us all to say like it is. I must confess that occasionally I let the struggle of getting movies made and seen, get me down. Fortunately I get great support from my wife and friends, yet nonetheless sometimes I produce posts like this one!

The Good Machine No Budget Commandments– Oldies can be

Looking Through The Rubble, Ending The Silence, Celebrating The Risktakers, Hoping For A Few Good Leaders

You’d think with all the collapse in the “Film Business” we’d have a whole lot more experimenting going on. Or at the very least the encouragement for experimentation. Why is it that everyone wants to keep doing it “business as usual”. It’s broken! Those days are over! The sky has fallen! Dust yourself off and let’s begin something new! Stop sniveling.

It is a different business now than what it used to be. There is no U.S. acquisition market for films, even if the movies are good. Library value as an asset is a thing of the past (or at least libraries being something you could base easily predictable cash flow or resale on is over). People don’t want to pay to see movies — unless they are the sort of culture (including niche culture) unifying event film. It is truly hard to get people’s attention when they are overwhelmed with the plethora of choices — we are a world of distraction and rapid attention shift. It is even more difficult to get people to talk about good stories, even when more are told and made than ever before. Everything requires more work and more thought than it used to.

Which is not to say that the art and industry of film is over. Far from it. It is just a different business.

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