My Parents Are Trying to Seize Control of My Money! conversation reopened

[d0nnivain]

Your therapist is in charge of your mental health, not your bank account.  Movie making is risky & you know that.  I have repeatedly encouraged you to be financially responsible regarding this expensive dream by writing out a business plan. 

I agree with the therapist that you will regret it if you don't try to make this movie.  However, because you do not have the business pieces in place I think you are going to lose your shirt.  

I think you need to get a better grip on the money side to minimize the risk but you must make your movie because the desire to do so has been burning in you forever.  

[Ruby Slippers]

Follow your passion, but do it as a side hustle. Have a stable day job that you quit only IF the film stuff takes off to the point that it's supporting you sufficiently. Best of both worlds.

[Wiseman2]

1 hour ago, ironpony said:

Even my parents think it's a huge mistake and waste of so much money as the movie will never sell. They think I have gone insane, and are trying to seize control of my savings, cause I am mentally unfit.

I understand they care and they mean well, but what can I do to get them to be more supportive. If I lose it all, then I am back to square one, but what can I do to make them see that it may be a necessary risk?

Are your parents your legal guardians? How could they seize your money? 

[ironpony]

Oh okay.  No I don't think the parents will be able to get it, but it's just extra pressure I still have to deal with.

[d0nnivain]

Your parents should feel better about the whole thing if you show them a business plan.  Make it concrete not pie in the sky 

[Ellener]

On 7/27/2020 at 1:01 AM, ironpony said:

I wanted to get into the filmmaking business, and was going to make my own feature film to try to break in before. However, it does cost quite a bit of money and I am under a lot of pressure because of it.

I want to give another shot at making a feature film when covid gets better, perhaps next year, but I feel that it's going to turn out bad, especially when people you know are saying "you don't have what it takes to make a movie", "It will be a total waste of money", "You haven't made anything yet that turned out well". etc.  I talked about it on another thread before:
 

I went to a therapist to talk about it and he said if I don't do it, I am going to keep looking back and wondering what if, and keep regretting it, if I don't. So he says go for it.

But now people who have been trying to talk me out of it, are saying that therapist is irresponsible, that I have to take such a big risk with my money like this. What do you think? Should I see someone else?

You can only live your own life. That's what the therapist told you. But a lot of people don't live like that. When I was a small child growing up in England my dad said 'what would you like to be when you grow up?' 'A writer'. 'Don't be so blo*dy stupid,nobody does that!'

[ironpony]

On 7/27/2020 at 2:30 PM, d0nnivain said:

Your parents should feel better about the whole thing if you show them a business plan.  Make it concrete not pie in the sky 

Oh I didn't think that would make a difference with them since it's still spending a large amount of money.

[elaine567]

22 minutes ago, ironpony said:

Oh I didn't think that would make a difference with them since it's still spending a large amount of money.

If you want to be treated like an adult by your parents, then you need to act like an adult.
Adults, looking to get a business off the ground, have business plans.
Making a film, if it is to be successful, is a business, it needs a lot of financial planning.
Otherwise a lot of money could be completely wasted and as your budget is meagre then you can't really afford to waste money.
Why do you seem so resistant to the idea of a business plan?
Do you have a job just now?

[ironpony]

i didn't have a job for a few months because of covid, but I start a new job in two weeks.  It's a temporary job so far, for will bring in some money.  I'm not resistant to the idea of a business plan, am I?

Edited August 5, 2020 by ironpony

[elaine567]

4 minutes ago, ironpony said:

I'm not resistant to the idea of a business plan, am I?

So have you drawn one up then?

[ironpony]

Well the plan would be to make the movie and hope that it gets distributed but I don't know what else should I plan to have really.

[jspice]

3 hours ago, ironpony said:

Well the plan would be to make the movie and hope that it gets distributed but I don't know what else should I plan to have really.

If this is your approach to your life’s ambition then I’m sorry, but you’re not going to be a filmmaker who makes a living doing it. 
This is supposed to be your dream, the only thing you want to do. 

[ironpony]

Oh well it's just after I make the movie, I am not sure what else to do with it, aside from shopping it around hoping that it gets picked up.  Should I have a better business plan?  Other filmmakers shop theirs around in festivals to get noticed, but is that not the way to go maybe?

[S2B]

Learn to think and act independently instead of always worrying about what others approve of. 
make the film after you provide a stable life for yourself and have plenty of money to make it happen. Don’t quit a regular job until the film work can provide the stable lifestyle you seek.

[ironpony]

Oh okay, well I don't have a job now because of covid so maybe it's best to make it now, before I have a job that I would have to quit in order to do so?

[S2B]

Go ahead - if you have plenty of money saved for the time you’re not working.

or wait until you work again (saving the money you have now to pay bills while you’re not working). Then film around your work schedule.

how old are you? Do you live independently? What kind of monthly expenses do you have?

do you always struggle with decisions?

[d0nnivain]

15 hours ago, ironpony said:

Well the plan would be to make the movie and hope that it gets distributed but I don't know what else should I plan to have really.

 Oh good heavens.  That is not a plan.  It's a pipe dream. 

A business plan involves the following 

1.  getting a script

2.  Setting locations / coming up with a shooting schedule / blocking the scenes 

3.  Casting / staffing 

4.  Figuring out how much everything costs

     a. permits

     b. salaries 

    c. equipment

    d. editing 

     e.  dubbing

     f. costumes 

     g. licenses if you plan to use products or copyrighted music 

     h.  lawyers to get your script & film copyrighted; to deal with any investments 

     i.  accountants & bookkeepers to manage the money if you can't or at least buying accounting software 

     j.  insurances  at a minimum you will need comprehensive general liability coverage & workers' compensation.  It may be a good idea to get keyman (yes I know the name is sexist) coverage if you can afford it.  

5.  Figuring out how you will raise the money you need to pay for the above costs  

6.  identifying the target market for your film & how you will reach them; you should have a sense of how large this group is & how many sales you have to make to break even

7. developing a marketing plan  You are going to need something better then just shopping your movie at film festivals but that can be a component.  You need to budget how much it will cost you to attend those festivals & who you need to speak to once you get there.  Will you need additional art for a poster / on line presence?  Will you create a social media campaign?  Do you know how to make something like that go viral? 

8.  working out how you will distribute your movie & what that will cost

9.  predicting the profits as an incentive to getting investors 

 

There are tons of guides out there if you simply type -- business plan for making a movie 

Until you understand the business behind the art you are doomed to an expensive failure.   This document will end up being 20 - 50 pages long if you do it correctly.  

[Noproblem]

Just don't talk to doubters and do your own thing!

[Noproblem]

On 8/6/2020 at 4:30 AM, ironpony said:

Oh okay, well I don't have a job now because of covid so maybe it's best to make it now, before I have a job that I would have to quit in order to do so?

what kind of film are we talking about?

[Veronica73]

Are you financially independent from your parents? If so, you don’t need your parents’ or anybody else’s approval. If you think you do, that might be a good thing to talk about with your therapist. 

Otherwise, I agree with what d0nnivain has said. 

It seems like you have been talking about this for a long time. I kind of feel like strangers on the internet can only help you so much. You have to make some choices for yourself.

[basil67]

On 8/6/2020 at 6:30 PM, ironpony said:

Oh okay, well I don't have a job now because of covid so maybe it's best to make it now, before I have a job that I would have to quit in order to do so?

Ironpony, this is why people are advising you against it.   Not only do you need a sound business plan before you start, but you also need to have signed contacts for your actors and that myriad of staff who will make the film come to life signed up.   

You're talking about a feature film.  A low budget one costs about $2mill.   Do you have this amount of money and can you afford to risk it?  

[ironpony]

On 8/6/2020 at 1:11 PM, d0nnivain said:

 Oh good heavens.  That is not a plan.  It's a pipe dream. 

A business plan involves the following 

1.  getting a script

2.  Setting locations / coming up with a shooting schedule / blocking the scenes 

3.  Casting / staffing 

4.  Figuring out how much everything costs

     a. permits

     b. salaries 

    c. equipment

    d. editing 

     e.  dubbing

     f. costumes 

     g. licenses if you plan to use products or copyrighted music 

     h.  lawyers to get your script & film copyrighted; to deal with any investments 

     i.  accountants & bookkeepers to manage the money if you can't or at least buying accounting software 

     j.  insurances  at a minimum you will need comprehensive general liability coverage & workers' compensation.  It may be a good idea to get keyman (yes I know the name is sexist) coverage if you can afford it.  

5.  Figuring out how you will raise the money you need to pay for the above costs  

6.  identifying the target market for your film & how you will reach them; you should have a sense of how large this group is & how many sales you have to make to break even

7. developing a marketing plan  You are going to need something better then just shopping your movie at film festivals but that can be a component.  You need to budget how much it will cost you to attend those festivals & who you need to speak to once you get there.  Will you need additional art for a poster / on line presence?  Will you create a social media campaign?  Do you know how to make something like that go viral? 

8.  working out how you will distribute your movie & what that will cost

9.  predicting the profits as an incentive to getting investors 

 

There are tons of guides out there if you simply type -- business plan for making a movie 

Until you understand the business behind the art you are doomed to an expensive failure.   This document will end up being 20 - 50 pages long if you do it correctly.  

Oh okay, well I have a lot of things planned out such as the script, locations, blocking, it's just things involving permits and insurance can be kind of tricky, and different lawyers have different things to say.  So I'm still working on that part.

[ironpony]

On 8/8/2020 at 6:05 AM, basil67 said:

Ironpony, this is why people are advising you against it.   Not only do you need a sound business plan before you start, but you also need to have signed contacts for your actors and that myriad of staff who will make the film come to life signed up.   

You're talking about a feature film.  A low budget one costs about $2mill.   Do you have this amount of money and can you afford to risk it?  

No I do not have 2 million, but others tell me that movies like The Blair Witch Project was shot for 60K, for example, and to just try to get a movie made for that much, and tell me to think smaller.  But as far contracts go, I would definitely have those for sure.

Edited August 10, 2020 by ironpony

[Lotsgoingon]

OK, here's my sense. If you are going to pursue a career as difficult as filmmaking then I'm sorry: you don't ask for permission or approval. That's like asking for permission to climb Mount Everest. No, to do such a difficult, odds-against-you endeavor, you have to assert the confidence and do it.

There is one word here that bothers me ... you said you would make a film and "hope" something comes out of it. That's the wrong attitude. Frankly, you want to exactly know each step of the way in making a film ... where you would show it ... how to show it at festivals ... the best festivals to enter .. to get a distributor's attention ... So sounds like you have more research to do.

And this there is this: most first time efforts suck ... I study writers ... writers all say they have to often write two sucky novels that they hide in a closet somewhere ... before they can write something that can get published and possibly sell. You will learn a tremendous amount from making a film--even if you get nothing in return ... You want to go in with that attitude, knowing that if the film fails to get attention, you're going to move on to the next film. 

Again, film makers don't ask people for permission. They just do it!

 

[ironpony]

Oh okay, it's just if I go in with the attitude that also first time film sucks, I feel it may be a waste of money if I don't expect anything to come out of it though.