Make This Movie: A Filmmaking Series

Coming April 3rd, 2018, Make This Movie is a serialized 12 episode podcast from ShoHawk Media. It chronicles writer, producer, and director Christopher Sakr's, his crew's, and cast's journey of producing a feature length film called Counterintelligence. Moving episodically through the entire filmmaking process, from writing, to pre-procution, principal photography, through post and release, Sakr will chronicle making this micro budget feature for just under $12,000, with the help of his collaborators and friends lending their skills and voices.   Make This Movie is powered by ShoHawk.com

In this first episode of Make This Movie, filmmaker Chris Sakr begins the filmmaking process with the script for Counterintelligence. He traces the story from the initial seed of an idea, through his screenwriting practices, reverse-engineering his script to be made at a low budget, and to his "braintrust"—the close confidants he takes script notes from to polish up the final draft!   For exclusive access to documents relating to this and other episodes, sign up and ShoHawk.com/makethismovie!

In this episode of Make This Movie, Chris introduces accomplished producer and ShoHawk co-founder Michael Hall to break down the importance of budget attention and accuracy in independent filmmaking, some common mistakes at every level of the production game, and how to cover a production for unforeseen expenses. Then, Chris dives deep into his own budgeting process for Counterintelligence, including the sheets he used, how he broke down the script, and how he managed to build a budget and a rough schedule at the same time!   For exclusive access to documents relating to this and other episodes, sign up and ShoHawk.com/makethismovie!  

With the help of former co-producer David Pennington and ShoHawk co-founder Michael Hall, the first half of this episode follows along as Chris unfurls some key attributes of successful film-financing. They explore past experiences, mistakes, and victories relating to both crowdfunding and raising equity finance from investors. Then, Chris synopsizes all the crucial lessons learned throughout self-fincancing Counterintelligence.   The second half of the episode dives into the nitty-gritty of taxes, as they apply to independent filmmakers and film production companies. Assisted by his accountant, Steve, Chris breaks down filmmakers'options, what to expect come tax-time, how to plan accordingly, and how to start a production company from the ground up, including his own setup for Counterintelligence Motion Pictures LLC.   For exclusive access to guides and documents relating to this and other episodes, sign up and ShoHawk.com/makethismovie!

Casting is among the most important filmmaking processes, and here the window opens to its nuances. Counterintelligence's rockstar casting director Rachel Meyer takes Chris through what it took to cast this movie, and other films she's worked on. She and Chris take us from how they were put in touch initially, through her review of the script, up to audition days and locking in the film's pitch-perfect cast!   The second half of the episode reveals the specific workflow Rachel uses to cast movies. She covers organization, outreach techniques, and overall efficiency practices, from working with agencies to reaching out through social media. This deep-dive presents how important and difficult a casting director's work is, and how micro-budget filmmakers and producers can replicate this work if they're strapped for cash.   For exclusive access to guides and documents relating to this and other episodes, sign up and ShoHawk.com/makethismovie!

Pre-production is the overwhelming, often monotonous, any essential part of making any film. But especially a micro-budget independent one. It requires diligent attention to detail, communication, and organization. If you pre-produce right, the rest of the process runs that much smoother. Pre-production as a whole is such a dense topic, Make This Movie will cover it in two separate episodes, outside what we've already explored.   In Part 1, we'll look at nailing down locations, hiring key crew members, providing necessary contracts getting the right gear, props, and wardrobe. And that's just the half of it!   For exclusive access to guides and documents relating to this and other episodes, sign up and ShoHawk.com/makethismovie!

We’ve almost made it through Pre-Production, and the hardest work is yet to come. Micro-budget independent filmmaking hurdles emerged here that taught me lasting lessons.  Sometimes, filmmaking isn’t as much a creative endeavor as it is a logistical one. It can be gruelling to plot the minutia in advance and fill out mounds of paperwork, but you feel the benefits once you, the cast, and the crew set foot on set. In Part 2, we'll look at the SAG-AFTRA process, SAG Indie, Production Insurance, Payroll Services, Tactical Planning, Scheduling, and Call Sheets. Check out links and further info at http://shohawk.com/ep6-pre-produce-pt-2/   For exclusive access to guides and documents relating to this and other episodes, sign up and ShoHawk.com/makethismovie!

Between the Frames is a set of sub-episodes wherein Chris probes far deeper into specific facets of each filmmaking stage covered thus far. He explores some important practices, disciplines, philosophies and skills that may have been previously glossed over, under discussed, or all together undiscussed. In this inaugural Between The Frames, Chris discusses some specific pre-production topics including: Balancing Time and Money Organization Communication Negotiation Time Management Honesty He covers their importance and some best practices to get the most out of each. He also recommends a long list of tools and resources in the form of books, apps, and podcasts that serve the pre-production process, from organization to time management and communication. Here they are: Independent Ed, by Edward Burns - In this hugely inspiring chronicle, Burns recounts his rise to prominence as an independent filmmaker and actor, the career lull, and his resurgence when he discovered micro-budget filmmaking. It’s detailed and highly inspiring. Think Outside The Box Office, by Jon Reiss - Though aspects of this book are a bit dated (see below blog), Box Office is a 21st century distribution manual for the independent filmmaker, at it’ll help you budget appropriately for the best possible outcome. Jon Reiss’ blog - This is also a great resource containing a great deal of updated distribution information and resources to help you better plan ahead in prep. Creativity Inc., by Ed Catmull and Amy Wallace - Pixar’s co-founder and CEO outlines the history of the great cinematic institution, and the many internal processes lending to their amazing track record. ShoHawk’s Creativity Inc. post - In this post, Mike synopsizes the important lessons he gleaned from the book. ShoHawk’s Pixar Braintrust post - In this post, Mike dives deep into the actual structure of Pixar’s braintrust and how to build and organize your own. The 4 Hour Work Week, by Tim Ferriss - This watershed book in productivity and professional efficiency has probably done more to shape the modern workforce than any other book, and it remains an exceptional tool for time management sharpening. Never Split The Difference, by Chris Voss - Former CIA hostage negotiator Voss deconstructs the art and science of successful negotiation, with the subtitle: “How to negotiate as though your life depended on it.” SCRUM Workflow - This is a task management philosophy commonly used in software and coding. It is meant to streamline allocation of time and break down large tasks into smaller, executable chunks. Trello - An excellent digital tool for breaking down tasks, organizing them, and visually managing the SCRUM workflow. Evernote - Chris’ “idea” organization tool of choice—the digital equivalent of carrying a backpack full of unlimited notebooks with unlimited pages. ShoHawk’s Evernote post - Chris outlines his specific process for organization using Evernote, including specific notebooks he’s created. Film Trooper - Scott McMahon’s extensive blog and podcast covering a host of filmmaking topics, including funding, prep, SAG (this is where our SAG segment with Michele Gibson originated), and more. Scott is also a fellow Portlander—Rip City baby! No Film School Podcast - Specifically, the First Feature AMATEUR podcast. It’s housed within the NFS podcast channel, so you kind of have to hunt around for it. But it’s a worthwhile look at the process of making a film, particularly from scripting to production. Filmmaker Freedom podcast - Rob Hardy has done a fantastic job of structuring an entire season around making a living as a filmmaker, including by reverse-engineering feature films around an audience, from the beginning. Show Don’t Tell podcast - Noam Kroll’s podcast gives you most everything you need to know about making a micro-budget feature, including thinking tactically about preparation. Click here to visit this post on ShoHawk! Click here to sign up for the additional tools and resources for your micro budget feature at ShoHawk.com/makethismovie!

Camera speeds… Sound speeds… Aaaaaand… Action! Counterintelligence has made it to production. All the work we’ve done so far has lead to this point. Production was so extensive we broke it into two episodes. In Part 1, we'll cover shoot days 1-3 of 7. The first two days took place at my apartment and the second was a night shoot outside a brewery in one of Portland’s industrial districts. For exclusive access to documents, guides, and detailed breakdowns, expanding on this and other episodes, sign up and ShoHawk.com/makethismovie! Click here to visit this episode and it's post on ShoHawk.

In Part 2 of our production episodes, we'll cover shoot days 4-7. These days included a return to the apartment location, a series of offices, a ranch outside of Portland, and more. It also consisted of the biggest blocking challenge on the production, a tense moment, and a lot of laughs. It ended over drinks, food, and general merryment. For exclusive access to documents, guides, and detailed breakdowns, expanding on this and other episodes, sign up and ShoHawk.com/makethismovie! Click here to visit this episode's post on ShoHawk.

In this Between The Frames segment, Chris discusses some specific production topics including: Filmmaking as jazz Improvisation Knowing your actors personally Asking for input Self-care Problem solving/conflict resolution Being present He covers their importance and some best practices to get the most out of each. He also recommends a list of tools and resources in the form of books, apps, and podcasts that serve the pre-production process, from organization to time management and communication. Here they are: The Q&A With Jeff Goldsmith.This podcast is an invaluable resource. The back-catalog is astoundingly large and you’ll have inspiration for weeks. Goldsmith knows how to ask the right questions of his guest filmmakers, actors, writers, etc. The Treatment.Host Elvis Mitchell has been around for a while and is a great lover of cinema. He’s done some great interviews from the past and, in this regular show, he dives into true filmmaking craft and appreciation. The Director's Cut.Brought to you by the Director’s Guild of America, this interview show features some Q&As with today’s biggest directors, including Darren Aronofsky, Guillermo Del Toro, Quentin Tarantino, and many many more. There’s no shortage of information here. Off Camera With Sam Jones.Sam Jones sits down with great actors and film/TV artists to discuss process. Not only is it fascinating from a fan perspective, but you’ll get many little gems about onset dynamics and how-tos. Rebel Without A Crew, by Robert Rodriguez.I don’t think there’s a more reputable or important book on independent filmmaking out there. This one is like a bible of sorts. If you haven’t heard of it before, you just need to read it. That’s all there is to it. The Daily Show (The Oral History), by Chris Smith, forward by Jon Stewart.This book was a great peak inside how an American institution grew, evolved, and engendered a collaborative production environment, even under great pressure and scrutiny. It’s a great example of production health being a top-down enterprise. The Friedkin Connection: A Memoir, by William Friedkin.This was not only a remarkable walk through a truly remarkable period in cinema history, but also a powerful reminder that your filmmaking principals should be firm. The audiobook is also read by Friedkin himself. Robert Altman: The Oral Biography, by Mitchell Zuckoff. Altman is one of American cinema’s truest pioneers—a filmmaker’s filmmaker in the classic sense. This book cobbles together interviews with his family, friends and collaborators—many of whom belong to multiple categories. Through their testimonials the reader gets a comprehensive sense of Altman’s unique and collectivist process. The truest example of filmmaker as jazz band leader. Headspace app. This app got me through some very stressful times while producing Counterintelligence. You can do the 10 day beginners course for free, then pay to access advanced and specific courses, like meditations to enhance focus, reduce stress, calm anxiety, and sleep better. I’ve tried many of these to great results. If you’re about to undergo a production, this definitely will not hurt you to try. Click here to visit this info on ShoHawk.com!

We’ve arrived at post production. More specifically, editing Counterintelligence. The editing process was multi-layered, from cutting scenes throughout production as they were shot, all the way up to merging those scenes into a rough cut, and refining into locked picture. Editing is where the film gets made: the final vision takes shape at this almost final step in the process. It’s said that three different films are made throughout the filmmaking process: one on the page, another in production, and a third and final film in post. This episode explores that process of sculpting the final vision through refining fragments, trimming fat, shaping pace and tone, and reviewing in stages with the braintrust through screenings for notes and input. Editing can be all-consuming, demanding a fine balance between finely tuned focus and the freedom to experiment. In this episode you’ll hear from Noam Kroll, host of the fantastic Show Don’t Tell podcast on editing efficiency. I also bring back Rachel and Marc from my braintrust to discuss their notes on early screenings, and co-producer/art director Dre Tolbert on those notes and balancing work and relationships. This episode is primarily geared toward those producing and directing filmmakers who choose to edit their own work, but it carries over to anyone responsible for editing feature films. For exclusive access to documents, guides, and detailed breakdowns, expanding on this and other episodes, sign up and ShoHawk.com/makethismovie! Click here to see this post on ShoHawk.com EPISODE OUTLINE Editing efficiency using the 80/20 principle Trimming the fat off your story Integrating improvisation into scripted scenes Experimenting with tone and structure Adding new texture Playing off current events to enrich a film Screening for notes Work/life balance through the editing process

Having locked the cut of Counterintelligence, there’s still a whole world of post that needs completion, even at the time of this episode. On the docket: scoring, color correcting, some minor visual effects, sound design, and sound mixing. Our score was composed by the great Noah Simons. Sound was mixed by Mike Elliott, who you’ll recall was also our Director of Photography. Everything else was done by me, and that’s where it got murky. As you’ll hear in the episode, the extended post tasks like coloring and VFX require a great deal of attention, organization, planning, and most of all accountability. Without these factors at play, post can drag on forever. On Counterintelligence, it certainly feels like it has. The finishing touches of post can get completely underrated in pre-production. They are where the film truly becomes a film, and as important to the filmmaking process as anything else. They deserve a filmmaker’s full attention. In this episode you’ll briefly hear from Noam Kroll, host of the fantastic Show Don’t Tell podcast on filmmaking efficiency. You’ll also hear from composer Noah Simons on creating the score, and sound mixer Mike Elliott on how that process worked—or didn’t—and how we made lemonade, Beyonce style. Most of all, you’ll hear why things like plans and strict deadlines are crucial, especially when working for yourself. For exclusive access to documents, guides, and detailed breakdowns, expanding on this and other episodes, sign up and ShoHawk.com/makethismovie! The guide for this episode includes hours of tutorials on specific post production tasks, so don’t miss it. It’s like a masterclass! EPISODE OUTLINE Why post-production help is important Working with a composer Inefficiency of experimentation Color tools and methodology Painting with sound design Audio organization What sound mixing does The sound mixing process explained

In this Between The Frames segment, Chris discusses some specific post-production topics including: The facets of post, from start to finish Doing post from the start Managing the post-production flow Collaboration in post And, the creative post process He covers some best practices to get the most out of each. He also recommends a list of tools and apps that serve the post-production process, from organization to time management and communication. Here they are:   Final Cut X - This is my chosen non-linear editing system. It doesn’t have to be yours. In short, I feel it’s a system designed more for the creative and less for the technical mind. But to each their own. If you haven’t tried it and want to form your own opinion, I recommend giving it a shot. Color Finale - This outstanding tool delivers professional grade color tools as a simple Final Cut effects plugin, allowing a colorist to do dynamic and high-quality work without ever leaving the initial editing application. I love it dearly and am hooked. Extensive Color Finale tools and tutorials can be found below. Logic Pro X - Apple’s standard professional audio application is the best and most affordable mixing option when editing is done in Final Cut. Unlike Pro Tools, it’s a one-time fee with most standard plug-ins and tools included. It was made even more worthwhile to me as I used it to produce the podcast associated with this guide, Make This Movie. Apple Motion - Apple’s standard professional graphics application is often under-utilized in the filmmaking world, with a host of tools including 3D animation, motion tracking, advanced coloring options, and more. I also used it to build my own effects plugins for Final Cut. It’s really helpful.   For the full post production workflow and tool list, check out our in-depth Post-Production Tool Kit by signing up at shohawk.com/makethismovie. It includes not only the tools, but essential tutorials to get you through the extended post process!

Season 1 of Make This Movie is nearing its end, but the season wouldn’t be complete without distribution. Distribution is the place where your film meets its audience; it’s where your baby ventures out on its own and overnight belongs to the world at large. And as with sending a child off on its own, the distribution process is replete with hard lessons and separation anxiety. In this episode, Chris covers the basics: from the heartbreak of the modern festival circuit, through different forms of distribution, finding an audience, and hatching a marketing strategy. He does this with the help of Jason Brubaker, founder of Filmmaking Stuff. Through excerpts from the Filmmaking Stuff Podcast, Jason shares insights into the new media landscape and how to harness niche markets to help your film find its fans, among other varied topics. They key to ethical and productive distribution and indie film marketing is honing in on an audience that is tailored to your film without spamming or hard-selling those who wouldn’t be interested in the first place. That’s the focus of this episode: showing filmmakers the possibilities available for pulling this off and remaining in control all the way through. You’ll even learn a bit about Counterintelligence’s plans and strategies that are yet untested. Let the marketplace be the final judge! For exclusive access to documents, guides, and detailed breakdowns, expanding on this and other episodes, sign up and ShoHawk.com/makethismovie! This episode’s Tool Kit is a comprehensive guide to distribution with tools, further reading and listening, and everything you need to get your film to market whenever it’s ready. Click here to view post on ShoHawk.com! EPISODE OUTLINE The modern film festival landscape Defining a film’s conditions of success How distribution companies work The tools provided by aggregators Finding a niche audience Ethically navigating the online media landscape When to choose direct distribution When “good” is better than “done”

We’ve reached the finale of Make This Movie, Season 1. Thank you so much for coming along on the ride to making Counterintelligence. Many lessons were learned throughout the process, most of which were covered throughout the season’s 12 episodes. To highlight the ones that were and insert a few that weren’t, in this episode Chris will go down the list of 12 lessons learned while making this movie—one lesson for each episode. You’ll hear a few statements to back up these lessons from a couple familiar voices, David Pennington, Andréa Tolbert, Michael Hall, Mike Elliott, and Tim Kahn. And you’ll be brought back to Chris’ audio diary. You’ll even hear Chris’ personal theory on the two types of people in the world: Spielberg people, and Scorsese people. Counterintelligence is nearly complete now, and due out in the fall of 2018. Not all lessons have been learned or even digested yet, but we hope the ones that have been mean something to you and your filmmaking. We’ll see you next year for Season 2 of Make This Movie. Thanks for making Season 1 a joy! For exclusive access to documents, guides, and detailed breakdowns, expanding on this and other episodes, sign up and ShoHawk.com/makethismovie! This episode’s guide includes a transcription of the lessons covered within the episode, as well as 5 BONUS lessons! EPISODE OUTLINE Lessons from collaboration The importance of passion 12 Lessons from making Counterintelligence A look back at why we make films