In a sure sign that the U.S. economy is improving, Wal-Mart employees and union actors in low-budget movies received an approximate 25 percent wage hike earlier this year. Across the country, companies like McDonald’s and many U.S. states are also raising workers’ pay. Such positive economic indicators should be cause for celebration, but for low-budget filmmakers, they signal a more expensive world in which to do business. As prolific producer Jay Van Hoy (The Witch) says, “It’s inflation, you know.” While inflationary expenses won’t severely impact medium-budgeted independent films, rising costs could imperil the vast number of micro-budget productions, which […]
by Anthony Kaufman on Apr 28, 2015Filmmaker: Why did you first get into being an AD? Did you ever want to direct? Do you now? Wegenka: I started working as an AD after college. As a filmmaker I love production, the process of making films. As an AD I’m right in the thick of it, helping to create the director’s vision. I’ve been able to work with many directors I admire: Bernardo Bertolucci, David Lynch, David Mamet, John Waters, Robert M. Young, Wayne Wang, Martha Coolidge, Neema Barnett and many others. I’ve learned from all of them. Working with Lynn has been a joy, it has brought me […]
by Danielle Lurie on Jan 23, 2014Filmmaker: Why this movie? Why did you decide to do it? Seigel: I guess I first started thinking about writing this movie after a year of attending a bunch of wedding and baby showers and just feeling really confused by them, like, “Are people actually enjoying this?” Filmmaker: Do you think a male director might have handled the making of this film differently? How did being a female filmmaker effect how this film got made do you think? Seigel: I think it would depend on the person. But I do know it was a little tougher on Lynn, being a female filmmaker directing […]
by Danielle Lurie on Jan 22, 2014Filmmaker: Why this movie? Why did you decide to do it? Shelton: Laggies is the first film I’ve directed that I didn’t also write; the script just really spoke to me. The way that the story unfolds is unexpected but believable, and all the humor comes from a character-based place. Andrea Seigel is a fantastic writer. She’s so facile with creating dialog that feels smart but also breezy. Filmmaker: How much of your crew was female? Was hiring women a consideration for you? Shelton: My considerations when hiring crew are: a) competence, and b) relationship (i.e. “is this going to be a […]
by Danielle Lurie on Jan 17, 2014