Filmmaking

Happy Sunday Creative Army! Have you had a creative weekend so far? I have some content here for you that is sure to get the creative juices flowing, so grab your coffee and let's dive in. First up, the folks over at Indy Mogul recently sat down with television production designer Ian Phillips (Parks and Recreation, The Good Place, Love) to talk about the role production design plays in telling a scripted story. Using examples from Ian's previous shows, he discusses multiple facets of how ch...

Like many of you, theirs been many days where I’d stare off into space wondering when I’d hear good news. I realized that I had two choices, bury my head and soak in the stress and weight of negativity or preoccupy myself by driving my kids insane, singing, dancing, or playing board games. So, I created other choices, flip a couple of houses, and redesign my entire first floor. New boxes showed up on my steps for almost three months. I was busy. I was creating. I used art, fabrics, furnishings,...

After three and a half years of being a reader in multiple casting offices in Los Angeles, and participating in more than 10,000 auditions, I'm sharing with you the knowledge and insight I've gained by being a fly-on-the-wall in the room with casting director's, directors, producers, and showrunners. So take the journey with me, and discover some insider secrets that will help you manage your fears and expectations, as well as give you an edge as soon as you walk in the audition room.   Clic...

So you landed a job as a composer for a Film. Congratulations! But now where do you start? I think a good point is to build a positive relationship with your Director. That could definitely contribute to the success of your gig. Like any other kind of human relationship, there are no rules to make it work and there is always room for improvement, but here you’ll find some tips and thoughts, based on my experience, that I think might be helpful. Let’s suppose you have negotiated the deal, th...

Dr. ScreenLaw: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Law As a screenwriter turned attorney I’ve learned how a screenplay is not just a story: it’s a minefield of intellectual property that could affect the project’s style, budget, sponsorships, and even its distribution. Through this article, you will learn my perspective on how decisions made during the writing phase of an audiovisual project can positively, or negatively impact the legal and financial aspects of a project. It will also...

Walt Disney said, "Animation can explain whatever the mind of man can conceive," and in our ongoing mission to discover new talent from all over the world, Stage 32 is thrilled to announce our inaugural New Voices in Animation Screenwriting Contest! Ever since a feisty little cat named Felix first made his debut on the silver screen over 100 years ago, animation has been delighting audiences across generations and all over the world. Whether the hero is an intrepid mouse, a foul-mouthed ogre,...

THE EYE OF OWOU is based on the West African tale of how death entered the world. The logline is “A desperate mother uses ancient African magic to resurrect her daughter, then realizes the price for keeping her daughter alive entails taking the lives of others.” The logline won a logline contest in 2014 which led me to believe the idea, at least, had potential. I’ve always enjoyed reading mythology. Most horror films are based on Eurocentric myths. I decided to take a different route and explo...

Happy Sunday Creative Army! Here's hoping you had a happy, healthy, and creative week. I've got my coffee in hand and some epic content to share with you today. Let's get inspired, shall we? First up, the folks over at Aputure have curated an excellent video with 7 Tips for Telling Story with Lighting. Filmmaking is an incredibly collaborative medium. No matter what discipline you work in, every job on a production is, in one way or another, there to serve the story. This video highlights th...

Happy Saturday Stage 32 fam! Here at Stage 32, we always have our ear to the ground when it comes to industry news. Our mission is to keep our community educated, inspired, and motivated. Naturally, the topic of productions starting back up has been a hot-ticket item in the industry. We were proud to share two Stage 32 member's stories about their experiences shooting during the pandemic. Emily Skye, a director, screenwriter, and cinematographer, shot her award-winning short film River in No...

Probably the most nervewracking assumption actors make when going into the audition process is that the people they will meet “on the other side of the table” somehow know everything about how the industry works and what it takes to succeed. Certainly, they must know more than you! After all, you’re the one who’s asking them for work! Let’s stop thinking of power, authority, and experience as all being the same thing. Consider, instead, that how much a person knows about success in the enterta...