Inspirational

This year at the Cannes Film Festival I had the opportunity to meet Heidi Philipsen, a dual-citizen filmmaker from the United States and Germany. With each country being different in the various ways they make films, Heidi realized that there is an opportunity for trans-Atlantic filmmakers to learn from one another and support each other creatively. So, she did something about it. Heidi put together a panel at the Hamburg Film Fest for Women in Film & Television International (WIFTI) and NYWIFT...

We will be making our final descent. Please put your tray tables up and stow your large electronics. Keep your seat belt fastened until the seat belt light turns off. Wilnona and I memorized these instructions since we spend about 26 weeks a year in the air. The flights and cities vary, but there remains one constant; the deadline for our next book. Recently we were asked how we finished writing thirteen books on time. We had to stop and think. Upon deep meditation we realized we found a spac...

We’ve learned in the Crowdsourcing video series that in order to get ahead with any creative project, you need to have a competitive advantage. Stage 32 CEO Richard “RB” Botto is the best-selling author of Crowdsourcing For Filmmakers: Indie Film and the Power of the Crowd, an undeniably powerful book that delves into one of the film industry's best kept secrets: CrowdSOURCING. And the more you discover about crowdsourcing, the more you understand that it truly gives you a competitive advantage...

As a writer, your mind runs a million miles an hour fueled by high octane dreams, inspirations, and real-life memories. Your grey-matter cylinders are pumping away as your fingers bludgeon a keyboard, so much so to the point you probably should apologize to it afterwards. It’s because there’s always something missing. Some gaping hole within you that you need to fill, and you believe that creating some sort of literary art will help fill that, if only for the moment. That hunger just grows and g...

Off the top of your head, without thinking, what was your favorite coming of age novel? Mine was, Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. I had to read it because all of the junior high school girls were reading it and talking about the "sex scene" it in. And of course, I had to read that sex scene. It would be my first book that dove into sex and I was very excited about learning more. It wasn't that great. But the book was. I remember that. Which is why I felt compelled to share the l...

In the next video of our Crowdsourcing series, Richard “RB” Botto, the best-selling author of Crowdsourcing For Filmmakers: Indie Film and the Power of the Crowd and Stage 32’s CEO, shares things you can crowdsource for your creative project. If you’ve been following the series, you know that building an audience first can help enhance your crowdfunding campaign because you’ve already taken the time to seek out dedicated followers. But what if you could crowdsource other things needed to get you...

I practically jumped out of my seat when I read "I'd like to produce and direct this," beneath the synopsis in the logline section of my profile! It was awesome to learn that, FINALLY, someone wanted to produce my original 40 page paranormal horror short film titled, Angered.    It was Robert James Atton, a fellow Chicagoan, who wanted to read the entire script, so I emailed it to him post-haste. He "loved" it, and we decided to meet in person at a local coffee shop. We told each other m...

I have a secret to tell you. About two weeks after my pilot shoot, I wanted to give up. And not just for that day. For about 45 days after that. And then forever, really. I was tired, burned out, frustrated with a crew member, and suddenly completely unsure of why I had just invested thousands of dollars to do what I did. I wanted to give up. My other half told me what I was experiencing was natural and that before long, I would be back in the saddle. Turns out what he said is true. Becaus...

Fresh off the heels of our expanding partnerships with Cannes, Raindance, Hollyshorts, and AFM (more on that shortly) and our new partnerships with the Trinidad and Tobago Film Commission and the Hamburg Film Festival, we're proud to announce that we have now joined forces with the prestigious Austin Film Festival. For starters, we'll be screening our 4th Annual Short Film Program during the festival.  So far this program has screened at Hollyshorts, Raindance and now we're excited to bring it...

Greetings from London where we just finished our sold-out screening of our 4th Annual Film Program at the Raindance Film Festival.  It was fantastic to see so many of our educators and executives in attendance, at our afterparty, and during our meetings throughout the week.  We'll be sharing more here on the blog soon. Those of you who know me have heard me stress that too many creatives focus nearly exclusively on their craft.  They don't take the time to keep on top of what's happening in th...