Imagine yourself as an amateur independent filmmaker, trying to develop your first film with a bunch of friends. It doesn’t take a whole lot of effort for an established Filmmaker to bring a simple idea in front of a camera and create a good film. There is no rule that exists that states that a good film has to have a “registered film producer” or a bonafide executive to help your film flourish into success. But there are some assholes who will tell you that there are.
These narcissists will also tell you that it takes real contacts in the movie industry to see your film prevail in the “vast movie culture” that is only privileged to a few people who “know the ropes” of the most successful movie infrastructures. But do these idiots really know what happens from the time an idea is created, to the time the pre-film is scripted, pre-produced, and screenwriting comes into play before the camera rolls? Probably not.
Before you drop your idea down to some local indie movie studio under some name like “Clownwork Pictures LLC” or “Run Down Doublewide Pictures” for assistance in getting funding or equipment for your film project, be sure your idea is somewhat realistically thought out. Don’t just sell yourself short to the idea that this thing you have will make enough cash to cure cancer or buy that big yacht to travel around the world to help share your film to a larger audience. Sometimes it’s just a good idea to keep things small and leave the bigger films to real professionals. At this point your only into a hobby, and in the indie film scenes, sometimes that’s the safest (and best) place to be.
Being successful in the independent film industry is a huge dream. There have been so many stories of how a local independent film broke into Hollywood, and had huge success with just a simple idea. Those ideas have even sometimes turned into classic themes that are accepted widely into the fandom of world success; you know the indie films I speak of?…The Blair Witch, The Wraith, El Mariachi, Superbad, just to name a few. These films had low budgets - most were considered ultra-low budget films - but were able to garner a lot of attention through some fantastic advertising schemes that were fresh and not heard of at the time. Even though more of the attention went to these indie films directors, several of the leading actors gained world-wide attention for their performances.
These films didn’t have big names at the time, just an idea that caught people off guard and sold a new brand of film to movie goers and brought in great success over time. Each new indie film that has broke through into fame status, has had production teams with little skill levels, but brought an idea that was uncontested and perfect in its delivery. These teams worked with talented creators that knew how to deliver their film with some training and foresight to lead their production team in the right direction.
What these famous indie films didn’t have were scam producers or wanna-be film executives who were dropping cash on a project because “that’s how it’s really done.” Nope, most of the time, these films launched because one member of the team knew how to bring a dream (or idea) to life with very little in their possession, having the clarity to stay focused and not add too much detail to the simple idea. These were good, honest people who exposed themselves to trial and error countless times, adjusting themselves, growing towards the maturity of a good film maker, and not clinging to the idealism of an amateur nobody.
Yes, unfortunately a large majority of amateur nobody indie film productions and producers exist; be aware that they are out there, and probably a whole lot more than you might think. I have been working in the independent film industry circuit for a little over 25 years, working with so many no-talent people who claim to know the insides and outs of how movies are produced, how they are sold, how they are distributed, and even claimed to have marketed some for big money purposes. A lot of these clowns believed the project could make millions of dollars and that everyone in town would eventually come calling to them for the next big film.
Unfortunately, most of the time, and I mean like 5% of the time, some of these talent-less individuals are able to actually get their film into a position to where marketing became a somewhat lucrative success, but none ever turned out real money or success. These self proclaimed professionals try everything to look the part of an industry specialist; registering studio names, certifying trademarks, claiming to have the best advice, but in reality they can only flash a paper trail to look the part, but what have they truly accomplished? At any point of their short career in indie films, NOTHING.
Narcissistic film producers (or Jimmies) love to claim the knowledge of the business of making films, but truly know nothing about it at all. You can usually check their registries online - because they truly want you to - and see what they’re all about. Most claim to have extensive knowledge in honing services such as filming, editing of film, film production, distribution of completed film, rental of film making equipment; i.e. cameras, steady cam, gimbals, lighting, drones, editing computer use, production guidance, supporting through any and all of the film making process. These wannabe's can't tell you what type camera is best for your film, except for the camera equipment they may already have in their possession.
Breaking their resumes down easily, any real film producer or film maker will tell you that camera's upgrade yearly and can tell you what cameras they prefer to film with; steady cams are a thing of the past and most are now shot with hand rigs; gimbals are only used with cell phones - not even sure why this is listed, except that it might sound technical; lighting rigs can be inexpensively bought at Walmart; drones are only good if you train yourself on how to use them proficiently; having a computer to edit your film isn't required these days; and as for production guidance[?] - doesn't one have to actually create, write, direct or produce several films to be filled with this type of wisdom? and what is "support through the process of the film making process?"...these all sound like suggestions from some guy who sat back and listened to what was happening on a film set, remembered a few tricks of the trade, and now thinks he's a professional film maker. Silly shit, isn't it?
What I like best is when one of these narcissistic producers or exec's claim they are licensed to educate anyone in the field of film making, whether it be sports or cultural activities, entertainment, and providing training in these areas. If your not smart enough to vet these idiots and learn that they never attended real college courses, or check that they completed a myriad of film projects, I recommend you quickly step away and distance yourself from any of their useless bravado. In reality, they have nothing genuine to offer you, except to get into your business and try to push you around for their enjoyment. Being in Indie film teams is only a glorified hobby; it shouldn't be taken too serious and everyone is still required to have a full time job to the pay the bills when the filming shuts down for the night, so why deal with the grief of exposing yourself to a Jimmie who is out to feel important in his own mind?
Honestly, just because a Jimmie can claim to provide an impressive long list of attributes for making films, definitely doesn’t necessarily mean they have "hands-on experience." Be sure to always ask for receipts; that’s ask for legitimate contact with known local indie film makers who have recently worked with this person or impressive group. You might be surprised what you find with just a simple search. Most of the time you’ll learn who is legitimately talented, who can truly help, and more importantly, those you need to steer clear away from. There are amateur loonies out there and they love to be in control of your idea…shit, just about anyone’s idea.
These Jimmies are amateur bozos who are born from a desire to feel important, be in charge, or have a narcissistic taste for absolute “instant fame” which empowers them to grow quickly like a weed and ride off the success of someone else’s efforts; becoming an offshoot of excitement that eventually runs wildly in a direction that serves no purpose, gives no sanctity to the reassurance of true potential, that most actors exposed to the idiocy can become damaged by the bombardment of imaginary success that is tossed at them on a daily basis. Jimmies love to express "how big this film can be!" and "the things we can build on with just this one film with you in it!"
And all of this is very true. So many bad indie films have imploded on themselves due to some person, sometimes even a small group, that run on a bad idea being the next big thing since sliced bread. Narcissistic indie film producers and execs are far even worse. They tend to believe the bad idea is the next big thing because they either paid into the project or because they claim they can elevate the success of the bad idea because they think they have that “big connection” that can change everything and bring the project to a whole new level. Most of a Jimmies connection is making random searches on the internet or trying something they learned from someone else. Part of their scam is playing the part, but not actually not knowing what the part is actually about.
And there’s never any proof of real success; just excuses of what could have been. There’s never that one real indie film project that ever made the real stir in the entertainment field either locally or outside of the small circle of the projects own production team. "Blame" is the constant tool of a fool and the only reward for following a fool is the realization that the infatuation all started because someone else was blamed for not being the right tool for the small idea.
Well, there you have it. Everything you need to know about spotting a know-it-all Jimmie trying to be something he's not. It's okay to dream big, but do it on your own dime and with the full control of the project you've decided to bring to life. The Quantum Storm .357 E-Magazine [QSE.357] actually lists names of some of the most notorious scammers in the indie film circuit who proudly parade as Jimmies in Texas. Be sure to reach out and become a subscriber to learn more about how to protect yourself in this field of film making we all enjoy partaking in.
Don't become another statistic in the wild world of Indie films, be only a film maker!
Ride Easy,
D. R. Quintana
Proven Director/Producer/Professional Photographer
QSE.357 ISSUE 34 dtd 7/1/2024
