Your Monopoly

Over the last several months, I've read post after post on the process of getting a studio or a representative to take young writers under their wing. Basically, this town is full of folks who are looking for someone to manage their success. That's the dream, right?

Who doesn't want a nice, comfortable nest where we can create to our heart's content? Other concerns, like money, are best left to the people who have a passion for those issues.

Except for one thing. Film is a collaborative art.

Movies aren't made on conveyor belts. They're not mass-manufactured, with each person doing their job before the movie slides on down the line.

No, these people are working together, sharing ideas, debating issues... Movies take shape in the space between the creative people who make it. Bridging the distance between one another is the shared responsibility of everyone on the production team.

At their core, movies are about the connections between other people.

So why is everyone in such a hurry to have someone else build those connections for them? Success finds the people who take on that responsibility themselves.

Yes, I've written several spec scripts. Yes, I hope to sell many of them.

At the same time, I've started the work of developing comic properties. Right now I'm producing one film with the support of social media, and another film that is beginning it's life as a play. In the process, I'm bringing together the artists and craftsmen that will be collaborating with me and contributing to my success when I build that safe little nest for myself.

On the one hand, this work gives me a lot more creative and financial control. These are the projects that can really make me and my team the good money.

At the same time, it's these projects that keep commanding the attention of people in the industry. All my queries, all my networking - they're meaningless next to my power to actually launch projects. By far, the most important tool in filmmaking is the ability to unite people around a common goal.

In the end, the person doing that work decides what movie you're making. That truth is both inevitable and completely fair.

If you really believe your ideas have value, why look for the person to bring people together around them? Why make them into someone else's idea, when you can inspire others to add and contribute to the seed you've planted?

That's what success in film is all about, and the only way to achieve it is to think outside the box. Make a web series. Produce a movie. Get your comics out there. Use some of the energy and effort you spend auditioning, querying and hustling to build connections with the people who love making your stories, and then build connections with the people who love seeing them realized.

In the end, it's the audience that matters most. Go after them, and everything else will fall into place. When you have the crowd's attention, the agents and producers will be beating down your door. At that point, will you really care?

Like I said, it's about people.

With that in mind, let me encourage each and every one of you to check out Sam Bailey and my other projects at www.8sidedfilms.com. Sign up for the Sam Bailey mailing list, and you'll follow my own process of bringing these amazing people together to reach an audience.

While you're there, take a look at some of the tools I'm developing to get Sam Bailey into the marketplace. Check out our contests, as well as opportunities to get your name into the credits of the film!

Financing independent films has taught me that while painters and novelists can afford to take the business side of things lightly (for now), filmmakers certainly cannot. The more you interact with other people, the more important it becomes.

Then again, maybe you don't want to deal with people. If that's the case, film might be the wrong business for you.

Remember that you are the only one who has access to your ideas. Don't give that access away lightly. If your ideas are really worth something, make the most of it.