Fight Song For The Middle Class Filmmaker

Nothing should ever be all or nothing. But why have we killed off what most filmmakers would be very happy to be?

your wall is my rothko

I thought I was going to do something different with my life.

I thought I was going to do something different with my filmmaking career too.

I’ve been very fortunate though. I am not complaining.

I set out with a plan to get movies made and seen… my kind of movies, the sort that was based in emotional truth and valued human life, that was willing to examine the hard stuff, and expand our horizons and our compassion.

I only wanted to earn a living doing what I loved. Yes, I wanted financial security, to be able to afford a house, children, and good health. I only wanted what I thought other people could expect from their careers too.

I got what I wanted. I was doing what I loved and I could afford what I felt the world should promise us all. Sure, I had to make some compromises and suck it up occasionally, but that wasn’t too hard. And some good fortune smiled down upon me frequently enough that some things even got better – and know what? I wanted more of that. More of that good stuff. Did I get greedy?

When I started this newsletter almost three years ago, some of my initial posts were precisely on that, on my journey towards wanting more than my fair share or just desserts. I wanted to explore the story of how I felt I lost my way. Why did I need that? More? Why? Why wasn’t I content with my original goals? Why wasn’t I satisfied with earning a decent living doing what I loved?

I had originally just wanted to “jam econo” but later I wanted to earn what the others earned whose work I felt comparable to, if not even better than. What was that all about? Did I really allow myself to get infected with keeping up with The Joneses? Why? Why”

My hunger and greed was partially driven by the lack of alternatives. Either we producers were to be starving artists or successful entrepreneurs. There didn’t seem to be a middle ground. It worked… or it didn’t. Just winners or losers. But now that I enter what will likely be my final few chapters, there seems to be a new expanding middle ground and we all need to learn how to explore it fully. The options are expanding but are we adjusting our practices to allow for it? Shouldn’t we? We certainly can.

Many of us abandon a life centered around creative pursuits because it does not seem feasible to be among the chosen few that will get consistent corporate funding or distribution.

That’s the old mentality speaking. Shut it the eff up.

We even abandon the pursuit of careers on the executive side of things because the sacrifices required in that realm do not seem worth it, particularly these days when the greed of the CEOs and bosses dwarf a hope of even equitable treatment. And let’s not forget the total kowtowing to a corrupt and cruel wanna-be authoritarian government. Seriously, can’t American Media stand for something??? Perhaps if they let us pursue the type of projects we entered the industry in hopes of making we’d stick out the sacrifices the exec must make, but they don’t make them like they used to, do they?

Is there another way?

Can we make less if we are allowed more? More freedom and opportunity to pursue what we love? How much do we need to earn?

This is that post of doing the math.

How can we make it work? Our goal is sustainability — of ourselves, of our art, of our practice, of our community, of our ecosystem. But it must be sustainability with a love and respect for all we are doing.

Let’s say you’ve made a movie. A feature. Maybe more than one. Sure, you did it on the cheap, but it got some play. It hit a big festival or two. Maybe you landed a distro deal. Or maybe you released it yourself. Whatever.

You deserve a career.

Let’s see if we can make it work for you. Join me now on that exploration. See if you agree with me on my conclusion. I think we can make it work but it will take some sacrifice. And we all are going to have build along the way.