By Guest Blogger: Magda M. Olchawska

How Many Hats Do Independent Artists Have To Wear?

Being an independent artist is not a piece of cake. Apart from finding time to create you need to set enough time aside to promote your work either online on in a 3D world.

At times it drives me insane that I have to do everything on my own. Apart from writing or making a movie I need to find a way of getting my work in front of readers or the audience. This is very time consuming and feels like a marathon than a short distance run.

Amongst all of that one has to have some “me time”, a movie night or a dinner date. Otherwise life & work become too overwhelming to carry on.

In my opinion independent artists are one of the hardest working people out there. We hardly ever switch off (it’s not like having 9-5 job when you leave the office & forget all about), have hardly any money and a head full of ideas that we can’t act on ‘cos we don’t have enough resources.

 The hats I wear on regular basis:

- Writer/screenwriter

- PR person & main contact

- Publisher

- Blogger

- Film director & producer

- Social networker

How do I manage all that? I don’t know. I guess I work a lot. I don’t have much time to relax and I’m constantly on the deadline. However, I have figured out a few ground rules, which I hope you will find beneficial.

-      If I have to write I never open Twitter or my email before. I write first and focus on it entirely.

-      I always make a list of things I need to do each day. Make a list shorter so if you have some extra time left, learn something new or read a book.

-      I try to take time off the Internet as often as I can.

-      I schedule tweets.

-      I’ve decided to be present on very limited number of networking websites ‘cos having too many sites to attend is just time consuming and not really effective.

-      I usually work on two projects at the same time. Working on more becomes too stressful.

-      For every project (in my case either book or a film) I create a press kit to keep in handy in case someone wants to write about it.

We – The Artists try to create something for the next generations to enjoy. We pour our souls into the art we create. Often are not rewarded for the work we do in a way we would like.

But each time I want to stop I can’t stop!!!

This is just who I am, the essence of my being is creation. Without creating I wouldn’t exist.

Happy creating my fellow artists.

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How to get money to make a film?

By Guest Blogger: Magda M Olchawska

This is a difficult question and I get asked it over and over again. Many countries have organizations that deal with film funding and not only national organizations, but also local organizations (check up my notes for theuseful websites).

The EU also deals with film funding, in each member country there is a media desk that should be able to answer your questions regarding getting money for your next project. In some countries the media desk can be very unhelpful but keep asking, their job is to help you.

There is also the option of commercial or governmental TV funding, however this is a very long and often complicated process. If you were anything like me, you would be too impatient to deal with all the processing and decision-making.

A good way to get money for your feature film is to get someone well known to star in your film. This way whoever is investing in your film might feel much more comfortable that the money will be returned to the investor. Besides the investor always looks for well-known faces.

Don’t forget that the script is also very important when it comes to investors lining up. It has to be well written, even though so many scripts aren’t and films are still made. If the script is strong, the film has a bigger chance of becoming commercially successful and this will definitely get you the investors.

However, it can be harder to raise money for a short film than for feature and it’s always much harder to raise smaller amounts of money than larger. The problem is that short films almost never make any money (you might win a Film Festival but you probably invested much more that you got back). To make shorts many filmmakers don’t even bother going to institutions and just invest their private money, which in my opinion is always a good investment. When it comes to financing short films I would recommend you do it yourself. You really don’t need a huge budget to make a short and you can get many things free of charge as long as you are not afraid to ask. Look at shorts as your business card; investment in your future and it will pay off. It also makes very good practice before you make your great feature film.

When it comes to either feature films or shorts I would definitely look for money in a private sector. There are always a lot of people willing to invest some money in films for many reasons: tax break, glamour or looking for a good investment. Start asking people around you and I am sure that sooner or later you will get to a person who has some cash wanting to invest. From my personal experience I can tell you that it’s easier to get money from private people than institutions. Private investors might be hard to find but are much easier to deal with. I have even heard (and this is not my experience) that some people are willing to pay just to have credits in a movie but I don’t know how much of this is true. However, what is true is that many people are willing to pay to appear in a film. Some of those people are upcoming musicians and some people have loads of money and like the idea of being in a film.

Another good way to get money for a film, either short or feature is to organize fundraising parties (you can use your imagination here) invite friends and family. Basically invite as many people as you and your partner know. Anyone can donate anything they want, money, time or equipment. But remember, always give credits in a film to anyone who is going to give you money or free goods and always say thank you.

I know that money is always a problem for independent filmmakers but don’t let it stop you. With digital technology developments making it cheaper and easier to make films you have no excuse to not make it happen.

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Guest Blogger Magda M. Olchawska

Important Short Film Festivals 

Aspen Shortsfest - Aspen Shortsfest is considered one of the world’s premier international short film and video showcases for the trend-setting art form: the short.

Bilbao Int’l Festival Of Documentary & Short Films – International Festival of Documentary and Short Films is recognized as an international event of a competitive nature by the International Federation of Associations of Film Producers (F.I.A.P.F.)

Canadian Film Centre’s Worldwide Short Film Festival – The CFC Worldwide Short Film Festival is dedicated to celebrating and sharing with audiences the exciting world of the short film. In addition to Official Selection screenings of international and Canadian shorts, the Festival features special presentations, retrospectives and gala screenings.

Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival – A snowy-white screen for 7 very short days of vertically-challenged films. The Short Film Festival’s snowy-white screens lights up with a thousand and one stories coming from all over the world every year.

Flickerfest International Short Films Festival – The Festival will consist of an International competition, an Australian competition and a short Documentary competition. Following the Festival in Sydney, a selection of films from the competitive programs will go on tour to capital cities and regional centre’s around Australia.

Foyle Film Festival - The Foyle Film Festival remains a strong mix of screenings and premieres, events, educational screenings, outreach activity, and workshops.

Cinanima Int’l Animation Film Festival - Its main purpose is the promotion of the animation cinema, aiming to conquer new audiences, encouraging the exchange of experiences between the professionals and the audience and to call the distributors’ and TV networks’ attention towards the animation cinema.

Cinequest Film Festival – Cinequest remains one of the last big festival bastions for the discovery of new and emerging film artists.

Festival De Cine De Huesca – The Festival’s main goal is to contribute to the development of a cinematographic culture and to promote the short film and the documentary film from around the world.

Hiroshima Int’l Animation Festival – The International Animation Festival Hiroshima is a bi-annual animation festival hosted in Hiroshima, Japan. The festival is now considered one of the most respected animated film festivals.

Los Angeles Int’l. Short Film Festival – LA Shorts Fest honours those individuals who have achieved excellence in short films. As the largest short film festival in the world with more than 280 films screening and 9 days of “coffee chats” guest speakers, interactive and entertaining events, the festival has become the industry standard for showcasing and awarding undiscovered talent. We consider this a must for any new film-maker

Oberhausen Int’l Short Film Festival – The International Short Film Festival Oberhausen is one of the major international crossroads for the short form, unique in the range of forms and genres it presents to the public, and particularly well known for its spotlight on experiments.

Ottawa Int’l Animation Festival - The Ottawa International Animation Festival (OIAF) is the largest of its kind in North America, attracting film buffs, art lovers, filmmakers and cartoon fans from around the world to the nation’s capital.

Palm Springs Int’l Festival of Short Films – ShortFest calls a huge selection of dazzling new animated, live action and documentary short films for its line-up from many submissions to the event every year. And while these films are short in length, they are long on entertainment value – in turns amusing, enlightening, challenging and provocative – all of which adds up to the perfect recipe for a great time at the movies.

Rio De Janeiro International Short Film Festival – The Festival aims to promote the short film and develop a greater reflection about the format, trying to broaden the interchange between the Brazilian and the International productions.

Short Shorts Film Festival – Short films are the starting point for emerging film makers, in the United States, Europe and around the world, who are ready to show their talent to global audiences. The short film is a resume for a film maker to show his ability, much like a sketch is proof of an artist’s ability to paint. Through the exhibition of short films at film festivals, directors get the chance to have their films seen by producers and industry representatives, and those screenings could prove to be the launching pad for a career in film, as with the now industry powerhouses George Lucas and Steven Spielberg. The Short Shorts Film Festival has created an event of international exchange at every venue on its international tour, and an opportunity for regional cities to become involved in an international event.

Slamdance Film Festival – The Slamdance Film Festival, being the “younger sibling” to the Sundance Film Festival, is dedicated to new filmmakers. They accept films in every genre, on any topic from every country around the world. Their mission is to bring attention to the most talented emerging filmmakers, showcasing their work in the media frenzy of festival week in Park City, Utah.

Tampere Int’l Short Film Festival – The festival is the oldest of its kind in the Nordic countries; the second-longest-running film festival in the area. The central mission of the Tampere Film Festival has remained unchanged since the 1970s: to hold an international and a Finnish short film competition, and to organise various seminars for film professionals and enthusiasts. The festival also aims to promote short films sales and international co-operation in the field of culture, as well as to cherish the tradition of a significant local cultural event.

USA Film Festival – National Short Film & Video Competition – One of the oldest and most respected festivals and film arts organizations in the U.S. Through its YEAR-ROUND “live cinema” programs and special events, the USA Film Festival provides an opportunity for the public to discover new films and sheds new light on familiar films by facilitating discussion and encounters with master, mid-career and emerging filmmakers.

Animafest – Zagreb World Festival of Animated Films – The World Festival of Animated Film in Zagreb is traditionally the second oldest festival in Europe. It is an international competition festival for animated films. Every two years is held the competition either for features or for shorts.

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