Are any of you making a living in film/video?

knightly

knightly

I'm working on a project and need to know if any of you are making a living with film. I'd like to have representatives from both within the system and outside the system.
 
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Dave Pastecchi
Alcove Audio
DavyG
Sonnyboo
FilmJumper
Lots more, but thought you may want a short list.
 
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Definitely hard times. My day job working hotel conventions has taken a serious downturn. I work based on bookings and I've had one shift in the last 3 weeks. The only thing getting my family through the next few months is my movie and tutorial projects. EXILE dvds start selling, next week. Next month, I hope to have another self-produced tutorial out. (My only real cost is a hard drive, tape and DVD replication.) I have at least 3 of those lined up.

My film work has always been supplemental, until recently. The recession sucks, because ideally I would like to be paying the bills with the day job, and then socking away some savings that my other projects bring in.
 
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I've always wondered this about Indie film makers too. I'd love to be able to make a living doing films. I don't actually have a job (I live on the Australian equivilent of welfare and live with the parents) but I keep wondering... if I had a job, would I even have time to make movies? My last job was a 40 hours/week deal, and although I had weekends off... I was to burned out to really focus on any real projects. I'm trying to get some part time work at the local supermarket doing stocktaking... but this goddamn recession is making all the businesses tight on their money belt.
That being said... life doesn't appear to be easy being a film-maker. But, the idea of creating something that everyone will enjoy is what keeps me going.
 
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I wish I could say I was making a living at it :rolleyes:

I chose the wrong time to become an artist. I have been substitute teaching for the last 2 years as I try to get my name out there attached to some good work. Projects have been few and not a lot of money coming in with them. Right now, I am hoping to find an regular editing job and figure out how to get in on all the films that appear to be streaming into Michigan because of the incentives. Otherwise, times are hard.

...maybe that's an angle you could look at as well, knightly. People who aren't exactly making a living at this. It seems there are more of us starving artists than 'making a living' ones... :)


-- spinner :cool:
 
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I'm working on a project and need to know if any of you are making a living with film.
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As a crew guy or by producing your own films?
If you can claw your way into the union and get into "the loop" you can make a decent living as a crew guy.
Otherwise just look on CraigsList and see all of the slave labor jobs being offered.

Producing your own stuff is financially extremely risky and the odds are seriously stacked against you if you want to make a traditional movie. You're better off making something that is doable for really REALLY cheap, like a compilation of fights outside of a bar, Girls Gone Wild, Supersize Me, Jackass, etc.
 
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I'm making a living in the biz, but working for companies, not my own. Had steady jobs for 3 yrs, and went freelance a year and a half ago. I'm coordinating an animated series, which is a longer contract, so I'll be back lookin for work again in the winter, as I was this winter.. its kinda dry out here in Toronto.. but people say it'll pickup again in the summer.. who knows. Producing a film on the side however? Nope, no money in that yet, but thats what we're seeking. :) That's a venture that requires great effort for little compensation, only the self fulfilling reward of doing something you deem important.... until you make it big time.
 
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Long story short...

My biz was doing okay, got flooded out in April '07, took almost 18 months to re-open just in time for the economic collapse. It's been tough rebuilding the clientele, but slowly getting there.
 
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For the record: Some weeks I work nearly as many hours on set as I do with my 9-5, and I rarely get paid. Tis the sad life of the East Coaster...or any Coaster maybe.
 
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Kightly, I'm not trying to hijack your thread, but I just have to comment on some of the posts on here. Some of you that are having a hard time making money doing something that you love, I feel your pain and I may have a solution for you. Have you ever thought about using your skills to help out other business owners?

The reason that I'm on this forum is because I have made some instructional type videos of my trade and sell them online. I want to get better and better at doing that, thus, I'm here. There are many business owners out there that would kill for a great video for their service or product, but just don't have the know-how to get it done.

I'm sure some of you guys could make some really nice videos/commercials, etc. to help pay the bills and then some. I make some decent money off of my cheesy videos that I did and my niche is VERY small. I also shot the videos with a $89 Kodak digital camera and edited it using Windows Movie Maker!!!

If somebody like me can make a couple grand a month off of some goofy (yet relevant and helpful to my industry) videos, you guys can easily supplement your incomes by making professional looking stuff for hungry business owners.

Hope I gave some of you an idea or two, and hope I didn't impose too much on your thread, Knightly. If so, I will delete my post, just let me know.
 
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Impose away! Ways to make a living off this endeavor is the focus of the thread... what specific kinds of videos are you shooting and how did the gigs come to you?
 
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OK, cool.

I actually invented a tool for my industry that saves other contractors hundreds of dollars. It would kind of be like a sound guy or a light guy inventing something that worked as well or better than the expensive stuff, and just making an instructional video on how to make that product. That's one of my videos.

The other video is simply a video showing methods and tools I use to perform my day job that most other contractors can't seem to figure out on their own. In the end, it saves them lots of money and time as a contractor.

Mainly what I was getting at though in my earlier post was there are lots of contractors/salesmen, etc that would kill to have a nice commercial or a presentation on dvd that would help them get more sales. Does that make sense?


Here are the "trailers" ha ha, that I did for my products.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9yo-f6RSmM&NR=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btkUtpP1KUQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XhFiOSrhG-o
 
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