archived-videos Basic business questions?

[batymahn]

Hi Guys,
I've learned so much from this site but there are always more questions. You've decided to make your first film; you have talent, ability, determination and enough money to get by. Legally, what should we be thinking about, other than artistic stuff? Should we pick a name for the production company, get a DBA, incorporate (to protect what assets we have) etc. Or am I making this to hard?
Love to get advice.
Chris

 

[WideShot]

Dont rush into it. Read some books on the subject and/or talk to an entertainment attorney. All projects and their needs fall under different advice. Some should be LLC, LLP, Inc. Dont DBA, DBA invites personal liability. Beyond liability, structure, tax brackets, etc. you also have to consider the investment potential for each type and what it will mean when raising money for films. This is not an area of filmmaking to rush into.

 

[CootDog]

Hi Guys,
I've learned so much from this site but there are always more questions. You've decided to make your first film; you have talent, ability, determination and enough money to get by. Legally, what should we be thinking about, other than artistic stuff? Should we pick a name for the production company, get a DBA, incorporate (to protect what assets we have) etc. Or am I making this to hard?
Love to get advice.
Chris

I guess the biggest thing is to figure out what you intend to do with that film? Is it a short or feature? Are you sending it to festivals? Are you looking for distribution?
The first thing you should do is make a business plan for your production company. Then before you go launching a film out to the world, you should have an LLC to cover your ASSets.

The biggest thing you should do is learn learn learn and learn.