Short Films 101: How to Make a Short for Under $50K-and Launch Your Filmmaking Career - Paperback

by Frederick Levy (Author)

A step-by-step guide to creating short films, with expert advice from Hollywood insiders

The right short can be a filmmaker's "business card" in Hollywood, and this authoritative handbook by one of the industry's most connected insiders guides you through the entire creative process. You'll learn the basics of filmmaking, get expert advice from established filmmakers, and have a final game plan for promoting and selling the film once it's in the can.

Topics covered include:
- Concept, budget, and arranging for location
- Finding equipment, assembling a crew, and casting
- Arranging for location
- Locating festivals and ancillary markets
- Working with the unions
- Film vs. digital video

You'll also get references to real-world examples, including:
- A list of film schools
- Oscar-winning shorts and nominees
- A selection of short-film festivals
- Actual short-film budgets
- Sample scripts and shooting schedules
- A helpful short-film glossary

Author Biography

Frederick Levy is the owner of Management 101, a firm that guides the careers of actors, authors, screenwriters, and directors. He also develops and produces film and television, most recently producing Frailty, starring Bill Paxton and Matthew McConaughey, for Lions Gate Films. Before founding Management 101, Levy was the vice president of development and production at Marty Katz Productions, whose films include The Four Feathers, Impostor, Reindeer Games, Titanic, Mr. Wrong, and Man of the House.

Levy is also the author of four books about the entertainment industry: Short Films 101: How to Make a Short and Launch Your Filmmaking Career (Perigee, 2004); The Hollywood Way (St. Martin's Press, 2002); two-time Los Angeles Times bestseller Hollywood 101: The Film Industry (Renaissance, 2000); and The Ultimate Boy Band Book (Pocket Books, 2000). Currently, Levy teaches film classes at UCLA Extension, the USC School of Cinema-Television, and the Los Angeles branch of Boston University. He is a sought-after speaker who has lectured at Harvard, Yale, NYU, USC, Rutgers, Boston University, and numerous writing seminars throughout the country. He has also been a featured guest on many TV stations and talk shows, including CNN, Fox News, MTV, VH-1, CBS News, Entertainment Tonight, The G. Gordon Liddy Show, and National Enquirer TV.