The first step in making your movie is putting everything in place before you ever have a camera: polishing your script, finding actors, rehearsing, and putting together a team of technical folk who can work the cameras, tape recorders and lights. This is what's known as preproduction.
Use "Points" and Screen Credit if Possible
You aren't the only one who wants to see his name in lights. Many times, offering just the opportunity to work on a real film is enough bait to bring friends on board. Your first question at every stage of moviemaking should be, "Whom can I get to do this for free?" One way to get people to work for free is to offer screen credit.
If you can't get people to work for free, it's time to dole out the "points." Points are the lifeblood of no-budget moviemaking. When you have very little cash to distribute at an early stage of a film, you can promise talent a percentage of the film's profits, or points. You've only got 100 of them, of course, so be stingy with those suckers; they're finite, and you'll want a bunch for yourself.
Get a Director of Photography
When you start the process of converting your screenplay into a film, the most important asset you can acquire is a knowledgeable director of photography. Almost every movie has both a director and a director of photography. A director of photography, or DP, is someone who has a technical understanding of how the camera works, what film to use and how the lighting will affect the feel of a scene. On a big movie, the DP makes all of the pretty pictures and oversees a crew of several cameramen. On yours, the DP will be behind the camera himself. The director is usually more concerned with the overall story and the acting, and tells the DP how she wants it all to look.
One of the best ways to get a DP is to scour local film schools. While there are specialized film schools around the country, most colleges and universities have film departments, so you are bound to live near some source of technical talent. To search, go to The Film School Directory (see Resources), an online directory of most of the film departments that have websites. From there, you can get a phone number or email address of the appropriate contact person, give him a call and drop by to check out the program's bulletin boards for announcements. These places will almost always have a board with the names and business cards of aspiring DPs.
Once you get some leads, call prospective DPs and ask them to send you a demo of their work. You should be able to tell from watching their previous projects whether they can handle your needs.
Purchase Film at a Discount
The issues involved in purchasing film are numerous and complicated. You'll need to decide whether to use 16 mm or 35 mm, what speed stock to buy, where to develop it, and with whom to store it for safekeeping. Make sure to consult with your DP.
Film is quite expensive, even when you don't include the cost of developing it, and all of the wasted footage you won't end up using. But don't despair: Companies like Kodak and Fuji have been known to give discounts to both students and low-budget productions. They make the real money off productions that use thousands of times more film than you will, and if you are a burgeoning talent, they will want to get you using their product so you'll keep buying it when you're a big mogul. Use your small-fry status to your advantage as often as you can.
Find Actors, Props and Costumes
When looking for actors, try to use your friends. Surely you remember someone who did a credible job in your high school or college theater department. If not, don't worry: There are professional entities that specialize in farming out talent to productions. If you inquire, they will send you big, glossy photos of the actors and actresses whom you can then contact to arrange an audition.
The cheap way to get your hands on props and costumes is to borrow from friends and family. Of course, it won't cost much to go down to the local thrift store to pick up a few items, either. But if you want something more specialized or upscale, look for prop companies under "Costumes" in a phone directory.
Scout for Locations and Hold Rehearsals
Don't fool yourself into thinking you can make the next hit action movie for less than $10,000. You should have written or obtained a script that involves realistic settings like local bookstores and coffee shops. If you have any place near you that you think would be cool, tell the owner or manager you're doing a small project, and ask him for his permission to stop by sometime. If you're worried about getting into legal trouble, you can check out these books to show you how to write up a release, or the legal document allowing you to use a location or someone's image on film: "Making Documentary Films and Reality Videos: A Practical Guide to Planning, Filming, and Editing Documentaries of Real Events," "Lights, Camera, Action!: Making Movies and TV from the Inside Out" and "Making Movies: The Inside Guide to Independent Movie Production."
Ideally, you'll be able to rehearse particular scenes in the same location where you plan to film them. But if you're using a location that you don't own or control, you may not have the luxury of using the space beforehand. In that case, you'll need to use your apartment, your parents' basement, the local school gym--wherever. Just be sure you make arrangements to have space somewhere. You can't show up on the day you expect to film without having gone over the scenes.
Plan the shoot rigorously with your DP, minimizing as much as possible the number of days you will need to rent equipment and to take people's time. This may involve shooting some sequences out of order if they happen to be set in the same location. It's harder to do, but it saves time and money.
Next: Production