Making the film: Intro

In the summer of 2005, looking not only for a new project but for a learning opportunity, decided to make a feature-length documentary film. I had little money, no experience and moderate technical expertise; as a longtime print journalist, author and college professor, I did have two things that mattered most: The ability, honed over my decades at the keyboard, to tell a story, and the time and willingness to bog myself down in the learning curve. I also had already come to the most basic conclusion about the work before starting: That I wanted to work alone, as I had as a writer and as the photojournalists I’ve admired have with a certain singularity of vision.
In the fall of 2007, my film premiered at The Rhode Island International Film Festival, where it took a first place; it subsequently showed at five more film festivals to excellent response, including coverage by The Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Associated Press, Boston Magazine and half-dozen other print outlets, as well as numerous online sites.
I spent money to make it, but I’ve also made that money back, and have moved from the red to the black of profitability before I’ve even fully explored all the distribution possibilities.
A decade ago – probably five years ago – this would not have been possible. I’d have loved to do documentaries a long time ago, but my decision to do so came to be when the rising line that represented discretionary income intersected the falling line that represented the cost of technology that could put me in the game.
I also learned some lessons on the way, and used many lessons that I learned in my newspaper days.
To that end, this piece is an attempt to share what happens when a writer decides to jump into filmmaking with little or no money, and why he is glad he did…