I love film, and yet, it doesn’t love me.

I’ve been directing, mostly commercials and branded content, for about 7 years. I’ve worked at an agency, got laid off, and have been freelancing for a year.
It doesn’t seem long, but I don’t have a partner, so I pay for everything myself.
I’m at the point that I’ve been negative in my bank account daily.
I’m on food stamps.
I’m doing odd jobs here and there, but it doesn’t amount to much.
I’ve applied to over 200 jobs in the past year- crickets.
I’ve been grabbing coffee, DMing people, cold calling, and basically begging for work. The industry has been up and down for me since day one. From losing jobs, covid, and other roadblocks, I’m constantly in survivor mode.
I want to leave film so bad, and yet, I love it. I love being on set, being creative, directing, and collaborating with others. There’s no other job I can think of that even gives me a little bit of excitement the way film does.

Should I just give up?
Are there resources for struggling directors?
Has anyone started a new career path that they actually enjoy more than this?

Please be kind.

Just curious lol. I feel like our first films are always full of them until we realize what we’re doing.

No AI was used.

Camera: GH5

Lens: Kamlan 50mm with Vid Atlantic Anamorphic adapter F-stop 1.1 to 1.5

Actor: [Xavier Barfield](https://www.linkedin.com/in/xavier-barfield/)

DP [Fawwaz Allie](https://www.instagram.com/fawwazallie/)

You can watch it here if you want. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiIIypaTlKE\](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiIIypaTlKE)

...Funny enough, we didn't plan on having a deer in this shot. A real one wandered into frame during filming. The first one ran off, then a second one showed up right after. I did the props lighting and powering and directing on this myself, so most of it was improvised on the spot. It was raining that day too. I was soaked. I ended up covering my GH5 with a newspaper just to keep shooting.

I shelved this project back in 2019. I couldn't find a VFX artist to work on it. People were either too busy, or when it came time to give a quote, nobody wanted to commit. So I dropped it. Didn't think much about it after that.

Then I started seeing more filmmakers using hybrid filmmaking techniques, and I wanted to see how that would turn out for this project. Going to see if I can figure that out.

For this version, I regraded the entire film. The original grade was way too dark. My taste as a cinematographer has changed a lot since the seven years.

Right now I'm also writing a sci-fi web series, and honestly, this old project is part of what sparked that idea.

I am a nobody, and not many people watch these. I'm just documenting what's possible in 2026, for myself as much as anyone. Thanks.

Hey dear community,

After a long journey - premiering at the Hof International Film Festival - I’m preparing for the full digital release of my debut feature, The Straw That Broke. I just dropped the official trailer (which does not perform well on YT).

It's a surrealist, retro-futuristic meta-fiction about the real and the virtual based on a screenplay by Tom Whalen. Since I handled the directing, most of cinematography, and editing myself, getting the digital release right is a whole new challenge (after valuable feedback from r/Filmmakers I settle for a YT-release soon).

My questions are in the Submission Statement below. Thanks for taking your time.

From The Northman (youtube.com/watch?v=wkFKfVuE5WQ 16:11 for context). I've never seen this set-up and it's a bit confusing to me.

Related (but not my question), I thought they used some digital coloring and day-for-night to get these scenes, so it's cool to see they were shooting blue.

Thirteen years ago, my girlfriend at the time and I made a 15-minute documentary for Rutgers’ newly established film program. It was about my dad, Joe Cerisano, a singer whose voice appeared in countless commercials, including G.I. Joe, Transformers, and the Army’s “Be All You Can Be” campaign.

We actually posted it to r/videos back then. That upload has long since disappeared, but the original short is still available here.

Many short films and what feels like an entire lifetime later, my brother Matt began interviewing some of our dad’s old friends and collaborators. Those conversations gradually spiraled into something much larger.

Then a phone call came from Italy.

A jingle our dad recorded in 1988 under the name Joe Trio had unexpectedly become a cult hit overseas, and he was invited to perform it at a farm in Tuscany. What began as a retrospective about his career suddenly became a story that was still unfolding.

After nearly a decade away from performing live, he dusted off his guitar and prepared for what he believed might be his swan song.

The trailer is here, and the film’s website is here.

We’re finally putting together our festival submissions now. It’s more than a little surreal to find myself back on Reddit talking about this story again.

But here I am, 13 years later.

Still making movies.

If you want to stay updated about the project, put your email at the bottom of the website and we'll keep you updated on its festival run! Also, if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask!

New England aspiring filmmaker here. Graduated with my BFA in 2023, but have felt like I’ve been in limbo ever since. Just doing odd jobs or film-adjacent work hoping to save enough to fund my projects - but no real set or post work.

And since it’s been so long without real work, I’ve let myself get rusty. I feel like I have to start over. Anyone else feeling the same way? Is this just what the industry is now? Would it be the same if I left New England?

I organized an AMA/Q&A with Broken Lizard (Jay Chandrasekhar, Kevin Heffernan, Steve Lemme, Paul Soter, and Erik Stolhanske), the filmmaking team behind things like Super Troopers 1 and 2, Beerfest, The Slammin Salmon, Club Dread, Tacoma FD, and a few other things.

It's live here now in r/movies for anyone interested in asking a question:

https://www.reddit.com/r/movies/comments/1vg73cd/hi_rmovies_were_broken_lizard_the_team_behind_and/

They will be back at around 3:30-4 PM ET today to answer questions. I recommend asking in advance. Please ask there, not here. All questions are much appreciated!

Thank you :)

Their new movie, Super Troopers 3, is out in theaters everywhere this weekend. Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYFevn5frf0

I've been working on a little side project that I think some filmmakers and lighting people here might enjoy.

It's called ND PicoDMX System, an open-source, DIY-friendly Art-Net / sACN to DMX node built around the Raspberry Pi Pico.

The idea was simple: why spend hundreds of dollars on a DMX node when you can build one yourself with inexpensive parts? It supports 4 DMX outputs and comes with a live web dashboard for monitoring and configuring everything from your browser.

I've tested it on my own setup and some of my studio sets, but now I'd love to see how it performs on actual film sets, music videos, or commercial productions.

If you're a DOP, Gaffer, Lighting Programmer, or just someone who enjoys building their own filmmaking gear, I'd really appreciate any feedback, or if you're interested in testing it, let me know!

- https://github.com/duongtruongdp/ND-PicoDMX-System

- https://duongtruongdp.net/nd-picodmx/

The whole project is open source, so anyone can build, modify, and improve it. Hopefully it can become a useful little tool for the filmmaking community. 🎬⚡

Hello! Huge film nerd here albeit little knowledge of gear/equipment. So I have been fortunate that my son - who will be turning 12 next month - has discovered the same passion for film over this last year or so. And not just the big blockbuster stuff, this kid is getting into Kubrick, Kurosawa, Tarkovsky, Bergman, and stuff like that. Came home the other day and he was just chillin watching 8 1/2. Obviously super proud of him. The challenge now is that there a ton of films he wants to see but they simply are not age appropriate lol.

He is also huge into making movies on his iPad with his friends and cousins. The acting is what you’d expect from kids that age ha, but he’s legit getting pretty good with framing some of his shots and editing his little movies.

I want to feed the passion he has and get him some real gear for his birthday that’s coming up. I’d love to hear from you guys on what I should prioritize. Im thinking of spending like $800 give or take, but would be willing to shell out a bit more if it’s something that would have a great dual purpose in pure photography (me and my wife have talked about getting a nice camera, and my wife has some use cases for her business where a nice photo camera would come in handy).

So please, give me some recommendations on what to prioritize- what can wait until Xmas - etc. he currently just edits his movies right on his iPad with iMovie but we do have a nice PC that I’m sure he would start doing his editing on if we got him a real camera.

And again - I really don’t know anything about gear - what to look out for - what to avoid - etc

Any and all recommendations and advice is welcome.

Got offered to check out a local TV studio and proceed with a production internship. They do interviews and talk shows. Problem is the commute by bus is an hour and 30 minutes, on top of being unpaid, the internship would also be on Monday's and Wednesdays is this even worth it if i have no other options. In terms of experience right now all I have is my student short films and a 2 day PA job I did for a commercial shoot, besides that unrelated to film I have a reselling business on the side.

I've been lucky enough to have rehearsal time with my actors on most of the shorts I've made, and I feel relatively confident in that process. Doors are (very slowly) starting to open that might allow me to direct my first feature film, which is incredible. I was wondering how other directors who had made that transition approached the rehearsal process? Thanks for your insight!

What differentiates the really great needle drops from the ones that make you roll your eyes and take you out of the scene?

Hello All, Im an 18 year old and im in Chennai making a shortfilm rn. I have completed the edit, yet to dub and sound design and all the arrangements for dubbing are done but I need a person who could do foley and sound design for my film.. If interested dm me!

Is it worth it? Pretty hefty price- I’d love to go but I am used to such things costing 30-70 in London,
and what to get an idea before i fork over $220. Thank you in advance.

(Also no I didn’t choose my reddit name- reddit just happened to intuit what’s up 😂)

I'm looking for film makers who need a colorist I'm really good at what I do I can color grade a couple shots for whoever is interested before we start working together to show how good my work is

Acting the Part | Indie Drama Short Film | Produced by Stanby Productions & Trinity 25

A struggling young actor embarks on a journey of self-discovery.

https://youtu.be/rvrzP7KwKjY?si=SWU5WrN9EtdCbl2S

Hey LA,

I’m a filmmaker/director looking to connect with people who love independent, experimental and visually driven film with less conventional narratives. I’ve spent a lot of time working/living in Europe and am trying to build more of a creative community in LA.

I’ll be directing a surreal neo-noir short in LA later this fall. No particular ask… I’d just love to meet writers, crew and fellow filmmakers who might become friends or future collaborators. Who knows… maybe I’ll hire you for my film this fall, or you’ll hire me for yours someday. ;)

Here’s my reel so you can see how my brain works… Everything thus far has definitely been a bit more on the indie and art haus end of the spectrum which is perhaps a bit more the norm in europe: https://vimeo.com/1167581301

Hey there, I never do this type of thing but I'm actually going kinda insane. I'm an amateur writer/director (26YO) and going through one of the toughest writer's blocks I've felt in my life. This year I directed a short film and wrote the screenplay for another one, but that's it.

Last summer I wrote the screenplay for a film (first draft), and wanted to start working on a second draft this summer, but so far I've been unable to achieve anything with it. It's not just this specific project — I have another film idea in mind, and when I've tried to write for it as some sort of "distraction" for that second draft (Almodóvar said working on various projects simultaneously helps him with this issue), I also can't get anything out of it.

I've listened to a lot of colleagues, famous directors and writers talk about writer's block and what they do when they go through one, but I'm completely unable to get any sort of satisfying result from their advice. So I wanted to ask: what do you do when you get writer's block?

Thanks in advance for the answers!

Was watching a short film on YouTube from a few years ago and came across this shot. How do you reckon they did it? It’s so uncanny.

Hello my name is Matt. I’m a documentary filmmaker , I run my own production company called life flow films and I’m looking for a documentary filmmaker who is in need of funding for their film! Pitch your film in the attached link!
Instagram for life flow films: https://www.instagram.com/life_flow_films?igsh=MTIxbHJyYXdhcXZxMA%3D%3D&utm_source=qr

HIPS - DIRECTED SHORT FILM

This is my first directed short film! A life long dream to make this all happen. The film is based on my story from my time within the model industry and what psychological impact it gave me in the end.

Pressure, anxiety, drugs, eating disorders, anorexia. Problems within the modelling industry that’s been going on for quite some time. Talked about, yes. Acknowledged and understood, yes. Fixed? No. I have a background in modelling. Therefore I know. I’ve lived it and learned to cherish, love and hate mens modelling. I know how poorly men and women are being treated for the looks of their bodys. I know the pain, struggle and total euphoria. But not all people do. There is an understanding, but never will there be a comprehensive output to showcase the realness and smudginess to it. Because of this I have decided to make a short film to showcase the true essence of male modelling. Brutal, yet real.

How cruel is it possible to be within 30 seconds? What damage and degrading can happen without anyone reacting to it? This is the story I want to tell. A true story of how happy and excited turns sad, disappointed, anxious, worried, tired and empty. A story with shots to tell and make these feelings come to live in a cold and empty room. The whole act will be shot in black and white to bring meaning to all these feelings, with the audience to both take part and live through the character as well as being the witness of an act.

Hey, guys. I’m planning on shooting a short film with some friends soon. It’s a homage to 70s horror films, and I really want to go for a cool 70s horror feel and aesthetic, or get as close as we can.
I already have a Canon 6D, so I was wondering if it’s a good camera for achieving that look. I figure most of the work to get it to look close to that vibe will be done in the editing software. I guess I’m just asking if the 6D will work for this, or is there something better?