3 times in a raw I self-financed a movie. All 3 [I'm Not Even Human](/films/I'm_Not_Even_Human), [The Package, The Car & The Time Is Running Out](/films/The_Package,_The_Car_And_The_Time_Is_Running_Out) and [Moria's Race](/films/Moria's_Race) were made on, what I consider to be, *zero* budget. It's a lie. Nothing costs *zero*. It's just it costed me small enough amount that I didn't even needed to calculate it. But now with my next movie project slowly moving into "Development Hell" I need to take budgeting seriously.

Both *I'm Not Even Human* and *Moria's Race* are animated films. You may think that it means that they cost nothing, since I know Blender and I have a computer. But the computer itself costs money. And animating the shots takes time. I didn't need to pay to buy a computer for *I'm Not Even Human*, I just used whatever I had. And I didn't need to pay for an animator. I just sat down and did the work myself. But anybody without those skills, to replicate my results ( without being an AI company's cock-sucker bitch ) might need to hire an animator and buy the equipment.

But even that is a lie. For *I'm Not Even Human* I bought at least 3 pieces of equipment. At one point I bought a keyboard. I don't even remember what it cost me. It was that cheap. Then at some point I bough a *Wacom Tablet*. A graphical tablet thingie that you attach to the computer, so you could draw more naturally. It's kind of like a fancy mouse, where you control where to click, using a fancy electronic pen. This I remember costing me about a $100.

Then at one point in the movie ( spoiler alert ) one of the characters is not animated. I played that role myself. But in order to integrate me into the animated world, I had to put up a green-screen. If I remember correctly I bough a bunch of green-colored paper, or cart-board. And glued those all over the wall. 

But the main problem of this whole endevour was the camera. I personally dislike smart-phones. Therefor I don't and probably will never have a phone with a descent camera. So at some point I bought an okay *Canon PowerShot SX720 HS*. It cost me about $700. The camera is not perfect and not even near professional. But it can take video on a par with a descent smartphone. 

This same camera ( and that same Green Screen wall ) was later used for *The Package, The Car & The Time Is Running Out*. And this same camera was used for ( spoiler alert ) one sneaky shot of myself in *Moria's Race*. Though for that one I put a new green screen.

Now *Moria's Race* itself saw at least 3 different computers. Each of which cost money. One was about $1400, on which I started the project. Then for some time I transitioned to a cheaper laptop borrowed from my brother. Which I have no idea what it cost him. And then I finally bought a proper computer for $2300 to finish the movie. I'm typing this article on that last computer.

I claim that those films cost me $0, because they kind of did. Even the cheapest films in the cinema are about 100% more expensive than what I have here. A difference between a thousand and a million is about a million.

But today I'm trying to make a movie that doesn't make any sense doing the way I did all those films I did. And I'm slowly realizing that I'm a dumbass. ( Not in a funny way, like the name of this website suggest ).

For a year already ( almost ) I was pitching a script for a thriller I call "The 8 Year Olds" to various studios in the country I live ( Israel ). Most don't even respond to my emails. Those that do, and read some of the the script, usually tell me to fuck off, with a nicely sounding argument of "This movie idea seems to be a bit too tough".

I mean, yeah. It's about trying to catch a serial killer that kill 8 year olds specifically. But that doesn't seem to stop other studios from financing similar pictures. I mean look at the slate of horror films from the last 2 years: *Weaons*, *Bring Her Back*, *Peter Pan The Nightmare*, fucking Eli ( lazy ) Roth's *Ice Cream Man*. Everybody is doing this same very thing. And funny enough, people actually go see it in cinema.

Any argument that "this movie idea seems to be too tough" doesn't make sense if you look at the numbers. Unless you are talking about the fucking Eli ( lazy ) Roth's *Ice Cream Man*. But the issue with that movie is not the kids and murder, but the fact that the idiot filmmaker Eli Roth had the laziness to use fucking AI.

What I start realizing here is not that my movie is too tough, but that I'm a nobody. Who saw *Moria's Race*? A handful of people. Who from the industry saw it? Who from those people that I'm trying to talk to, saw it?

Nobody.

For them I'm a person with zero experience that believes that the shit he wrote is the most ingenious thing ever that will change the world. Which isn't true. And they are correct to think that way. I thought *I'm Not Even Human* was the most ingenious thing when making it. It wasn't. Frankly it kind of sucks. I thought that *Moria's Race* and then its game sequel *Dani's Race* are some utterly amazing pieces of franchise. But nobody saw it and I got extremely frustrated.

Today I'm trying to prove that numbers of good films like *Weapons* make my script *The 8 Year Olds* a kind of sure thing to bet a lot of money on. But most likely nobody will come to see it. Most likely it is another one of my stupid miscalculations.

On the other hand it might be an impostor syndrome.

Apart from a certain type of an internet user ( those that frequent bullshit websites like the 4 chan ) people that saw Moria's Race liked it a lot. I have an army of little brothers that try to show this movie of mine to everybody they can, because they are fucking huge fans of it.

Maybe this is just a question of marketing. With a zero budget movie, the marketing is also zero.

If I make "The 8 Year Olds" without marketing, without proper distribution, there will be nobody who will see it. Then what is the point?

What are my options?

Well, I can keep trying to bother film-makers with more and more innovative ways until I might stumble upon somebody dumb enough to make this film with me. 

Or I can try to make it myself again. But this time with a proper budget.

I mean, think about it. Those producers are not using their own money to make their films. They get budgets from elsewhere. Why can't I become a producer? Why can't I start a small production company? Why can't I get a budget the same way others do?

Let's try to answer those whys.

I know of at least 15 way to get budgets for a motion picture. Let's example all 15 of those. And let's analyze how applicable they all are to my situation.

First and foremost, the most easy to understand method of financing a picture is **Self Financing**. I did that very thing 3 times in a raw. You might think that this is completely out of the question for *The 8 Year Olds*. In a way it is a bigger movie than all the other ones. But maybe it is still sort of possible. 

The film is mostly consistent of people talking in rooms to each other. I already know some actors. And through them I can socialize my way to know more actors. This in turn might make an opportunity for me to ask them to do this movie, either for very little, or for points from the distribution ( as in they get paid a percentage of the income ). Or even maybe make them work for free. The apartments in the script will be their own apartments. And the cars will be whatever cars they already have.

The script has one rather elaborate chase scene, but it is doable with [my computer oriented methods](/articles/part_x:_developing_a_way_to_do_action_scenes_without_money___example_scene).

The problem becomes distribution. But then again. If I will do that more strategically. Maybe I will not publish anything anywhere and will find a distribution company to pick this film up. This should be easier with a finished film. It is still not a guarantee. And most films made that way are self-distributed ( meaning it will end up on PeerTube or something ). But there is a chance that I might get picked up by somebody. A larger chance than with pitching.

Now the traditional methods of film-financing: **Pre-Sale**, **Gap**, **Negative Pickup**, **Slate Financing** etc... are probably not available to me since I'm a nobody. Pre-Sale requires a robust package and a lot faith in the movie from foreign distribution companies. They basically buy the rights to distribute the film before it is made, which usually ends up being enough money to make the picture.

For Slate Financing I must be pitching to a major movie studio, or become a major movie studio myself. But again, without a track record, I don't believe an equity firm will give me millions of dollars for whatever the fuck I want to make.

With **Product Placement** again, I'm a nobody. Why would a brand want to advertise through me, if I have no crowd associated with me?

Same goes with **Crowd Funding**. Which also requires me to have plenty of followers. I'm pretty sure this article with not even get 20 readers in the first week of its publication. Please prove me wrong.

**Film Grants** are not out of the question. Only in Israel we have the Israel Film Fund and Jerusalem Film Fund. They have weird rules, like the profits go back to them. If say 50% of the budget will be from IFF and 50% from JFF then 50% of profits go back to IFF and 50% go to JFF. But if I have enough budget, I can pay myself a writer / director salary. And can pay the actors their salaries. And that would make for a movie with my name on it in front of the right people. Which in turn will make them more likely to want to produce my next movie.

This is not a bad strategy.

Now here is an interesting concept. It's called **Bridge Financing**. With this my brain can go a little wild. Say I ask for a loan ( or even a grant from one of the funds ) to make not the final movie, but to make a good proof of concept. Maybe to use that money to pay one good named actor. 

This short-film / proof of concept thingie can then be shown to producers via multiple ways. Anything from Film Festivals to calling them and asking them to see your stuff, would do.

And from there pitching would be so much easier.

On the other hand I can use that proof of concept not on the producers, but on the financiers. And then get the money to make the film directly. 

That sounds like a slightly risky, but a plan. A plan that could work.

I don't know how I gonna do what I gonna do. But I gonna need to figure out what to do.

I think I will start by trying to befriend those actors a bit more. 

I will get myself a camera that is not such a joke. And some equipment with it. Something that I can shoot a video on the way I want to do it. I need a modern mirror-less camera with good low-light. I need a few lenses. I need a good sturdy tripod. A gimbal, a drone, a smoke machine or two, a few good lights and light-stands.

I need to assemble myself a normal videographer kit that I could use to shoot any proof of concept I want. Or anything I want for that matter.

Then when these parts are established. When I have the friends and the tools I need to use them.

Hopefully all we need to do is to shoot something small to convince a company to look at the script again. To reconsider their objections.

In not... well... I will need to figure out how to fight this fight some other way.

**Happy Hacking!!!**