Health and Filmmaking - discuss

[Oliver Daniel]

Oliver have you read Den Lennie's book business for filmmakers? TBH I think the guy is a bit of a plonker, but it sounds like you're at the right point in your business to implement the stuff he talks about. It's basically about how to move from what you are doing to having more control over your work life (and make more money). I don't get on with his approach myself, but there's no denying he knows what he's talking about and there's loads of hard won advice in it. I really recommend you read it if you haven't it may be just what you need right now...

I've got that book yes. Read it. 

I think it's got some good stuff in the book, however I feel Den is a little up his own arse. Even though he admits it, I find that type of personality hard to deal with. The other thing is that I think quite a chunk of the book is flawed. The marketing tips such as "free reports" just don't work for a lot of us. The book is also a sales pitch to employ Den as your coach, so I feel that it's not really a book that's helping the reader, it's more of an advert to sell further services. I liked it though, on the whole. 

The important thing I came away with is that quality of service and product is always No.1 - work on that and pricing becomes an afterthought. Although the video market is now fiercely and utterly competitive - if the service you offer is of exceptional quality, people will pay it. I've doubled my quotes since and it's gone pretty well. Not always, but mostly. 

One thing to take note is that I've seen Den's work and it's nothing special. The Sony A7 and FS launch films don't sell the cameras at all to me. He's obviously a great salesman, very knowledgable and delivers a solid, reliable client experience. 

on a personal note i just got over the flu – ive never been so sick in my adult life – and as soon as i started feeling better after a week of not eating or sleeping properly, running a fever, the MINUTE that i woke up with some appetite i IMMEDIATELY decided that im quitting my job. ITS BEEN MAKING ME SICK. I HAVE BEEN ILL FROM STRESS rendering my creative mind INCAPABLE OF FUNCTIONING. its a little ironic that it took a trip to urgent care for me to put immediate change into action. if only solving these problems was as easy as taking five days of antibiotics

I remember the day I left my day job to run a full-time production outfit. The job was tedious, made me very ill, and it was all rather pointless. I asked myself "Why am I wasting my time???" I ripped some paper out of my work jotter, gave in my notice and walked out. 

That said, I've had even more ill experiences doing production work, and this is because I've completely overworked myself until I become a complete cabbage. I love doing the job, and because of that love, sometimes it is too hard NOT to rest. You just HAVE to do the work! The dilemmas of health and business!

[Lintelfilm]

I've got that book yes. Read it. 

I think it's got some good stuff in the book, however I feel Den is a little up his own arse. Even though he admits it, I find that type of personality hard to deal with. The other thing is that I think quite a chunk of the book is flawed. The marketing tips such as "free reports" just don't work for a lot of us. The book is also a sales pitch to employ Den as your coach, so I feel that it's not really a book that's helping the reader, it's more of an advert to sell further services. I liked it though, on the whole. 

The important thing I came away with is that quality of service and product is always No.1 - work on that and pricing becomes an afterthought. Although the video market is now fiercely and utterly competitive - if the service you offer is of exceptional quality, people will pay it. I've doubled my quotes since and it's gone pretty well. Not always, but mostly. 

One thing to take note is that I've seen Den's work and it's nothing special. The Sony A7 and FS launch films don't sell the cameras at all to me. He's obviously a great salesman, very knowledgable and delivers a solid, reliable client experience. 

I agree with every word you say actually. He's comfortable with being a businessman first and an artist/filmmaker second. I could never do that (not out of vanity or high ideals, just because I'm not wired that way). And yes basically the number one takeaway from the book is raise your prices and the rest will follow. You have to have guts to do that, but also you have to be in the right position. I'm not yet - I only started trading 6 months ago and am still working on getting found and known as a reliable filmmaker. Maybe next year at the earliest. Glad you did it and it worked. Perhaps in a year or so you will be able to double your prices again and hire enough people to take some stress away.

I think the other valuable piece of advice in the book though is to define your niche - and to keep doing that until you become THE go-to person to get a certain kind of job done properly. Then you can charge substantial prices and pick and choose jobs a bit more. 

But yes he's an arse and not too great a filmmaker. And the book is an advert for his other services. I stayed on his email mailing list for ages because I found the emails so hilarious. I hate that kind of marketing but his was so obscene it was funny ...

[agolex]

The dilemmas of health and business!

The dilemmas of being an animal and worrying about how to spend your time. ; )

[andrgl]

day in-day out, then drinking and snorting cocaine

I seriously thought you we're describing union shows at first.

[Oliver Daniel]

I agree with every word you say actually. He's comfortable with being a businessman first and an artist/filmmaker second. I could never do that (not out of vanity or high ideals, just because I'm not wired that way). And yes basically the number one takeaway from the book is raise your prices and the rest will follow. You have to have guts to do that, but also you have to be in the right position. I'm not yet - I only started trading 6 months ago and am still working on getting found and known as a reliable filmmaker. Maybe next year at the earliest. Glad you did it and it worked. Perhaps in a year or so you will be able to double your prices again and hire enough people to take some stress away.

The thing that I'm finding, certainly in the UK, is that there is a higher demand for video work than ever...BUT....the cost is going down. Some of the quotes you complete against are ridiculously low, and you think "how the hell do they do it that cheap!" I'm not willing to take down the price, I'll always stick by it. I just make sure the client knows the full value of what they are receiving. 

I think the other valuable piece of advice in the book though is to define your niche - and to keep doing that until you become THE go-to person to get a certain kind of job done properly. Then you can charge substantial prices and pick and choose jobs a bit more. 

This is a very good point, and I agree somewhat. The issue is that some niches become not-so-niche, and you have to broaden your horizons. I started with a Canon XHA1s and some crappy chinese redheads filming local bands. Not many people were doing it, so these bands came to me frequently. Now that camera tech is so accessible, this market isn't worth considering anymore as it's full of "price-based" buyers and everyone knows someone with a cheap DSLR. 

I now work on management and label only music videos, plus commercial/corporate work. Both very different markets. Thinking about my niche again - it's not my market but my creative style. My clients come to me for the "look" of the videos...so that's my focus. The niche. 

Back onto the topic of health... I've found it's definitely worth sticking to your prices a you will turn down all that cheaper work that wears you right down, but you will have more time and space to work on the better prospects that come in. It's far better to work on two projects per month that equal the financial value of 8 cheaper projects. 

[dafreaking]

One of the reasons I've struggled so much with this. Being physically unfit takes a larger toll than it does for most others. Then back to bad habits, sodas, junk. One of the reasons I've decided to get things in order this year. I love the art and science of filmmaking, but I love myself more.

[Axel]

Suffering for one's art is one thing, suffering for work is another.

We are not on this earth to avoid suffering, we are here to wear ourselves out for the things we deem important (paraphrasing Kant). We shouldn't try to add more days to life but more life to the day (s.o. else). 

If any work conditions, imposed or self-imposed are making you unwell, physically or mentally - get out of that work....or re-evaluate and change. Chasing unrealistic deadlines, spreading yourself too thin and underbidding others to get work is exactly what feeds the vicious cycle. 

A friend of mine is always careful not to lose the clients' favor and makes too many compromises. With that behavior, I often told him (when again he complained about the stupidity of a demand), he had lost the clients' respect from the very start. It's like you said, a vicious cycle. If one thinks (he should better know) that he (or she of course) knows better, he should say so. Video is my domain, I am the one in charge. Make up your mind what you want to accomplish and leave the rest to me. I am not cheap, but if you want it cheap, get it done by your nephew (because those clients often seem to have a nephew with a DSLR).

I;d have enjoyed working as a runner on a Kubrick movie since there was method to the madness, but when you see just how dumb, jumped up and backstabbing most of the people involved at the lower end of the spectrum are, it is draining.

Kubrick once said (see my motto) Either you care - or you don't. Like many of Kubricks cryptic one-liners, it's almost taoistic wisdom. There are things that are worth every effort, subjectively and personally. One should fight for them and never compromise or give up. Then there are other things, things that don't feel important or at least important enough to invest too much time in them. Or any time at all. Then one shouldn't care.

[Cinegain]

    [..]

A friend of mine is always careful not to lose the clients' favor and makes too many compromises. With that behavior, I often told him (when again he complained about the stupidity of a demand), he had lost the clients' respect from the very start. It's like you said, a vicious cycle. If one thinks (he should better know) that he (or she of course) knows better, he should say so. Video is my domain, I am the one in charge. Make up your mind what you want to accomplish and leave the rest to me. I am not cheap, but if you want it cheap, get it done by your nephew (because those clients often seem to have a nephew with a DSLR). [..]

Haha, that sounds along the lines of this brilliant comic: http://theoatmeal.com/comics/design_hell . Funny, but unfortunately sooo true. Best to avoid those kind of jobs.

[Axel]

Haha, that sounds along the lines of this brilliant comic: http://theoatmeal.com/comics/design_hell . Funny, but unfortunately sooo true. Best to avoid those kind of jobs.

I am actually giving sponge baths to the elderly ... :-(

[Cinegain]

Getting your hands clean getting 'em dirty, ey. Shows that you care, not that you don't. Could be giving them spongebobs, but wrong age group for that, I bet.