I have come to a realization about why it only makes sense to produce independent films about critical social change.
When you produce a film yourself, there are many, many lingering details that have to be addressed for much longer than you can possibly estimate.
Two years after you shot something, you’ll still be screwing with audio that wasn’t recorded right on location, but there was some gold to it, so you’re fighting cleaning it up or re-recording it, just to make that line clear. You’re color correcting shots where your lights didn’t help enough, or stretching out images to cut things out of the background like your own equipment. You’re trying to come up with the music to fit the happy/sad mood you are going for in a 12 second transition. You have to make artwork, re-explain what your film is about over and over to new people, build out a website that illustrates your idea, and track down remaining releases from people or places. And you’re always running out of money.
If this protracted process were all to show how miserable and ironic family vacations were when I was a kid? Or some nihilistic take on dating and relationships? Or some base comedy with gross humor and no redemption?
All these extra steps would be torture. All this expectation for how the audience will react when they finally see it. ‘Oh, I hope this leaves them befuddled! I hope her speech really leaves them defeated! I can’t wait for them to see my bleak perspective on love!’
Instead, I am increasingly eager to get out the message that the GOP voter suppression schemes are varied and numerous, and excited to see how this country has reached a crossroads where this film’s optimistic message will be congruent with the presidential election. The details of the film are just steps to getting this important truth out.
It will be hard to want to make a normal movie after this. We’re almost there…
