How to Produce a Blockbuster on a Home Movie Budget

Sounds preposterous but it is possible. In fact using a little bit of ingenuity and a few connections you can make a great movie no matter how little money you have. Using a few insiders tips anyone can make a movie.

Sponsors

To get sponsors, promise your client's business a 'role'. Write a scene in your movie in which a character walks through a frame shop, a restaurant, or even an art gallery in return for seed money for the movie. Mention to the owner that their business will get at least three seconds of time including a shot in which the name of the business is clearly visible. If your movie wins awards or acclaim, they will get valuable advertising to a larger market. Tout your experience and any awards or grants you may have won as a selling point.

Use a sponsor's product as a prop. It's called product placement and it works in small movies as well as in blockbusters. Let sponsors know that their product will be seen locally and that in the credits you will include information about where that product can be found.

Offer associate producer credit. Some people just want to see their name in lights. By offering associate producer credit you lose nothing but a second of credit time and they get bragging rights.

Shooting Sites

Using the same logic you would use to get a business to sponsor your movie you can get valuable space to shoot scenes. Many business owners will jump at the chance to let you film in their space after hours for a shot of advertisement. (Sometimes you can get space and a sponsor at once, but don't push too hard for both.)

Call on family. Uncle Randy has a vacation cabin; Cousin Erica has horses. All you have to do is call them. As long as you clean up after yourself don't cause any damage and promise a future favor (maybe cast their children as extras in a pass though scene) you will probably be able to use them for free!

Use your own home. A bedroom can be a boardroom if you remove the bed and add a table and chairs. A kitchen can double for a laboratory in a very tight shot.

Actors

All colleges have students of all ages willing to perform in a movie for free or for as little as lunch. Order some pizzas, (Maybe the pizza place will give you free pizza for a mention in your movie!) lay out a schedule and post an 'actors wanted' sign on a bulletin board at a college or high school. You'll soon have more actors than you can use.

Recruit your friends. Have a party, shoot some scenes in a back room or even the bathroom during the party; you'll have extras, maybe some exciting unexpected scenes and even music for your film.

Double up. Use the same actors with their backs to the camera or, if the storyline calls for it, wearing masks or disguises

Equipment

Make a list of everything you need and send your actors on a scavenger hunt. You will be surprised at the unexpected connections your friends have.

Join a club. Some photography clubs have use of equipment libraries. Some libraries also offer use of equipment if you use it on the premises.

Don't have a reflective umbrella for a scene in which reflective light is required. Paint a regular umbrella white or cover one with a sheet. Need an echo chamber? Run your audio through a program like Audacity to add an echo to muffled soundtracks. Audacity is free as are some movie making programs. Bonus!

With a little clever thinking even on the tightest budget where there is a wil there is a way to make a movie!