Having integrity above and below the line

Someone who makes a mistake during production may or may not be tasked with fixing it. It might require a filmmaker with more experience to take the lead—thus, a teachable moment presents itself. Whether or not that translates into an actual learning opportunity depends on an individual’s willingness to own their mistake. To do so requires humility, self-awareness, and honesty—with everyone, including oneself. In other words, integrity.

Some people never get passed their own cognitive biases and keep making the same mistakes over and over again. This stems from an inability to be honest with themselves, reinforcing their biases and fueling their egos. Such individuals may become technically proficient elsewhere in the process. Still, their unwillingness to learn from their biggest mistakes and/or acknowledge their own weaknesses gets rewritten in their memories as they continue to repeat them and disregard anyone who dares to suggest a better/more efficient way of doing something—such as an established technical or industry standard. This is the way of the faux-pro (“faux-professional”).

What others recognize as stubbornness and foolish pride is simply rebranded in the faux-pro’s mind as “doing things my own way” or “establishing a new paradigm,” often justified with repeated clichés like, “Sometimes you’ve got to break the rules.” They fail to recognize the difference between experimenting with new techniques within an established framework and trying to cut corners or take shortcuts that will undermine their own efforts.

For example, a scene in a motion picture will typically change shots every five-to-ten seconds. Cutting from one person to another during dialogue, maintaining a consistent angle for each character, never exceeding a typical duration. This is one of those artistic “rules” established over a century of narrative filmmaking—but it isn’t carved in stone, it’s not included in any contract, nor does any union mandate it.

An amateur filmmaker who doesn’t understand that “rule” might break it unintentionally, resulting in a confusing final edit that momentarily distracts the audience and ruins the experience of the film.

A filmmaker who does understand the “rule” may intentionally break it for dramatic effect. Chaotic, emotional dialogue can be well served by randomized, atypical camera angles, heightening the audience’s emotional response to the scene. An extended, single take on a character struggling to concentrate on the events around them can elicit discomfort in the audience.

However, when the “rules” that are being broken are actual rules, like labor laws or the laws of physics, it doesn’t usually end well for the self-styled “rebels” doing their “own thing.”

Faux-pro filmmakers are everywhere. They’re very good at creating notoriety for themselves—typically limited to their own sphere of influence—with a visually impressive resume/C.V. A quote attributed to Stalin—or an American Defense consultant in the 70s, depending on who you ask—seems apropos when taking only a cursory glance at a faux-pro’s IMDb page: "Quantity has a quality all its own."

It’s important to remember that a demonstrable lack of integrity does not necessarily indicate a moral failing—an ethical deficiency, perhaps—but, as stated above, such a deficit goes hand-in-hand with a lack of self-awareness. A personality trait with myriad potential root causes that this writer is not qualified to examine.

However, integrity is vital to maintaining a sustainable career in any industry. Especially one that relies heavily on expansive collaboration between multiple disciplines with time-sensitive workflows. Faux-professionals are quite good at freezing themselves out of such opportunities, but they can still affect others they work with, who—upon breaking an actual rule—may feel the pain of being fired from an industry project because they never learned how to own their own mistakes. This doesn’t mean that they can’t still learn. Breaking bad habits and understanding the distinction between personal and professional judgments is still possible. Opportunities to examine one’s mistakes and failures should not be squandered with self-pity when so much can be gained from self-reflection.

One may even learn to appreciate the “wasted” time appealing to the egos of faux-pros. Not everyone gets a front-row seat to a demonstration of how not to do something. Limiting one’s judgment to the criteria demanded by professionalism can also help put the faux-pro’s unfortunate habits into proper perspective. They may be self-serving narcissists dispelling bad advice and empty promises, but that does not make them quantifiably evil.

In the words of Robert J. Hanlon:

"Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity."

—Joe Puente

Founder/Administrator
Utah Filmmakers™ Association

The opinions expressed in this blog are those of the authors and—especially where guest posts are concerned—do not necessarily reflect the official policies and/or practice of the Utah Filmmakers™ Association, its officers and/or associates.

Integrity requires owning one’s mistakes

In the late summer of 2019, I contacted a member of our official forum via direct message to clarify some points of confusion in a recent comment thread. Our conversation was mostly productive, but I felt something was missing that couldn’t be effectively communicated online. So, I invited him to meet at a local coffee shop, which made all the difference. Travis Babcock is now one of our Official Forum Moderators and a Utah Filmmakers™ Associate.

One of the topics we discussed was the importance of mentorship for training new filmmakers. At the time, Facebook had implemented a mentorship feature that we enabled for the Utah Filmmakers™ group, and several members, including Travis, were able to get some productive use out of it.

While Facebook offered few tools for moderators to determine who was and was not qualified to effectively mentor novice filmmakers into the industry, Travis and I decided it could still serve as a pilot program for something more formal and organized. This included defining standards and a vetting process. One of the standards Travis recommended is part of our UFA™ Core Values:

Integrity

I asked Travis, “How does one assess a person’s integrity?”

His answer: “A willingness to own one’s mistakes.”

“I’ve made many mistakes,” Travis continued, “but I always owned them, learned from them, and rarely made the same mistake twice. This doesn’t mean that I don’t still make mistakes—because I do—but the ones I make now are much smaller than those I made when I was starting out.”

What I found especially appealing about this simple truth is that one can apply it anywhere: professionally and personally, in one’s work, art, and even in one’s relationships—be they social or in business.

As a filmmaker, every production presents new creative and technical challenges and opportunities to learn—opportunities that usually come in the form of mistakes made. Some mistakes just need a quick adjustment and a second take. Others can be “fixed in post.” Some can cost a shot, a scene, or even a production day. Sometimes, there is no fix, and what may have seemed like only a setback is the first sign of a complete failure.

As a member of the Utah Filmmakers™ group—especially in my role as an Administrator—I’ve made mistakes and tried my best to own them, rectify them, commit to learning from them, and—most importantly—be transparent about them.

The conversation between Travis and myself informed the creation of a mentorship program intended to go beyond what was offered in our Facebook group. Additional advice was sought, other tools researched, and a detailed proposal was written. The program was then presented to the Utah Film Commission, who agreed to help us with our vetting process—with a particular focus on the importance of integrity.

In 2021, the Utah Filmmakers™ Association received a modest grant to help promote this new program to attract mentors in the film industry and mentees committed to learning. We reached out to the local media and other nonprofit organizations. I made a couple of television appearances and radio interviews. Applications for potential mentors and mentees came in, many were selected, but a few were not. Mentors were assigned their mentees and provided with tools to help them facilitate their journeys.

I wish I could say that the program was a success and continues to meet its objectives, but being true to our organization’s core values of Professionalism, Integrity, and Respect, requires acknowledgment that it went nowhere. It was, for all practical purposes, a failed experiment. I wouldn’t call it a “spectacular” failure. It was pretty quiet and unremarkable—but no less of a disappointing experience, which reminds me of an important truth:

So, what did we learn from this failure?

That some things cannot be forced—no pun intended—into existence. We might be able to create and present opportunities, provide tools and make introductions, but we can’t predict what people will do or determine the final outcome. Some things lend themselves well to artificial facilitation, but only under specific circumstances. Others are just meant to happen organically, and that’s okay. It’s true of nonprofit programs, for-profit endeavors, and online communities. What’s important to remember is that one’s mistakes or failures are not an accurate gauge of one’s integrity, but how one responds to them can be very informative.

—Joe Puente Founder/Administrator Utah Filmmakers™ Association

The opinions expressed in this blog are those of the authors and—especially where guest posts are concerned—do not necessarily reflect the official policies and/or practice of the Utah Filmmakers™ Association, its officers and/or associates.

A Message from the Utah Film Commission:

Last week, there were two stories in the news about how film production In Utah has begun to crawl back and that more commercials are filming in Utah. We can all agree that none of us could have imagined the world we are living in now, but the Utah film industry has always been good at adapting to changing conditions. With our skilled crew members, professional vendors and diverse landscapes, Utah has the workforce and resources for any type of production.

When Utah began to reopen in May, the Utah Film Commission had already received 140% more production inquiries compared to the previous year and projects that postponed or delayed are starting to resume production in accordance with state and local safety guidelines. You can find a list of many of those projects that are starting to film in Utah in the Current Productions section of our website.

With the unique circumstances of the pandemic, hiring crews and vendors #InUtah and choosing to #FilmInUtah is the best way to keep our industry thriving and we need your help. We want all crew members and vendors based in Utah to update or register in the Utah Film Directory to show off your experience. Anytime the Utah Film Commission receives a production inquiry, we encourage those in-state and out-of-state productions to search the directory for talented Utahns and businesses in our film industry. Now, more than ever, it’s important for the industry to know the many Utah crew members and vendors that are ready to work.

We know that this has been a difficult time for the Utah film industry, but we are all in this together.

Our office wants to hear from you what more we can do to help! Email us at film@utah.gov or message us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or LinkedIn.

The opinions expressed in this blog are those of the authors and—especially where guest posts are concerned—do not necessarily reflect the opinions or views of the Utah Filmmakers™ Association, its officers and/or associates. Utah Filmmaker(s)™ and UFA™ are trademarks registered with the Utah Department of Commerce Division of Corporations and Commercial Code, Registration Numbers 10706542-0190 , 11025542-0190 and 10502093-0190 respectively.

Justus Page on the Director/DP relationship

Justus Page

My DP career began 6 years ago. What was my understanding of the Director/DP relationship back then? I was there to do what I was told. And yet inside I was angry because a part of me felt like that wasn’t right. I should have a say. But I felt too self-conscious in my abilities to be able to speak up. We existed with different expectations of each other.

This can be a very common experience for young DP’s and directors who are finding their footing. You might’ve been lucky to find someone you clicked with right at the beginning, but most are not so lucky. What is supposed to happen is an evolution of your working process. But let’s be honest; Is that what’s happening for YOU?

I think many people running in the independent/no budget circuit innocently never learned about this evolution. Nobody told them. Certainly, nobody told me. It was years of trial and error. But I found that in those roles, that evolution is a big part of your upward mobility in the industry.

Directors: Who is your cinematographer to you? Is it someone you hired to make your film look pretty? Naively, but understandably, this is often where our headspace can be, right? What’s your expectation of them? Are they there to hear your ideas and nod? Are they there to do what you tell them to? Do you want them to just show up and take command of the visuals entirely?

Image courtesy of the author

DP’s: What are you looking for in a director? Are you looking for someone to hand-hold you? Or someone completely hands-off who leaves you alone to do what you know best? You are the professional after all. A director who vomits meaning into every angle? Or a director who couldn’t care less, as long as it looks fine.

Let’s diverge from all of these entirely, and consider another possibility. Your DP/Director is your co-collaborator​. Some seasoned DP’s and Directors might scoff when they read this part because many of them understand this is how it’s supposed to be, ​duh​. But it’s not a given.

The first time I mustered up the courage and gave honest feedback on a script I was offered and the Director went “Oh, that’s a great insight! Let’s make that change,” my whole career evolved. I realized that I could insist on reading a script first, insist on giving feedback, and have an open dialogue with my prospective director. I realized I didn’t want to work with Directors who wouldn’t give me that consideration. But also, those that did showed me their ego was left at the door. They cared most about telling the best story, whatever form that took. It no longer mattered to me whether my director wanted to plan all the shots themselves, or whether they left all of that to me; My expertise was respected, my opinion was welcomed, and that created the type of working environment most conducive to doing our best work.

Image courtesy of the author

Shooting a pivotal moment in the film, the director could say, “Let’s do the shot like this,” and I could feel comfortable saying, “Actually, based on the discussions we’ve had about what we’re trying to say about this character, I think we might be better served doing this.” And guess what? The director can say “I disagree. Let’s do it my way,” and I am absolutely fine with that. That given respect is mutual. Oftentimes, conversations like the one above are avoided on the day, because I do extensive prep and planning with my directors involving look books, breakdowns, discussing character motivations, doing boards, writing shot lists, and religiously reading the script. This gets us all on the same page long before we walk on set.

Who are we as DP’s? We are the guardians of our Director’s vision. We are meant to champion their creative integrity and protect them however we can. We do this by doing everything in our power to understand them, ask 8 million questions until we’re sure we know what the expectations are and what they’re trying to achieve. We stand up for them if someone calls into question that integrity. We go the extra mile to be involved wherever we can, just to gain even an extra ounce of understanding of the vision.

As a Director, doesn’t having someone who champions these things sound exciting? Does it not sound like a weight off your shoulders? Can you sleep better knowing your vision won’t be compromised? Doesn’t it ease your tensions to know you can confide in your DP and ask them for their help? This is the world we’re all trying to live in. And it’s possible. But it takes vulnerability to open yourself up to this dynamic. You as a Director have to be open to ideas and to accept that help. You have to be open to being wrong, but also be comfortable being right, and knowing that standing your ground won’t ruffle any feathers because you’ve fostered this relationship. As DP’s we have to be open to considering ourselves as storytellers in our own right and respect ourselves enough to accept that our jobs are so closely tied to telling a story. Even if, at the end of the day, the Director gets the final word, we can allow ourselves to express our ideas to them openly, and ego-free.

In this day and age, it isn’t too hard to find someone who will make your film look good. But what about someone who makes your story better? Someone who’s invested in its success? Someone who wants to throw the full weight of their craft behind enhancing what’s on the page, and finding ways to make it even better than it was?

The key to being better storytellers for us all is collaboration. Don’t take my word for it. Go discover it for yourself! You’ll never go back to the way things were. And that, I can promise.

Feel free to reach out and open a dialogue! I’m always happy to chat!

Justus Page

https://justuspage.myportfolio.com/

 

The opinions expressed in this blog are those of the authors and—especially where guest posts are concerned—do not necessarily reflect the opinions or views of the Utah Filmmakers™ Association, its officers and/or associates. Utah Filmmaker(s)™ and UFA™ are trademarks registered with the Utah Department of Commerce Division of Corporations and Commercial Code, Registration Numbers 10706542-0190 , 11025542-0190 and 10502093-0190 respectively.

Adriele Fugal on how to Work Safely on Film Sets During the Pandemic

Adriele Fugal, MSPH(c)
Public Health Safety Specialist

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced states in the U.S. and countries around the world to shut down for months as the virus has spread globally like wildfire with no regard to national borders, social bounds, political systems, or cultural values. Major industries were advised to have their employees work from home as a mitigation effort to slow the spread of the virus in order to avoid overwhelming hospital beds and avoid unnecessary deaths, especially among our most vulnerable population: older adults.

While some industries were able to have their employees work remotely, other businesses were hit hard by the shutdown, including the film industry. It is estimated that 120,000 people have lost their jobs in Hollywood due to COVID-19, while 50,000 people will be losing their jobs in the United Kingdom. The film industry has also suffered a $4 billion hit at the box office and is expected to lose even more money from stopped productions. To top it off, most insurance companies exclude any coverage of infectious diseases, including COVID-19, painting a scary picture for the future of film and television production.

Adriele...
keeping her set safe!

So, is it safe to work in film sets during a pandemic? It can be! And I will show what you can do to make film sets safe for the cast and crew while helping the film industry get back to doing what it does best. When I started working as a Public Health Safety Supervisor I did a lot of research to understand what the best measures would be to follow to minimize the spread of COVID-19 on film sets. I spent a good amount of time reading everything I could find from many well known and reputable organizations, such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), World Health Organization (WHO), and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). I also spent many days getting certificates related to COVID-19 from top-notch universities, the CDC and WHO, so I could feel prepared and capable of providing the most recent, up to date guidelines to my clients, and the best services to the people I was trusted to keep safe. And that is how I was able to be the first person in the state, or perhaps even in the nation, to develop COVID-19 guidelines for film sets, which I shared with the Utah Filmmakers™ Facebook group, and has since been replaced by the Utah Film Commission guidelines. 

So now, after working on over a dozen productions during the pandemic, here is my take on how film productions can work safely on film sets today:

1. Hire a Public Health Specialist that has abundant knowledge of epidemiology, infection disease and control, and disease outbreaks, like myself, to advise your production during the pre-production phase, and make sure that all safety guidelines are being followed during the production.
2. Have a Public Health Specialist create, manage and implement a Covid compliance program, especially for longer productions or productions with a large number of cast and crew.
3. Make sure that the person you hire is up to date on COVID-19 information. As more research is done, more information becomes available. Guidelines might change as we learn more about the disease. As an example, masks were not recommended to the public a few months ago, but we learned that they are actually very effective in preventing the virus from spreading.
4. Hiring a medic to do the job on set is fine, but being certified to work as a medic doesn’t automatically qualify them to know the best procedures and guidelines for sets. Whoever you hire should have the proper knowledge and training in COVID-19 specific procedures for film sets.
5. Because COVID-19 related claims aren’t covered by production insurance, it would be advisable for producers and companies to have cast and crew sign a mandatory liability release waiver. The production should state in this document that they are doing everything in their power to prevent the spread of infection on set, and all involved should be required to follow safety guidelines put in place. Setting this expectation in advance will give the cast and crew peace of mind.

While I, as a public health professional, cannot warrant 100 percent that no one on set will ever get sick, I can assure you that by following guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, our state, and those widely accepted by the film industry we can effectively minimize the spread of COVID-19 on sets, while giving everyone the feeling of safety and care.

Adriele Fugal, MSPH(c)

Public Health Safety Specialist

Get your Safe Sets™ International Covid-19 Certificate

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The opinions expressed in this blog are those of the authors and—especially where guest posts are concerned—do not necessarily reflect the opinions or views of the Utah Filmmakers™ Association, its officers and/or associates.

Utah Filmmaker(s)™ and UFA™ are trademarks registered with the Utah Department of Commerce Division of Corporations and Commercial Code, Registration Numbers 10706542-0190 , 11025542-0190 and 10502093-0190 respectively.

There is no such thing as a “half day”

From the "Excursus" movie poster

As I write this, it’s the day after Labeled Fest, where our short film, “Excursus,” was screened in the same theater in which it premiered in 2014. Reflecting on the single day of production that it had under the August sun on top of the “giant reflector”—Mario DeAngelis’ hilarious and accurate description—that is the Bonneville Salt Flats, I’m reminded of a point toward the end of the day when a few clouds were making some unscheduled appearances in the sky, blocking the sun from time to time. At one point, our 1st AC, Jonathan Judeen, looked toward one cloud in particular and said, “That cloud’s going to block the sun in about seventeen seconds.” His tone was matter-of-fact, showing no hint of sarcasm.

I’ll admit, there was a part of me that wanted to roll my eyes or offer some sort of incredulous response to his statement. Probably within the first second following Jonathan’s estimate, I thought, “Seventeen seconds? How the hell did he come up with that number? Why so specific? How could he possibly know?” But instead of saying anything, I started counting seconds to myself, “two, three, four… sixteen, seventeen,” and by that point, the cloud had completely covered our view of the sun. Jonathan called it… to the second. I was impressed.

That same year, I had worked on the pilot for Wesley Austin’s series, “The IP Section,” as a boom operator and witnessed something similar. Almost every time that cinematographer Wes Johnson and his team were working to set up a new shot, the 1st AD would ask for a time estimate for when they would be ready to shoot. As I recall, the response was rarely in minutes—even if multiple minutes were required. It was almost always stated in seconds, “One hundred five seconds,” “98 seconds,” etc. This was an experienced crew that knew what they were doing and knew the capabilities and limitations of the equipment they were working with so well that they could estimate how long it would take them to set-up a shot to within a few seconds.

Productions such as those are a joy to work on. A professional and efficient set—though not without it’s moments of work-related stress—is an atmosphere that instills confidence in all its participants and inspires the best work.

When I was hired for that pilot, I was told, “It’s only $***/day.” A more experienced boom operator may have accepted the role with some reluctance but I was happy for the opportunity, since all of the projects that I was working on that year were going to fund “Excursus” and the bulk of the compensation for my services would turn into paychecks for my crew.

When breaking down a polished screenplay for production, estimating the time it will take to shoot a particular scene or sequence is as much an art form as it is a skill and it requires experience to get any good at it. When I first broke down the screenplay for “Excursus” into a shooting script, I handed it to Mario and Jack Diamond—director and 1st AD, respectively—and said, “This isn’t written in stone. It’s just how I kinda pictured it in my head. Use what you like and what’s practical but if you have a better way of shooting it, then by all means, go with what you think will work best. This breakdown is just a suggestion.”

My breakdown was very much appreciated. On the day of the shoot, I did my best to let go of my role as Producer and focussed on my job as actor but I could definitely see where their decisions deviated from mine and how they worked better to accommodate the resources of the production. When we wrapped the location, Mario said to me, “You had a good shooting script but if we had shot it the way that it was written, it would have taken us three days instead of just one.”

Three seems like a magic number to me. Whenever I’m speaking with novice filmmakers on the subject of estimating the amount of time it takes to shoot something, based on my personal experience, I always tell them, “Take that first time estimate that you came up with and triple it. Because you never know what’s going to happen on the day of the shoot that’s going to cause a delay and there’s always something that’s going to cause a delay.”

I suppose it’s evocative of the exchange between Captain Kirk and Mr. Scott in Star Trek III, when Kirks asks his Chief Engineer, “How much refit time before we can take her out again?”
“Eight weeks, sir,” said Scotty, “but ye don't have eight weeks, so I'll do it for ye in two.”
“Mr. Scott. Have you always multiplied your repair estimates by a factor of four?”
“Certainly, sir. How else can I keep my reputation as a miracle worker?”

From time-to-time, I see job posts in our Facebook group that make statements like, “We’ll only need you for a couple” or “a few hours.” If an hourly rate is being offered for such work, that’s fine by me.

However, there are also times when I see posts that call for a specific job to be filled and the posters ask, “What’s your half-day rate?”

HMUA Heather Shelton
transforming the author
into a zombie

I can appreciate being mindful of budget limitations and needing to accommodate them but claiming that a job is “only” going to be a half-day commitment, suggests that the contractor would be free to fill the other half-day with a different half-day gig so they can get a full-day’s rate—which is within the realm of possibility but very unlikely. To suggest that there’s so much work out there that someone could make a living working two half-day gigs a day, for any period of time seriously overestimates the demands of the local industry not to mention ignoring important factors like crew meals and commute times.

No one ever really works for just “half a day.” The preparation time is going to vary from gig-to-gig depending on the demands of the production and for roles and positions beyond those of background actors and Production Assistants, rates are not determined by an hourly minimum but by the nature of the work that’s needed and the talent and experience that a contractor brings to the table. A “half-day” doesn’t necessarily translate into half the work. For specialties like hair and makeup artistry, the amount of work and resources required for it may be no different for a “half-day” shoot than a full day. It’s more likely to amount to the same amount of work but only with an earlier wrap-time. Since it’s unlikely that there will be another “half-day” gig waiting for that one person afterward—for which their energy and supplies can be significantly drained—they should just be paid their standard day-rate and kit-fee. There are other places in a production budget where a producer can be frugal without interfering with someone’s paycheck and—by extension—their livelihood.

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Utah Filmmaker(s)™ and UFA™ are trademarks registered with the Utah Department of Commerce Division of Corporations and Commercial Code, Registration Numbers 10706542-0190 , 11025542-0190 and 10502093-0190 respectively.

Tell your state reps how the film incentive benefits you

(This post has been updated with the inclusion of a letter† sent to Senator Luz Escamilla and Representative Angela Romero from the Utah Filmmakers™ Association)

This article in the Salt Lake Tribune has been making the rounds in the Utah film community. It does a terrific job of illustrating how much government incentives benefit local film industries and professionals but—regardless of the amount of money being discussed—one can only read so much about “tax credits,” “rebates” and “GDP” impact before one’s eyes start to glaze over.

As important and informative as this article is, there's one section that I think should resonate with filmmakers on a personal level. It starts with Virginia Pearce, Director of the Utah Film Commission, talking about “the crew member who gets paid, who takes his wife out to dinner, who buys a new car, who is able to live and work here instead of living and working in L.A….”

It quotes Taylor Sheridan, the filmmaker behind the Utah-based production “Wind River,” who said of his Paramount Network series “Yellowstone” that it “…employs hundreds of people, and the vast majority of them are local… And the ones who are coming in, they’re renting properties, they’re standing in line at the grocery store. They’re staying here. They’re moving in… We show up and spend an extreme amount of money, employ a workforce... And showcase the state.”

It’s one thing to read about the film incentive’s benefits to the local economy in abstract terms but I think what was missing from this article was a more personal perspective.

The Motion Picture Association of Utah exists to inform the Utah state legislature about how important the film industry is to Utah’s economy and how integral the Motion Picture Incentive Program is to bringing productions into the state and employing local filmmakers.

It’s imperative that state legislators also hear from the people who benefit directly from a thriving local film industry: their filmmaking constituents.

Utah Filmmakers* can support their industry and the efforts of the MPAU by contacting their legislative representatives by phone, fax, letter, and e-mail and letting them know how the film incentives directly impact their lives.

Don’t know who your legislative representatives are? That’s okay. I voted and I still had to double check—I guess state legislators are more camera shy than those in federal office. Just visit https://le.utah.gov/GIS/findDistrict.jsp, plug in your address/zip code to find out who your representatives are and tell them how important the film incentives are to you personally.

As individuals, Utah filmmakers do not need to talk about GDP growth or the return on the state’s investments. Talk about how much you love your job and being able to make a living doing it in Utah. Better yet, how a more active industry would enable you to work full time—if you don’t already.

Talk about how landing that gig on a film or series that made use of the incentive is what kept a roof over your head in Utah, enabled you to support your family, buy locally and to take a more active part in your community.

Who among us doesn’t have a story of how a job came through at just the right time to take care of the bills or an unforeseen expense. If that job wouldn’t have been possible without the incentive, you need to let your representatives know about it.

The Utah legislative session starts on January 28, 2019. Contact your representatives TODAY!

—Joe Puente
Founder/Administrator
Utah Filmmakers™ Association

*As loosely defined by the Utah Filmmakers™ Association, “A ‘Utah filmmaker’ can be anyone based in Utah who’s involved in filmmaking including—but not limited to—Producers, Writers, Directors, Cinematographers, Animators, Actors, Sound Engineers, SFX/VFX Artists, Composers and many other technical and creative people.”

†

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Utah Filmmaker(s)™ and UFA™ are trademarks registered with the Utah Department of Commerce Division of Corporations and Commercial Code, Registration Numbers 10706542-0190, 11025542-0190 and 10502093-0190 respectively.

Social media and the local film community

Poster for the Utah-produced
film "Friend Request" (2013)
(Sense a theme in this entry?)

Independent filmmaking and social media seem like a natural fit. From networking and organization to flooding the newsfeeds of friends and groups with pleas for support and links to crowdfunding campaigns.

There’s no magic formula for creating a successful and engaging online forum where individuals can interact, seek advice and hire talent for their projects. Though it’s usually a simple matter of who gets there first, that doesn’t mean a newer forum won’t gain momentum and surpass the original(s).

Take, for instance, a little Facebook group started by this writer back in 2010 called “Utah YouTubers.” At first, it had only a handful of members and very little activity. Largely dormant for a number of years, around 2016 there was a surge in membership and activity. More and more people started to join and share their Utah-based YouTube content. It was later discovered that subsequent to—and completely independent from—the creation of that first “Utah YouTubers” group, another group with basically the same name had really taken off. Rather than try and compete, the original group was content to be associated with the more successful group and is now known as “UTubers Forum”, a public group that hopes to serve as a stepping stone to the more professionally-minded space catering to more experienced content creators.

As far as Facebook groups dedicated to filmmaking in Utah are concerned, there are several (as shown in the graphic below) and it’s not uncommon for someone new to the filmmaking community to join every single one that they find. However—as this writer discovered a number of years ago—one quickly learns that the membership of these groups consists largely of the same people. With an eye toward cleaning up one’s newsfeed of identical film-related posts from the same people, the question needs to be asked, “Which group do I join?” Or, more often, “Which group—or groups—can I just leave?”

The groups that aren’t doing anything or only engage members sporadically—usually because of low membership to begin with—are the easiest ones to let go of. One should also note which groups are posting the same information—in other words, find out which groups are populated by mostly the same people—and just stay in the one that’s most useful. Participate in the group that has experienced members that are willing to answer questions, offer sound advice and honest critique. Commit to the group that takes filmmaking seriously as both an art form and an industry.

Of course, the UFA™ is going to recommend the de facto group for Utah Filmmakers started by Ben Hawker, Utah Filmmakers and Actors. With the largest membership of any group of its type—over 13,400 and thousands of active participants at the time of this post—one can’t go wrong by clicking on that join button and answering the two basic screener questions for admittance: “What is the nature of your involvement in filmmaking?” and “Where in Utah are you based?” Since the group welcomes both film industry professionals and beginning filmmakers, it would be difficult to figure out an exact ratio of professionals to novices in the group without doing some exhaustive research. However, one can make a conservative estimate. Assuming that only 1 in 50 members of the group works or has worked full-time in the film industry with a guestimated average of ten years of on-set/in-studio experience, that's over 2,600 combined years of industry experience in our one group. That is a pretty impressive source of information and know-how that one can turn to.

While Utah Filmmakers and Actors is a valuable group for local filmmakers to be part of, there are other groups that cater to more specific topics of discussion such as Utah Film Writers and groups set up for local college and university film students. Another group that this author participates in is the Utah Video and Film Production group which offers a low-key but valuable discussion environment consisting largely of local industry professionals.

There are many other groups that have been started with goals similar to that of Utah Filmmakers and Actors. This writer is also a member of a few of them but doesn’t actively follow many of their news feeds for the simple reason that much of the information that they offer is identical and their community access limited to a significantly smaller audience—an audience that’s most likely also part of the Utah Filmmakers and Actors group, especially when it comes to novice filmmakers and those just starting to make inroads into the industry.

Redundancy can be a good thing when it comes to filmmaking—having a backup shooting location, extra lenses, mics and lighting options on hand in case of unexpected complications, for example—but when it comes to resources for hiring, networking and collaboration, it can be confusing. The fact that a few of these other groups have actually been started by existing and former members of Utah Filmmakers and Actors—for reasons that include disagreements with group policies and/or admins acting in accordance with said policies—doesn’t help either.

Graphic created by the author,
derived from publicly sourced data.
Higher Resolution Version

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Utah Filmmakers™ and UFA™ are trademarks registered with the Utah Department of Commerce Division of Corporations and Commercial Code, Registration Numbers 10706542-0190 and 10502093-0190 respectively.