So…I’m learning to play golf. I’ve taken a few lessons and I’ve learned two things – 1) While I’m usually pretty athletic, I’m no natural with the golf clubs and 2) Whoever came up with this game sure found a difficult way to hit a ball with a stick!
My last lesson out, I realized that learning to play golf is a lot like filmmaking with one major exception. Golf is usually a sport played one person against another; filmmaking is rarely a one-person sport. It is very collaborative. Yet, the skills are transferable.
For example, many people think that the most effective way to develop a consistent golf swing is to stand on the range whacking balls until you get it right. But the best way to develop a consistent golf swing is to break the swing down into pieces that make up the swing and ensure each part is being performed correctly: the grip, stance, posture, alignment, backswing, downswing, impact and follow thru.
Similarly, producing a film is not just one thing but many different pieces working in tandem to create a finished product. Production of the film encompasses finding the right screenplay, breaking down the script, writing up a business plan, crewing, casting and a whole lot more. As with a golf swing, all these things go together in the making of a film. I don’t believe one part is any less or more important. The challenge is that there are many things to think about simultaneously. With both, it is easy to either over think things or forget something altogether.
One item most filmmakers forget is AUDIENCE; but they are an essential part of this business. You should always ask yourself- Who is your audience? How do you to reach them? Without an audience the best film in the world never makes a dime.
Here are 3 tips to grow audience
1. Know your audience. Is there already an audience who likes that sort of stuff? In other words, are there any publications out there that cater to your niche subject matter?
2. Go to Netflix or iTunes, and look up a movie with a similar genre to yours. When you do, you’ll notice that the site will generate similar movies to the one you’ve searched for. Next, browse the Internet for the titles of the suggested movies. Change to the image view to see pictures of those titles. Finally, drag the images to the Google bar and a list of sites will come up. Some of the sites will be blogs and various publications that cater to your niche audience.
3. Build a website, get an email marketing account and add people to your email list (with their permission of course!).
BONUS: Check out my golf swing below…
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Thoughts, questions, and/or comments are welcome.
