Shaina Vorspan prepares to go to the boss’s office. Eric Clabeaux on sound.
Producing an indie feature is never an easy feat. As is often the case, stretching the dollar as far as it can go can be the most difficult aspect. In the studio world, a script is given to the production department and they go line by line in the budget filling in all the blanks with dollars allotted for every item from producer gifts to location reps, and arrive at a budget number. But in the indie world its called reverse budgeting – where you start with a budget number and work backwards – filling in the blanks according to what you can get for free, and what you actually have to pay for – oh the whoas of #lowbudgetfilmmaking!
It goes without saying we could not afford a location rep, or even a full days’ rental of a bar, or an office space, or even a full second camera package! But #wherethereisawill! Day one of our schedule started at an office in Van Nuys and ended at another in North Hollywood. Luckily the second location had already been found by one of our directors @KasiABrown – an oxygen tank refill office no less #brilliant so we had the one location left to find… within a 10 minute drive… with adequate parking for our truck, crew, and a bus full of cast… and who would accept less than $100/ hour. So the hunt began. We tried looking online, or posting an ad on Craigslist #freaks #desperate, or calling around, so finally I just starting driving around. I was on the hunt for run-down commercial areas and properties with dirty windows, or run down offices that looked like the place hadn’t been touched in months. After assembling this list, I arranged meetings with the managers to view the properties and eventually found a location. The final location? *drumroll* – a property rental company’s main offices! It was perfect! It had all the props, the mise en scene, a separate room for hair/ make-up, and the space for our scenes to unfold.
Also I should note that we had an excellent Day One thanks to our wonderful crew and cast that kept the creativity flowing and our energy as high as Colorado Girl Scouts.
