Your Stage : 7 undeniable Steps to making your own content by Jesse Hutch

Hello!

I hope to help you succeed.

My name is Jesse Hutch. I've been a professional actor for 20 years. I drowned when I was 21. Ive been married for 10 years and have 3 kids. I'm always working towards a stronger Directing portfolio. One major way I pursue this goal is to create and film my own content. I'm currently in post production on a 12 minute proof of concept for a series I'm developing. Filmed over 3 days. 18 actors. 3 major locations, broken into a total of 10. Over $450,000 of in-kind services. Think "Bad Boys", "2 Guns" and "Central Intelligence". Here are some tips I've learned over my career, and through experiences such as filming the mentioned PROOF OF CONCEPT. I hope they help you.

Contact me anytime: Hutchproductions@mac.com

--------------------------------

Ask yourself some questions. If you could only wear one hat what would it be? What ROLE do you long to have on a professional level? Actor? Director? Writer? Stunt performer? Editor? Sound designer? Dream big. This list goes on. The role you want to fill will guide you in your goal of what to make(write, produce, film, etc). The best way to achieve something is to honestly work hard for it. This will also build character, talent, and mental grit(Disclaimer: none of this is guaranteed and relies fully upon you and how you develop yourself). But you must CLEARLY KNOW the direction of your MAIN GOAL. Now prepare for battle.

“TWO” - CONTENT CREATOR

Once you decide what that main ROLE and GOAL is for you, become a CONTENT CREATOR. Write and create the projects you need that contain the ingredients of what you long for. Don’t wait for opportunity to find you. Opportunity tends to be blind. For me, I want to Direct. I also love acting, I dig comedy and I crave action. So FOX & HUNTER(my current proof of concept) was birthed. I wrote a script. I told myself: 'I'm not a writer'. But I don't have a writer in my back pocket, so I made myself a writer(still working on it) Keep in mind that in order to put yourself in a position of wearing one hat, you may need to wear 5 others along the way. Keep your eyes on the prize. How bad do you want to achieve your goal?

“THREE” - TEAM

Build a TEAM. Start with one person. You need a team mate. Three’s a crowd. Make sure the person you choose, and who chooses you in return doesn’t want to wear the same hat as you. My solid friend Don and myself have been developing projects together for about 7 years now. For example: I wanted to direct more, Don wanted to act more. If we both wanted to direct, or we both wanted to act, we would be lobbying to wear the same hat. Remember, there’s only one hat you both really want to wear. The most important part of our team structure(this varies for everyone) is that we both share faith in God, this is an absolute necessity and a solid foundation from which Don and I operate. Also: We both dig action, we each have character traits that are different and yet support one another. We are both willing to be brutally honest with each other. You must always be willing to dissect and rip apart your scripts, your choices, your motives and your talents. All of these things take time and they can only be discovered through trial and error. So allow for the grace of building a team. Allow for grace in your timeline, but don't be lazy! Massive solid trees have deep strong roots. It takes time to grow.

“FOUR” - WORK HARD

Ok. So you have a ROLE & GOAL in mind. You’ve built your TEAM. You’ve created CONTENT(a script, an idea, storyboards,etc). Now what? This is where I find there to be a crossroads, with a trillion different possibilities. Be prepared to WORK HARD. You could pitch to 3 different people and all 3 people want something different and they want a different format and they want this and that changed. The positive to this is you will go through a process of development. This can be a time of improvement. This can also be a time of confusion. You could be trying to please many different parties. Do not become discouraged. I believe it’s better to be prepared and not need something, then to be asked for something and not be prepared.

“FIVE” - GO FOR IT

So you’re working hard. Your developing your material and pitching and meeting and talking through options to get your project off the page. Maybe you’ve asked your grandma for funding or perhaps you know James Cameron. Each will have their questions. Answer honestly. Remember we talked about all the different directions you may be pulled? There’s good news! Eventually you will feel that there is one particular direction you must go. Only you can, and will determine this. For FOX & HUNTER we felt we needed a proof of concept. We needed something people could see, hear, feel, taste and touch. You may not feel led to go this direction. That’s ok. If you're convinced of a direction for your project then GO FOR IT!! All out. And keep going until something happens. You may ask: “But what if something never happens?” Something always happens, it may not be what you want yet, but something will happen to you internally, mentally, emotionally. You might even cry...I did at one point. Feel free to ask me if you want to hear about it. Also, perhaps you haven’t been working long enough. FYI: I’m still working towards the goal and role. We can either sit down, whine and give up, or we can get up, wipe the tears, lick the wounds and keep going. You choose! I’ll see you out there.

“SIX” - FILMING

This step may only be specific towards FOX & HUNTER and our particular goals, but at some point you need to do what you want to become. So we began to move towards FILMING. This takes a crew, cast, locations, insurance, safety plans, fire chief approval, home petitions, props, wardrobe, construction, camera equipment, locations equipment, armourer, Special effects team, grip and lighting and forklifts and posters and graphic design, fog machines, transportation, purchase of lumber, plywood, food, drink, bathrooms, fire extinguishers and radios just to name a few. So learn and grow and get it done.

If you're anything like most people at this stage of the game you don’t have a bank account loaded with cash to make this happen. If you do, please email me: hutchproductions@mac.com.

You will have hard costs such as food, insurance, gear rental etc. You may be asking for favors at this point. A LOT of favours. This is where it gets real. If people are on board with your vision then you need to start working even harder, because people are always the most important part of any project. Show respect. Honor their time and their talents. Be thankful. One of the best ways to convey your gratitude is by being prepared and professional. Make sure you empower others to do their jobs. As a brief example, I directed(remember: this was my goal) the FOX & HUNTER concept trailer, which means I had vision for particular shots. I sourced and built a forklift cage and had it ready to go so my steady cam operator was able to accomplish a continuous shot which started on a forklift and entered a business lobby and went through 2 doors. When others step up, you step up more.

“SEVEN” - HONESTY

BE HONEST. On FOX & HUNTER we were honest with everyone about our vision, and about budget. I don’t believe in behind the back deals where so and so gets this much money while that person gets that much. All of our costs were on the table. I believe this allowed for a unity on set that was palpable.

If you read this far...I'm impressed. You must be driven to succeed. Please connect with me on STAGE 32, and Instagram. I'm always up for collaborating, learning, talking and making stuff.