Filmmaking / Directing : Ask Me Anything (AMA) Wednesday 7/10 to Thursday 7/11- Indie Filmmaking & How To Balance Creative Vision With Crew Collaboration by Ryan Little

Hi and thank you for doing this. I will send you my questions on Wednesday.

Hey, Ryan Little. How have you been? Thanks for having this AMA. What are some ways to make a set a fun place?

Small world! My friend Matthew Bellows acted in Extinct. Great series, shame it was so short. I've only directed very short things and am wondering how to translate that to larger projects? What is it like to direct a feature film?

Hey Ryan Little - hope you are well and thanks for doing this AMA! Question - how involved in the film process (on set) are the writers you work with? Thanks in advance!

Thanks for doing this Ryan Little!

Hi Ryan Little Thank you for doing this AMA, I am so looking forward to it. As a director, what is that you need from actors (besides their best performance) in regards to a smoothly run set or safety or relationships with crew and you?

This is going to be great! Thank you Ryan!

Excited! Welcome Ryan!

thanks for being here.

Hello Ryan Little Question: How do you get Actors and crew to work for free or almost free when you have very limited funds? Thank you!!

Hi Ryan and thank you for doing this AMA, how do you get funding for historical dramas based on other cultures, but screenplay is in English and is relevant to global audience? How do you find the scripts you work with?

Good Morning Asmaa. Thanks for joining in and asking a question. Getting funding for any film project is not easy as I am sure you know. I have done a few historical dramas a handful of WWII films as well as I am in post on period thriller that takes place in London. When it came to raising funding for these projects the first thing is always the SCRIPT. Any good script will find funding. It really is that simple. And yes bad scripts get funding too of course. LOL. But story is king and if you have written something good it will find funding. I have noticed a lot of people for their first feature films get a bit too ambitious in my opinion. They try and raise like $10 Million dollars for their first project and that is almost impossible to get for your first film, unless you have distribution with a studio or a seriously big star locked in to play a lead role. First time feature filmmakers should start small, pace themselves. Make a micro-budget feature for $50,000 and see how that goes. Again if you have a great script it will really find it's voice and take off. Films made for that price point are great for doing the film festival run where you can meet people who will see your talent and hopefully team up with you to make your next film for maybe $250,000 or $500,000 and see where that takes you. I see a lot of first time filmmakers not vetting their potential financiers. What I mean is they talk to people who are simple not interested in your film. You have to remember that investors are basically asking themselves three questions when they meet with you. 1) Is this the kind of story that excites me. Would I been bummed if this film did not get made? 2) Is this person safe to give my money too? Will they spend it wisely when making this film? 3) And how are you going to make their money back? The answer to this question is never "Winning the Sundance Film Festival" of course. If the answers to these three questions does not satisfy the investor you won't make the deal. I will also say that scripts that are based on TRUE STORIES will also give you a leg up. That always helps with getting people's attention and interest. With the period films that I did we were not asking for a lot of money to make them. They stories were interesting to those we asked for funding and we either had a sales agent who felt confident in selling the film or we had a previous relationship with a distributor who read the script and wanted the film before we shot it.

Thank you, Ryan. I appreciate this.

Hey MARK! Thanks for asking about getting film crew for free or low rates. I have not done that much in my recent films but earlier in my career I certainly did. When it comes this kind of approach it usually happens on MICRO BUDGET types films that are under $100,000 budget range. Script is King. If the script is good, I mean really good then people will want to get involved. Everyone loves a good story. People have to eat and pay their rent so to ask people to work for free means the time commitment has to be realistic to do so. Like filming on the weekends when everyone has a day or two off to go do something for free. So yes that means that it make take a while to finish your film but it will eventually get done. Another thing I saw a friend of mine do is write a script around a CABIN his family had. He wrote a script for this one location and then went there for one week with her tiny crew and just shot like crazy for 8 days and made a feature. Everyone stayed in the cabin together and had a blast. The time commitment was a bit long but not long enough that people could not find a way to make it work with the regular day to day working schedules. Favored Nations is another thing that helps when it comes to projects with little to no funding. If everyone knows they are getting the same pay or the same investment into the project than they will be more inclined to jump on board. If you have no money to make your film then everyone should be seen as an investor in the film. Then when you take it out to film festivals or through a sales agent to find a distribution deal that each person knows that if this film makes any money that a portion of that will be given to them in return for their investment (sweat equity / time spent) on the film. So for example if you decided that if you had money that you could make the film for $200,000 and be able to pay everyone. BUT since you have no money you basically decide a $$$ value everyone's contribution in the film where it be their time, equipment, locations, etc. Then when you sell the film whatever percentage of the profit would equate to their contributions would be paid to them. So If you made $200,000 which lines up with the budget you created and say your DP donated a equipment in addition to their time and that was valued at $10,000 then that is basically what you would pay them. If the film made $100,000 back instead then you pay them only $5,000 for their services since that would equate to the percentage of their ownership / investment in the film. And of course if the film $400,000 or more you would pay them $20,000 and it would keep going up from there. That is how you keep people engaged in doing a film for free, with an invested interest.

Xochi! Thanks glad to be here to help out my fellow filmmakers!

Sara! Excited to be a part of this great film community!

MAURICE! Thanks for joining in on the conversation! When it comes to running a fun set I sort of figured out a few things from trial and error. First off no matter what is going on set you HAVE TO set the tone. You have to be the biggest Cheerleader for the film. BE POSITIVE even if the set is burning down. If the director and the #1 Actor on the call sheet are leading the charge with positivity then you are off to a good start. Before I start any movie I go to the top billed actor on a the call sheet and we make agreement to make this a fun set. We basically tag team it the whole time. I lead the crew and they lead the cast in positive energy by example. We keep spirits high by constantly telling people how grateful we are to have them there with us. That helps a ton! You have to remember, It's just a movie and there is no place for yelling. Keep that movie magic alive. We have the best job ever and we just need to be putting that good energy out there. Keeping people excited as much as possible. For lack of a better choice of words I try to "PRAISE in Public and CRITICIZE in private" which means taking any opportunity possible to tell people they are doing a good job so other people around can hear it. It's really contagious and people start saying positive things to each other. And then when there is a problem you need to pull that person aside and talk in private about the situation. Protect people's ego and address the issue without others listening in. I find that most things can be resolved with a little side bar out of ear shot of everyone else. This is also true with your cast. The second I call CUT I immediately reinforce with positive comments like: "Great job! That was cool!" Even if the take went sideways and was not great, let them know you are going again but it's moving in the right direction. Make fun of yourself. When I am directing and I say something dumb or I get confused I say things like "It's my first day on job. Thanks guys for making look like I have a clue of what it going on" and then I laugh. People get it. They know that I am there to have fun and it's okay to just have a good time. Another thing I have done recently is at the top of the day before we start shooting and we are doing a little pow wow or safety meeting I'll do a little SPOT LIGHT on a department and just give them a little shout-out about something awesome I have seen them do. They love being noticed for their efforts. Good food will always keep a crew and cast happy. DO NOT skimp on food and treats. Having good food on set goes a LONG WAY to keep it fun. Sometimes I have the Craft Service team randomly bring the "Treat of the day". This is a fun way to keep everyone excited because they know randomly they'll get some new thing to try. One of my favorite Script Supervisor loves to write down funny things people say on set and each day we put the QUOTE OF THE DAY on the next days work at the bottom of the call-sheet and everyone loves to see who got spotlighted and what funny thing they said. When you call wrap for the day I do my very best to thank everyone for their work and call them by name. People love that and they look forward to the next day of work.

You're welcome, Ryan Little. Thanks for the in-depth answer! Those are great ways to make a set fun! I'm guessing it's easier to make a set fun if the movie's a Comedy.

ASHLEY. Matt is a great guy and a talented actor. It was a lot of fun to work on at that TV series with him. Lots of good memories. Short films are a great place to start, stretch out, ind your footing, your style, your voice. Directing short films and features are basically the same. It's just a longer race so you have to pace yourself. But really if you are PREPARED and ORGANIZED then you'll be fine. Pre-production is key for any director. That is really where I put in the most work. If you are really organized and ready when they blow the production whistle you'll be fine. If you don't come prepared to the first day of shooting then it can and most likely will go sideways on you. One of my favorite tools to use is the SCRIPTATION app. I use it on my iPAD and it is a HUGE time saver and a great way to get all your department heads on the same page. Go check it out. It really is amazing and there is a free version that has most of the features available on it. Well worth the time to use!

The thing about directing a feature is using your time wisely. And when in production there is so little of it. Have all your shot-lists figured out will go a long way. After wrap each day, you barley have enough time to eat, review tomorrow's work and call your loved ones. Having your shot lists all done ahead will be a life saver. Also make sure to have a ONE ON ONE with each of your actors BEFORE you start shooting to discuss any concerns about the script or their character. This should be worked out before you walk on set in front of 30 plus people all standing around ready to roll the camera while the two of your discuss stuff that is holding up production. One of the best skills you can develop as a feature film director is "PRE-VISUALIZATION," which means you sort of know how the film will cut together in you head. Where do the cuts most likely go? At any given moment in the film what does the audience need to be looking at? Try to know this as much as you can before you're on set. Since I am also a DP I am lucky to get the chance to watch other directors work and I am surprised by how many directors have now clue how the scene we are shooting will cut together. They assume they'll just figure it out in editing. That is certainly one way to do it, but having a strong sense of how it will cut together while shooting it will he a huge help in time management. You'll know when to go for another take or move on much more effectively if you can do this.

Hey Ryan, I remember seeing Forever Strong in theaters and have always loved Saints & Soldiers. Great to meet you.

When you read a script for the first time, what are the 2-3 elements that get you excited and make you say: "I have to direct this!"

Hello, ryan, congratlations and i remember seeing Saints and soldiers.. it is nice to meet you.

Hi Ryan, I know age of dragons awesome

Hey Ryan Little , Congratulations on your amazing projects! Thank you for showing up to share your expertise. I'm not in a position to even know what to ask, but I look forward to reading the thread and learning what to expect.

LEONARDO. Thanks my friend for asking this question. This is a tough one. We all know (or should know) SCRIPT IS KING. If you don't have an great script then you have a turd, and it doesn't matter how much you polish a turd with cool explosions, acting, sets, etc it's still a turd. Script is everything.

How to work with a writer on a feature film is different than how to work with a writer on a TV series. Let me start with what I am use to on the set of a feature film. On a movie, when the screenwriter is on set, more often than not the film that they saw in their head is not the movie that they are watching being shot in front of them. This can cause tension between them and the director, even if they are good friends. I have been on sets where the screenwriter starts talking to the actors on the side given different suggestions than what the director is going for. It's a mess. Actors need to have one voice speaking to them and that is the director. Screenwriters, especially ones who have never directed themselves or been on set before, usually do not realize how precious time is, or how much needs to be accomplished that day. Every moment discussing things at video village is time the camera is not rolling and capturing things that could be potential options in the editing room. So here is what I do: In pre-production I have one on one meeting with the writer to go over the TONE of the film and everything that is important to them. This might take multiple meetings. I ask a LOT of questions and take a lot of notes to really understand why they wrote this script, what films inspired this and what they hope the film will accomplish. I even ask them if they had all the money in the world who would they cast. This is one of my favorite parts of the collaboration process. I want to respect the work of this talented writer, but there needs to be a mutual understanding. If the writer is invited to set they need to remember they were paid for their services and the script has been handed over to the director to do their version of it. A lot of screenwriters say they understand this but then when they come to set, they forget and can not help but inject themselves into the director's process.

I tell the screenwriter when they come to set if they have a concern they need to talk to me on the side in private. I also tell them it is fine for them to talk to the actors but they can not give the actors any acting suggestions and must say "You need to ask your director about that." More often than not when the writer is there and the actors have a story question I will ask the writer over to be a part of the conversation. It's a collaborative art and fun to involve everyone, but not at the expense of not getting the days work. Everyone must RESPECT THE PROCESS and the roles each person plays. When on set the director is driving the boat. Again as long as the writer is aware what they are seeing might be different than what they envisioned and that they are okay with that, then it usually is a good experience. I have work with the writer closely in pre-production that way rewrites on set are very rare. Having the writer there is certainly nice if we run into a problem, but more often than not changes to the script on set or just a few words here and there and do not mess with the shooting script. Nothing makes me more crazy than an actor who wants to rewrite a scene on the day. There was plenty of time in pre-pro to discuss all these things. We also do table read with the actor's, screenwriter and me. This is a chance for the actors to ask the writer anything , address their issues and get on-board with the shooting script.

Now saying all that on a TV series the writer has a lot of power and oversees their episodes, and this is understood and expected by the visiting director on set. So a director is really there to serve the vision of the episode writer and show runner, which makes sense since this is not a one off story. The show could go on for years, meaning there is an established style, specific character arcs and storylines that the director may not be privy to. So the writer is a protector of that. When on a feature it really is the vision of the director who is "World Building" and establishing a lot of things for the first time. They few times I have directed TV I have know going into that how the dynamic works. We have a ton meeting before the we shoot and they are involved in the casting process and location scouting, etc. It's almost like there are two directors working together.

If as a writer it is hard to give your script over to someone else and be okay with whatever they do with it, then writing for TV might be a better fit for your style. Or if your heart is in feature filmmaking but it's hard to watch others do their version than you probably should become a Director / Writer and make your own film the way you want to see them told. There are plenty of directors out there who do both.

SUZANNE! Thanks for the question. When it comes to working with actors and running a smooth set I really need them to be team players, specially the #1 and #2 on the call sheet. Before shooting any movie I will go to the top couple actors on the call sheet and tell them we need to make this a fun set. The other actors are looking to them as an example of what is appropriate behavior on set. So we make a packed to make it fun. That even when things are not going ideal we keep it positive and keep everyone smiling. It helps a ton for actors to know I expect them to help with the TONE on set. I speak to every actor in the cast in a one on one and discuss any concerns they have, how they like to be directed, etc. But I also tell them I like a fun set and want them to be mindful of the hard working crew that will not get famous from this movie and to be kind to them and show appreciate for them when they can. I also tell the crew to do the same.

BENJAMIN! Thanks my friend. Excited to be here!

Maurice. Yes I am sure when making a comedy it naturally would be a fun set hopefully. Series films of course can be too, but of course depending on the scene everyone needs to read the room and behave appropriately to make it a good working environment for the everyone and of course the actor who might be in the middle of a hard emotional scene. But overall you want everyone to have a smile on their faces.

Thanks for the great info Ryan Little! Great stuff! The closest I can identify with what you’re saying was in my experience in writing a graphic novel. The artist and I had gone over everything in depth and he is typically seen as the “director” of it since he provides the visuals. The finished product turned out better than I had initially visualized it. I’m more of a feature writer so knowing what I know I think it’d be fun. I will say that one way I would be annoying is in wanting to take selfies with cast AND crew. LOL.

Moth! Thanks for checking out my films. Both were fun to make. I can not believe the 20th Anniversary for the theatrical release of "Saints and Soldiers" is next month. Time flies!

To answer your question in respect to what I look for in a script. Not every great script is my kind of story. We all have different taste so different things are just going to connect with us each differently. I sort of look at a script from two perspectives. 1) The Emotional component: Would I pay money to watch this in the theaters? Do I connect with this type of story? and 2) The Practical component: How is easy is this film to make on the financial resources available? It sort of starts there.

True stories always score high on my list. I feel more invested in those kind of stories. I just saw "Young Women and the Sea" based on a true story and I really loved that.

I like films with a good twist at the end. I am not a huge fan of scripts where I can guess what is going to happen next. Vince Gilligan was really good at this when he wrote the "Breaking Bad" series. He was good at staying away from the clichès.

I would say those are the things I look for first when reading a script.

CATHERINE! Thanks so much for seeing Saints and Soldiers. I sure loved making that film.

BILLY! Age of Dragons. That was a crazy film to make. That film did rather well for the SyFy Channel. Glad you got to see it. What are you working on?

ROBIN! Thanks for joining in. What are you working on?

LEONARDO. Thanks for your reply. Congrats on the graphic novel. The way I work with Screenwriter on my film is just the way that works for me. I am sure it is different for everyone. And yes of course when the writers on set they are always welcome to take all the pictures they want, hang out and have fun and they should eat lunch with the actors whenever possible. It's all about having fun and making good memories.

Thank you so much for your response Ryan Little I would love to work with a director like you someday. So many people in this business take themselves too seriously.

Hi Ryan, I just finished a sci fi called Far Away, now I'm working on the lonely. Do you still talk to Ernie Hudson? I'm a fan of him

Suzanne. You are very kind. Yes. People get a bit crazy in this business. I agree. What are you working on right now?

Billy. That is great. I need to get back into writing a bit more myself. Ernie Hudson is great. I have not seen him in a long time.

Agreed Ryan Little - so much is about creating great memories. Thanks so much friend. I wish you all the best in all you do.

Thanks for the response Ryan. I feel the same way about true stories, I’m writing one about a Utah family/athlete right now.

Have you ever taken on a project where the script was far from finished but you could tell the idea was great (knowing you can improve it before filming)? Have you seen other film makers do this?

Hi Ryan, any idea what genre your going to write next?

You're the best Ryan Little! Thank you so much for sharing your time with us for July Filmmakers Club! Can you think of a particularly awful day/night on set and share with us what went wrong and what you learned from that experience?

Hi Ryan Little - thanks for your insights! As a director if you are finding that some of your crew is inexperienced or not performing to the standards that you need, how do you handle that?

Hi Ryan,

Thank you for your time with us today. You said ask anything, so here it goes.

I am a writer who has invested a lot of time and money into becoming a better writer. Now that I finally have some scripts as ready as I can make them, I can’t find industry professionals to read them. I live in a small country in Latin America, by the way.

I used to see this as a setback, but after directing and producing one of my shortest scripts, I now see it as a blessing. I want to be involved in producing the rest of my scripts, the ones that took me a long time to write. To what extent, I still don’t know.

What do you think is the easiest path to achieve this? I directed a short film mainly to show the type of 'stories I like to write, but a screenwriting teacher advised me to learn about filmmaking and direct my work, but is there an easier way to have control over the stories I have written? What do you think? Thanks.

I am working on audition monologues and making a voiceover demo. I also need to find a photographer so I can update my headshots as I would like to find a local agent. Thank you for asking.

Hey Ryan Little! This is all such great information, so useful and applicable, keep those answers coming! Question, if, heaven forbid, the shoot starts to get behind on a specific day, what are some ways that the director can pivot and adapt in order to save that day and get back on schedule while also preserving the quality of the film? Not suggesting you get behind in your shoot days by the way. : )

Hey Ryan Little thank you for taking the time and loved Saints & Sinners! What makes a great day on set for you? How do you gauge whether you did a good or bad job on the day?

MOTH. I have never been involved with a project early in the writing stage. I am always given scripts that are ready to go into production. It's been nice since I have not had to worry about the financing of the film. I have always been a gun for hire in that respect. And the TV movies I have produced are the same way where script is locked, cast in attached and funding is in place. I just have to make sure we get through production smoothly.

BILLY. I think I will try my hand at writing a Sci-Fi for fun. Even if I don't make it, I would still enjoy the process of writing it. How about you? Favorite genre?

Hi Ryan, sci fi and fantasy. I hope you stay here on stage 32 for a while

Hey ASHLEY. Painful experience on set that I learned from? Hmmm. I must be blocking them from my mind. Okay I have one. Years ago.... without mentioning names I was on a the last scene of the day and it was the last scene of the movie. The sun was going down quick. Sounds made up I know. There were three actors in a trench in the forest. One of the actors felt the whole movie was about him, we'll call him "Hollywood", one of them thought acting was all about making up lines and ad-libbing, and the other actor just wanted to say the lines from the script and go home. LOL. Well the ad-libber I guess had pushed one too many buttons of Hollywood and words (other than the ones in the script) started to fly. The ad-libber had a bark worse than his bite and when Hollywood wanted to duke it out the ad-libber decided to quit and walked off.... of course we still have a page of dialogue to cover and maybe 20 minutes of usable light. Luckily my 1st AD read the riot act to the Ad-libber and told he to be professional and come back to set while I talked to the "Hollywood" about how the light was going down and we needed to hold it together and put or differences aside. Somehow we got everyone to calm down and we got the needed shots before the sunset called "WRAP" on us. A little miracle for sure took place there. Lessoned learned: Get ahead of this stuff the first time it happens. There were other small moments on set earlier where I should have, as the director pulled them aside and told them we can't have this. Instead I hoped that it would somehow work itself out. So now when I see things on set that could potentially cause problems in the future, I do not let them fester. I squash it on sight. Being a producer or director is not always a fun job, but you just have those awkward conversations sometimes to make sure everyone is on the same page. It comes with the job description. You can't escape it.

AMANDA TONEY! How are you my friend? Hope to see you at AFM this year. Vegas! To answer your great question about how to handle crew who are not working at the standard you need, here is how I approach this. Depending on the department and the experience they have I can usually see how things will go based on how they work during the pre-production. Are they organized? Have they down a solid breakdown of the script? Are they good at responding to my texts and emails? Are they good at communicating? If they lack in any of these areas I know I need to address it now and not when we are in production. I will have a one on one with them and tell them how I work and what they can do to make everything go smooth. If I am up front about what I expect then they can not be caught off guard later. If what I expect is not in their comfort zone or the adequate for the pay we are offering then this is the time to find someone to replace them. No hard feelings. Better now than in the middle of production. As a director I use an app called SCRIPTATION which is a life saver. It allows me to write note on my script and to deliver them in way where each department gets only their notes. I am pretty specific in my script notes which makes the breakdown process for them much easier. Another thing I do a lot of is shoot video with my phone of every location showing what my plans are for anything from camera angles to set decoration, etc. This kills most of the confusion and guess work out of their job. If find if I have done my work and have given plenty of information up front most people can't fail at their jobs because I make it so easy for them. There are still crew members from time to time who just simply don't want to work hard. So I will have to pull them aside and find out what is going on. Usually they'll tell me they are understaffed or are inexperienced with handling something and I always tell them to just ask me. I remind them that they need to get ahead of the problems. I also follow up with crew, especially those with less experience, to see how they are doing with something that is coming up in the next few days or week. But asking them over and over they can't forget to get it done. I try not to micro-manage people of course, but with some people you have to keep checking in with them.

GISELE. Thanks for your comment and question. It's hard for everyone to get people to read their script so don't think you are doing something wrong. The biggest reason I think people say no is the TIME commitment. It takes a lot of time. Also screenwriters don't always give their scripts to the right kind of producer or director. If you write ROM COM scripts giving to someone who produces horror is not going to go well for example. I think a one-page pitch of your script is a good place to start. A few paragraphs with a couple images that show the tone of the film along with any specific details that are needed to know should do the trick. This is much more manageable for someone to glance at and decide if they want to read the rest. Screenwriting contest are a great way to get attention of these people. If your script is good it will win and Producers will know that there is something there that they need to read. Another approach is to reverse engineer this process. Where you live there must be filmmakers. Find them on IG or facebook and grab coffee. See what kind of films they want to make. And if you have never had a film made before maybe consider to write a script for them for FREE. That is a deal most people won't refuse. Especially first time filmmakers. If the movie sales then work a deal that you get a small percentage of the profits. By doing it this way you are "putting skin in the game." And you should direct your own films too. Look at the resources you have around you for free or cheap and write a story about that and make your own films. That is really the only way to have control over your scripts and what happens to them.

NICK. When getting behind on set you really have to be honest with yourself and figure out why that is happening. Once you see where the time suck is you need to address it. For example : if you are shooting one camera and trying for nine pages a day then you probably need to simplify your coverage for each scene, or do less takes. Also as a director especially if you have a tight shoot schedule or high page count then you need to be in hyper-speed mode from set call. We have a tendency to be "Driving Miss Daisy" in the morning and then "Fast and Furious" after lunch." You have to pace yourself. Most of the time the reason your are behind is due to bad pacing. You really have to decide which scenes need extra love and which ones are not that important and will work just fine with less coverage and takes. I was on a show recently and I was realizing we were not getting our first shot off everyday till two hours after call. WHY? We only had one person for hair and make-up. So even though we would block the scene with the actor before sending them through the works we were still waiting a LONG time after we had everything else set up to go. I addressed the problem with the producers and said that we needed to bring in an assitant to help out each morning to get the actors to set faster. The Producers said we could not afford it. When the show was over the producers said they wished they we had one more day of shooting to make the movie look better. Since we shot the movie in 10 days I said to them. "If you could shoot for one more day for $2,000 dollars would you find the money and do it?" They both said "OF COURSE." I then said "Well if we had hired a second HMU person to come in for a few hours each morning for $200 a day then we would of shot for an hour and half more each day. Which would of been the same thing." So as the expression goes "Don't cut off your nose to spite your face." You have to really think these things through and know where to cut corners. I will say a BIG time suck on set that will always get you behind is company moves, especially ones in the middle of the day. The kiss of death! Do whatever you can to not move during your shoot day. If you are behind you have to be honest with yourself and decide where the best ROI (Return on Investment) is and cut back on the things that don't matter.

PAT. Thanks man. Glad you liked the film. I feel like I have had a great day when I make my page count and then compromises we made are not things that will detract from the story we are telling. And of course that everyone worked hard but had fun on set.

My gosh, Ryan Little , you've been so generous and informative! I LOVE FOREVER STRONG and look forward to watching SAINTS & SINNERS. Yep, I get it. SCRIPT IS KING. That's why I''ve been working for years (ahem, decades) to master the craft. But I've got this built-in drive to share poignant, upbeat films that inspire folks to dig deep into their believe systems and consider their power to shape reality.

Thank you for asking about my current project. The first is a feature adaptation of one of my novels - a magical realist fantasy about a troubled half-human, half-celestial boy mourning his adoptive mother’s death while trying to win back his estranged dad and juggle time between outcast kindred beings and a surly grandfather. Early 1900s. I've been approached to adapt another interesting novel about a troubled Native American/Mexican girl who's determined to overcome her past by proving herself a great hunter. Still in the negotiation stage. Thank you for asking!

Thank you for the tips, Ryan.

Hi Ryan, is that you on Instagram? Ryan little_director

BILLY. Yes that is my IG account.

GISELE. Great to talk to you today.

SUZANNE. Well you sound busy. Sending good film work vibes your way. Cheers!

ROBIN. Congratulations on the screenwriting. Sounds like you are working on some great things.

Hope to see you at AFM too! Really loved your advice on this and I’m going to cite it to support other filmmakers needing this help! Hugs!

I am reading all of Ryan’s responses until now. The inside information he provides is incredibly valuable, for example the questions that investors ask. Or how he discusses with his cast how they want to be directed or any concerns they may have or how the script changes during filming. I experienced this last part with a short film. The story I had in my head changed when I shot it and then again when I edited it, and I’m okay with that.

Thank you Stage 32 and Ryan for taking the time to answer each question and share your experiences with us.

Thank you for your supportive words, Ryan Little . Please keep us posted on your projects, and let us know how we can lend you support.

You're a rockstar, Ryan Little! Thank you for hosting such a wonderful AMA for us all!

Hey Ryan Little How did you go about finding and hiring your crew and cast? Did you do interviews? Did you use online websites or word of mouth?

Ryan Little What is your relationship with the screenwriter? Does he work for you or do you work for him? Is it totally collaborative? I've heard horror stories of disagreements between director and filmmaker.

Thanks for doing this Ryan Little . Love reading your responses. What would you say is your opinion of the best direction in any film that you have seen. It could be a whole film, or just a scene.