So, here we go. The most important, though possibly most obvious, thing I can tell you about making movies:

Essentially, getting an indie film – or really, any film – made is building a three-legged stool:

You need a good script. You need a strong cast. And you need the money.

Once you have those three things, you can start production.

And, interestingly, if you have two of those things, the third quickly falls into place.

Get a script and attach some name actors, and you can easily raise the money.

Get the money and that same script, and suddenly actors (and their agents) will come on board.

The challenge, then, is when you have only one of those three legs. When you have, say, just the script. That’s the position that most young directors are in – they have a script, perhaps even a very good script. But they don’t have either financing or stars.

At which point, putting together the film becomes a giant game of chicken. You have to bullshit the cast about the money, and the money about the cast, and then hope it all comes together.

It works, sort of, sometimes. But not consistently or repeatably. So, while next up, we’ll be looking at jobs – and at what you should be trying to get out of them – keep in mind that, atop the list, is developing the ability to bring those three legs together on film after film. Because if you can do that, congratulations: you have a career.