v., pitched, pitch·ing, pitch·es.
to approach or court in hope of a sale, approval, or interest
n.
a high-pressure sales talk

If you are an independent filmmaker you are no doubt aware of the painfully agonizing process associated with pitching a project. It of course all begins by developing the concept for your film, then writing a treatment and then a script. After that it is a matter of pooling the necessary funds – likely through selling most of your personal belongings, subletting your apartment – again – and sleeping on friends' couches for a few months, existing on little more than peanuts and canned goods – in order to secure all of the necessary equipment to begin shooting. Next comes editing, and no-doubt re-editing, and probably a little more editing. And after all of the above, or perhaps somewhere in the middle, you must somehow sum up in only a handful of minutes exactly what it is you are attempting to do, how you will go about accomplishing it and why anyone else should give a damn. Easy enough when talking casually amongst family and friends, but absolutely horrifying when standing in front of a panel of producers, buyers, distributors and programmers, each with a definite amount of money to dole out and an indefinite number of other individuals pitching ideas to them, feet tapping and watches ticking all the while. If only they knew how hard you have been working, how passionate you are…

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In the last fives years, the development in mobile phone technology has been astounding. Since the addition of video and camera features, the mobile phone has become a creative tool for filmmakers and visual artists alike. According to the Secretary-General of the International Telecommunications Union, an estimated 61% of the world’s population will own a mobile phone by the end of this year. Filmmaking has never been so accessible. The potential is huge.

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With the European Independent Film Festival on the horizon, my thoughts turn to 2008’s indie big-hitters and what it takes to win those coveted festival prizes.

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Introduction to Copyright Issues: Not Just for Music

We have all heard about the legal issues regarding the misuse of music samples, but more recently these concerns have been spotlighted relating to film. With the advent of online video services such as YouTube and file-sharing websites offering free downloadable video files, the film industry has met a formidable foe in tech-savvy generations.

However this is not the issue here. For independent filmmakers, the journey towards making their own film can bring many harsh obstacles that Hollywood players with big budgets can more easily avoid. One such concern may be in acquiring rights to use certain components on screen. As if independent filmmakers didn’t have enough concerns, they must always be aware of country-specific copyright laws with respect to their use of objects, buildings, music, etc. in their creations.

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So you’re an independent filmmaker and you’ve got it pretty tough. Filmmaking is an expensive business, and you have to tell your story with a limited budget. Worse, you’ve got to fight tooth and nail to find the revenue in the first place. If you work long and hard enough, you might finish your project on schedule and then it’s up to you to promote it, get it seen, take it to festivals, find a distributor and garner support. Not exactly a walk in the park, right? Try making your film in a war zone. Now that’s tough.

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In my quest, to collect more information about the situation of Hungarian Cinema today, I came across a talented independent filmmaker, Madarász István. He was brought to my attention because even though he never went to film school his movies win award after award from the U.S. throughout Hungary to Spain. Recently, he even got a grant for pitching a new project to a 15 producer panel at the Central European Pitch Forum. I decided to ask him; what is the secret to be a successful independent filmmaker in Hungary today?! His unique insight to the country’s changing film industry gives a new perspective that is sometimes hard to hear but certainly very true. He belongs to a new generation of filmmakers who are eager and ready to take on the film world only with their talent and hard work…

Download this article in Hungarian

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So after years of dreaming about being a filmmaker you decided to finally go for it. You begged, borrowed and maxed out your credit cards. The house had to be remortgaged and you even had to bail on the Christmas skiing holiday. You’ve seriously never been so bloody broke.

But you’ve got no regrets, you’ve made your film and the rest will be easy. But the fact is that it can be just as difficult to land a distribution deal. And after all the sacrifices and hard work, there is nothing more frustrating than the feeling that nobody will see your film.

Over the next few months in the lead up ECU 2008, I will go on an investigative mission to find out what the distribution options are for indie filmmakers today.

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For decades the film industry has suffered from a lack of female directors. But the tide looks to be finally turning with more and more chicks sitting in the director’s chair making some exceptional flicks. These filmmakers are determined not to let anything stand in their way of telling a story - even if that means working on storyboards whilst giving birth.

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Not many writers like the idea of having to pay people to look at their scripts. So why are an increasing number of them paying for the privilege of professional script reports? The clue may be in the word “professional”, but if that means Hollywood, which it invariably does, then can it really offer a benefit to writers in Europe?

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My father called me a few months ago to tell me “the big news,” the new Hungarian Studios are looking for talented and skilled film professionals. This is my time to leave the western world behind and finally go back home. Ten years ago, when I left Budapest, the only way someone could work in the film industry if they received their diploma from the College for Cinematic and Theater Arts or they had relatives in the field. The College accepted 16 people every three years for the film director track and the same was true for acting, cinematography, editing and similarly for television and theater majors. About seven hundred people applied for each major, some of them already in their forties, trying fifth or sixth time. After three rounds of elimination about 16 remained. The Hungarian film industry changed a great deal since then, as I found out.

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