Just laid off: Filmmaking or find a new job?

C

CubicleSlaved

New member
Hello all. I'm at a bit of a crossroads and thought i'd get some advice from the community.

I just got let go from my job on Friday and am considering my next move. I wasn't too passionate about what I was doing. Software Consultant/Computer Programming. The money was good but I never really woke up excited about my day.
Filmmaking, on the other hand, is my true calling. I hoped to be able to make a career out of it after slowly segueing from my current one. I had hoped to achieve this by doing small film projects on the side, getting some recognition, then raising money to do a feature, and hopefully building the momentum from there.
I suppose I can still do that, but I feel if I get another job as a programmer, I'd be back at square one - buying time before I really go for it.
I've been thinking: what if I didn't go back to IT immediately? What if I basically left that industry and planted my feet firmly in the indie film industry right away?

Risky? Yes. I do have bills. Rent, car note, cell phone, health insurance (maybe COBRA), etc. So those are some significant monthly expenditures. Eating would be nice also, but isn't compulsory. That's what ramen noodles are for. :)

I guess what I'm asking is What should I do?:
Should I go into a little debt while I figure things out? (I have zero credit card debt as it is...) About 10 grand in savings but that's it. The bills listed above would eat that away in no time.

Has anyone ever tried this? Are there some jobs I can get that pay the bills and such while I'm able to focus on writing, finishing my reading list, and planning projects during the majority of the day?

I've hit up Craigslist for DP jobs and such already. Seem to be slim pickings and I don't think one can scrape by on food copy and credit plus a hundred bucks once a month...
Besides, while enjoy doing my own photography, camera work, and lighting, my main focus is writing and directing. Craigslist is good for crew jobs here and there, but not so much writing/directing.

Do I need to get a retail job or something? What would allow me to get my shi* together without being a major distraction from my actual goal?

I want to change my life completely but am not exactly sure how to go about it. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks for listening.
 
I would say stick with the software consulting. You will not find any other way in film to make nearly the same money. But maybe you're just not going about it the right way. I can't work for anyone else. I cannot be an employee. It's just not in my blood. So I have my own company and pretty much set my own schedule. Yes, I have to be there for my clients, and yes sometimes I put in extra hours to get their stuff out the door, but I do not show up to a cubicle and work for some consulting company and I am not a 9-5 kind of guy. If I need to take a friday and a monday off to, say, go to Slamdance, like I did last week, I just tell the clients I'm going and make sure my work is caught up for them. If I need to take some time for a shoot, I just do it. My clients know I will get my work done, so they don't have to chain me to a desk. Plus, since just about every client came through some relationship, I tend to only work with cool people and generally people I can learn from.

If you were not happy about your software gig, is it because you just did crappy work for a crappy company?

I would advise against just any old crappy retail job, as they can be time consuming, provide NO money, and leave you tired. You get nothing out of them, but exhausted. I find that the software gig keeps my brain engaged, because I am always problem solving, so it's never a rut. This keeps me a lot more mentally alert in general for my film stuff.

I was like you for a while, biding my time until I got a "film career." But it's only this year that I've come to a new realization about this stuff. That I need to embrace both aspects of my life and join them. I am now very aware of what my software company can mean to my film company and vice versa, and this year I plan on joining the two into a sort of media company, and focus on more interactive and probably mobile apps that include both filmmaking and software.

I will be doing these for my own films anyway, so...why not?

Anyway, I know where you're coming from, so I hope that helps.
 
You should let people know what is your experience with film making and skill level before asking this kind of question. Have you ever finished a big film/video project before? I know lots of people graduated good 4 year film/video school with lots of experience and still can't find a good job. But I've also seen 1st year film/video student who had totally unrelated job before and making amazing stuff. Ask yourself first and if you think you're talented, you should try.
 
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Collect unemployment.

Look for a job.

Get a job.

While doing that job during the side pursue your filmmaking career. William Wheeler penned, "The Prime Gig" while he was working as a telemarketer.
He went on to be selected into the Sundance writing program and is a very
successful screenwriter today.

An author of a screenwriting book was once quoted to - don't give up your day job, pursue your dream, get there, then give up that job.

Now go get unemployment, find a job and be thankful your day job wasn't like William Wheeler's.
 
Im going to school to be an EMT/Paramedic. However, when I get a job as an EMT. I will be pursuing film on my days off. If I make it, great. I dont want to give up film. However, if dont make it, thats fine too. We're not all going to make it. We want to but it's not realistic. However, I do plan to one day move to L.A. and take a crack at it. At least you try, but don't give up your day job to pursue something that may never ever come to fruition. Unless you know for sure you can make a day job with your film making skills.
 
CubicleSlaved said:
and planted my feet firmly in the indie film industry right away?
Click to expand...
Well, there is no "indie film industry."

There's the freelance production industry, where you get paid $300 to $2000 a day to work freelance in production, and that may very occasionally involve independent film work, but it usually means television in one form or another. And you've got to be good because the competition is stiff. And you might work one or two days a week, depending on your market.

When working in independent film, the vast majority of the times folks will ask you to work for free, or at most $100/day.
 
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Get another decent paying job and dedicate your weekends to making films.

You'll probably be exhausted day after day, but if you really want it that bad, then you'll do what it takes to get there.
 
I was in a very similar position when I got laid off from my (relatively) decent desk job in March of 2009. I said "Hey, this is a perfect opportunity to really dive all the way into film!"

I'd been working my 9 to 5 and doing the odd freelance work nights and weekends. I thought it would be a good chance to go freelance all the way and live the dream of working for myself and doing what I love. I didn't so much work out for me... I tried many angles, too. Weddings, music vids, commercials, graphic design, web design, etc. It's slim pickings out there, unless I just have no idea what I'm doing at all.

I don't know what I could have done differently at this point, but since I lost that job I've managed to get two freelance music video jobs. Both paid peanuts, but they were all I could find. There's certainly not enough work to sustain me in the area and I'm sort of stuck here for now. The cherry on top is that I haven't even been able to find another 9 to 5. Not even flipping burgers or mopping floors. Nothing. I'm not eligible for unemployment since I had to move and my former employer was doing some shady business that has them currently under legal scrutiny. I've got bills to pay and collections are already beating down the door. Soooooo.... basically I'm boned. I'd hate to see someone else in that position, it sucks. Hard.

I wish you only the best of luck, and I hope you find happiness and fulfillment in whatever you end up with.
 
You don't mention where you live. If you are in a major city, you might pick up some work gripping or ? But unless you have the money behind you to survive a *long time* and have the *skills* to get work, you should go back to software consulting, and as many have said here, work in the video world until you have the skills. the worse thing that you can do is go into it undercapitalized and without the right gear and knowledge. Why? Because lots of folks with great skill and motivation work undercapitalized all the time and some do make it. The ones without either are sort of like dentists owning restaurants. just suckers throwing money at chefs. I spent many years in my 20s running a studio, and though we did well, we never had the money to make it. When the econony and our clients tanked, we were dead meat. My partner, who I sold out to, continued on eking out a living quite well for a number of years with some lucky work. It all worked out, but it was a hard road for him. So follow your dreams, but fund the homefront some other way.

"The best way to make a small fortune in film is to start with a large fortune" someone once said.
 
Thanks all for the abundance of replies. I definitely feel better about things and think I will follow a little bit of everyone's advice. I'll stay in IT but I'll try to do it on my terms. My goal is something with a flexible schedule. Possibly freelance work on my own so I can move filmmaking to the forefront a bit.

I'm in Houston by the way and have made several well recieved short films, the shortest of which won the audience favorite at the 48 Hour Film Project and the longest of which was 20 minutes and got a lot of great feedback.

I'd like to move to features now and am exploring ways to raise money to do that.

Hopefully being laid off will prove to be a blessing in disguise.

Thanks again guys.
 
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