Turning my freelance into a real production company (help needed)

[PegLeg Media]

So me and my friends have been working freelance jobs we find on craigslist and calling ourselves Pegleg Media (www.PeglegMedia.com) - We need help and advice on turning this freelance hobby into an actual production company. What do we need to do to make it official? Tax wise and forming an LLC or INC etc...

I'm sure a lot of you started out the same way. So other than finding jobs on craigslist, emailing and calling random companies and doing work for websites like www.DemandStudios.com - how should we go about getting more business? Any advice on making ourselves official? Anything else we need to know? 2 of the 3 of us just lost our jobs so we are ready to go full time. We are also trying to find a place we can live and work out of at the same time. Maybe a house with a studio/editing suite downstairs and bedrooms/bathrooms upstairs? is this a good idea? is there a way to search for an office/living space online, would it have a certain name?

Thanks all!

 

[bill totolo]

None of this is really as by the numbers as it looks, it all depends on you. Here's one approach:

Step 1) Get an accountant, set up some kind of corporation so you have a Federal Tax ID, and get insurance.
Step 2) Set up a website and shoot a demo reel for the type of work you wish to specialize in, make it great.
Step 3) Create a solid, reliable, creative, experienced team (PrePro, prod, post, graphic artists, etc).
Step 4) This is the hard one, get clients. You may need an agent, or even a salesman to introduce you to clients.

Good luck.