Learn the exact blueprint I used to go from a struggling videographer, to running a profitable video production business, in this one-hour free training. www.filmmakingmentor.com/Video_Production_Accelerator_Opt_In
This is the stuff that no one is talking about when someone is diving into the filmmaking world it takes away so much. Thank you for talking about this!
This may be the best video I have ever seen on UA-cam. I'm a 57 year old semi retired physician who has been working in earnest to learn video production skills for over seven years. In spite of my life experience and educational background it may be the most difficult thing I have ever attempted. Your video has encouraged me keep pushing on. Respect and gratitude.
For me, one of the biggest challenges is managing expectations. 'Clients' expect top notch service with instant turn over on a shoe string budget. They have their own image of what they think they want, but its pulling teeth to get them to do a meeting and go over things. And to teach them where the limits are, and how were going to be creative within the resources we have. To them, they get nervous about that and get skittish. Hell, even I must admit I feel that way when I'm about to approach someone I have not worked with before. Cause its another one of those, "here we go again..."
Great talk about the stress of always worrying about the next freelance job. I've been freelancing for 15+ years and although I have some great steady clients it's always in the back of my mind that if one or two of them stop calling, then I may be in trouble making ends meet.
@@Filmmakingmentor does your course provide guidance on proper contracts to put in front of clients for video projects? Tried to find ones online but they never seem to cover the scope of the work we do as video producers.
Thanks for this video, its something not everybody talks about and I've been going over exhaustively and revaluating what I actually want from this type of work.
Shout it from the rooftops! Clients don't know the difference between full frame and MFT. If gear is the main motivation, i bet those tools will sit collecting dust. There's always something else to buy.
Congratulations on your course man! So far has been extremely helpful. The timing of your release for me was absolutely perfect. I’ve already assembled a great crew and about to get my LLC set up. Your shared experience is helpful as I also have been dreading that set life, but this path seems so much more clearer. I hope to hear more videos if not podcasts about your journey as I’m trying to replicate a very similar way with less mistakes. Thank you again cheers
Wow this is truly gold...i am 30 yrs old from India and going through same journey. I just took initiative starting my own production company...i don't have that much gear. But i think i can pull it off.. now although i am sad for not making movies and somewhere in the corner of my heart i hope to do it in future. But right the need of the hour is to make money and get stability. Thanx for sharing this...i am pretty scared. What will happen.And my takeaway from this video is to invest in marketing. God bless you man 👍
Thanks. I'm in that dark moment. Just crashed HARD. I couldn't even finish my last semester of film school. On one hand I want to grind and get better at cinematography. On the other, this is extremely hard and deep down I know it's unsustainable.
Get a job with as a DP with an established company where they pay you a good salary, benefits etc. Most companies such as Marriott etc now have entire media departments with those roles because they need to keep their social media content going 24/7. Then you can use their equipment for your side projects evenings and weekends too. It's a win/win!
I only want to make one film and to make millions of dollars. And just buy a house and live a solitude life. Just build a wall around the house and just be by myself. I thought it would be that simple. They didn't teach that in college... I had to find out for myself. I realized that I have to deal with people and be on TV and do interviews. I am not interested in doing that. Dealing with mean stuck up people. I learned from other people that the film industries are evil. I didn't mean to compete with other people or to get some actors off of backstage and other sites... showing my ID and all. Since I am 50 something years old...
I kind of started out like you and found life on the set was too much. I got bit by the French lifestyle bug after traveling around Europe and enjoy a 7 or 8 hour work day, a leisurely dinner, relaxing with family and friends. I recently worked on a set, 17 years after my last one, and it was brutal. I remember getting home, wife asleep, I got up in the morning before her and left for work. After all that lost time, the film wasn't anything I'd even watch.
Wow!! Thanks for this information. Am new to your channel and from the few videos I've seen you talk on having your own video production company over freelancing. To be honest, I really don't understand there differences. Can you help with that?
I have your same thoughts on all of my decisions, I always go for the top in a profession. In a factory I was a foreman, in a traveling band I was the leader. Now in the IT dept. I am the sysop. I never liked life as a grunt. Now for a more down to earth subject. "Stuff-Itis!!" It's a gentrification of our community of content creators. It's sad, my favorite youtuber video/photo focused types are the ones that are shooting great videos with composure, technique, wisdom and knowledge but using only a 1000 dollar class camera!! Those dudes amaze me. Their videos are better then some prat with a 10,000 dollar red cam with no ideas, creativity, composure at all. Now this "Bokah/Toneh thing is where on my nerves, can't wait till those fad promulgating billionaire boys get over that one.
That’s the nature of the business, unfortunately. You never know where your next job is going to come from. What makes it worse is when the client goes beyond the budgeted time and you end up losing money because your contract doesn’t cater for a project going from 1 month to 3. Only a select few can rely on reasonably reliable work. That’s why I got out of it.
Hi Saj, First of all, kudos to you! It's amazing that you are sharing all of this information and all of the knowledge, thank you so much. You have really helped me shift my mindset to go from a freelancer to hopefully starting my own video production company in a few months. So thank you for this! The thing is, in the last videos you talk about the importance of focusing on your niche, starting your own company, not buying new gear, and focusing on sales and marketing and I understand that. But I would greatly appreciate it if you can make a video about that because I feel that is missing. For example, could you show us how you created your landing page? The type of ads you ran and the type of copy that you used. I went on your website and I couldn't find it. You probably discuss this in your course (congratulations!). Sadly, I'm at the point where I can't make such an investment right now. But maybe you could share some snippets to send us in the right direction. Regardless, thank you for everything once again :)
Yea for sure. I’ll make videos about some of this. Yea the course is really the full detailed 100+ videos on exactly this system but I understand everyone is not a position to make the investment. Also, landing pages are not part of the website meaning they are not in the menu of the website. I run my ads or organic content directly to them. Even if you look at my course page, I’m using the same general principles of what a landing page should have. For a service business, it’s more design to capture leads and not sell directly, but most of it is the same. I’ll work on some more tactical videos I can post on UA-cam.
@@Filmmakingmentor , thank you for taking the time to respond! And yes I saw it, it really looked great so far! And hmmm, that makes sense. But if you could indeed show like the type of ads and copy you use that would be great. I also just took another look at your course page, and I can now see the same general principles you are talking about. I will use some of your strategies as inspirations when I will be creating some of my own. Looking forward to more videos of you, thanks!
Ohky so is it possible to be employed not as a freelancer in a production video company but for a position that may make you have a control of your future such as a permanent post wheather in freelancing or not?If so do you think you would have felt struggling the way you did?
Learn the exact blueprint I used to go from a struggling videographer, to running a profitable video production business, in this one-hour free training.
www.filmmakingmentor.com/Video_Production_Accelerator_Opt_In
This is the stuff that no one is talking about when someone is diving into the filmmaking world it takes away so much. Thank you for talking about this!
This may be the best video I have ever seen on UA-cam. I'm a 57 year old semi retired physician who has been working in earnest to learn video production skills for over seven years. In spite of my life experience and educational background it may be the most difficult thing I have ever attempted. Your video has encouraged me keep pushing on. Respect and gratitude.
For me, one of the biggest challenges is managing expectations. 'Clients' expect top notch service with instant turn over on a shoe string budget. They have their own image of what they think they want, but its pulling teeth to get them to do a meeting and go over things. And to teach them where the limits are, and how were going to be creative within the resources we have. To them, they get nervous about that and get skittish. Hell, even I must admit I feel that way when I'm about to approach someone I have not worked with before. Cause its another one of those, "here we go again..."
My biggest struggle comes from living is such a small town. But I'm still fighting.
Great talk about the stress of always worrying about the next freelance job. I've been freelancing for 15+ years and although I have some great steady clients it's always in the back of my mind that if one or two of them stop calling, then I may be in trouble making ends meet.
Yea I hear that. I think it’s a pretty common feeling in this line of work
@@Filmmakingmentor does your course provide guidance on proper contracts to put in front of clients for video projects? Tried to find ones online but they never seem to cover the scope of the work we do as video producers.
Yea I have a contract template and go over how to create a proposal that defines scope of work. It’s the same one that we use
Really appreciate the sharing of your experience behind the scenes. thq
Thanks for this video, its something not everybody talks about and I've been going over
exhaustively and revaluating what I actually want from this type of work.
Thanks for this honest Video, important Lessons for all freelancers
Shout it from the rooftops! Clients don't know the difference between full frame and MFT. If gear is the main motivation, i bet those tools will sit collecting dust. There's always something else to buy.
Only if you buy wrong tools or you simply buy tools and nothing else
Clients don’t care what camera you use. Clients just want a video that looks good.
Thank you so much Saj!
Congratulations on your course man! So far has been extremely helpful. The timing of your release for me was absolutely perfect. I’ve already assembled a great crew and about to get my LLC set up. Your shared experience is helpful as I also have been dreading that set life, but this path seems so much more clearer. I hope to hear more videos if not podcasts about your journey as I’m trying to replicate a very similar way with less mistakes. Thank you again cheers
Much appreciated!
Wow this is truly gold...i am 30 yrs old from India and going through same journey. I just took initiative starting my own production company...i don't have that much gear. But i think i can pull it off.. now although i am sad for not making movies and somewhere in the corner of my heart i hope to do it in future. But right the need of the hour is to make money and get stability. Thanx for sharing this...i am pretty scared. What will happen.And my takeaway from this video is to invest in marketing. God bless you man 👍
Thanks. I'm in that dark moment. Just crashed HARD. I couldn't even finish my last semester of film school. On one hand I want to grind and get better at cinematography. On the other, this is extremely hard and deep down I know it's unsustainable.
Get a job with as a DP with an established company where they pay you a good salary, benefits etc. Most companies such as Marriott etc now have entire media departments with those roles because they need to keep their social media content going 24/7. Then you can use their equipment for your side projects evenings and weekends too. It's a win/win!
@@enumajek1764 thanks. This is a good idea.
I only want to make one film and to make millions of dollars. And just buy a house and live a solitude life. Just
build a wall around the house and just be by myself.
I thought it would be that simple. They didn't teach that in college... I had to find out for myself.
I realized that I have to deal with people and be on TV and do interviews. I am not interested in doing that.
Dealing with mean stuck up people.
I learned from other people that the film industries are evil.
I didn't mean to compete with other people or to get some actors off of backstage and other sites... showing my ID and all.
Since I am 50 something years old...
I kind of started out like you and found life on the set was too much. I got bit by the French lifestyle bug after traveling around Europe and enjoy a 7 or 8 hour work day, a leisurely dinner, relaxing with family and friends. I recently worked on a set, 17 years after my last one, and it was brutal. I remember getting home, wife asleep, I got up in the morning before her and left for work. After all that lost time, the film wasn't anything I'd even watch.
Yea it’s definitely my experience too. Set life is a beast and certainly not for everyone
Thank you! I am trying to figure out the networking and marketing part. Its hard for sure. Im just trying to learn as much as I can and network.
I love the transparency.
Damn, going through this right now. I have two kids, so I struggle a lot with being away for weeks at a time. Thanks man.
I will always wait for your videos...
Needed that. Thank you!
I must confess, your videos are a revelation for me.
Your view on the business help me a lot!! And I mean A LOT!!
Thanks for sharing your views. ❤
My pleasure! Happy to help
Wow!! Thanks for this information. Am new to your channel and from the few videos I've seen you talk on having your own video production company over freelancing.
To be honest, I really don't understand there differences. Can you help with that?
Hi I made a video about the difference Freelancer vs. Video Production Company - Which one is better?
ua-cam.com/video/d-Si5TWgWtE/v-deo.html
I have your same thoughts on all of my decisions, I always go for the top in a profession. In a factory I was a foreman, in a traveling band I was the leader. Now in the IT dept. I am the sysop. I never liked life as a grunt. Now for a more down to earth subject. "Stuff-Itis!!" It's a gentrification of our community of content creators. It's sad, my favorite youtuber video/photo focused types are the ones that are shooting great videos with composure, technique, wisdom and knowledge but using only a 1000 dollar class camera!! Those dudes amaze me. Their videos are better then some prat with a 10,000 dollar red cam with no ideas, creativity, composure at all. Now this "Bokah/Toneh thing is where on my nerves, can't wait till those fad promulgating billionaire boys get over that one.
That’s the nature of the business, unfortunately. You never know where your next job is going to come from. What makes it worse is when the client goes beyond the budgeted time and you end up losing money because your contract doesn’t cater for a project going from 1 month to 3. Only a select few can rely on reasonably reliable work. That’s why I got out of it.
Speaking truth out here!
Hi Saj,
First of all, kudos to you! It's amazing that you are sharing all of this information and all of the knowledge, thank you so much. You have really helped me shift my mindset to go from a freelancer to hopefully starting my own video production company in a few months. So thank you for this!
The thing is, in the last videos you talk about the importance of focusing on your niche, starting your own company, not buying new gear, and focusing on sales and marketing and I understand that. But I would greatly appreciate it if you can make a video about that because I feel that is missing.
For example, could you show us how you created your landing page? The type of ads you ran and the type of copy that you used. I went on your website and I couldn't find it.
You probably discuss this in your course (congratulations!). Sadly, I'm at the point where I can't make such an investment right now. But maybe you could share some snippets to send us in the right direction.
Regardless, thank you for everything once again :)
Yea for sure. I’ll make videos about some of this. Yea the course is really the full detailed 100+ videos on exactly this system but I understand everyone is not a position to make the investment.
Also, landing pages are not part of the website meaning they are not in the menu of the website. I run my ads or organic content directly to them.
Even if you look at my course page, I’m using the same general principles of what a landing page should have.
For a service business, it’s more design to capture leads and not sell directly, but most of it is the same. I’ll work on some more tactical videos I can post on UA-cam.
@@Filmmakingmentor , thank you for taking the time to respond! And yes I saw it, it really looked great so far!
And hmmm, that makes sense. But if you could indeed show like the type of ads and copy you use that would be great.
I also just took another look at your course page, and I can now see the same general principles you are talking about. I will use some of your strategies as inspirations when I will be creating some of my own.
Looking forward to more videos of you, thanks!
Men, this one hit home, thanks
Just great 🙌
Ohky so is it possible to be employed not as a freelancer in a production video company but for a position that may make you have a control of your future such as a permanent post wheather in freelancing or not?If so do you think you would have felt struggling the way you did?
Where can I watch your doc?
It's on Vimeo and I have educational distribution, so it's in colleges and libraries. vimeo.com/ondemand/louderthanwords
Good stuff as always. I want to learn more about filmmaking too so checking out the channel
On the regular. Hope you are well
Hey angel. Long time no see. Thanks for the comment
I follow you like a religion 😁