Hello,

This is Ali And Akshay, and we are looking for  flim makers.

basically today in hollywood film industry most of the movies are based on novels,whereas we have about 25 scripts to narrate it to a good filmmaker, These Scripts are all from the Original ideas made by both of us, Done a Study over it,And looking out for Better Oppurtunites,

We Hope To Have a Positive Response From You                                                                                                                        Thanking You

                                                                                                                           Ali,Akshay

Dear Ali Akshay,

I am always interested in a good story. However, it takes money to make a movie. If you have the financing then I can move things along very quickly. If not, then, you'll have to wait in line. There are many people who approach me with scripts and stories. I don't mind. I hope one comes along that is good. But without financing it is a long process.

Roy

-----Original Message-----
From: mike ahuja
Sent: Wednesday, September 21, 2005 9:16 PM
To: Roy@nohoartsdistrict.com
Subject: Just liking your advice

roy

i read your posting on the noho site in regards to film investing and you are so so right. i just wanted to comment on that.

mike ahuja


Mike,

Thanks.

When I first came to Hollywood no one told me how this place worked. They all warned me, but they didn’t know how to explain the details. Perhaps, they were confused and discouraged about Hollywood. Perhaps, they didn’t want to be critical of a system they had no idea how to improve. Perhaps they were trying not to discourage me. Perhaps, they just didn’t want to spend the time and effort in instructing me. Perhaps, they didn’t care. For whatever the reason, I stumbled into this place like many talented, trained and naive dreamers.

After years of climbing walls, banging doors and listening to the local jargon of the wannabes, the sellouts, and the uninspired, a good friend informed me that I was not the only sincere person in Hollywood and that if I truly cared about myself and what I was trying to do here, I should stop wasting my time with those who were dying from the plague of star worshiping and search for those who were knowledgeable, experienced, successful and mentally healthy. This search was not as difficult as I had first thought it could be.

For one thing, I learned to use my common sense. If I met a person doing hard drugs, I learned quickly they were losers no matter how successful they seemed to be, initially. If they talked about the industry as if they were talking about the bottom line rather than the top of the line, I learned we had little in common and therefore further association wasn’t worth my time or effort. Experience taught me that there are some pretty despicable people who are very famous. And being around them for anything other than researching “the soon to be dead in this business” gives me no pleasure nor comfort and certainly has proven over the years that they too were a waste of time and effort. For one thing, I don’t think of despots as successful no matter how rich or famous they are.

On the flip side, there are some wonderful people who are successful and down to earth in LA. You will notice them by their friendly and helpful attitude. They will act unassuming and gracious. They will also understand your difficulties and recognize your talents and be encouraging and helpful. For these people realize talent is not limited to star breeding. Creative talent is not exclusively pedigree nor is talent born on an umbilical cord connected to powerful people. Many of the world’s greatest talents are from small farms, small towns, dirty inner cities, backwater regions and international communities where people have had to overcome great odds to arrive. These challenges have enlightened them and given them a certain desperate passion for expressing the realities of the human condition that the majority of the world experiences.

Yes, I have been taking notes. And these notes are my bible for how this place works and how it can work better. In this way I can help myself and others avoid the pitfalls and circumnavigate the myriad problems all of us face in this town, no matter who we are, famous or infamous. This column is expressly meant to reduce our time in admitting the realities of Hollywood by learning how to do good work within a system that is chaotic, cruel, indecent, arrogant, condescending, uninformed, unintelligible and insatiable. For those of us who survive, and love the art of entertainment, it seems imperative for us to help unknown talent succeed before they collapse from the heat and bitterness that pervades this somewhat marvelous entertainment industry.

Roy    (TOP)

Copyright 2005 Roy Ayers Baxter, Jr. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Reproduction of any kind is strictly prohibited without the expressed written permission of the copyright owner.

Roy,
How do you get investors for a film...where do you begin?
Pam – Northridge, CA

Pam,
At home. I’m assuming you are talking about a low-budget project. If you have a rich uncle who always wanted to be in the movie industry, he is your best chance of getting some money from an investor. 

Seriously, you must have a strong relationship with an investor or producer or production company, distributor or studio before they will ever commit to putting money in your hands. Even if you think you have a good package, one of the items sometimes missing from that package is a RELATIONSHIP WITH THE INVESTOR(S). Therefore, you must start investing a good portion of your time and energy into developing business skills that will appeal to investors. Once you appeal to an investor then you can start to build a relationship. 

One of the first steps is to write a business plan for your production company that will raise the money. All savvy investors will require such documents in order to decide whether you have done your homework (due diligence) and have made a good plan for cost, spending and profits. Second, you must have a professional budget for any movie, video, digital, pilot or short film your business plan proposes. Third, you must have resumes of all professional leaders (not stars) in your company who are going to spend the money invested. Include a strong CFO and Production Manager. Fourth, you must be a business entity (Corp, Partnership, LLC, etc.). Fifth, you must make contracts that cover your organization and the deals you make with other entities. Sixth, you must create a business account with a bank that will accept the investments. Seventh, get a good accountant or CFO who will keep you honest. Not only ethically, but honest when you evaluate your talents, skills, resources, time management and in your plans, hopes and dreams. 

All rights protected by Copyright 2004 Roy Ayers Baxter, Jr.
Reproduction without the permission of the copyright owner is prohibited.