The fact that filmmaking is both an art and a science rarely eludes those in the industry. Unfortunately, the critical element that escapes the attention of most is the actual business of filmmaking. Actors like Meryl Streep, Robert Downey Jr., and Sandra Bullock were able to rise to the top and find sustainability in their craft because of their business acumen.

Producers, directors, production designers, and even grips, gaffers and best boys all must understand the basics of business to survive. Most have learned that 80% of their work comes from their previous project, while the remaining 20% comes from networking during breaks, hiatus and down time.

In the film and television industry every person is a branded product/service. Some are stronger brands than others, but all are brands even if by a default setting based on ones personality and work ethic. Those who understand that their brand must produce like a corporate product; the business of filmmaking can become profitable.

I’ve found that everyone in film and television can become profitable when they properly execute the 6 critical steps in the filmmaking business.

1. Set a Goal: Picking one specific end-point or achievement for the year is better than setting two or three weaker goals. The goal must be achievable, clear and the object of your ambition with obvious benefits. It can be put into a clear goal statement for the purpose of focus and must suggest some form of measurement that reveals when the destination was met or accomplished. It can also be a multi-year goal, but profitable businesses require at least one goal per year to maintain sound business practices.

SAMPLE 1: Actor Ms. Royale, set a goal to star in a feature film within three years.

SAMPLE 2: Actor Ms. Poplar, set a goal to obtain 1,000 fans.

2. Establish Measurable Objectives: All good goals can be measured in multiple ways. To fulfill the goal, objectives must be set that assesses all the important ways the goal can be measured. Most goals produce 1-3 measureable objectives.

SAMPLE 1: Actor Ms. Royale, set the following objectives:
A). Star in a short film that is submitted to 40 award festivals.
B). Win a Best Actor award for her role in the short film.
C). Send publicity about award to 100 feature casting directors, producers, and directors.

SAMPLE 2: Actor Ms. Poplar, set the following objectives:
A). Develop relationships with 50 arts and entertainment news editors.
B). Hire a publicist to create 12 newsworthy press releases.
C). Create a fan page and fill it with 3 posts per week.

3. Assess S.W.O.T.: Once the direction is set and its clear how to measure the results, the most important thing is conducting a true assessment of your strengths and weaknesses, and doing the same for the competition. Since the competitive information is being assessed from your viewpoint, it’s important to label the competition’s strengths as threats, and their weaknesses as opportunities. It’s also important that all S.W.O.T. inputs be truthful for the sake of developing powerful strategies.

SAMPLE 1: Actor Ms. Royale, drafted the following assessment:
STRENGTH: Years of modeling, commercial and television experience.
WEAKNESS: Not known among the film community and never tracked fans.
OPPORTUNITY: Can easily win head to head talent competition against Ms. Poplar.
THREAT: Politics within existing networks might block her entry.

SAMPLE 2: Actor Ms. Poplar, set the following assessment:
STRENGTH: Standout attractiveness, charismatic personality, well networked and had role in a highly visible film.
WEAKNESS: Is a beginning actor with little instruction.
OPPORTUNITY: Can use politics and a large fan base to help promote ticket sales and block Ms. Royale from acquiring roles.
THREAT: Once she learns how to network, Ms. Royale’s experience might overshadow or dominate in the market.

4. Develop Strategies: Up to this point our competitive information comes from intuition, observation and market conditions. Tying the information to our S.W.O.T. and by using the ability within our network, fan base or entourage forms the development of our strategies. All great strategies are specific and tied directly to one objective.

SAMPLE 1: Actor Ms. Royale, created the following strategies for the objective of starring in a short film submitted to awards:
A). Network with award winning writer/director to create an award winning short film.
B). Network with cast and crew to pull together a high quality low budget short.
C). Raise funds to cover festival submissions.

SAMPLE 2: Actor Ms. Poplar, created the following strategies for the objective of developing relationships with A&E news editors:
A). Hire a publicist to create press releases.
B). Offer “exclusive” interviews laced with name-dropping.
C). Develop campaigns to co-promote the editors and their rags.

5. Create an Implementable Action Plan: Every specific strategy will have a minimum of one action plan. Larger and more comprehensive strategies may require additional action plans to clarify achievements in various markets or channels. The action plan is developed to the level of including all resources, timetables, and activity punch lists necessary to accomplish the task. The more critical or the larger the strategy, the more action plans are required to meet the overarching objective measurements.

SAMPLE 1: Actor Ms. Royale, created the following action plan to fulfill the strategy of networking with an award winning writer/director to create an award winning short film:

The action plan included:
A). Names and contact info of award winning writer/directors.
B). Specific dates and times to contact each writer/director.
C). Questions to ask the writer/director.
D). A drafted working arrangement or deal memo.
E). An outline of emotions needing to be exhibited by the main character.
F). Notes taken to determine best person for project.

SAMPLE 2: Actor Ms. Poplar, created the following action plan for the strategy of hiring a publicist to create press releases:

The action plan included:
A). Names and contact info of recommended publicists.
B). Specific dates and times to contact each publicist.
C). Questions to ask the publicist.
D). A drafted working arrangement or deal memo.
E). An outline of promotional ideas or angles on stories to discuss.
F). Notes taken to determine best person for project.

6. Evaluate Your Performance Regularly: Schedules and objectives can’t be met without some form of evaluating the effectiveness of the plan and any related market changes requiring adaptability. These assessments must be honest and suggest plan B’s and market counter measures when needed. The evaluations are more than just a postmortem, as they must engage ideas for improving and advancing the strategies.

SAMPLE 1: Actor Ms. Royale, evaluated the following activities from her action plan:

A). The successful selection of an award winning writer/director.
B). The brainstormed story concept and its match to the emotions needing to be exhibited by the main character.
C). The establishment of a writing schedule for the first draft.
D). The review of the next action plan, its timetable and required resources.

SAMPLE 2: Actor Ms. Poplar, evaluated the following activities from her action plan:

A). The hiring of the publicists.
B). The brainstormed outline of press releases for the first quarter.
C). The development of a new action plan to generate photos for the press releases.
D). The discussed style of the writing.

The key to the business of filmmaking is to make sure each step does what its supposed to do.

Goal – Set the direction and vision for the general accomplishment.
Objective – Turn the goal into something measurable so the work process is functional and operational.
S.W.O.T. – Understand the true facts about the brand, competitor and market to facilitate working strategies.
Strategies – Programs or initiatives that direct and influence specific tactical actions.
Action Plans – The blue print of daily tactical activities including dates/times, resources, and other detail necessary to execute strategy.
Evaluation – The documenting of the outcome for postmortem discussions and expedient adjustments.

Those who are able to put these elements in writing, perform the work, and analyze the effectiveness of each step are the ones who will dominate the industry within a short time frame. People and businesses come and go in the film and television industry, but those who stay are successful because they understand the business.

Copyright © 2015 by CJ Powers

Here is a recent article I wrote for an India newspaper.

Travel was a large part of my career for several years. Business took me to 26 countries with many repeat trips. My lifestyle was in contrast to those I worked with overseas, but thanks to English being embraced by many cultures as a second language, I was able to function well among those that I served.

When I was a consultant for a global food company, I had a back office fulfilling my follow up work for the client. My skills were put to use in strategic endeavors and the back office team, which was located in India, handled the tactical work. We developed processes that simplified the cultural gaps and encouraged weekly conference calls to verify workloads.

It didn’t matter if I was in another country or I was working with teammates that lived outside of the United States, all situations required someone to bend their culture to meet the needs of the other. Seldom did both parties meet in the middle. The majority of the time the person in a weaker position or the person from a more passive culture adapted to the other’s philosophy.

Since that time I’ve had several associates move from India to America. They feel a little overwhelmed by the assertive people that now surround them and try to avoid those who are more aggressive. A couple of them even tried to become more bold to fit in with the strong Chicago culture, but they quickly back off when confronted.

Culture shock tends to show up when a person moves between cultures. Signs of this experience present itself in the form of sleepiness, depression, apathy, compulsive eating, negative stereotyping of nationals, and a lowered immune system.

Every traveler can overcome culture shock symptoms by focusing on four coping mechanisms.

1. Acknowledge New Surroundings as Unique. Most new locations have a set of unique smells, sounds and sights. By acknowledging the differences as something remarkable or memorable, it can be embraced as positive. This new experience can then be viewed as an opportunity to grow and expand ones horizons beyond that of their peers or relatives.

2. Listen and Learn about New Expressions of Feelings. The sharing of feelings differs between cultures and can appear strange or awkward until we understand the meaning behind the expressions. Being patient with others is key. By carefully asking questions to understand the sensitivities behind each expression, we can bring a new form of enlightenment to our understanding of what is really being shared behind the spoken words.

3. Exercise and Eat Healthy. New environments tend to make us homesick for mom’s cooking, but few of us are able to take mom and her groceries on the road. Instead of wishing we could eat similar foods from our past, we can choose to see our new circumstances as an opportunity to expand our palate. Making sure we exercise daily will increase our circulation and provide us with a more discernable mindset, allowing us to become a connoisseur of fine international dining.

4. Develop New Local Friendships. Confidence comes when we fit in to our surroundings. By developing friendships that are active within our new location, we can get involved in uplifting challenges. Activities with a new friend might include taking a class together or joining an intermural sports team. Simple short-term experiences like attending a concert, art festival or movie can create memorable moments that we cherish.

These four proactive steps empower a person to accept their new circumstances and take positive control of their life. The stability can calm our feelings and give us hope in a greater future than before we traveled.

I’ll never forget traveling to Shenzhen, China. The first night was filled with loneliness and the unknown. I was in a hotel that served familiar meals, but the moment I left the building for a walk, I found myself in a very different culture.

Walking to the right a few blocks took me into the rundown streets where the locals lived. Walking to the left from the hotel placed me in an area that was being set up for a great festival to celebrate traveling dignitaries. The contrast within a few blocks made me feel uneasy.

On another night, our team from America shared a dinner with our counterparts that were local to the area. The meal was not familiar and made me lose my appetite. We were served fish heads, eyeballs, kangaroo tail, and monkey brains. I couldn’t tell if I was being served delicacies or food mislabeled as a joke, but it made me feel uncomfortable.

After the meal I realized that I needed to embrace the experience as a positive one, so I started asking the nationals about their language. It was based on pictures and had changed three times over the centuries. The one man was curious, so he drew words and had me guess what they were.

He shared simple words like restroom, bus, man, woman and other things a person might see daily. I got 100% of the words correct from the original language, but I only got 50% of the new language right. He was amazed at how well I did and then poured out his frustration about how the new generation makes it difficult for the older generation to communicate.

In that moment we connected. A new friendship formed from our joint understanding and experience. By acknowledging my surroundings as unique, asking the man questions that allowed him to share his feelings, we developed a friendship that made me feel liked I belonged.

The rest of the trip was a blessing because my fears and loneliness had vanished. I had found a way to cope in my new circumstances that allowed me to function fully. I was now more a part of their culture than my uninterested co-workers.

These simple coping mechanisms allowed me to thrive in the new environment, while those who didn’t adjust suffered. On the last day of the trip it was hard leaving my new friends, but my peers couldn’t wait to get home.

I had risen above the culture shock and took great stories home to share with my friends and family. My associates on the other hand, took little more than a few souvenirs back and soon forgot about the great experiences we shared in China.