Film Business Plan (Continued)

In my previous blog post I discussed film business plans and two experts in this area who have provided a lot
of insight on this subject for filmmakers.  Please check out my previous blog post for some of these experts’ tips.  In this blog post, I would like to discuss what I have learned from these two experts and how I plan to incorporate my new knowledge in my own film business plan.  Film business plans are different from other business plans in that every single film project becomes its own business with a business plan and pitch.  Ryan Colucci and Kevin Geiger are two well established filmmakers with a lot of experience under their belt.  Anything that they have to say on the matter of film business plans is worth listening to because clearly they have been doing something right in order to get to where they are today.

Ryan Colucci’s tips include much of what I already knew, or at least understood while reading them.  However, they are very important, are worth the reminder and are helpful to have on hand to reference while writing up a business plan.  The most important reminders for me are to not oversell a project or film and to be conservative when comparing numbers to other projects.  When excited and passionate about a project, it can be pretty easy to be tempted to talk your project up and compare it to other big projects.  Yet, it is important to remember that investors are looking for complete and accurate information.

Kevin Geiger’s insight is quite a bit more in-depth.  In his video workshop, he reminds us to do our research for the business plan and pitch so that we make sure we know what we are talking about.  The two tips that I found most helpful from Geiger are that the business plan and the pitch go hand-in-hand.  If one is weak, it’s “no good”.  The other tip I found very helpful was to keep in mind that the entire business model should be summarized in ten slides.  If you can’t do it in ten slides, Geiger says that you don’t know what you are talking about.  Another important thing that I must keep in mind while preparing my business plan and pitch is that investors are not interested in the story.  They are simply interested in knowing how they would get their money back and make more as an end result.

So, as I write my business plan, I am taking heed of this advice.  I am making sure that I am accurate, complete, and concise, being conservative with my numbers, conducting all the necessary research in order to be fully informed, and remaining organized.  That is what I have learned, hopefully most of you will be walking away with a little more knowledge and feeling more confident as you begin tackling your own business plans.  Good luck!