Film Business Production

Barry Diller, one of America’s most successful businessmen, reveals himself here—his successes, failures, and struggles—with surprising candor and intimacy in a memoir rich in Hollywood lore and filled with business acumen. Writing in his singular voice, Barry Diller delivers an astute...

The Directors, Take Three offers dozens of masterful insights on the craft of directing from such renowned filmmakers as Robert Altman, Wes Craven, Alan Parker, Tim Burton, Steven Spielberg, and Barry Levinson. Here are details of their experiences making a variety of classic films from Nashville to Nightmare on Elm Street, Rain Man to Raging Bull, and Pee Wee's Big Adventure to Schindler's List.

Whether a novice curious about the cartoon production process, a visual arts student who has not yet experienced that big break, or a seasoned professional looking for valuable insight, Animation Development is the go-to guide for creating the perfect pitch.

Down and Dirty Pictures chronicles the rise of independent filmmakers and of the twin engines - the Sundance Film Festival and Miramax Films - that have powered them. Peter Biskind profiles the people who took the independent movement from obscurity to the Oscars, most notably Sundance founder Robert Redford and Harvey Weinstein, who with his brother, Bob, made Miramax an indie powerhouse.

Animation is a multibillion-dollar industry. Here’s an insider’s guide to getting into that industry, staying there, and getting ahead. Author David B. Levy has interviewed the top pros in animation, including Steven Hillenburg, creator of SpongeBob SquarePants; Al Brodax, producer of Yellow Submarine; Teddy Newton, character designer on The Incredibles; Linda Simensky, senior director of PBS Kids; John R. Dilworth, creator of Courage the Cowardly Dog; and dozens of others to get their insights....

It’s harder today than ever before for independent filmmakers to make money with their films. From predatory film distributors ripping them off to huckster film aggregators who prey upon them, the odds are stacked against the indie filmmaker. The old distribution model for making money with your film is broken, and there needs to be a change.

Veteran Hollywood writer David Rensin travels behind the scenes and through 65 years of show business history to tell the real stories of the marvelous careers that began - and in some cases ended - in the mailroom. Based on more than 200 interviews, Rensin unfolds the never-before-told history of an American institution - in the voices of the people who lived it. Through seven decades of glamour and humiliation, you'll go where the trainees go, do what they must do to get ahead, and hear the best insider stories from the Hollywood everyone knows about but no one really knows.

For 60 years, since the birth of United Artists, the studio landscape was unchanged. Then came Hollywood’s Circus Maximus---created by director Steven Spielberg, billionaire David Geffen, and Jeffrey Katzenberg, who gave the world The Lion King---an entertainment empire called DreamWorks.

More than 85 years after his untimely death at just age 37, Irving Thalberg remains a legendary Hollywood figure. Called the “Boy Wonder of Hollywood,” Thalberg quickly climbed the ranks at MGM studios to become one of the most powerful and high-profile producers of the time, elevating filmmaking to an art form. In this definitive biography, Bob Thomas brings Thalberg's legend to life, recounting how the producer's remarkable talent for developing stars and scripts led to the creation of beloved movies such as Ben-Hur, Romeo and Juliet, and Camille.

Harry Cohn was the cofounder and president of Columbia Pictures, which he ran from the 1930s through 1950s. Cohn—who abhorred personal publicity—left no writings, made no speeches, and rarely submitted to interviews. Despite this, acclaimed biographer Bob Thomas brilliantly illuminates the life of the powerful but elusive studio head in King Cohn: The Life and Times of Hollywood Mogul Harry Cohn. Thomas details the studio head's rise from a New York City song-plugger to a Poverty Row impresario, highlighting his reign as one of the most powerful men in Hollywood.

For filmmakers and video producers who struggle with sales and marketing. This book will help them build an automated marketing and lead generation system. Unlike DIY marketing efforts, which often rely on luck, this book offers a proven road map to building commercial confidence and attracting more clients. This book is for you if you run a small video production business and you want to position yourself to dominate your market, charge premium prices, and enjoy a six-figure video production empire!

Whether it is a director insisting on a final cut, a star demanding a bigger motor home, a producer holding the line on a budget, or a grip with a gripe, it seems that the world of moviemaking is nothing but Sturm und Drang. Shoot Out presents a raucous look at how movies get made and the players involved, from writers, producers, directors, and stars to agents and marketers. For film buffs, aspiring filmmakers, students, and anyone else intrigued by the inner workings of Hollywood, this is the quintessential take on the how, who, what, and why of the film business.

Michael E. Uslan, executive producer of the Batman movie franchise, offers an insider’s look at Hollywood and the process of how movies and television shows go from the drawing board to your screens. Continuing the delightful tale of his adventures begun in The Boy Who Loved Batman, Uslan draws on both his successful and less successful attempts to bring ideas to the screen, offering a helpful, honest, and breezily told guide to producing films.

In Vitagraph, Andrew A. Erish provides a comprehensive examination and reassessment of the company most responsible for defining and popularizing the American movie. This history challenges long-accepted Hollywood mythology that simply isn't true: that Paramount and Fox invented the feature film, that Universal created the star system, and that these companies, along with MGM and Warner Bros., developed motion pictures into a multimillion-dollar business.

10 Tips for Making a Final to Do List for Distributing Your Film summarizes the key tasks to do to successfully distribute your film. It features key marketing and promotion tasks, such as creating a poster, trailer, and press materials, setting up a website or page on your website for the film, making arrangements with a website, and more. The book is part of a series of short books, in which each book features tips and techniques for becoming more successful in the film industry.

Today's most acclaimed film directors reveal intimate behind-the-scenes details of their most influential work and their unique approaches to their art. In the companion to the Silver Plaque-winning Starz/Encore documentary series, this book offers interviews with 13 top filmmakers. Contains each director's filmography, complete listings of major awards, and cast credits for all films discussed.

In the book, you'll learn everything you need to know about AFM. What badge to buy, what projects to bring, what printed materials you need, and all important etiquette tips for maximizing your success at the American film market. Producers need to understand distribution to find success, and this guide is a primer for the most reliable way American filmmakers can find traditional, non-DIY distribution.

When did documentaries get glamorous? Documentary Superstars looks at the history of documentaries and traces their transition from hands-off to in your face. Exclusive interviews with Michael Moore, Morgan Spurlock, Errol Morris, George Clooney, Sacha Baron Cohen, Morgan Freeman, Al Gore, and more of the biggest names in the field show the impact of the documentary style on mainstream movies and on our society.

Indie Film Hustle presents I Made a Short Film Now WTF Do I Do with It, written by award-winning filmmaker Clarissa Jacobson. This indie film gem is jam-packed with hard-earned knowledge, tips, and secrets on how to enter film festivals, promote your movie; and succeed! I Made a Short Film Now WTF Do I Do with It covers everything from what festivals to submit to, how to maximize your money, secure an international presence, deal with rejection, gain publicity, harness the power of social media, what a sales rep does, and much more.

Hollywood produces its on-screen heroes to take crucial steps to achieve their goals, and often against all odds. These same principles can be applied to anything you are seeking to accomplish or improve in your own story or life. Recognizing and following these proven and tested, cinematic stages of the hero's transformation will help you exponentially upgrade your process, mindset, awareness, and ultimately fine-tune your purpose.