How to Finance Your Film Between $250K - $1MM

Learn from a producer, distributor, and finance pro with 20+ years of experience who is an EP on a film starring Al Pacino and Anthony Hopkins

Get 7 templates and examples, plus live Q&A with Michelle Alexandria, so you can start financing your film with confidence!

A budget between $250K and $1MM is where your film stops being a passion project and starts becoming a feature that can compete. At this level, you can gain access to recognizable cast, experienced department heads, stronger production value, tax incentives, and real distribution opportunities, but only if your financing is built to support them. In this webinar, you'll learn how experienced independent producers finance and package a film at this budget level, so you can build a project that makes sense creatively, financially, and commercially.

Raising up to $1MM takes more than finding one investor and building a budget, and this is where many filmmakers get stuck or get burned. You might choose a location before evaluating incentives, spend heavily on talent who adds little sales value, or go into production without understanding your distribution potential. You might even count on financing that isn't actually there when cameras are supposed to roll. Every one of these mistakes is expensive, and every one of them is avoidable. The key is learning to think like a producer, a financier, and a distributor at the same time, so you can protect your budget, your investors, and the long-term value of your film before you ever call action.

Your instructor, Michelle Alexandria, has seen independent film from every side of the table. As a Producer, distributor, and film finance professional with more than 20 years of experience, she has financed, packaged, sold, and distributed feature films in the global marketplace. She is President of Light Year Pictures, a member of the Producers Guild of America, and a former Head of International Sales and Acquisitions who has attended Cannes, Berlin, AFM, and the world's other major film markets for more than two decades. Michelle is an Executive Producer on the upcoming biopic MASERATI: THE BROTHERS, starring Al Pacino and Anthony Hopkins and directed by Academy Award® winner Bobby Moresco. She also produced ETHAN ALMIGHTY, starring Brandon Routh, Selma Blair, and Kelsey Grammer, which recently secured distribution with Arclight. Through her Stage 32 consultations, she gives filmmakers just like you practical, real-world guidance on how the independent film business actually works.

Over the course of this session, you'll walk through the full path from script to marketplace. You'll determine whether your film is a $1 million film and whether there's a market for it, build your budget and financing plan, and use tax incentives to choose where to shoot. You'll also package your project with cast that carries real marketplace value, and learn when to greenlight and when to bring in sales agents and distributors. You'll have the chance to ask Michelle your own questions live in the Q&A, and you'll receive seven ready-to-use handouts, including a sample investor agreement, a film financing template, a bank wire template, a slate sheet template, a one-sheet example, a sample distribution agreement, and a crew deal memo template. You'll walk away knowing exactly how to finance your film, protect your investors, and build a project that producers, financiers, sales agents, and distributors will want to say yes to.

PLUS! You will receive the following handouts to help you:

• Sample Investor Agreement
• Film Financing & Development Funds Template
• Bank Wire Template & Example
• Slate Sheet Template
• Film One-Sheet Example
• Sample Distribution Agreement
• Crew Deal Memo Template

Praise for Michelle’s Past Teaching with Stage 32

“I learned so much from Michelle about how to break into the film/tv industry. There's so much to learn about the craft and business of working in this industry and I'm grateful to have Michelle's expertise in guiding me through it.” -- Nick S.

"Michelle Alexandria proves to be an excellent guide cutting away at the barriers, self or industry created. Stellar webinar, she provides selflessly a deep knowledge, her experiences towards acquiring interest from the least expected sources, helps streamline efforts towards gaining the optimal financial support and guiding products towards audiences. Going to “throw clay onto the wheel” with confidence. Kudos, highly recommend!" -Jen K

"I can't say enough good things about Michelle! Talk about a woman who knows her stuff. I highly recommend all writers, producers, and directors take a course with her to hone their craft and propel their careers." -- Kaitlin L.