This is the movie industry: at the top you have the multinational corporations who now own and run all the major movie studios in the United States at least. Then you have the large independent mini-studios who all have deals with the majors for production and distribution. Next we have the small independent film companies who tap into independent finance, you know rich people, to make their films and sell their films at film markets and festivals. Then we have the Guerilla Filmmaker who is a self starter and raises money up to one million Pounds, Dollars or Euros to make their films.

Being a Guerilla Filmmaker means that you are in the most difficult part of the industry. Nobody wants to fund your films, nobody is waiting to see your films and most of the time it can feel like nobody cares about your films. So why do it?

You become a Guerilla Filmmaker because it is the start of the journey to becoming a professional filmmaker who earns a living doing what they love...making films! As you make your way up the career ladder, which will take many years, you will be judged on how you put your productions together and each film you make will be a calling card in order to make your next film.

Just to let you know, filmmaking never gets easier in fact the bigger your budget the more the pressure increases. The skills you learn now will stand you in good stead all the way through to becoming a fully fledged filmmaker. The advantage of being a Guerilla Filmmaker is that you have very little external pressure so you can make the films that you want to make without compromising.

So from now on as a Guerilla Filmmaker you will be; inventive, creative, passionate, determined and most of all dedicated so that nothing stands in the way of you realizing your ambition.

Repeat after me THERE ARE NO RULES!

This is you new mantra. Say it ten times morning, noon and night and whenever somebody says "no" to you for not recognizing your vision as a filmmaker.


GUERILLA FILMMAKER - SO HOW DOES IT WORK?

Okay, say you want to know about how to write a screenplay or how to do your own ADR (Automated Dialogue Replacement).

Or you may want to know about BAFTA, editing basics, or media networking.

Then once you've written your script read articles on pre production, production, post production and marketing.

Not only do we have great practical information for you but we also have multi award winning professional filmmakers to help guide you and offer you their invaluable advice.

So you want to learn about making documentaries then check out Documentary Notes by critically acclaimed author and filmmaker Simon Louvish.

You want the truth about the industry then look no further than Beth Porter's wicked insight into the UK Film Industry.

We also have BBC Executive Caroline Van Den Brul MBE who gives a wonderful insight into her career.

If your passion is the crafts industry then we have
BAFTA award winning make-up artist Vimala Clark's
"how to be a professional make up artist" and many more...

We also have a film resources page. We have complied this page to include links to helpful organizations.

Another reason for setting up the website was to share my experiences , especially in post-production. I've worked in post production houses and I can tell you now there is absolutely no reason for you to pay huge amounts of money to these companies.

Post-production houses are really there to service Hollywood and movie companies and not us that's why they price themselves over our heads. They don't want to work with us. There is nothing that a post production house does that you can't do in your own living room...I promise. With a few bits of inexpensive key pieces of software, some good hardware and a lot of patience you'll achieve exactly what you would pay $100,000 for.

I promise you will not be able to tell the difference. Unlike some home recording which sounds muddy and cheap my method saves you $$$$$££££££€€€€€!!! It's all just a click away and absolutely free.

Okay, if you can't find what you're looking for then just contact us though the contact us page we'll find out what you need to know and get back to you. If you think there should be a main topic we're not catering for then tell us and we'll add it.

We'll constantly be adding to the site to make this the most comprehensive practical filmmaking guide in the world.


BEEN THERE, DONE THAT! WHY NOT CONTRIBUTE TO GUERILLA FILMMAKER


If you already are a filmmaker and have made films then why not contribute to the site and add your expert opinion in order to help other filmmakers. You never know your insight and experience might just be the answer a fellow guerilla filmmaker is looking for to solve their problems. After all we are all students, teachers and life long learners in this industry.

You may know someone, a great teacher you had at film school or collage, or you may be a film lecturer or teaching a media course and want to share your vast years of knowledge and experience why not become a regular contributor.

Every article by a non member of the founding team will be credited forever!

You'll be helping so many people with your knowledge why keep it to yourself?

It's so simple I should have thought of doing this a decade ago. Just send your articles in via the invitation pages provided throughout the site.


HOW CAN GUERILLA FILMMAKER BE TOTALLY FREE, WHAT'S THE CATCH?

There is no catch. There's no subscription. You don't need to become a member and we won't ever ask you to log in, it's that simple!

So use guerilla filmmaker to grow your knowledge and confidence to make amazing films that will be enjoyed all over the world.

Just remember nobody goes from making a one-second film to making a multi-million dollar movie over night. It's just marketing people spinning their movie stories. Don't get me wrong the public love them but they're just stories.

The reality is that becoming a successful independent filmmaker takes years of hard work and persistence to really have success. I know, I've been doing this for a long time and only now am I getting somewhere.

Just remember we're all in this together just keep going, keep making your films and you'll go from guerilla filmmaker to independent filmmaker to studio filmmaker if that's your ambition.





Don't forget to update guerilla-filmmaker.com with your knowledge and movie making experiences you never know you could be solving a major headache for a filmmaker somewhere!!!

I hope you find guerilla-filmmaker useful.

Guerilla Filmmaker Ben Fellows

Guerilla Filmmaker Julia Fellows