Every year, tons of first-time filmmakers sacrifice blood, sweat, tears, and hard earned cash to produce their first feature film. However, more often than not, the filmmaker is unaware of the steep hurdles lying ahead of them. From getting past agents who refuse the filmmaker access to named talent to finding the oh-so elusive investors. On the April 19th edition of Inside Urban Hollywood with Tanya Kersey and co-host Tiffini Bowers, Entertainment Lawyer/Filmmaker Paul Battista discusses what a filmmaker should prepare for on their first outing and how to leap over those hurdles to achieve Hollywood success.
Paul Battista is a partner of MindFusion Law where he represents low budget independent filmmakers. He earned a J.D. from Seton Hall Law School, an LL.M. from Georgetown Law Center and an M.F.A. in Film Studies from the University of Utah. He has been a speaker at many film festivals and conferences, including Slamdance Film Festival and Film Independent’s Filmmaker Forum, in addition to teaching film classes at colleges in the Los Angeles area. He also wrote, directed and produced the low budget independent feature film, Crooks, which has been released by Warner Home Video. His book, Independent Film Producing: The Outsider’s Guide To Producing A First Low Budget Film is available at paulbattista.biz.
“Inside Urban Hollywood” is a live, Internet talk-radio show that streams live every 1st and 3rd Monday night at 6pm PST/9pm EST. Hosted and produced by veteran entertainment journalist, commentator, author and film festival director Tanya Kersey and co-hosted by Tiffini Bowers, “Inside Urban Hollywood” features interviews with some of Hollywood’s movers and shakers — from filmmakers, directors and writers to studio executives, agents and entertainment attorneys — who share their knowledge and insights to help those aspiring, beginning and hoping to grow their careers in the entertainment industry.
Previous guests on “Inside Urban Hollywood” include screenwriter/producer Antwone Fisher; producer Will Packer; writer/director/producer Preston Whitmore; actor/director/writer/producer Bill Duke; director/writer/producer Rob Hardy, Rainforest Films (“Stomp the Yard”); talent manager/producer E. Brian Dobbins (Principato-Young Entertainment); film producer Effie T. Brown (“Real Women Have Curves”); director/producer/writer Jeff Byrd; writer/director Gary Hardwick; screenwriter Ben Ramsey; Robyn Lattaker-Johnson, President, duBose Entertainment; film financier/investor Steven Belser; indie film producer/consultant Stu Pollard (Pollard Film); film financing consultant/author Louise Levison; Terrell D. Whitley and Nick F. Nelson, co-founders, Liquid Soul Media; distribution executives Brett Dismuke (One Village Entertainment) and Melvin Butters (Barnholtz Entertaiment), Nikita S. Adams, Creative Executive, Foxx/King Entertainment; writer/director/producer Don B. Welch; film financier Kevin Kinsey, film distribution guru Stacey Parks; casting directors Twinkie Byrd and Pamela Station, to name just a few.
Listen in to “Inside Urban Hollywood” every 1st and 3rd Monday night, 6pm PST/9pm EST.
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