How Much Does it Cost to Make an Independent Film?

Producing an independent film of your own can have a wide range of underlying costs or expenses based largely on the anticipated outcome of the film and the professionalism involved in the creation of the project. While one may expect independent filmmaking to result in significantly lower costs than a professionally coordinated movie, you might be surprised at some of the budgets that indie filmmakers expose. We’re getting down to the age-old question, “How much does it cost to make an independent film?”

Low Budget Filmmaking

You’ve got a vision, you’ve got a micro-budget to work with, and you think that it can all happen — but will it? Indie filmmakers are almost always facing a dream that has limitations in place as a result of the reality that is — the budget. Low budget filmmaking can happen, but the result is often a subpar outcome that leads to a lack of quality and professionalism. Sometimes. Not always.

A strong vision, essential planning, and the drive to create a top-quality independent film can lead you to success. There are several areas where you can cut costs in your independent filmmaking to achieve this goal, including:

● Sticking close to your vision and being very clear on the reasons behind your film. While it may sound amazing to include a crane shot in a particular scene, doing so could add substantial figures to your budget and may be a bit more on the “unnecessary” side of things. Don’t let your ideas cloud your ability to remain on budget.

● Maintaining a short, focused shoot schedule. It’s easy to let shooting run over, to allow multiple takes to chew up hours of time on set, and to have elaborate ideas on multiple location shoots and extreme setups. But all of this will add to your budget! Consider simpler setups, basic but appropriate lighting, and a single shoot location to shave excessive figures off your budget.

● In-Sourcing production needs. Instead of hiring someone for every job (director, producer, writer, cinematographer, editor, etc) consider wearing multiple hats. Roll up your sleeves and get to work — you’d be surprised at how many roles you can effectively play if you’re trying to shave the budget! For roles that don’t require a ton of experience, consider letting the new guy or the kid from down the road get involved–again, you might be surprised.

● Create, and stick to, the plan! The more you plan, and the more you work to keep the budget for your independent film low, the better your chances will be at maintaining a low budget, high-quality indie film. Planning costs nothing and saves tons!

A Look at the Cost of Some Past Independent Films

Now that you have some ideas on how you can keep your budget low, let’s take a look at the associated budgets and actual costs for some past independent films:

● El mariachi – a beginning budget of $7,000, the director Robert Rodriguez refused to spend money on anything that was not absolutely necessary. And it paid off! The film later earned $1.2M at the box office.

● Clerks – a beginning budget of $27,575, the director Kevin Smith was a convenience store clerk that focused on black and white filmmaking at the store he worked in to cut costs. The end result, $3M at the box office!

● Paranormal Activity – a beginning budget of $15,000, the director Oren Peli attributes the success of the film to the reality of the footage and the fact that the audience could identify with the characters. The result, $193M in box office revenue.

However, the above estimates are not typical. A study by Sundance found that most independent films actually had a budget close to or even sometimes mirroring those of Hollywood films. The downside, the ROI is almost always significantly less. Figures show that 98% of the time, investors do NOT make their return back when they put their money into independent film production.