Independent Filmmakers Discuss Self Distribution

Lights Film School recently had the privilege of interviewing Tao Ruspoli, the director of FIX, an independent feature length narrative film. The film is currently in the festival circuit having gained entry into prestigious film festivals such as the Warsaw Film Festival and Slamdance Film Festival to name only two of many.

We interviewed Tao about his production and distribution strategies in the hopes that it not only inspires other independent filmmakers, but also helps provide insight into self distribution strategies.

Film Trailer

Tell us about yourself and how you came to complete this feature.

FIX is inspired by a true story: My brother, a very charming, larger-than-life character in real life, was struggling with drug addiction. The law caught up with him, and he was offered a deal by the judge: if he didn’t check himself into rehab in 10 days, he would be sent to prison for three years. On the 8th day, he was arrested again, for something else. His lawyer called me while I was working on a documentary in San Francisco, and said, “If someone doesn’t bail him out of jail and get him to rehab by 8pm tomorrow, he is going to prison for three years.” So I drove overnight to bail him out and soon found out that the rehab wouldn’t accept him without a non-refundable $5000 deposit. Since we didn’t have the money, the day turned into a race to get the funds before the 8 o’clock deadline.

Four years later, my wife Olivia Wilde and I had the idea of turning this premise into my first narrative feature film. I knew it was time for me to move into scripted features and I was also dying to work with Olivia, who was developing into an incredible actress. We always joked that while we had gotten married after only knowing each other for six months, the real commitment (and risk) it takes to make a film together required four years. Given my background in guerilla-style documentary filmmaking, I wanted to use the language I had developed in that medium and apply it to my first narrative project. In that way, I hoped to get the best of both worlds: the immediacy and realism of documentary and the structure and story arc of scripted, fictional work. Given advances in digital media, I was also excited by the fact that we could do this without sacrificing my love of photography and “cinematic” imagery. The process and result turned out to be more gratifying than I ever could have imagined. Seeing Shawn Andrews bring his own vision and spirit to the Leo character was delightful. Shooting was adventurous and fun, and bringing the film to festivals around the world and seeing how the film touched people from so many walks of life was more than I ever dreamed of. I am excited for the film to now reach an even larger audience with this fall’s release.

Tell us about your film background.

I studied philosophy at UC Berkeley and took a class there called Existentialism in Literature and Film. It was that course that inspired me to become a filmmaker. I was then lucky enough to work as an assistant to the academy award winning production designer Dean Tavoularis and then for cinematographer Vittorio Storaro. While I loved those experiences and admired these masters, I quickly realized that I was interested in a very different kind of filmmaking. I was drawn to an approach that may only be possible with the digital tools we have at our disposal today which makes filmmaking more immediate, personal and less tied to financial concerns.

Tell us a little bit the size of your crew and the people involved.

The entire cast and crew was alway between 10-15 people. We would all go to set in my funky 1970s GMC rv, which served as craft service, hair, make-up, wardrobe, editorial, grip, electric and transportation

What Camera did you shoot on?

Panasonic HVX 200

What did your lighting kit consist of?

We used mostly natural light, augmented in a few of the interiors by my wonderful DP, Christopher Gallo. We then did a ton of color correction to achieve the looks we got.

How long did you cast for?

Several months with extraordinary casting directors David Rapaport and Lindsay Kroeger.

What drew your towards your lead actors?

I’m married to Olivia Wilde and the role of Bella was written for her. Our best friend is Megalyn Echikunwoke, and the role of Carmen was written for her. The most difficult part of the process was casting the Leo character. I met with dozens of actors before meeting Shawn Andrews who turned out to be more than perfect for the role.

What was your planned budget for the film?

$300,000

What was your actual budget for this film?

$300,000

What were some of the biggest downfalls to working within a tight budget?

One always wishes to have more time, but other than that we were pleased to have so much money! Hollywood accustoms us to thinking that we need millions and millions of dollars to make a film, but if you keep things in perspective, $300,000 is still a lot of money.

Can you explain how you came up with the funding to shoot the film? Did you secure financing before you wrote the script or did you get financing after?

I started out raising money online, offering anyone who gave any money to the project an “associate producer” credit. After several months of this and after working on the script, I was lucky enough to find 2 private investors to finance the rest of the film.

Did you work inside our outside of the studio system to get this film shot?

Totally outside.

Can you explain how this film found a distribution deal?

We are working with a company called E1 for DVD distribution and we are doing a hybrid theatrical release–working with a booker to get the film into individual theaters.

How much of a role do you play in helping to promote the film?

A huge role. It is no longer realistic to expect to sell your film and have someone else do all the work for you.

Do you feel the film was sacrificed at all being shot on a relatively small budget? If so, where can you see these compromised in the film?

No, given our documentary style, we were able to focus on performance much more than most films of this size; and given the extraordinary advances in high definition digital video, the film looked as beautiful as most films shot with 10 times the budget.

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