John Penotti discusses financial structure, rights, and duties

I found this website called Mindopia. I watched videos of film producer John Penotti.

The Financial structure of films:

He gives tips about the financial structure of a film. He says write the script and when you are given money for the film, like $5 million. What can you do with this film for $5 million?

Sometimes it won't work because that amount of money won't fit for the film. You either get more money, or you restructure the script to fit the budget.

http://www.mindopia.com/video/john-penotti-financial-structure-films

What about financing an independent film?

By ascribing an international and domestic value for a film. Say with this kind of film, with this kind of cast, then you could sell it for X amount of money. It's to prove there is a market out there for the film.

Then go into this detailed pre-production mode, with your script and proposed cast through our international sales company and get in touch with the international distributors in France and tell them about it. You ask for this X amount of money for the French rights. You will then go to each territory with your pre-production.

http://www.mindopia.com/video/john-penotti-what-about-financing-independent-film

How to acquire the rights to a project:

John Penotti talks about owning the rights to a script and idea. How you may read a book, and think it would make a great film. You go to the publisher and the author. Then you have to prove that you can take it to the next step and option the material.

http://www.mindopia.com/video/john-penotti-how-acquire-rights-project

What do you do? (The duties of a producer):

A producer is the one who pushes all the things together into production. You have to build a package that will attract an appropriate director, what cast will support which budget level.

What the film could be made for, and what the film could be sold for. You have to be able to balance the creative and financial attributes of the project. He sells the rights to distributors on an international and domestic basis.

http://www.mindopia.com/video/john-penotti-what-do-you-do

How did you get started?

Penotti says he started off as a production assistant. At the end of the day, he drove the film to the production lab so it would be developed. The next day he would pick up the film, and drive it to the set so the director can watch the dailies. The dailies are the film that's been shot the previous day.

He worked his way up from second assistant director to first assistant director, to creative producer. He was a freelancer, but it wasn't good job security. He then created a production company so there would be job security.

He was hired by studios and had worked as an estimator on how much a film would cost. He would budget it and schedule it and send it back on a production plan.

http://www.mindopia.com/video/john-penotti-how-did-you-get-started