Passion Projects vs. NonDē, & How to create an initial, grassroots buzz
002 Pathless Projects: NonDē objections, vision + alignment, NOT TO MENTION hooks, subcultures, & a buzz-y 4-part series I want you to write.
I wince with the embarrassment of 1000 suns when people call them passion projects.
I know it’s not a big deal. I get why we use the term.
If I ask someone to work on my short film, and if I’m not able to pay them their commercial rate, I’ll let them know this is a passion project. Using the term isn’t just about my intent as the director to make something I’m “passionate” about. It also acknowledges to everyone else that I’m aware they’re doing me a favor.
And yet, it always feels incorrect to call what I’m working on a passion project.
Because it’s not exactly a choice.
The un-nuanced version of going-advice for directors who want to break in is:
Work on set as a PA.
Then as a 2nd AD.
Then as a 1st AD.
Then eventually someone will give you a chance to direct.
As a mother in America, that advice doesn’t work for me.
When I decided to make the leap from writing to directing, I was breastfeeding my daughter. Was I going to bound onto set for 12 hours at a time to make $250 a day, get a break every two hours to pump on the back of an unused dolly, spend $240 a day on childcare just so I could suction milk out of my breasts in front of my colleagues and miss most of my kid’s awake hours, all to net $10 which would become $4.20 after taking the subway roundtrip? Before taxes?
Obviously, it didn’t make sense.
But I still wanted to direct.
So I realized pretty immediately, I had to do it myself.
The industry was not built for someone like me. NOW LOOK! I’m a team player and there is no job I won’t do for a project. I’ve driven the equipment truck, and calmed down the angry people blocking the shot, and loaded in and loaded out, and picked up coffees, and steamed the costumes, and bounced light, and set up crafty, and blocked traffic, and held something heavy to help someone who was holding something heavier.
I like doing those things. Those things get the movie made.
What I mean when I say the industry wasn’t built for me is I didn’t see many examples of 35-year old breastfeeding moms with a viable place to start out on the industry ladder.
Were there exceptions to that rule? Sure. But, I didn’t see them.
So if the industry isn’t made for everyone, or at the very least isn’t made long term for everyone, and the only way to make your work is to DIY come hell or high water, then is it really a “passion project” or is it something else?
(I obviously think it’s something else.)
Objection #1 to the NonDē Movement: It’s Nothing New
We’ve been talking a lot on FilmStack about NonDē as an all encompassing Good Thing For Us.
But it’s important to be clear-eyed about why people wouldn’t show up with quite as many bells on as the rest of us.
One strong objection to the NonDē Film Movement could be:
“You’re not doing anything new. You’re just making passion projects.”
I know this is a valid objection because someone said that to me recently!
So, okay great. Let’s talk it out.
A passion project could be a great career move. It could…
showcase your visionary directing skills
build your collaborator list
help update your reel
get you an agent
serve as a calling card
It’s about showing what you, brilliant auteur, can do.
But, in my opinion, a NonDē project is not about the singular auteur, but placing the singular auteur inside a collective moment. It’s about…
Contextualizing the work within broader emerging artistic practices!
EXAMPLE: Marketing like,“I made this film and you should watch it alongside these other two NonDē filmmakers’ films because there are similar themes I think you’d like.”
Building community around collecting & sharing knowledge!
EXAMPLE: What
has been encouraging us all to do on FilmStack with resource lists.
Developing a direct FTA (Filmmaker To Audience) distribution strategy that prioritizes long term engagement and multiple revenue streams!
EXAMPLES:
Involving your audiences in feedback screenings
Having a long tail financial strategy for each film
Creating repeatable, iterative, realistic infrastructure (& sharing that with others) so that you can develop a broad body of work over time!
EXAMPLES:
A semi-consistent newsletter strategy you can execute
Understanding your AOV1
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Meeting the urgency of the moment with collective action whenever possible!
EXAMPLES:
Joining local political movements
Inviting people into the NonDē movement
Do you feel the difference?
One way isn’t right and the other way isn’t wrong. But they are different.
Objection #2 to the NonDē Movement: It’ll Dissolve My Personal Vision
Another objection I’ve heard out loud is —
“But I don’t want to lose my voice by working with everyone else.”
I know for some people that objection may seem like it’s out of nowhere, but I fully understand it. People want to make their own work because they’re tired of using their talent and skill to make someone else’s vision come to life.
I feel that in my bones.
So trust me, nowhere am I advocating for that.
I don’t want to speak for all of us here on FilmStack, but I can say the majority of people I talk to on here are trying to deepen, strengthen, and embolden each of our individual voices.
The collective alignment of the NonDē movement doesn’t diminish singular voices, it amplifies them.
NonDē isn’t about chasing trends or even espousing a particular political belief system. It’s not about checking boxes, it’s not about quadrants, and it’s not about group consensus when it comes to your film’s vision.
You should work on your movie. I should work on mine.
What I believe it is about is linking arms as we each make our movies. It’s about collectively aligning all these movies into a context. It’s about reaching audiences directly by working together as a movement.
When you collectively align your vision with others’ visions, something starts to emerge…
Some might call it a path.