Can You Over-Develop A Project?
I’ve seen some things come across my desk recently that are actually over-developed…. to an extreme point that doesn’t make sense to take to market.
If you missed my previous post on Launching Your Film At EFM where I included links to a couple free resources, you can check out here.
Also, I announced I’m bringing back Film Market Consulting for completed features (and in a few cases, ones in the financing stages). If you’d like to lock in promo pricing and get going before the end of the year, click here to learn more and apply.
As a reminder, EFM is the first big Film Market of the year held in Berlin in Feb. Sales Agents are frantically putting together their slates right now and the timing is perfect for securing an international debut for your film.
Can You Over-Develop A Project?
We’ve spent some time in the past few newsletters talking about the importance of thoughtfully developing a feature or series project to the point that you’re ready to take to market… and how that point at which something is ‘ready for market’ is further along than it has been in the past. Meaning, more fleshed out, more attachments, more assets, etc.
I’ve seen some things come across my desk recently that are actually over-developed…. to an extreme point that doesn’t make sense to take to market
For example, while I understand the impetus for desperately attaching talent to increase value in your package, you must refrain from doing so unless you’re certain it’s talent that will actually add value at your budget range. And this is not the job of your casting director to say who has market value for your budget or not. You should be consulting with sales reps, distributors, or working with a producer or EP who has this expertise lest you attach the wrong actors and potentially sabotage the project.
Same with directors - attaching the wrong director who won’t be able to attract the level of talent you need for your budget, is also a big no-no. I’m seeing a lot of desperate attempts at just attaching people to a project whether they are actually a right fit or not… of value, or not. I’ve been guilty of this myself in my early days or producing so believe me, I speak from experience!
These days, I spend a lot of time (and I mean a LOT) going back and forth with my sales agent network, distributor and development exec networks, vetting talent, concepts, ideas, IP, people, places, and things before I bulldoze forward with development. With economic uncertainties the way they are, you have to choose wisely otherwise you face spending precious resources doing the wrong things.
Pay now or pay later - spend extra time vetting now or pay the consequences later.
How many of you are running into this issue of where to intentionally spend your development resources? Should you shoot a concept video? Short film or web series? Hire a casting director? Line producer? Engage lawyers? Etc? There’s definitely a methodical order to approach all these things, and a time and place for all of it - just not all of it at once or too early on in the process. And it’s different for every project depending on whether it’s a feature or series, doc or narrative, low or high budget, genre, current attachments, etc.
Hit me up in the comments below with any questions you have and I’m happy to point you in the right director where I can. Or email me directly at stacey@filmspecific.com and let me know how you’re getting on with your own development process…
Looking forward!
To your success,
Stacey
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Very interesting share. I never thought about over-developing before. But it makes sense.
I'm in the middle of thinking through these things on my debut feature film (as producer). We're starting to look at casting options. We have a director who's also a producer, so that isn't a variable in the equation. But the order of operations on this gets complicated when money's still up in the air. Thanks for this post, though--it's useful to get a sense of what gets priority, and when.