Movie Investing--Anyone Knowledgeable? (1 Viewer)

[chet]

I am looking at putting some money into a film that is slated to start shooting in mid-August.  Script, cast and director are all locked down and my friend is the EP.  What issues should I be looking at?  

Morgan Freeman is one of the stars.

 

[mr roboto]

I think Cosjobs has a bit of experience with this. 

 

[sports_fan]

The Last Full Measure

 

[Mario Kart]

Of course Morgan Freeman is in the movie. He's in every movie.

 

[gianmarco]

Depends on where he is in the chain of command

 

[Philo]

Run away. Fast. 

 

[Judge Smails]

Run away. Fast. 

This

 

[chet]

This

why?

if the budget's right, and they have the right people, what are you afraid of?

 

[Homer J Simpson]

Buddy action comedy with Tommy Lee Jones and Rene Russo?

 

[urbanhack]

Really surprised there aren't more people in here to help you out.

 

[Henry Ford]

why?

if the budget's right, and they have the right people, what are you afraid of?

The two most creative accounting methods on earth are a drug lord doing his taxes and a movie production company explaining to investors why their investments didn't make a profit.

 

[Nick Vermeil]

 

[Nick Vermeil]

You don't invest in movies to make money. You do it as a vanity play, to be a patron to talent you believe in and/or to offset your portfolio with a loss. Any return is gravy after that. 

However, if you can get in on a venture capital group that is carrying good production companies that have pre sold distribution deals, you can make a little money.

 

[BoltBacker]

You don't invest in movies to make money. You do it as a vanity play, to be a patron to talent you believe in and/or to offset your portfolio with a loss. Any return is gravy after that. 

Wait, I thought that is why you had kids?

 

[AnonymousBob]

I say you go for it and update us regularly. 

 

[IC FBGCav]

I invested in Stray and still have not got my signed script and dvd or seen the film.   There is a thread about that film here.

 

[FishTacoTuesday]

If it's not pr0n, it's not worth the effort.  Not kidding.  $ per minute of feature film, porn rules the rooster. 

 

[Mario Kart]

I invested in Stray and still have not got my signed script and dvd or seen the film.   There is a thread about that film here.

Who would invest in a movie that does not star Morgan Freeman? Everyone knows you don't invest in a movie unless Morgan Freeman is in the cast. Your fault big time. 

 

[Philo]

why?

if the budget's right, and they have the right people, what are you afraid of?

You know the guy that wrote "Forrest Gump" never saw a dime, right? According to the studio, it lost money so he never got paid. 

You think you have more juice than the guy who wrote "Forrest Gump", go for it. Otherwise, stay out unless you want that producer credit solely to score naive 20 year old girls on the Sunset Strip. 

 

[IC FBGCav]

Who would invest in a movie that does not star Morgan Freeman? Everyone knows you don't invest in a movie unless Morgan Freeman is in the cast. Your fault big time. 

It was a gift more than an investment, gave over 1k.   @cosjobs    They couldnt even give me a copy of the movie or a way to see it.  

 

[James Daulton]

HTF did you land Morgan Freeman?  He's usually so selective with his films.

 

[Bob Magaw]

Buddy action comedy with Tommy Lee Jones and Rene Russo?

Wally Shawn and Kathy Bates.

 

[massraider]

why?

if the budget's right, and they have the right people, what are you afraid of?

There are a lot of things that can go wrong with movies, and a lot of ways they can pad expenses.

A lot of stars sign on to make movies that don't get made,  go straight to DVD, or they back out of. 

I have a buddy that invests in movies,  he concentrates on horror. They cost nothing,  and can be very profitable.  He's taken a bath on quite a few movies over the years, but through trial and error he's learned to minimize his risk.   He still gets stuck with lemons.  

If you can ride along someone's coattails,  who has a record of wisely investing, that's a good idea,  but in general they are high risk, high reward.  

 

[IC FBGCav]

I say in all honesty, just back a Pesci film and let the wife pay the bill.  

 

[James Daulton]

"Executive Producer Chet"

I like the sound of that.

 

[IMAX 3D]

Ask for a cut of the toy sales

 

[Henry Ford]

Ask for a cut of the toy sales

Of a Morgan Freeman movie?

 

[Brony]

Of a Morgan Freeman movie?

I have a Shawshank Redemption tunnel of ####. The kids love it, but it does take up a lot of room. 

 

[cosjobs]

It was a gift more than an investment, gave over 1k.   @cosjobs    They couldnt even give me a copy of the movie or a way to see it.  

That was a friend of mine.. She hit huge problems and almost never got it finished (recently). I sent you a PM and will make sure she gets you the script and stuff. 

I'm also a pretty big investor in another project. We were supposed to finish in December and we just laid the soundtrack and are going into color correction. We hope to get it wrapped in time for festival season.

Huge risk. I really question my decision sometimes, but its great knowing that I enabled it to be made/completed. Really need to milk satisfaction out of that, since the chances of getting any investment back are slim.

 

[lakerstan]

Sort of like investing in a race horse.  You could be in the winners circle, but more likely you'll get expensive glue.

 

[NutterButter]

I love that there's so many people knowledgable about investing in movies

 

[Bucky86]

 Sucker

 

[Philo]

Sort of like investing in a race horse.  You could be in the winners circle, but more likely you'll get expensive glue.

I would 100% invest in a horse long before even considering backing a film. 

And I work at one of the major studios.