5 Tips for Making an Independent Film with a Budget Under $15K

So, you're an independent filmmaker and want to make a film with a budget under $15K? Doable?  Absolutely. Challenging? You bet! A project like this will test your commitment and determination  and reveal how resourceful and crafty you are. In 2024, there are more than enough ways to make a  film under a budget of $15K; honestly, you can make a movie cheaper. Even the great Robert Rodriguez made his first film, "El Mariachi" for $7,000 in 1992.  

TIP 1: Create/Write Your Story Around the Resources You Already Have Access To  

When I made my first feature film, "Diane", a horror film about a property manager who terrorizes  her tenants, I began writing the movie around the apartment complex I was already living in. I had a  great rapport with my neighbors and the maintenance men and began crafting scenes around my  living space, the parking lot, the hallways, the pool, the laundry room, etc. I moved after my  apartment flooded and the roof caved in while visiting family out of town. Nine months later, I  moved into an old apartment building in Downtown Los Angeles and rewrote scenes tailored to the  apartment building I was living in, which had even more "sets" than the first place had to offer. I now had access to dark hallways, spiral staircases, creepy-looking elevators, hidden corridors, and a  rooftop. During downtime, my apartment and rooftop became the unofficial trailer for the cast and  crew. I essentially had a studio to create in and a personal sound stage to make my film. 

• Turn Your Living Space into Your Sound Stage. 

I thought, "I'm going to make friends with my neighbors, the property manager, and security guards  and get them to help me make my film… and that's exactly what I did. Eventually, I met the property  manager, who permitted me access to basements, empty apartments, and offices, and even asked  

for favors from tenants to allow me to use their apartments for production. I paid nothing to use  these resources. The way I saw it was, "As long as I'm paying rent, I'm in production." Eventually, I  stopped paying and kept filming. But that's another story!  

If you live in a house, apartment, or mobile home, one way to save money on your film is to turn your  living space into your sound stage. If you have roommates, they have now become a part of your  production, whether they like it or not!  

• Your script should reflect the resources you already have access to.  

It's already a known principle in indie filmmaking that when writing your script on a limited budget,  you should have a small cast and restricted locations to make things easier on your pockets.  Ultimately, you'll decide on the story you want to make based on what you know you have access  to.  

TIP 2: Utilizing Relationships Gives You Access to Resources You Don't Own or Can't Afford 

When you have little to no money for your film, your relationships reveal your budget. They become  the currency that will fund and fuel your production. You will need a lot of support when you  attempt to make a movie on a limited budget. I gained support by casting my friends who wanted to act and create. In turn, I made some of them producers, which gave me access to their resources.  Some had cameras, lights, drones, props, family-owned restaurants, cars, costumes, and even a  little money to contribute to food expenses.  

• When you make your friends producers, you access their network and resources. 

They have  houses, apartments, cars, clothes, and props that will serve the project you're trying to  create. This is a way to multiply and duplicate your production's value. You may not have  $15K in liquid cash to fund your film, but you and your friends have resources equivalent to  or exceeding that $15K. These same relationships can enhance the quality and success of  your movie. 

TIP 3: Having Less Leads to Originality and Reveals Your Skillset 

Less money to make your film forces you to discern ways to create an original story. It will also  reveal the skills and attributes that you already possess that you will use to incorporate into your  film. I have a background in music production. I sing, write, produce, and engineer my music.  Before I met my composer, Stefano Tomaselli, I was scoring and engineering the music and audio  for my film. I recorded, mixed, and mastered hundreds of songs on my own, and I had a  fundamental understanding of how to edit audio. So, when recording sound for my film, I could not  afford to hire a boom operator or someone to capture sound. I didn't have the sound equipment to  record clean audio. I realized I could use my DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) to record audio with phantom power. I already had a music interface for recording music. I just needed a boom mic. I found one on Amazon for less than $200. This is how I captured the audio for my film.  

Also, a great way to enhance the production value of your project is costumes. There were long  stints when my lead actors were not available to film. I refused to sit around and do nothing. I went  to thrift stores to buy old trench coats and unique-looking props. I purchased inexpensive afros, wigs, and fake guns on Amazon and created sequences for supporting characters that gave them  more screen time, causing them to become leads in my film. It made my story more unique and  original. I intended to make a horror film, but it became a cross-genre film, blending horror and  blaxploitation.  

Lastly, many indie filmmakers worry about having impressive-looking sets with directors' chairs,  department heads, and fancy film equipment. When you have a budget of under $15K, you must get comfortable with the idea of your production looking like it costs under $15K.  

An impressive-looking film is better than having an impressive-looking set. The results of my first  film looked terrific. Our film set could have looked more impressive! The most expensive purchase on my film, "Diane" set was a Black Magic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K. (BMPCC 4K) The camera's  body cost $1,495, and the lens cost around $500. We had some lights, tripods, a boom mic, and  other items. Our DP had a camera rig we used when he was available to shoot. When he wasn't, I used an old, unbalanced tripod, which also got the job done.  

TIP 4: Be Willing to Break the Rules 

I'm not suggesting that you break the law to make your film, but you will have to break some rules to get it done. Filming permits can be expensive, and trying to obtain them can slow down your  momentum. Just get your camera and shoot. When editing a scene, and felt I needed an exterior shot of DTLA, I got my camera, walked downstairs, found a street I liked, and got the footage. I didn't  waste time trying to obtain permission or permits to gain footage that I needed for my project.  Before I met the property manager, who eventually gave me access to more of the building than we had, I broke the rules by filming scenes in our building. In the lobby, we smeared fake blood all over the floors and elevators. And no one cared. In fact, people who were coming in and out of the building thought it was cool to see. We also shot after work hours to avoid contention with people who worked in the offices and thoroughly cleaned up after ourselves. It was like we were never there. When some actors who traveled out of town stayed in hotels near my apartment building, we filmed at their hotels. Without permits or permission, we shot in their hotel rooms, in the hallways, stairwells, and corridors, all in the middle of the night. We had the time of our lives. Can you imagine a small group of people running around huge hotels in wigs and costumes and pointing at fake guns until 4 a.m.?! It was a blast! We did this at these times to avoid attracting too much attention to ourselves. 

TIP 5: Don't Jeopardize Your Livelihood to Make a Movie 

I mentioned before that I stopped paying rent sometime after moving into my apartment building  but continued filming my movie there. This was a foolish mistake that compromised my livelihood  during production. On several occasions, three-day notices would appear outside my door when  alone and with the crew in my home. My film was about a property manager who would kill tenants  for not paying rent. The tagline of our film was "If the rent won't kill you, she will!" The expenses to maintain my livelihood and film costs began killing me! My film became somewhat of a mirror of my circumstances. It reached the point where eviction notices were coming every other day, and I was now being taken to court for all the money I owed. I was forced to move. I owed such a huge balance that a partial payment plan wasn't an option! I was having anxiety and panic attacks, and court dates for my eviction were quickly coming up. I had also gotten into a car accident around this time as well. It bailed me out of my situation because although my car was totaled, the accident wasn't my fault. I was compensated for the loss by the insurance company. It gave me what I needed to quickly move out before an eviction was placed on my record.  

I did not need to experience this. I tried to use the rent to cover filmmaking expenses, but that  wasn't enough. Please, do not go homeless trying to make your film. Working a 9-5 while building  your dreams at night is okay, and highly recommended. I recently saw an interview at an actor's round table where the great Denzel Washington brought some perspective to his peers and the audience: "Making a movie is a luxury". Making a movie under a $15K budget is also a luxury. You are very blessed if you even have the spare time to make a film! I treated my movie like it was a  necessity, desperate to complete something that guaranteed no tangible rewards. If you must work  2-3 jobs to afford your film expenses, go for it if you feel that's what you need to do. There is no time limit on how long it takes you to complete your film. It took some of the greatest filmmakers years to complete their first films, from Martin Scorsese to David Lynch, this list goes on! Take your time! Everyone in Hollywood loves to talk about how they were homeless before they made it. You can be homeless and still not make it. Mismanage your money and find out! There are many examples of this in the city of Los Angeles.  

Making a film with a budget under $15K is more than possible! Utilizing the resources you have  access to, leveraging your relationships, discerning ways to be original, not being afraid to break the rules, and not compromising your livelihood are just a few tips on where I'd start on making a movie on a budget under $15K. So, get to work, and when you're done, you'll get to tell the story of how you did it! 

AUTHOR

Damarrus Grant

Filmmaker • Writer • Actor

Unleashing the power of storytelling through film, music, and performance. Damarrus Grant, is a multi-talented American filmmaker, screenwriter, actor, and musician hailing from Sacramento, CA. In 2021, he fearlessly took on the challenge of independently crafting his debut feature film "

", where he not only wrote and produced but also directed, edited, and starred alongside the incredible Lucia Oskerova as the captivating title character. The film was completed in 2023. Diane made it's world premiere in Los Angeles, at Film Fest at LA Live Film Festival where it took home 4 awards, including Best Film, Best Director, Best Writer for Damarrus Grant, and Best Actress for Lucia Oskerova . The film also screened at Los Angeles International Underground Film Festival where it also took home 3 awards for Best Feature Film, Best Director, and Best Actress for Lucia Oskerova! Diane as won 8 awards total in 2023.