MasterClass: Spike Lee Teaches Independent Filmmaking

Coming out of film school, my first feature script

was "School Daze."

It was called "Homecoming," but it was the same script.

I knew that was $3 or $4 million film.

At that point as a filmmaker, I was not going to get the money,

so I had to put it on the shelf.

Made "She's Gotta Have It" for $175,000, then

I was able to make "School Daze," with, I think,

$4 million.

Why, God?

This is your first film.

You have a scene that takes place on the top of the Empire

State Building?

Maybe that's down the line.

So it takes common sense.

You have to know there's somethings that, on your level,

you're not going to get.

We all have ideas of what we're going

to do, this and that, all type of equipment.

But when you don't have the money, you can't do that,

so you have to compromise.

And sometimes with these compromises you are presented,

you come up with more creative ideas,

or what might turn out to be better than what you'd

have done if you had the money.

Do the film that you can raise the money for.

Well, doing a budget can depend upon what type

of level of filmmaking you are.

And when you're starting out, if you don't know anybody else,

you've got to do the budget by yourself, which

I used to do when I started.

As an independent filmmaker, you have to make decisions.

Do you have enough money to pay everybody?

Are people going to work on deferred payments?

And just have an idea of a ballpark figure

of what you have, and then go line by line,

trying to figure out how to allocate the money you have.

Young filmmakers really don't have the money

to have someone do a budget for them, or even do a schedule.

A lot of stuff you've just gotta learn on your own

and try to figure it out.

Also, get copies of budgets, budgets

that other people have done, budgets

that have the same ballpark figure of money that's

being spent.

It's not really rocket science.

You just try to do it as what can save the most money.

As a young filmmaker, the biggest way to cut costs

is to pay people on deferments.

It's not something that I like to do when I start out,

but if you don't have the money--

if you have little money, you have

to try to put the money on the screen.

So it takes a great deal of trust between yourself

and the people who you are asking to defer payment.

You know, like, look, when I get the money--

make sure there is a signed agreement that when I

get the money, you'll get paid.

It's hard to do that with strangers,

though, so it has to really be done with people that you know.