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ULB Filmmaker’s Hub:

Mastering the Art of Ultra-Low-Budget Writing and Filmmaking

Welcome to the 'ULB Filmmaker’s Hub' blog, your go-to resource for navigating, preparing, and mastering the nuanced details of creating a film with a budget under $500,000.

 

We illuminate the often-overlooked aspects and essential details in the filmmaking journey, including drawing back the curtain on the real costs of making a ULB indie film. 

 

From the initial stages of screenwriting, through pre-production, production, and into the post-production phase we emphasize the crucial, commonly missed elements that can significantly impact the success of your project.

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How I Shot an Indie Feature Film in 9 Days for $150,000

  • Writer: Steve Dudley
    Steve Dudley
  • Sep 23
  • 4 min read

Independent filmmaking is messy, risky, and sometimes impossible — but it’s also the best education you can buy. This is the story of how I produced, co-directed, and acted in my debut feature All Hail Anastasia with a $150,000 budget and only nine shooting days. Along the way, I nearly lost the project, but I walked away with scars, lessons, and a finished film.


Learn From My Mistakes - Indie Filmmakers Guide to Success

Why I Chose to Skip Film School

I never went to film school. Instead, I put my savings into a real project and let the camera be my teacher. While a film degree at USC or NYU can cost $200,000–$300,000, I made a feature film for $150,000 — and that money went into a tangible piece of IP, a resume builder, and a shot at distribution.

But my timing was brutal: I shot in the middle of the SAG-AFTRA strike. To move forward, we needed an Interim Agreement just to hire union actors. That approval came through only a week before production. From day one, I knew this wouldn’t be smooth.

Lesson: The best education isn’t in a classroom — it’s on set. Mistakes cost you real money, and the only option is to learn fast.

The Reality of a $150K Budget

$150,000 might sound like a lot, but in the world of feature films it’s a shoestring. That budget had to cover:

  • SAG deposits ($17,250 upfront)

  • Wrapbook payroll fringes and workers comp (20–25%)

  • Insurance and permits

  • Gear rentals and storage drives

  • Food, trailers, and locations

  • Post-production costs

For context: most indie features shoot in 18–60 days. Studio productions can run 60–360 days. I had 9. With SAG rules capping us at 12-hour days, we had to shoot 9 script pages daily. Two to three pages is normal. Five is a hustle. Nine is survival.

Lesson: Always calculate your page count per day. It’s the most honest metric for whether your schedule is realistic.

Chaos Strikes: Casting Crisis

On day two, disaster hit. My lead actress tested positive for COVID. She was playing my wife — the anchor of the story. Without her, there was no film.

We scrambled to find a replacement. Against all odds, another actress stepped in with almost no prep and delivered a grounded, emotional performance. She saved the production.

Lesson: Always have a contingency plan for casting. One sick actor can sink your entire schedule.

The Pressure Cooker of Money

With such a tight budget, every decision felt like life or death. Should I put money into better catering to keep morale high, or save it for post? Do I rent another lens, or hold funds in case of emergency insurance?

The hidden costs hit hardest: prep days, crew overtime, payroll fees, and kit rentals. My $125,000 production ballooned past $150,000 before we wrapped.

Lesson: Budget honestly and include every hidden expense — deposits, prep, insurance, storage, and overhead.

Gear Hacks That Saved Us

Instead of renting from a house, we relied on crew-owned kits.

  • Camera package: $1,500 (instead of $10,000+)

  • DP kit with lights/stands: $400

  • Grip and lighting kit: $200

  • A LUPO Superpanel rented for $200 — the light that saved our outdoor shots

I also spent $2,500 on SanDisk drives to secure footage backups. Invisible, but non-negotiable.

Lesson: Borrow gear, buy storage, and always insure for replacement value — even for crew-owned equipment.

The Payoff Moment

Through all the chaos, there was one scene that made everything worth it: the Johnson family garage sequence. Watching those actors in that room, the emotion was so raw it stopped me in my tracks. I realized then that filmmaking isn’t about the perfect shot list — it’s about creating space for performances.

Lesson: When everything else fails, trust your actors.

Five Lessons I’d Pass On to Every Indie Filmmaker

  1. Don’t wear every hat. It will burn you out. Build a team you trust.

  2. Love your failures. They’re your real film school.

  3. Budget honestly. Payroll, deposits, and food will drain you faster than cameras and lenses.

  4. Always plan contingencies. Build backups for actors, gear, and schedules.

  5. Take care of your crew. Morale is currency, and it sets the tone for the whole production.

That $150,000 wasn’t just a movie — it was tuition for the hardest crash course of my life.

Final Thoughts

All Hail Anastasia is messy, raw, and full of the scars I earned making it. But it’s a finished feature film, and you can watch it free on YouTube.

If you’re a filmmaker dreaming of making your own project, learn from my mistakes before you spend a dollar. Subscribe to my channel for more indie film scars and lessons that last.

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TAGS: indie filmmaking, how to shoot a feature film, low budget filmmaking, making a movie for $150k, filmmaking lessons, indie film budgeting, SAG-AFTRA interim agreement, film production challenges, shooting a movie in 9 days, independent filmmaker advice, behind the scenes filmmaking, ultra low budget film tips

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The boy beneath the tree is me. As a child growing up in the south of England, I often found myself drawn to the quiet majesty of trees—especially the ancient English yew. For centuries, yews have stood watch over churchyards and villages, their roots intertwined with both heritage and memory.

Our family’s story rests beneath one such yew. My grandmother would take me to visit my grandfather’s grave, where his ashes were laid under its sheltering branches. Those moments became a quiet ritual: a boy, a grandmother, and a tree older than any of us, holding space for grief, remembrance, and love.The yew is more than a tree. It symbolizes endurance, legacy, and the passage of seasons. Its life stretches beyond our own, yet it reminds us that even the most enduring things are not eternal.

 

Just as trees shed their leaves and renew, so too do our ideas. They outlive us for a time, carried by others, until they fade and make way for new growth.The logo of Contentious Films is a patronage to my grandmother, my heritage, and the belief that storytelling—like the yew—creates shade and shelter for those who come after us. The hope is simple: that the stories we plant may inspire others to grow their own.

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