Hi. I'm Olivier.

In early 2014, I was working as a freelance translator while studying at university, preparing for a PhD in either international relations or philosophy.

And then I remembered: I want to be a filmmaker.

So, I decided to make a short film. That short film project originated purely as a passion project, a personal attempt to shift gears away from where I was heading and back onto a path that I never thought I'd lose sight of. Then things got a little out of hand: the short film became a feature film and then an interview series. 

During the shoot, someone asked me if I had documented the making of this project. I hadn't. So I decided to write this blog/journal, to share my experience with those who might be interested. Just click on the cover to open it. It will cover the following topics:
  • The premises : why pursue this project in the first place? how do you prepare for it? what risks must you consider?
  • The preparation of the project: coming up with the idea for the film; why this subject matter? why chose to fictionalize my own life and act in the film?
  • Pre-production: the challenges of self-financing; working on-the-go; buying equipment;
  • The shoot: the experience of shooting in the 5 cities, of traveling on a budget, of shooting solo with minimal equipment and with non-professionals; advice and dos-and-don'ts for DIY shooting.
  • The interviews: how I came to assemble this cast of interviewees and the process of meeting them; a presentation and discussion of their main arguments.
  • Unexpected events and opportunities along the way (such as meeting French film director James Huth and working on his film "Brice de Nice, 3" with Jean Dujardin).
  • The artwork and locations in the film: how did I find them? Why these? How to get permission?
  • The music: finding a composer, constructing the sound track, recording the music, etc.
  • Post-production: the challenges of editing, trying to self-learn sound-mixing and color grading and realizing it's way too hard; finding people to work with;
  • Promoting the project: website, social media, trailers, etc.
  • The difficulties of getting industry support and contacts;
  • Building and managing a Kickstarter Campaign (and failing at it);
  • The perfectionnism trap: spending years trying to reach a famous actress to narrate the film; struggling with morale and getting the project over the finishing line.
  • Finally wrappig up and sending it to festivals;
  • TBC...