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What is "development" anyway?

The best case scenario for some screenwriters is to sell his sweat-soaked script to a big studio for gobs of cash. If you're a screenwriter, you know how difficult it is to get through Hollywood's front door. And the still-active WGA strike has pretty much closed off all side doors for now also.

Enter independent film making. Starline Films loves my script and has pledged to help me raise a development budget. The production budget has not yet been determined, but is expected to be between $1-5 million dollars. While the development budget is included in that, development is a separate process that precedes full production when the director yells "action!"

Development is really the pre-production process. Steps taken to package the movie in such a way as to attract the bigger money and gain distribution.

We're going to need about $80-100k to develop Mobbed Up. What is this money used for? I wanted to know too. Here's what I found out:

• Talent
  Name actors, while not essential, certainly help any film to have greater appeal to both investors and audiences. While it is too early for me to mention names here, Starline definitely has direct contacts to much of the talent needed to make Mobbed Up successful. This also includes attaching a name director. Money here is spent on issuing deposits to these talented people to show we're serious and to book production into their schedules. This can be a significant portion of the budget.
  
• Trailer/Short Film
  Often a log line doesn't do enough to attract the money. So a trailer (similar to what you may see in the theater before a film) or a short film (a visual synopsis of the story about 15 minutes in length) can help get the creativity across. These would usually be shot with local actors whether name actors have signed on or not.
• Story Development
  If any enhancements or rewrites to the script need to be made, they are often taken care of in pre-production. This would often mean bringing in another writer to handle such edits. Bringing in a name writer can also be a good attachment and add more credence in the mind of investors. In the case of Mobbed Up, Starline feels (and I certainly agree) that my script is very near to shooting quality so this a road we probably won't need to go down, saving some money in the process.
• Securing Locations
  Wanna make a movie--you need to shoot it somewhere. Many locations require a deposit or donation. Locations are a cost that can significantly increase the full production budget due to the costs of changing locations, travel etc. We are again fortunate that Mobbed Up could conceivably be shot entirely on one boardwalk.

Clearly, a lot needs to be done and it is going to cost real money. But people who know are confident Mobbed Up will attract top actors. Even some I was considering as I was writing the script. Attaching top talent goes a long way to get your film the attention it needs during pre-production and ultimately its showing at the box office (or off the DVD shelves).

In coming days/weeks I'll share further thoughts on the development process and keep you informed as to what's going on. After all, that's the point of this blog isn't it?

By the way, if you're interested in investing in Mobbed Up, please contact Kevin Leckner at Starline Films.

About "Mobbed Up"

"Mobbed Up" is a comedy screenplay written by New Jersey writer Mark Violi. Mark recently signed an agreement with Starline Films to develop the film. Investment opportunities are available.

Log Line:
Financial straits force brother and sister owners of a beachside ice cream parlor to rent their backroom to the local Mafia for a gambling parlor.

Genre: Comedy Feature

Length: 114 pages

Expected MPAA Rating: PG-13

Short Synopsis:
With their parents gone, no cash and bills mounting against their unproven Jersey Shore ice cream shop, Jeanie and her older brother Ethan must make adult decisions about their immediate future. In an effort raise some quick cash for Jeanie’s Ivy League education, Ethan brokers a deal with Frank and Dean, two equally desperate Philadelphia mobsters. Jeanie first balks at the idea of an illegal gambling hall in her back room, but eventually capitulates when she realizes the potential profit could save the business and send her to Princeton.

The mob crew arrives and quickly turns a quiet family business into a disorderly mobster haven, much to the delight of Ethan who is sure this new arrangement will get him more girls. Jeanie meets Tommy the hit man and is initially turned off by his barbaric ways. The mob’s silent boss Gino, pressures Frank and Dean into recovering a large sum of cash they have misplaced. As the city mob crew adapts to beach life, their raucous parties and outrageous behavior give Jeanie increasing doubt about this arrangement. But her regrets are met with sharp refusal by the crew who have made themselves quite at home. A nosey neighbor, Mrs. Rostmeiwicz lurks amid the chaos and has the police hot on their heels. This leads to several close calls and quick side-stepping. Jeanie’s only solace comes in her late night talks with Tommy who turns out to be more than the hood Jeanie initially took him for.

While Ethan plans his future as a wiseguy, Jeanie’s growing relationship with Tommy encourages her to face an uncertain future. But when the police finally do discover the illegal gambling hall, troubling truths are brought to light leaving Jeanie to revaluate all that has happened; prompting her to discover the truth in her own life.

With a strong female protagonist, a heartfelt storyline and a side-splitting ensemble, Mobbed Up is anything but your typical gangster flick and should appeal to a wide audience.

"Mobbed Up" is WGA Registered #1081082.

"Mobbed Up" Investment Information

Ever want to invest in a feature film?
Now is your chance.






Starline Films has agreed to develop "Mobbed Up", this takes money so investment opportunities exist.

How do I go about investing in "Mobbed Up"?
First, familiarize yourself with the story. Our About page contains just about everything you'd need to know about the script.

After reviewing, if you think this film has a great chance of success (and we certainly do) it would probably be a good idea to invest some cash in it, no?

Please contact Kevin Leckner at Starline Films to request the script, arrange for investing or to learn more. He would be happy to speak to you about this exciting opportunity.

One of the reasons this blog exists is to keep investors updated on the development & production progress, keeping the production/investor relationship as transparent as possible. So check http://mobbedup.blogspot.com often for updates.

Check this page for updated investor info in the future.

Mobbed Up Now in Development

I've just sent a signed agreement to Starline Films retaining them to develop and package my Mobbed Up script.