Make Your Own Damn Movie!: Secrets of a Renegade Director

by Lloyd Kaufman

Book Overview

In 25 years, Lloyd Kaufman, along with partner Michael Herz, has built Troma Studios up from a company struggling to find its voice in a field crowded with competitors to legendary status as a lone... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312288646
• Release Date: April 2003
• Publisher: L.A. Weekly Books
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 0.72 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.5" x 0.8" x 5.5"

Customer Reviews

Make Your Own Damn Movie

I loved this book.The author must be very wise and handsome;clearly he is talented.

The Only Filmmaking Book Worth Reading!!

Every filmmaking class should have one required reading title only: "Make Your Own Damn Movie!" by Troma's Lloyd Kaufman. I learned more from this book than I ever could have from all of the filmmaking books that were thrown at me in college combined. Mr. Kaufman gives an honest, straightforward, and many times gritty introduction into the world of true independent filmmaking. The book tells it like it is, giving the reader exactly what they need to do in order to get their films made...even if what they need to do is not very pleasant...(which is more fun than pleasant methods, don't you think?)Not only is Lloyd Kaufman the smartest, most original and true independent filmmaker around, he is also absolutely hilarious. Even if you are not a filmmaker, READ THIS BOOK! It's really funny and is great for anyone who enjoys movies, especially those of Troma. And then after you read "Make Your Own Damn Movie!", read "All I Needed to Know about Filmmaking I Learned from the Toxic Avenger" if you already haven't. It's also awesome!

Probably the greatest book ever

In terms of quality, the only book that can even come close to this one is "All I Needed To Know About Filmmaking I Learned From The Toxic Avenger", by The Artist Formerly Known As Samuel Weil, Lloyd Kaufman. The two books by this film director are far different, however; "Make Your Own Damn Movie" is more along the lines of instruction and advice, with some autobiography thrown in, whereas "All I Needed To Know About Filmmaking I Learned From The Toxic Avenger" is more autobiographical, with some bits of instruction and advice.This book will tell you potentially everything you need to know to make your own damn movie, and I predict that it will change and improve the motion picture industry forever.The author, Lloyd Kaufman, and the two co-authors, Trent Haaga and Adam Jahnke, know whereof they speak, all three of them having been making entertaining movies for years. In this book, Lloyd reveals how he did it, and how you can do it too. And he does so with considerable wit and humour. This much is no surprise to anyone who is a fan of his films.I can't recommend this book enough. This will tell you how to make your own damn movie step-by-step. This is a must have for anyone who is either interested in making their own (damn) movies, or is interested in learning how Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz did it themselves.

Brilliant. But of course! It's from TROMA!

Winner of the lifetime achievement award for his body of work and important contribution to the filmindustry at this years's prestigious Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival, Lloyd Kaufman is a genius making masterpieces on a budget that would barely be enough to pay for one day's catering on an average Hollywood producton and he does it for thirty years now. In a world where low budget independent filmmaking means manymultimillion dollar productions by subdivisions of Warner and Disney, Lloyd Kaufman survived for three decades (and counting) with his truly independent filmcompany Troma and in doing so directed, produced and/or wrote dozens of brilliant films (plus distributed hundreds more works that would otherwise have been totally neglected) without which the world would be an even less happy place! Heck - his work provided loads of "inspiration" (i.e. rips-off-ism) for the big ones who simply aren't creative enough to come up with their own masterpieces.Want to know how he does it? Interested in learning from his expertise making true art and surviving in an industry that is almost entirely taken over by those big conglomerates? Need to know how you can make your own film you have been dreaming about for so long, but felt discouraged by the way the world has turned out to be? READ HIS BRILLIANT BOOK "MAKE YOUR OWN DAMN MOVIE"! If there is one person alive (or dead, but they usually don't say too much to begin with) who can actually tell you how to overwin all possible obstacles you might -and will- encounter realising your plans, it is Lloyd Kaufman. He has lived it, he is still doing it, and every film he makes is better than the previous one, even while the problems are getting bigger. Kaufman does not only tell you HOW you can go about making your own damn movie, reading this book his enthousiasm about the art of filmmaking may even get you encouraged to do so even if you didn't have any such plans at all. Apart from that, there are loads of anecdotes from his thirty-plus years in the business and he is one of the most entertaining, witty and funny writers I have ever encountered. Footnotes, additional info and insight in how rewarding working with Lloyd can be (and how good his pay is) are provided by some of those other Troma-people he collaborated, like co-writer/assistant-director on Kaufman's latest masterpiece CITIZEN TOXIE: THE TOXIC AVENGER IV, Trent Haaga and others.For those who want to learn about the business, for those who want to know about Troma and the filmindustry from the inside, and for those who want to have a damn good time reading, this book is an absolute MUST. I found it to be unputdownable and like his previous book "ALL I NEED TO KNOW ABOUT FILMMAKING I LEARNED FROM THE TOXIC AVENGER" I am sure I will read it many more times. So don't rent it, don't borrow it, but support independent cinema and buy this one. It's a damn good value for your bucks (probably as much as buying the action- and extra's packed brilliant d

Great book!!! Lloyd Kaufman hits it right on the mark again!

In my opinion, this is a great follow-up to Lloyd's previous book, All I Needed to Learn About Filmmaking I Learned From The Toxic Avenger.If you want a boring compendium of filmmaking techniques that reads like the owner's manual for your car, then stop reading this and go somewhere else, because you are not going to get that with this book.Those looking for a great introduction to the how-to's of filmmaking will not be disappointed. I myself went into reading this book knowing absolutely nothing about how to make a great film that everyone will love, and I came out still not knowing how to make one, but what I did learn was how you can go about turning an artistic vision from an idea into a film, and keep your shirt (but not necessarily your dignity) in the process.This book covers the basics of everything you need to know about making your own damn movie, specifically fund-raising, budgeting, screenwriting, hiring the crew, pre-production, legal stuff, getting locations, stunts & special effects, editing, sound mixing, marketing, and distribution. The writing, done mainly by Lloyd with the help of Citizen Toxie producer Adam Jahnke and Citizen Toxie writer Trent Haaga, is hilarious, employing a mix of fact, instruction, advice, anecdotes, and Troma history to give a well-rounded description of the fundamentals of making your very own, independent movie.Even for those with a casual interest in Troma films or filmmaking in general, this is a great read. There are parts ranging from epic battles with the gigantic rats in the Troma basement, to the description of the depravity that goes on in Troma rented condos, to stories about cruel conditions endured on the sets of Troma films, and even how to go about getting women nekkid on camera for you (which in my opinion is worth the cost of the book alone, because who DOESN'T need to know how to get women nekkid on camera?).I give this book a 5/5 for teaching me a thing or two about making a movie, as well as plenty of behind the scenes looks into Troma Films, all while keeping me laughing and immersed in reading it.