Do You Need a Big Budget to Produce a Movie? In Conversation with Film Producer and Entrepreneur, Dar Dowling

• August 29, 2021

One of the roadblocks that many writers face is the barrier that comes along with producing a film after their book is published. One of the biggest misconceptions is that you need a huge budget to make a film. Granted the movie business can get expensive if you include high action, elaborate scenes, and celebrity actors in your film, but in reality, if you are looking to make an Indie film, or documentary you can make one with a budget that is within reach.

Recently, I caught up with Film Producer and Entrepreneur, Dar Dowling in NYC. She shared with me some of the tips and tricks that she uses in her own films, which I personally feel have an impact on our society and our community.

This is what she shared with me.

As one of the leading movie directors in the country what would you say are some of the keys to your success? 

More than a filmmaker or director I consider myself a storyteller, because in reality that is why I started making films in the first place whether they are documentaries or narratives. My films are at their best when I come from this starting point, which means telling them in a way that creates a connection that is authentic and cuts to the heart of the story. 

For instance, in my film ‘Hey Mom, What’s Sex?’, people share their stories about their sex talks with their moms, sometimes they are funny or shocking and at others, they are poignant and enlightening. I really wanted people to tell their stories in their own voice, with minimal intervention from me or during the editing process, and because of this, their stories touch people in a very profound way. I don’t want to lead people down a path when watching my films; I want them to engage in the process so they create their own path.

On the other hand, there is my film “By Any Means” which is a highly stylized film about the daughter of an Irish gangster. I actually integrated a story from my childhood in this film. Sharing something so personal took a very big toll on me, but I needed to tell the story in a visceral and visual way. The realness of it all helps connect and draw the viewer into this film even more than usual. 

One of the other keys is that I work with people who I trust and that I can be real with, including Ricardo Madan who is very often my partner in cinematic crime these days. Ricardo is an extremely gifted editor, producer, and cinematographer who worked with me on ‘Hey Mom’ and ‘By Any Means’. I also just dropped my new short ‘Double Take’, which is all about a transgendered man’s take on male privilege. It was edited by the wonderfully talented Jon Morgan Jones out of the UK, and the extremely gifted Tom Colleran out of Toronto. 

We have a lot of fun on this film-making ride and that includes the bumps and challenges. If it’s not fun then what is the point of it?

Most people feel that in order to produce a movie they need huge budgets, while money is always a factor, what is your view on budgeting to make a film, especially on the Indie side of movie production. 

It’s always amazing to have a huge budget so you can have all the bells and whistles, but here again, it is about storytelling. You can have all the money and still not tell a great story or even a good story, and on the other hand, you can have a limited budget and still tell a story that catches people’s imaginations – and achieve success. When I filmed hey ‘Mom What’s Sex’ I started out with a micro-budget, but we still made a great film, which went to festivals, because we stayed true to our mission – telling the truth regardless of where that took us. 

When shooting with smaller budgets often you have to improvise which can actually help make cinematic magic, and a very good kind of risk-taking. In ‘By Any Means’ a scene was supposed to be an action scene without audio, but the actors created such amazing dialogue while setting the mood for the scene that we decided to shoot it on a rooftop in NYC during a thunderstorm – with that improvised dialogue. That is one of my favorite scenes because it’s real, raw and very shocking. Also, while shooting that film we were down an actor, and the budget was tight so I made a rare cameo in my film. Let me know if you can find me. 

You have been nominated at various film festivals, what would you say is the number one takeaway that you gathered from all of the events you have been showcased? 

One of my favorite festivals was the Port Townsend Film Festival in Washington State. It was an amazing experience because they literally celebrate all the filmmakers, whether they are emerging or established. They offer filmmakers taking part in the festival a place to stay throughout the town in cottages and in people’s homes. I was lucky enough to get a cottage with an apple tree out front, so in the morning I could pick an apple, and walk along the shore to town because the tide was low. It was one of the best experiences of my career because the people in Port Townsend really love films and the people who make them. It may not be Sundance when it comes to hype, but in so many ways I loved it more because for me it’s the people and those connections that matter most of all.

Talk to us about the new film you have in the works taking on the topic of human trafficking, and its connection that it has on a person in today’s world? 

The funny thing is that I had no intention of doing this film, but by chance I was at an event about Human Trafficking that a friend had put together. At that event, a woman who had been trafficked started talking about her journey and how she was now helping the police get other women out of their human trafficking situation. Her story really hit me on a gut level so much so I could barely breathe. I was amazed by her honesty and courage.  While listening to her story part of me wanted to do a film about her, but another part didn’t. I kept telling myself “I am not doing a film on her and human trafficking, I’m really not” over and over again. I knew it would be hard since this story is so close to the bone, but by the time she stopped talking I was already all in, and after chatting so was she – and I was very grateful because meeting her has been a very real gift, and literally changed my life.

During our interviews she would occasionally tell me that no one had ever asked her a particular question, and at that point I knew I was doing my job as a storyteller. She is an amazing woman, all I want to do is to tell her story in a way that touches people and hopefully helps make a difference. 

I’ve learned a lot while filming about the world of human trafficking. It is a brutal world, which has many facets, and I am taking on just one aspect – for now. During pre-production I was so happy to see that there are so many individuals, and organizations dedicated to stopping human trafficking, such as  Courage for Freedom and Win This Fight. Covid threw a bit of a monkey wrench into filming, but we will be ramping up production soon and have it completed in 2022. 

All great creators and visionaries have a special hot spot that they like to go to find inspiration and to unwind, what’s your hot spot in NYC and what makes it special to Dar Dowling?

To tell you the truth I love nothing more than to head down to the Hudson River for a walk or a bike ride to clear my head, and soak in some beauty to nurture my creativity and my soul. At other times I love to settle in at Mustache Restaurant to have some great food, laughs, and epic chats with my friends and co-creators. I have also been known to hang out at the Grey Dog Café, which is chock full of artists, making it a perfect place for what might pass for old-school-style Salon or an intimate tete-a-tetes.

Follow Dar Dowling on Instagram or  or check out her website.