July 1, 2025 • 51 mins
Cindy Claes shares her strategy on how to build a network when attending film festivals. She is a Podcast host, Action Actress and Filmmaker.
She tried out different approaches recently, and went to four different film festivals. After some failures and successful connections, she shares her experience in details and offers practical top tips for making meaningful industry connections.
Don't just attend film festivals crossing fingers hoping to meet someone who will change your career - go with a clear strategy!
- How to select festivals?
- When to get your accreditation?
- How to navigate industry networking events?
- Business cards or Instagram?
- How to follow up after initial meeting?
- Creating value
- The Belgian Independent Film Network and WhatsApp group
- Networking as an actor versus as a filmmaker/director, differences?
- What are the do's and donts?
A special shout out to the BIFFF, International Toledo Action Film Festival, BSFF and BRIFF film festivals!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to the Loud Whisper Takeover podcast.
My name is Cindy Klaas, thehost of this podcast.
I'm an action actress, I'm awriter, I'm a filmmaker.
I love telling stories in andthrough movement, because I've
done some martial arts, I'vedone some combat sports, I have
a dance background, so I want totell stories that are in
movement.
(00:20):
But I also move the heart, thesoul.
I'm a storyteller that loveshaving her audience at the edge
of their seats.
So action movies, thrillers,sci-fis, you name it.
This is my world.
So today I want to talk aboutfilm festivals.
(00:40):
Now, how do we navigate a filmfestival as an actor or as a
writer-director that wants tomake new contacts?
I will not talk about havingyour film in the film festival
circuit and attending thescreening of your own film.
I think that's a differenttopic and it's a very
(01:01):
interesting topic because I'mgoing through that as well.
But I just want to talk aboutthose film festivals that we
want to attend to expand ournetwork, to expand our
understanding of the industry,to make new contacts and to
eventually make our next projecthappening.
Often we just go to those filmfestivals especially in the
(01:25):
beginning, you don't fully knowhow to navigate it unless you
have an actual project that isbeing screened.
You don't really know how longin advance you should be.
You know booking your ticket,your accreditation, all the
events that you should beattending and, especially when
it's networking time, how theflip do you actually network?
So I just went to four filmfestivals with a very different
(01:51):
purpose, with a very differentstrategy, and I want to share
with you the mistakes I made andalso the little things I did
that were incredibly successful,that were incredibly successful
and that gave me way moreconfidence in taking the next
steps for my next short film,feature film and series that I
(02:12):
have in development at themoment.
So let's start and let's dive in.
First of all, how do we selectwhich festival we would be going
to and why would we go to thatparticular festival instead of
another?
Going to a film festival is acommitment.
Now, this can be a commitmentin regards to time and effort,
(02:34):
because if you really reallywant to dive into it and make
the most of it, you will need tospend a lot of time there and
put a lot of energy in thosenetworking events or other
events that they have going onfor industry people, or it can
even require a financialinvestment.
Let's say you want to go toCannes.
Well, it's going to cost a lotof money, so you better go with
(02:56):
some sort of strategy, with somesort of purpose, and not just
with your fingers crossed hopingthat you will meet someone that
will change your career right.
So how do we select thefestivals we're going to?
I went to four festivals that Ispecifically selected for
different reasons.
Number one at the moment, eventhough I have lived in many
(03:18):
different countries throughoutmy life, at the moment I'm based
in Belgium life.
At the moment I'm based inBelgium, near Brussels.
So I thought Belgium and somekey film festivals in Belgium
have to be on my career map.
Why?
Because my next film, my nextapplication for a grant, my next
(03:41):
move in regards to finding somesort of fundings to make it
happen will be in Belgium.
So I really need to makecontacts here locally.
So I looked at Belgian festivalsand there were three festivals
that I decided to attend.
So number one there was the BIF.
B-i-f-f-f is the BrusselsInternational Fantastic Film
(04:08):
Festival.
So it is a festival.
There are feature films thatare being screened, short films
that are being screened.
It's an internationalprogramming and it's really
focused on horror movies,sci-fis, fantasy thrillers,
(04:30):
horror movies, sci-fis, fantasythrillers so it's really
specifically for this kind ofmovies.
In French they call it cinémade genre, so it englobes all of
these genres of movies.
I decided to go there because,number one, it was a local
festival, was a big festival,and also I had a role as an
actress in a feature film, whichalso was kind of important in
(04:51):
regards to my career pathbecause it was nominated at the
International Festival ofToronto.
So the feature film is calledDaniela Forever and I had a role
.
I had the role of Dr Van Brandtin this film and it was the
first time that this movie wasgoing to be screened in Belgium.
So I thought that's animportant event to go to.
(05:12):
And also, number three, thethird reason is this is a
festival that is literally byand for people that are in the
world of cinema that I love,which is thrillers, sci-fis,
fantasies and so forth.
Then the second festival that Idecided to attend was the BSFF
(05:37):
Brussels Short Film Festival.
So that is a really bigfestival in Brussels and it's
all about short films.
So I thought, well, at themoment I'm making short films, I
will probably make more ofthose, so let's go there.
And also they had a huge amountof industry events happening.
And then the third one inBrussels that I decided to
attend was the BRIFF B-R-I-F-FBrussels International Film
(06:04):
Festival, which is a festivalthat only selects feature films,
also an internationalprogramming.
All three have an internationalprogramming, but this one is
really focused on feature filmsand that was a very different
experience.
Okay, and I will tell you aboutthe different experiences I had
, how I networked, how I failed,how I succeeded in all three,
(06:25):
because I believe each festivalreally needs a different
approach, and I will tell youwhy in a second.
And then the fourth festivalthat I attended was near Madrid
and that is called theInternational Toledo Expo Film
Fest and that is a smaller filmfestival but it is specifically
(06:47):
for action movies.
So a lot of people, you know,decide to go to Cannes, which
was kind of happening at thesame time.
For me, at the moment, I decidenot to invest in an adventure
to go to Cannes because, fromall the feedback that I've heard
, it's a very expensiveadventure and it's very
(07:08):
cutthroat, or, at least fromwhat I hear, like people want to
buy, sell, but theconversations need to be super
productive and it's like a hugemachine and I thought no, I am
in the world of action movies,that's my passion, that's where
my heart is, and it is a smallfestival in Madrid, but it's
going to be so worthwhilebecause it is for and by action
(07:34):
movie filmmakers and it was thebest decision I ever made, and I
will tell you why in a secondas well.
Film festivals in generalespecially if you go, you know,
to advance your career, toexpand your network, film
festivals can be intimidating,and that had been my experience
before is that I would go tofilm festivals without a
strategy, just crossing myfingers, hoping that I would
(07:55):
cross paths with someone, andthen just like feeling very
awkward and not being able toactually engage conversation,
conversation or at least notwith, you know, key people, with
decision makers.
Going solo is definitely harderthan if you know at least one
person.
If you know at least one person, then things are way smoother.
(08:15):
But even though you can still,you know, get over it.
We will talk about what kind ofthings you can say, what kind
of questions you can ask to getthe ball rolling.
But definitely, you know,bringing a close friend that is
also in the industry, from theindustry, can basically, you
know, kick off the fire.
You have fire in your belly,they have fire in their belly,
and then all of a sudden youfuel each other with energy and
(08:39):
the snowball effect can start.
Let's talk about my firstexperience.
So I went to the BEEF BrusselsInternational Fantastic Film
Festival, where I was an actressin a feature film that was
being screened.
Now it was a big festival I hadnever been.
I heard a lot of positivethings about it and I know why.
Now the vibe at the festival isfreaking phenomenal.
(09:03):
A friend of mine, kind of youknow, made me understand the
difference between festivalsthat are really about audience
development and festivals thatare really about industry, and
you know industry connections,and I would put this particular
festival, the first one, in thecategory of audience development
(09:26):
.
And I'm not saying there wereno industry events, I was just
not aware of it and I didn'tattend them because I had such a
bad strategy going in.
But it's definitely a festivalthat is all about bringing new
films to an audience thatalready love it and that will
celebrate it, no matter whatLike.
For example, there were a lot ofthrillers, horror movies, and
(09:49):
so there was a special codebetween audience members that
whenever there is something thatis happening, they scream so it
almost feels like you are at ahip hop theater show, when
you're actually in a dark roomin a massive, you know movie
theater watching a film.
So, for example, when a dooropens and in a very squeaky, a
massive you know movie theaterwatching a film.
So, for example, when a dooropens and in a very squeaky way
because something is about tohappen, like people would say
(10:12):
ooh, and then if there is blood,they would make another sound
and everybody's ah, and so it's.
It was like so much fun to justattend the screenings and go to
it because there is like a vibe, it's really for the audience.
So I believe, like if youprobably are a filmmaker that
(10:34):
want to build a fan base aroundyour movie or your art form and
your craft, this is the place tobe, and there are probably
festivals that are very similarto this.
So I went in thinking, well, I'man actress in a feature film
with, you know, a well-knowndirector, and I'm playing a nice
role facing like a famous otheractor, and this film won
(10:55):
already like some awards and wasnominated at the Toronto Film
Festival.
That's it.
That's how I'm going in.
Well, nothing happened,absolutely freaking nothing.
I went to see the screening butobviously then when you get out
it's not like everybodyrecognizes you because you
really look different on screenand in real life, and then
(11:16):
obviously people that are not atthat screening, then the rest
of the festival, nobody wouldknow that I'm in it.
I had absolutely no strategy.
I didn't take the accreditationbecause I couldn't figure out
if it would be helpful or not.
The accreditation was expensivebecause I looked at it too late
.
So that's a very importantpoint to get your accreditation
(11:37):
for a festival, do it in advance, don't leave it at the last
minute.
You will pay way more.
So if you want to get youraccreditation and you should for
the film festivals that youwill select to go to and invest
time and money in, do theaccreditation in advance.
The earlier you take youraccreditation, the cheaper it is
(11:58):
.
I looked into the Beef Festivalway too late.
And then there was the secondthing, which is oh my God, I'm
alone.
I'm too scared to go to the VIPbar alone.
And, yeah, stupidly thatstopped me.
But that's okay, you know,notes taken, nobody recognized
me.
And so also another big thingis even though I was an actress
(12:19):
in the movie, I had not beeninvited to see this movie.
I had not been invited to seethis movie, which I think it's a
freaking shame, and that isprobably due to my previous
representation.
So the agent with whom I was atthe time and who also got me
(12:39):
that job didn't really follow upwhat was happening with that
movie.
Afterwards, I was constantly onthe internet trying to figure
out what was happening with thatmovie.
They didn't know nothing aboutit.
I couldn't attend the firstindustry screening this movie
had, which was in Spain andBarcelona.
I couldn't attend it and so Ifelt I missed out.
Then, now that it was beingscreened in Belgium, I thought,
(13:02):
oh my God, I cannot miss it, andI even emailed the production.
I told my agent, my agent alsoemailed the production, but
obviously everything was so late.
There was no answer, noresponse, and I feel I really
missed out on an opportunity.
A lot of festivals absolutelylove to have one of the actors
(13:23):
or something being present andapparently what I also heard
afterwards is that normally anagent can already negotiate
these things From the moment yousign the contract, from the
moment you're in the movie.
It can be put in the contractthat you would be invited to the
(13:44):
first screening or to someparticular events or whatever.
And I feel if I had had anagent at a time that would have
stood by my side for me forthese kind of things, this would
not have happened and I wouldprobably have taken way more out
of this event than whathappened now, which is nothing.
And now I have a new agent andhopefully, you know, for any
(14:06):
future jobs and projects, all ofthese things will be signed off
in advance.
So a lot of learnings there.
It was a bit of adisappointment, even though I
absolutely loved the festivaland I will probably want to
submit my films in the future.
Next time I will take anaccreditation and go to the VIP
bar and not be scared of it,because I learned a lot in the
next couple of events.
(14:27):
So I then went to the BSFFBrussels Short Film Festival.
So it's an internationalprogramming.
4,500 films were submitted forthe festival.
I actually had submitted myshort film and I wasn't selected
.
But out of those 4,500 filmssubmitted, they only selected
(14:49):
about 100.
So the competition was high.
Once I knew that, my heart feltmore at peace.
I was like, okay, I've not beenselected with my short film no
pasa nada.
It's okay, but let's make themost of this festival.
So obviously, everybody ismaking shorts, doing shorts,
wants to make a short film, andso I thought, okay, this is the
(15:11):
perfect festival for me, butthis time I need to be way more
organized and put double effortin trying to expand my network.
Just quickly putting this incontext I am Belgian, I grew up
in Belgium, but I lived 18 yearsabroad.
I lived in London, paris,barcelona, madrid.
(15:32):
I spent a lot of time inJamaica.
So really and truly, I've onlybeen back in Belgium quite
recently and I've been emergingmyself in the Belgian film
industry since last year, whichis what like seven months or
something.
So my network on the Belgianscene is still very new.
(15:54):
I'm still starting off.
I'm still trying to figure outwhat is happening in the country
where I'm from.
So I'm going to the BrusselsShort Film Festival Number one.
I took my accreditation Superimportant.
The earlier you take youraccreditation, the cheaper it is
.
There are different tiers inaccreditations as well.
I would recommend don't go forthe cheapest one.
(16:16):
Usually the cheapest one allowsyou to go and see a lot of
movies, which is amazing.
But actually, when you go tothese film festivals to go for
the industry events, you barelyhave time to go and watch a
movie I will talk about that ina second too but definitely take
a tier that is more expensivebut that also gets you in the
(16:40):
professional networking events.
For example, at this particularfestival they called it
professional cocktails.
If you didn't have thisparticular accreditation, you
couldn't get in.
So that is super important.
Having an accreditation is notonly important to get you in in
the right events and in orderfor you not to be stopped at the
(17:01):
door that actually happened toone of my friends and I must say
it's quite heartbreaking whenyou want to go in and network
and at the door that actuallyhappened to one of my friends
and I must say it's quiteheartbreaking.
You know, when you want to goin and network and at the door
they stop you because you havethe wrong badge or the wrong
accreditation.
It's an awful feeling.
So don't do that.
Take the accreditation, thatwill get you in, but also,
having a badge, people from theindustry recognize you and if
(17:22):
they want to know more about youor start a conversation with
you, they can look at your badge.
They can see your name and yourtitle If you're an actor, a
director, a writer, a producer,whatever and so it allows people
from the industry to alsorecognize each other.
A big top tip I would have isdon't just drop in.
Stay in when I say you need tocommit.
(17:43):
You gotta really commit if youwant to make the most of it.
I didn't just go to one day ofthe festival.
I didn't just go to oneprofessional cocktail.
I think I went to like 90% ofall industry events and
professional cocktails andnetworking events there were at
the festival.
So what does that mean?
Yes, yes, tiring, draining tosome extent, like literally, I
(18:09):
was not able to do anything elseduring that week.
Because also, when you're innetworking mode, you know like
you have to be taking ininformation because you're
meeting so many new people,you're having to, you know,
share about your projects and soin a way, you're kind of
pitching yourself, your work andyour vision all the time.
So when you get home you'retired.
So I would say, number onecommit.
(18:31):
Don't drop in just for one day.
Stay in, be ready to put allthe energy in and be ready to
sleep when you go home.
What it also means of stayingin is that you start seeing the
same faces again and again.
So there is familiarity thatstarts building relationships.
You know, from one day to theother, all of a sudden I had one
(18:53):
more friend, two more friends,three more friends.
People remembered me, Iremembered them and all of a
sudden a casual chat is actuallyturned into a very meaningful
conversation and sometimes apowerful connection.
So put the energy in, put thetime in when you really say I
want to go and attend thatfestival, know why you're going
(19:15):
and then go full in.
So during the day, this festivalhad several industry events.
They had masterclasses forwriters and directors.
They had networking eventswhere freelancers like me were
able to meet organizations thateither give fundings or support
(19:35):
artists or fight for the rightsof artists, for intellectual
property.
You were able to meet a coupleof production companies as well.
So during the day there was awhole bunch of industry events,
right From masterclasses tospeed dating to panel
discussions.
I attended all of them.
(19:57):
Then in the evenings, therewere professional cocktail
events.
What happened is, of course, Ihad met one or two or three or
four people, and now theprofessional cocktail events
were way less intimidatingbecause the people I had seen
during the day.
I now saw them at theprofessional cocktail events,
and that included peer artistsfilmmakers, directors, writers,
(20:20):
actors, as well as decisionmakers.
So what I mean by that ispeople that were at the head of
funding organizations, peoplethat had production companies.
(20:43):
I saw them at the professionalcocktail events.
We recognized each other'sfaces, familiar, and you start
to know more people, and that'swhere you're able to get over
this challenge of being aloneway faster.
Business cards Business cardsare back, so I had prepared
these beautiful QR codes on myphone.
(21:05):
It was ready to be scanned.
It looked like super neat,super smart.
It's an app and you do likeyour business card on your phone
.
People have to scan it and thenall of your contact details are
saved into their phone.
You know what it doesn't work,and why it doesn't work is that
you are in an environment thatis buzzing and everybody is fast
(21:30):
.
Some conversations can takelonger, of course, but you want
to have as many conversations aspossible with other people, and
other people are exactly thesame, so nobody has the time to
take out their phone and startscanning your QR code.
Most people don't even know howto save it into their phone,
and then it becomes a mess andthen they give up and then
(21:51):
another person just drops by andsay hey, how are you doing,
jonathan?
I haven't seen you for a longtime, and that's it.
Jonathan is gone.
He started another conversationwith somebody else.
So immediately after thatfestival, I printed business
cards again and they are waybetter.
They're there in my pocket.
When I'm talking to someone,even if we are being interrupted
(22:12):
by somebody else, I can give mybusiness card.
One of my friends told me yeah,but business cards, people are
losing it.
That is true, but your job, myjob, is not to lose their
business card.
They can lose your businesscard, but your job, your
responsibility, is to not losetheir business card.
(22:35):
And that's exactly what I did.
Right, I've been tracking myconnections.
I literally went home and Istarted an Excel sheet and I put
down the name of the person,who they were, what they did,
and I made a little note of howwe met.
Did we meet in the bar?
Was there one little thing inour conversation that was
memorable?
So whenever I go home, I'vebeen tracking my connections.
(22:59):
They are in an Excel sheet andthat's it.
Their business card has beenlogged into my system.
They can forget my businesscard, throw it in the bin if
they want to.
I can now follow up with thatcontact.
A little tip as well withInstagram.
Instagram works really well.
You always have I'm going tocall them the weirdos, and I
(23:20):
don't want to be dismissivetowards people that don't have
Instagram.
I think if you're not onInstagram, it's freaking
fantastic.
I think there is a freedom youhave in your life that people on
Instagram don't have, such asme.
But I think what I love withInstagram is it gives the
possibility to stay in contactwith a person over a period of
(23:41):
time, and then you see whatthey're up to, and then you see
updates.
Same thing for you.
You are showing updates aboutwhat you're up to, who you are.
It's a way of showing othersnot just that you're busy with
projects.
People also get to see whatyour values are, what you stand
for as a human being, what yourart is trying to express, and so
(24:03):
I feel Instagram, in that way,is a fantastic way to keep in
touch in the long term, what Idid with Instagram.
A lot of people are on Instagram.
Only a few weren't, but so Istarted following them.
They started following me.
That's the only time peoplewould take out their phone is
actually to follow each other onInstagram and not for this QR
(24:23):
code business card thing thatbecomes a confusing thing.
Instagram is quick.
Who are you Click, follow,follow done?
What I did is I followed themon Instagram and I took a
screenshot and then, once I gothome, I send them a DM, a direct
message, to say, hey, it wasgreat to meet you at the
(24:45):
festival and talk about this.
I hope we'll keep in touch.
You know, maybe I'll see you atone of the screenings later in
the week or something, but sowhat does that do?
Is now we level up thisconnection on Instagram and also
there is an Instagram trackrecord, if I can say so, where I
say the name of the person,because obviously some people
(25:07):
have nicknames.
So, hey, stefan, it was greatto talk about your movie blah,
blah, blah, and so I rememberhis name is Stefan, in case on
Instagram it's another name.
I remember what we talked aboutand I remember where we met.
Obviously, I will also log themin my Excel spreadsheet, but
it's another way of also makingsure that we continue the
(25:29):
connection on Instagramafterwards.
And yes, I know some people aregoing to say, oh, my God, it's
too much work.
Well, yes, it's work, butthat's what networking is for
right.
It's not just to say, oh, niceto meet you, nice to meet you,
hi Marie, hi Anne, hi Julie, andthen forget about it, because
then you've actually wasted yourtime.
You went to these festivals,you went to these networking
(25:51):
events to have contacts, but,like any relationship, you need
to put some work in it to makeit work.
And also, you don't becomecollaborators just by meeting
once for five minutes at a filmfestival.
It's something that willnurture over time.
So these people are potentialfuture collaborators,
co-creators, future allies.
(26:11):
So don't let these moments slipaway.
And yeah, take an extra twohours to have an Excel sheet or
whatever works for you, or afollow-up email or whatever, but
to make sure that it's not lostIn these professional cocktails
, you have basically an open bar, so people can.
It's only for an hour or two.
(26:31):
It's open bar and it's a VIParea, so only people of the
industry that are invited can goin.
It's very difficult to make thefirst move.
So I'm going to give you acouple of top tips that I've
been using so as much as you arehoping to make new connections,
also the connector, becausepeople appreciate it, and I will
(26:53):
tell you afterwards how.
I created a new whatsapp groupfor Belgian filmmakers.
I have been a connector and Itruly believe people have
appreciated that effort.
But they also appreciate whenyou say, hey, this is Stefan, or
this is Jonathan or this isMarie, and they do this, and
then the domino effect can gofor them, and then they start a
(27:13):
domino effect for you.
Then people always forget otherpeople's first names because
they get to know so many peoplein an event.
They always forget that Cindy.
But then what I would do is I'mlike yeah, cindy, cindy
Crawford.
Even though I have nothing todo with Cindy Crawford
aesthetically speaking or likethe fact that she's a model, the
(27:37):
fact that she had long hair,like we have nothing to do with
each other, but Cindy Crawfordis now like a tiny reminder for
them.
Oh, yeah, that's Cindy.
You know like often when you'rein a theater class, there is
like an icebreaker game whereyou have to introduce yourself
with your name plus an adjective, for example like Pretty Janine
(27:58):
, right, and then you do a movePretty Janine.
And then everybody followsPretty Janine.
But now you remember that she'sPretty Janine, with the move,
and it kind of helps youmemorize their name.
So I'm doing it to myself.
When people meet me, cindy,what's your name again?
Cindy, cindy Crawford All of asudden it kind of implements, it
(28:21):
puts a seed in their mind ohyeah, I cannot forget that for
next time.
Also, I am forgetting people'snames, but the thing that I try
to do is never feel guilty forforgetting their names.
I try to very quickly if I seethem for the second time or a
third time.
Hey, excuse me, I forgot onyour name.
What's your name again?
Oh yeah, because if we aregoing to talk five times, if
(28:44):
we're going to meet each otherat five different events and I
still can't remember the name ofthe person is awkward.
If I ask for their name thesecond time I see them or the
third time I see them, it's lessawkward.
Also, my Excel sheet I put itin oh yeah, this person had a
nose piercing or was really tallor something.
So that just helps me to justremember who they were.
(29:07):
But never feel bad to say, hey,what's your name again?
Oh, can you remember how we met?
Because just the fact that youremember them, I know your face.
People already feelacknowledged.
People are like, oh yeah, atleast I'm not an anonymous in
the crowd.
When people tell me oh, I knowyour face, we've met before,
haven't we?
I'm already happy.
I'm like, okay, at least I'mbeing noticed.
(29:27):
Now it's just that we stillhave to develop a relationship.
And also, people appreciate itwhen you ask their name again,
because they realize you don'twant them to remain anonymous,
you want to build a relationshipwith them.
So yeah, I encourage you, justask it.
They will never take it wrongly, especially in those high
(29:48):
intensity networking eventswhere people are just meeting so
many people, they forgeteverybody's name.
Now, at this particular festival, the BSFF, I went to so many
industry events.
I barely had the time to watchany movies because I was so busy
with all the rest of it.
Busy with all the rest of it.
(30:14):
The thing is that going tofilms is important because then
you're going to meet peerartists and obviously it gives
you a topic of conversation.
It is not always easy, but Iwill tell you about other
festivals where I watched waymore movies and this led to just
very different conversations.
So, going back to the BrusselsShort Film Festival, one of the
things that it gave me was ahuge amount of self-confidence.
(30:36):
I had an idea for a film, thestory was clear in my head, but
I was very unclear on what thenext steps were in Belgium to
make it happen.
And I kid you not because ofthe masterclasses, because of
the networking, because I'vebeen speaking to producers,
because I've been speaking toother filmmakers seven days
(30:57):
later I had written the pitch, Ihad shaped the treatment and I
was actually ready to send itoff to a pitch from another
festival and I was able tosubmit it.
You know.
So since then, like literallyseven days after that festival,
I was able to start contactingproduction companies.
I was sending it off to grantopportunities, to pitching
(31:21):
opportunities.
I'm still busy with it.
Probably my pitching stillneeds a bit of shaping, but the
thing is I found the confidenceand I found, okay, this is where
people are going, that's howthey are contacting each other.
This is like how the industryworks, specifically in Belgium,
specifically in this country,because it doesn't work the same
way in different countries,because I've worked in the UK,
(31:44):
I've worked in Spain, and eventhe ways of thinking, the way
that you talk to people isdifferent I've worked in Spain
and even the ways of thinking,the way that you talk to people
is different, so it gave me ahuge amount of self-confidence.
In other words, there wasmomentum.
Now, another thing that I'msuper proud of like I said, I've
been in Belgium for what?
Seven months, at the time ofrecording, and I found it very
difficult so far to network.
I realized the Dutch-speakingpeople didn't really know the
(32:07):
French-speaking people and viceversa.
Actors knew each other,directors knew each other, the
technical teams knew each other,but in between them there was a
lack of communication.
So I thought you know what?
I'm going to set up a WhatsAppgroup.
Why a WhatsApp group?
When I lived in Barcelona, acouple of people started a
(32:28):
WhatsApp group a few years ago,and right now there are a
thousand people on this WhatsAppgroup.
It's called the BCN FilmmakersGroup and obviously a thousand
people making film have a tonamount of things to share, so
there's always the casting beingshared.
I have to clarify.
I have to clarify.
So this WhatsApp group is foractors, directors, makeup
(32:50):
artists, composers, sound people, cameramen, dops, anybody that
is working in the world of film.
So in Barcelona, this group isjust on fire.
Everybody's always looking forsomebody to collaborate, so it's
buzzing.
So I thought, you know what,let me start a WhatsApp group.
(33:11):
So I started the BelgianIndependent Film Network
WhatsApp group.
A couple of weeks later, we arenow 90, almost 99, zero members
in this group, and I'm super,super proud for somebody that
didn't know many people you knowhaving been able to build that
(33:32):
network, and I'm really lookingforward for it to grow and see
how we can support each otherand just make more films happen,
whether we have fundings or nofundings, just make it happen.
And then I went to theInternational Toledo Action Film
Festival International ToledoAction Film Festival organized
by Nacho Serapio, and that wasnear Madrid.
So I went to that festivalbecause it was focused on action
(33:58):
movies.
I knew it was a small festival.
I knew it was not going to belike the other film festivals
that I attended in Belgium.
It was not going to be Canneseither.
It was just going to be fourpeople that love action movies.
I also had a friend of minecalled George Caraga.
He has LK Stunts, a stuntcompany in Madrid, and I knew he
(34:20):
was also going to be screeninga feature film he was a part of,
and so I was just excited tosee his work as well, I also
wanted to see if, eventually,the short film I'm working on
now or any future films that I'mworking on, if they would be a
good fit for this festival.
So I went and two of my friendsfrom Barcelona were like, oh my
(34:41):
God, let's go together.
And I was like, oh my God, yes.
So my dear friend John and mydear friend Simon, who both have
been on the podcast, came withme and again.
Obviously, when you don't goalone, it's a buzz.
So what happened in this verysmall festival is I was able to
(35:04):
watch way more movies in thisfestival, way more movies in
this festival.
I actually only did that watchmovies because there were not a
huge amount of industry eventsLike there was.
Well, there was an event on taxshelter, so it was more about
financing.
And then there was a day ofworkshops about screen fighting
(35:26):
and how to fight for the camera,and that was freaking amazing.
And then they were justscreening a ton of movies, a lot
of short films, a couple offeature films, and it was in a
very small cinema, but it wasamazing to just watch
independent action filmmakers dotheir thing.
(35:48):
This actually allowed to haveway more artistic conversations
with all the people afterwardsbecause you just saw their film
and then it was really easy totalk to them because it was such
a small event.
So there were actors,filmmakers, people that just
have that fire in their belly tojust to make it happen, because
also in the world of actionfilms it's not easy to find the
(36:11):
financing, and so a lot of thesepeople just say you know what F
this?
We're going to make it happenanyway.
And so there is a real sense ofinitiative, a real sense of
entrepreneurialism, which issuper inspiring to watch.
We talked about the craft,about what makes an action scene
a good action scene, all ofthat kind of things, and that
(36:33):
was great.
And then, as an actress, I wasable to also show my skills
during the workshops, because Idid all the fighting workshops
and that was an opportunity forme to actually show what I can
do.
A little surprise was Nacho.
So the organizer of the eventgave me an award and it was
(36:54):
really a symbolic award, but Iactually got a little award to
take home because he was sotouched by the fact that I made
it all the way from Belgium tohis festival.
He was really touched and hewanted to give me an award for
my dedication to the craft andmy passion for the making of
(37:17):
action movies.
Because, even though thefestival is international and
they screen international movies, I guess filmmakers would
travel to see their filmsscreened.
International filmmakers wouldtravel to see their films
screened.
International filmmakers wouldtravel to see their films
screened, but not that manypeople would travel from abroad
just to be a part of theaudience, just to just feel the
(37:38):
vibes and celebrate people'swork.
And it felt so rewarding, Ifelt so honored, I felt so
touched by the fact that, like Ifelt, nacho saw me, somebody
saw me, somebody saw my passion,my energy, my craziness, you
know, for researching.
(37:59):
So I felt, even though thisaward was very symbolic, I felt
extremely touched.
It's now in my living room andI look at it every day and it
just makes me smile.
So obviously, so far I've beentalking a lot about me as a
writer, director and how I madeconnections, and I've been
talking a little bit about me asan actress.
(38:20):
And it's important to make thedifference, because the
conversations we have as actorsand the conversations we have as
somebody that carries a projectand is a go-getter to make it
happen, these are differentconversations.
At the first festival that Iwent to, the Beef.
I went there because I was anactress on screen and I had zero
(38:43):
strategy.
This is also the reason why Ididn't get anything out of it.
It was a failure because I hadno strategy.
However, I met an actor or twothat I then saw in the other
festivals and that helped theball.
Going to make other connectionsAt the BSFF, the short film
festival, I didn't really makeany connections as an actress
(39:03):
Because, in regards to theindustry events, the industry
events were really focused onmakers, people that were writing
, people that were directing,but it was not so focused on
actors.
The third festival so the onein Madrid, because I came in as
an artist, with all the hatsthat I'm wearing, I was able to
(39:26):
have different conversationswith different people and
obviously get excited about thefact that we might work together
one day and maybe work with meas an actress as well.
Obviously, it's not likesomebody had written a script
ready to cast me there, butthere was an openness for these
conversations because it was asmall festival and because it
was really an artist to artistkind of connection that was
(39:46):
being made, Whereas in theBrussels Short Festival it was
more of a writer-directorconnecting to organizations,
connecting to productioncompanies.
There was no space for theactress in me to really network,
even though people know thatI'm an actress and people know
about it, but I'm not sure thatthat is what really landed in
(40:07):
the conversations.
However, there was the lastfestival I want to talk about.
However, there was the lastfestival I want to talk about
and that again brought moreunderstanding to how to network
and how to navigate these events, both as an actress and as a
filmmaker.
So the last event I went to soall of these festivals I did
that within a space of twomonths, right, so it's been
(40:28):
festival intensive.
So the brief BrusselsInternational Film Festival this
particular festival is inBrussels, but they only select
and screen feature films.
I took my accreditation way inadvance so that I would pay
(40:49):
cheaper for it.
And also, what I learned fromthe other festivals is all their
industry events, akamasterclasses, pitching events,
opportunities to talk about yourwork, whatever it was,
roundtable conversations, allthese events.
You have to look at theirwebsite in advance because there
(41:09):
is nothing on the website andthen all of a sudden, poof, they
announce one out of the tenopportunities that there will be
happening, but if you don'tregister straight in advance,
you will actually miss outBecause it will be booked out,
sold out.
So, for example, there wasanother festival where I just
(41:29):
applied for a writer's residency.
They gave grants to femalewriters who have a concept and
mentoring, but this festival ishappening in one, two, three,
four months, so four months inadvance.
They've put it on the website,but the deadline was yesterday.
If you don't look at thesewebsites in advance, and both
(41:52):
for your accreditation to payless and for all the industry
opportunities, you're gonna missout.
So select the festivals whereyou want to go to way in advance
and really look at theirwebsite regularly, because a lot
of festivals are run by well,not run by but a lot of
volunteers are working on it.
So sometimes the updates areslow, or sometimes the
(42:14):
communication is a bit lastminute or not last minute, or
they announce one event but notthe nine others, and sometimes
things are announced two daysbefore the festival is opening.
You need to really be on it andI feel the first festival I
didn't do that and I missed outon a lot.
So brief, I was like, okay, Iwas checking their website every
(42:37):
single day and I was like I'mnot going to miss out on
anything.
And that's what I did.
I got a spot in every singlemasterclass, in every single
industry event.
I went to the professionalcocktails again.
I met way less producers andthe professional cocktails were
not as busy as the short filmfestival.
I don't know why.
(42:59):
I have no idea why, but this ismy explanation and my take on
it.
I believe that the Brusselsshort film festival there is a
huge amount of people that wantto create shorts, make shorts
because you want to build alarge CV and portfolio of short
films before asking for moneyfor a feature film, because it
(43:22):
will give you more chances Onceyou start making feature films.
That's another playground and Ifeel all the people in Brussels
, at least all the productioncompanies that are playing at
that level, they probably allknow each other already.
So is it really useful for themto come to the professional
cocktails?
(43:42):
I don't know.
There are way less films thatare being screened, because
obviously it's a festival thatonly screens feature films.
So a film is an hour and a halflong, whereas before, in an
hour and a half, you could seefive or six short films.
So there are less people, lessindustry people maybe attending,
(44:04):
and so these professionalcocktails.
There were still people to meet, but less production companies
and, generally speaking, the VIParea was not as busy Doesn't
mean it wasn't interesting, justless busy.
The masterclasses that they wereorganizing and all the other
pitching events and so forth atthis particular festival was way
(44:26):
more selective.
So, as I said, these industryevents get sold out or get
booked up, but for the brief yousometimes also had to apply for
it to be selected.
So, for example, I sent in mypitch for my feature film and I
was not selected to pitch.
(44:47):
I then learned that theyreceived 98 proposals and they
only selected seven.
So that kind of put my heart atpeace.
I was like, okay, 98 peoplesubmitted, only seven got
through.
It's all right, we'll be forthe next time.
But all the people that hadsubmitted a film or a proposal
(45:08):
were invited to a masterclassaround pitching and we could
also be a witness to the sevenpeople that were pitching to see
how they would pitch their ideapublicly, which is it's a
privilege, it's an honor, andalso you learn a lot from
watching other people pitch.
Another thing that theyorganized was the casting
(45:30):
process in a multilingualproduction.
So we could either apply as adirector either apply as an
actor.
I decided for that particularone to apply as an actress, and
we had to minimum speak twolanguages.
So I applied I speak fourlanguages and they selected six
(45:50):
actors and three directors.
I was selected as an actressand it was two days of the
exploration of a multilingualscript.
So there was a creative processwith the director, a creative
process for actors about whywould we use this language
instead of the other or whywould we switch languages.
(46:11):
And then casting directors wereinvited to be a part of the
conversation table because we,over those two days, we had been
filming as well, and so we weprojected it for a very small
crowd and casting directors werethere to talk about it.
So as actors, we also hadaccess to those casting
(46:33):
directors, but it was a veryselected group.
Yeah, we were only nine in thatmasterclass right for two days.
So here, for example, at thisparticular festival, there was a
specific activity that was opento actors and casting directors
were invited.
So here, at this particularfestival, as an actress, I feel,
(46:55):
yeah, I've been able to show mytalent.
Some directors have been seeingmy talent.
I was able to do my thing as anactress.
I've been able to show it tosome casting directors, and so
if there are opportunities likethat, definitely it's easier to
network as an actor, but thefestival needs to open up these
kind of opportunities, right.
(47:18):
However, I know as actors it isreally difficult to network.
I kind of network with mydifferent hats, but I would say
I always say that I am anactress and that I am in the
world of action movies.
I think it's all aboutexpectations.
I think when you network as anactor, don't expect people to be
like oh my God, I was lookingfor your profile right now.
(47:41):
That very rarely happens, youknow, whereas when you are
carrying a project as a writeror director, you're ready to
come in, ready to eventuallycollaborate.
It's going to be a long-termthing, we know it, and so it's
about managing expectationsreally.
But then also it's about okay,what can I put on the table as a
human being to contribute tosociety?
(48:03):
So, for example, for me or forany other artist, really, we all
know, sometimes we're busy withprojects, sometimes we're not
busy with projects, sometimes wehave no work.
Sometimes we're not busy withprojects.
Sometimes we have no work,sometimes we have a lot of work.
Sometimes we can talk aboutwhat we're up to and sometimes
we're just hiding that we're upto nothing.
But I think one of the things,for example, that opens up
(48:23):
conversations for me is, forexample, the podcast.
The podcast is a way for me tohave guests to talk about
certain topics, to shareknowledge, and also when I'm
networking as an actress, as afilmmaker, sometimes I meet
somebody interesting and I'mlike hey, do you want to be a
guest on my podcast?
You have something reallyinteresting to say here.
(48:44):
So that is also me contributingto society if we zoom out, and
this can also open upconversations.
Society if we zoom out, andthis can also open up
conversations.
The fact that I have started aWhatsApp group just for Belgian
people that are in film to startsupporting each other.
People are excited about it, away to open up conversations.
(49:07):
I give you an example.
So I met somebody at thefestival.
The person at the festivaltalks to me about a filmmaker
that's interesting, that Ishould follow on Instagram.
I follow this person onInstagram.
I see that he's working withthree, four, five actors or
whatever.
Start following these actors,one of those actors.
So imagine, already like thechain right.
One of these actors sees on myInstagram that I have this
(49:31):
Belgian independent film network.
He DMs me about it and I'm like, yeah, I'll add you to the
WhatsApp group, whatnot.
And then all of a sudden he'slike you know what I'm actually
casting for a project right now?
You kind of have the profile.
Can I submit to you, would yoube interested?
And I'm like, oh my God, yes,because I read the synopsis.
(49:52):
It looks like freaking amazing.
It's totally up my street.
So you see, like a one littlething can have a huge domino
effect.
So also ask yourself if you arenot the one that is making a
project happen.
If you are an actor, don't justbe in a waiting position as in
I'm just waiting for somebody tooffer me a job.
(50:13):
It's like how can you bringsomething to the table?
I think that also helps a lotwhen we are networking.
I'm sure I could still sayanother thousand things, but I
hope that sharing my experiencegives you already some detailed
top tips of how to navigatefestivals as an actor, actress
or filmmaker, when you have noproject that is being screened
(50:35):
but you literally go hoping toopen up more doors for yourself.
So remember, select yourfestivals in advance.
Look at their website inadvance, take your
accreditations in advance, checkif it's an audience developing
kind of festival or if it'sreally an industry focused kind
of festival.
Always go with some sort ofstrategy.
(50:57):
Go with your business cards, beready to, you know, screenshot
people's instagrams, put alittle bit of effort in it
afterwards, log all your newconnections in an excel sheet or
whatever else works for you.
The follow-up is as importantas making the initial connection
and obviously, let me know ifyou enjoyed this episode.
(51:17):
I love receiving feedback.
I love hearing when it'shelping people Share about the
Loud Whisper Takeover podcastwith your peers and I will hear
you or see you in the nextepisode.
Welcome to the Loud Whisper Takeover podcast.
My name is Cindy Klaas, thehost of this podcast.
I'm an action actress, I'm awriter, I'm a filmmaker.
I love telling stories in andthrough movement, because I've
done some martial arts, I'vedone some combat sports, I have
a dance background, so I want totell stories that are in
movement.
(00:20):
But I also move the heart, thesoul.
I'm a storyteller that loveshaving her audience at the edge
of their seats.
So action movies, thrillers,sci-fis, you name it.
This is my world.
So today I want to talk aboutfilm festivals.
(00:40):
Now, how do we navigate a filmfestival as an actor or as a
writer-director that wants tomake new contacts?
I will not talk about havingyour film in the film festival
circuit and attending thescreening of your own film.
I think that's a differenttopic and it's a very
(01:01):
interesting topic because I'mgoing through that as well.
But I just want to talk aboutthose film festivals that we
want to attend to expand ournetwork, to expand our
understanding of the industry,to make new contacts and to
eventually make our next projecthappening.
Often we just go to those filmfestivals especially in the
(01:25):
beginning, you don't fully knowhow to navigate it unless you
have an actual project that isbeing screened.
You don't really know how longin advance you should be.
You know booking your ticket,your accreditation, all the
events that you should beattending and, especially when
it's networking time, how theflip do you actually network?
So I just went to four filmfestivals with a very different
(01:51):
purpose, with a very differentstrategy, and I want to share
with you the mistakes I made andalso the little things I did
that were incredibly successful,that were incredibly successful
and that gave me way moreconfidence in taking the next
steps for my next short film,feature film and series that I
(02:12):
have in development at themoment.
So let's start and let's dive in.
First of all, how do we selectwhich festival we would be going
to and why would we go to thatparticular festival instead of
another?
Going to a film festival is acommitment.
Now, this can be a commitmentin regards to time and effort,
(02:34):
because if you really reallywant to dive into it and make
the most of it, you will need tospend a lot of time there and
put a lot of energy in thosenetworking events or other
events that they have going onfor industry people, or it can
even require a financialinvestment.
Let's say you want to go toCannes.
Well, it's going to cost a lotof money, so you better go with
(02:56):
some sort of strategy, with somesort of purpose, and not just
with your fingers crossed hopingthat you will meet someone that
will change your career right.
So how do we select thefestivals we're going to?
I went to four festivals that Ispecifically selected for
different reasons.
Number one at the moment, eventhough I have lived in many
(03:18):
different countries throughoutmy life, at the moment I'm based
in Belgium life.
At the moment I'm based inBelgium, near Brussels.
So I thought Belgium and somekey film festivals in Belgium
have to be on my career map.
Why?
Because my next film, my nextapplication for a grant, my next
(03:41):
move in regards to finding somesort of fundings to make it
happen will be in Belgium.
So I really need to makecontacts here locally.
So I looked at Belgian festivalsand there were three festivals
that I decided to attend.
So number one there was the BIF.
B-i-f-f-f is the BrusselsInternational Fantastic Film
(04:08):
Festival.
So it is a festival.
There are feature films thatare being screened, short films
that are being screened.
It's an internationalprogramming and it's really
focused on horror movies,sci-fis, fantasy thrillers,
(04:30):
horror movies, sci-fis, fantasythrillers so it's really
specifically for this kind ofmovies.
In French they call it cinémade genre, so it englobes all of
these genres of movies.
I decided to go there because,number one, it was a local
festival, was a big festival,and also I had a role as an
actress in a feature film, whichalso was kind of important in
(04:51):
regards to my career pathbecause it was nominated at the
International Festival ofToronto.
So the feature film is calledDaniela Forever and I had a role
.
I had the role of Dr Van Brandtin this film and it was the
first time that this movie wasgoing to be screened in Belgium.
So I thought that's animportant event to go to.
(05:12):
And also, number three, thethird reason is this is a
festival that is literally byand for people that are in the
world of cinema that I love,which is thrillers, sci-fis,
fantasies and so forth.
Then the second festival that Idecided to attend was the BSFF
(05:37):
Brussels Short Film Festival.
So that is a really bigfestival in Brussels and it's
all about short films.
So I thought, well, at themoment I'm making short films, I
will probably make more ofthose, so let's go there.
And also they had a huge amountof industry events happening.
And then the third one inBrussels that I decided to
attend was the BRIFF B-R-I-F-FBrussels International Film
(06:04):
Festival, which is a festivalthat only selects feature films,
also an internationalprogramming.
All three have an internationalprogramming, but this one is
really focused on feature filmsand that was a very different
experience.
Okay, and I will tell you aboutthe different experiences I had
, how I networked, how I failed,how I succeeded in all three,
(06:25):
because I believe each festivalreally needs a different
approach, and I will tell youwhy in a second.
And then the fourth festivalthat I attended was near Madrid
and that is called theInternational Toledo Expo Film
Fest and that is a smaller filmfestival but it is specifically
(06:47):
for action movies.
So a lot of people, you know,decide to go to Cannes, which
was kind of happening at thesame time.
For me, at the moment, I decidenot to invest in an adventure
to go to Cannes because, fromall the feedback that I've heard
, it's a very expensiveadventure and it's very
(07:08):
cutthroat, or, at least fromwhat I hear, like people want to
buy, sell, but theconversations need to be super
productive and it's like a hugemachine and I thought no, I am
in the world of action movies,that's my passion, that's where
my heart is, and it is a smallfestival in Madrid, but it's
going to be so worthwhilebecause it is for and by action
(07:34):
movie filmmakers and it was thebest decision I ever made, and I
will tell you why in a secondas well.
Film festivals in generalespecially if you go, you know,
to advance your career, toexpand your network, film
festivals can be intimidating,and that had been my experience
before is that I would go tofilm festivals without a
strategy, just crossing myfingers, hoping that I would
(07:55):
cross paths with someone, andthen just like feeling very
awkward and not being able toactually engage conversation,
conversation or at least notwith, you know, key people, with
decision makers.
Going solo is definitely harderthan if you know at least one
person.
If you know at least one person, then things are way smoother.
(08:15):
But even though you can still,you know, get over it.
We will talk about what kind ofthings you can say, what kind
of questions you can ask to getthe ball rolling.
But definitely, you know,bringing a close friend that is
also in the industry, from theindustry, can basically, you
know, kick off the fire.
You have fire in your belly,they have fire in their belly,
and then all of a sudden youfuel each other with energy and
(08:39):
the snowball effect can start.
Let's talk about my firstexperience.
So I went to the BEEF BrusselsInternational Fantastic Film
Festival, where I was an actressin a feature film that was
being screened.
Now it was a big festival I hadnever been.
I heard a lot of positivethings about it and I know why.
Now the vibe at the festival isfreaking phenomenal.
(09:03):
A friend of mine, kind of youknow, made me understand the
difference between festivalsthat are really about audience
development and festivals thatare really about industry, and
you know industry connections,and I would put this particular
festival, the first one, in thecategory of audience development
(09:26):
.
And I'm not saying there wereno industry events, I was just
not aware of it and I didn'tattend them because I had such a
bad strategy going in.
But it's definitely a festivalthat is all about bringing new
films to an audience thatalready love it and that will
celebrate it, no matter whatLike.
For example, there were a lot ofthrillers, horror movies, and
(09:49):
so there was a special codebetween audience members that
whenever there is something thatis happening, they scream so it
almost feels like you are at ahip hop theater show, when
you're actually in a dark roomin a massive, you know movie
theater watching a film.
So, for example, when a dooropens and in a very squeaky, a
massive you know movie theaterwatching a film.
So, for example, when a dooropens and in a very squeaky way
because something is about tohappen, like people would say
(10:12):
ooh, and then if there is blood,they would make another sound
and everybody's ah, and so it's.
It was like so much fun to justattend the screenings and go to
it because there is like a vibe, it's really for the audience.
So I believe, like if youprobably are a filmmaker that
(10:34):
want to build a fan base aroundyour movie or your art form and
your craft, this is the place tobe, and there are probably
festivals that are very similarto this.
So I went in thinking, well, I'man actress in a feature film
with, you know, a well-knowndirector, and I'm playing a nice
role facing like a famous otheractor, and this film won
(10:55):
already like some awards and wasnominated at the Toronto Film
Festival.
That's it.
That's how I'm going in.
Well, nothing happened,absolutely freaking nothing.
I went to see the screening butobviously then when you get out
it's not like everybodyrecognizes you because you
really look different on screenand in real life, and then
(11:16):
obviously people that are not atthat screening, then the rest
of the festival, nobody wouldknow that I'm in it.
I had absolutely no strategy.
I didn't take the accreditationbecause I couldn't figure out
if it would be helpful or not.
The accreditation was expensivebecause I looked at it too late
.
So that's a very importantpoint to get your accreditation
(11:37):
for a festival, do it in advance, don't leave it at the last
minute.
You will pay way more.
So if you want to get youraccreditation and you should for
the film festivals that youwill select to go to and invest
time and money in, do theaccreditation in advance.
The earlier you take youraccreditation, the cheaper it is
(11:58):
.
I looked into the Beef Festivalway too late.
And then there was the secondthing, which is oh my God, I'm
alone.
I'm too scared to go to the VIPbar alone.
And, yeah, stupidly thatstopped me.
But that's okay, you know,notes taken, nobody recognized
me.
And so also another big thingis even though I was an actress
(12:19):
in the movie, I had not beeninvited to see this movie.
I had not been invited to seethis movie, which I think it's a
freaking shame, and that isprobably due to my previous
representation.
So the agent with whom I was atthe time and who also got me
(12:39):
that job didn't really follow upwhat was happening with that
movie.
Afterwards, I was constantly onthe internet trying to figure
out what was happening with thatmovie.
They didn't know nothing aboutit.
I couldn't attend the firstindustry screening this movie
had, which was in Spain andBarcelona.
I couldn't attend it and so Ifelt I missed out.
Then, now that it was beingscreened in Belgium, I thought,
(13:02):
oh my God, I cannot miss it, andI even emailed the production.
I told my agent, my agent alsoemailed the production, but
obviously everything was so late.
There was no answer, noresponse, and I feel I really
missed out on an opportunity.
A lot of festivals absolutelylove to have one of the actors
(13:23):
or something being present andapparently what I also heard
afterwards is that normally anagent can already negotiate
these things From the moment yousign the contract, from the
moment you're in the movie.
It can be put in the contractthat you would be invited to the
(13:44):
first screening or to someparticular events or whatever.
And I feel if I had had anagent at a time that would have
stood by my side for me forthese kind of things, this would
not have happened and I wouldprobably have taken way more out
of this event than whathappened now, which is nothing.
And now I have a new agent andhopefully, you know, for any
(14:06):
future jobs and projects, all ofthese things will be signed off
in advance.
So a lot of learnings there.
It was a bit of adisappointment, even though I
absolutely loved the festivaland I will probably want to
submit my films in the future.
Next time I will take anaccreditation and go to the VIP
bar and not be scared of it,because I learned a lot in the
next couple of events.
(14:27):
So I then went to the BSFFBrussels Short Film Festival.
So it's an internationalprogramming.
4,500 films were submitted forthe festival.
I actually had submitted myshort film and I wasn't selected
.
But out of those 4,500 filmssubmitted, they only selected
(14:49):
about 100.
So the competition was high.
Once I knew that, my heart feltmore at peace.
I was like, okay, I've not beenselected with my short film no
pasa nada.
It's okay, but let's make themost of this festival.
So obviously, everybody ismaking shorts, doing shorts,
wants to make a short film, andso I thought, okay, this is the
(15:11):
perfect festival for me, butthis time I need to be way more
organized and put double effortin trying to expand my network.
Just quickly putting this incontext I am Belgian, I grew up
in Belgium, but I lived 18 yearsabroad.
I lived in London, paris,barcelona, madrid.
(15:32):
I spent a lot of time inJamaica.
So really and truly, I've onlybeen back in Belgium quite
recently and I've been emergingmyself in the Belgian film
industry since last year, whichis what like seven months or
something.
So my network on the Belgianscene is still very new.
(15:54):
I'm still starting off.
I'm still trying to figure outwhat is happening in the country
where I'm from.
So I'm going to the BrusselsShort Film Festival Number one.
I took my accreditation Superimportant.
The earlier you take youraccreditation, the cheaper it is
.
There are different tiers inaccreditations as well.
I would recommend don't go forthe cheapest one.
(16:16):
Usually the cheapest one allowsyou to go and see a lot of
movies, which is amazing.
But actually, when you go tothese film festivals to go for
the industry events, you barelyhave time to go and watch a
movie I will talk about that ina second too but definitely take
a tier that is more expensivebut that also gets you in the
(16:40):
professional networking events.
For example, at this particularfestival they called it
professional cocktails.
If you didn't have thisparticular accreditation, you
couldn't get in.
So that is super important.
Having an accreditation is notonly important to get you in in
the right events and in orderfor you not to be stopped at the
(17:01):
door that actually happened toone of my friends and I must say
it's quite heartbreaking whenyou want to go in and network
and at the door that actuallyhappened to one of my friends
and I must say it's quiteheartbreaking.
You know, when you want to goin and network and at the door
they stop you because you havethe wrong badge or the wrong
accreditation.
It's an awful feeling.
So don't do that.
Take the accreditation, thatwill get you in, but also,
having a badge, people from theindustry recognize you and if
(17:22):
they want to know more about youor start a conversation with
you, they can look at your badge.
They can see your name and yourtitle If you're an actor, a
director, a writer, a producer,whatever and so it allows people
from the industry to alsorecognize each other.
A big top tip I would have isdon't just drop in.
Stay in when I say you need tocommit.
(17:43):
You gotta really commit if youwant to make the most of it.
I didn't just go to one day ofthe festival.
I didn't just go to oneprofessional cocktail.
I think I went to like 90% ofall industry events and
professional cocktails andnetworking events there were at
the festival.
So what does that mean?
Yes, yes, tiring, draining tosome extent, like literally, I
(18:09):
was not able to do anything elseduring that week.
Because also, when you're innetworking mode, you know like
you have to be taking ininformation because you're
meeting so many new people,you're having to, you know,
share about your projects and soin a way, you're kind of
pitching yourself, your work andyour vision all the time.
So when you get home you'retired.
So I would say, number onecommit.
(18:31):
Don't drop in just for one day.
Stay in, be ready to put allthe energy in and be ready to
sleep when you go home.
What it also means of stayingin is that you start seeing the
same faces again and again.
So there is familiarity thatstarts building relationships.
You know, from one day to theother, all of a sudden I had one
(18:53):
more friend, two more friends,three more friends.
People remembered me, Iremembered them and all of a
sudden a casual chat is actuallyturned into a very meaningful
conversation and sometimes apowerful connection.
So put the energy in, put thetime in when you really say I
want to go and attend thatfestival, know why you're going
(19:15):
and then go full in.
So during the day, this festivalhad several industry events.
They had masterclasses forwriters and directors.
They had networking eventswhere freelancers like me were
able to meet organizations thateither give fundings or support
(19:35):
artists or fight for the rightsof artists, for intellectual
property.
You were able to meet a coupleof production companies as well.
So during the day there was awhole bunch of industry events,
right From masterclasses tospeed dating to panel
discussions.
I attended all of them.
(19:57):
Then in the evenings, therewere professional cocktail
events.
What happened is, of course, Ihad met one or two or three or
four people, and now theprofessional cocktail events
were way less intimidatingbecause the people I had seen
during the day.
I now saw them at theprofessional cocktail events,
and that included peer artistsfilmmakers, directors, writers,
(20:20):
actors, as well as decisionmakers.
So what I mean by that ispeople that were at the head of
funding organizations, peoplethat had production companies.
(20:43):
I saw them at the professionalcocktail events.
We recognized each other'sfaces, familiar, and you start
to know more people, and that'swhere you're able to get over
this challenge of being aloneway faster.
Business cards Business cardsare back, so I had prepared
these beautiful QR codes on myphone.
(21:05):
It was ready to be scanned.
It looked like super neat,super smart.
It's an app and you do likeyour business card on your phone
.
People have to scan it and thenall of your contact details are
saved into their phone.
You know what it doesn't work,and why it doesn't work is that
you are in an environment thatis buzzing and everybody is fast
(21:30):
.
Some conversations can takelonger, of course, but you want
to have as many conversations aspossible with other people, and
other people are exactly thesame, so nobody has the time to
take out their phone and startscanning your QR code.
Most people don't even know howto save it into their phone,
and then it becomes a mess andthen they give up and then
(21:51):
another person just drops by andsay hey, how are you doing,
jonathan?
I haven't seen you for a longtime, and that's it.
Jonathan is gone.
He started another conversationwith somebody else.
So immediately after thatfestival, I printed business
cards again and they are waybetter.
They're there in my pocket.
When I'm talking to someone,even if we are being interrupted
(22:12):
by somebody else, I can give mybusiness card.
One of my friends told me yeah,but business cards, people are
losing it.
That is true, but your job, myjob, is not to lose their
business card.
They can lose your businesscard, but your job, your
responsibility, is to not losetheir business card.
(22:35):
And that's exactly what I did.
Right, I've been tracking myconnections.
I literally went home and Istarted an Excel sheet and I put
down the name of the person,who they were, what they did,
and I made a little note of howwe met.
Did we meet in the bar?
Was there one little thing inour conversation that was
memorable?
So whenever I go home, I'vebeen tracking my connections.
(22:59):
They are in an Excel sheet andthat's it.
Their business card has beenlogged into my system.
They can forget my businesscard, throw it in the bin if
they want to.
I can now follow up with thatcontact.
A little tip as well withInstagram.
Instagram works really well.
You always have I'm going tocall them the weirdos, and I
(23:20):
don't want to be dismissivetowards people that don't have
Instagram.
I think if you're not onInstagram, it's freaking
fantastic.
I think there is a freedom youhave in your life that people on
Instagram don't have, such asme.
But I think what I love withInstagram is it gives the
possibility to stay in contactwith a person over a period of
(23:41):
time, and then you see whatthey're up to, and then you see
updates.
Same thing for you.
You are showing updates aboutwhat you're up to, who you are.
It's a way of showing othersnot just that you're busy with
projects.
People also get to see whatyour values are, what you stand
for as a human being, what yourart is trying to express, and so
(24:03):
I feel Instagram, in that way,is a fantastic way to keep in
touch in the long term, what Idid with Instagram.
A lot of people are on Instagram.
Only a few weren't, but so Istarted following them.
They started following me.
That's the only time peoplewould take out their phone is
actually to follow each other onInstagram and not for this QR
(24:23):
code business card thing thatbecomes a confusing thing.
Instagram is quick.
Who are you Click, follow,follow done?
What I did is I followed themon Instagram and I took a
screenshot and then, once I gothome, I send them a DM, a direct
message, to say, hey, it wasgreat to meet you at the
(24:45):
festival and talk about this.
I hope we'll keep in touch.
You know, maybe I'll see you atone of the screenings later in
the week or something, but sowhat does that do?
Is now we level up thisconnection on Instagram and also
there is an Instagram trackrecord, if I can say so, where I
say the name of the person,because obviously some people
(25:07):
have nicknames.
So, hey, stefan, it was greatto talk about your movie blah,
blah, blah, and so I rememberhis name is Stefan, in case on
Instagram it's another name.
I remember what we talked aboutand I remember where we met.
Obviously, I will also log themin my Excel spreadsheet, but
it's another way of also makingsure that we continue the
(25:29):
connection on Instagramafterwards.
And yes, I know some people aregoing to say, oh, my God, it's
too much work.
Well, yes, it's work, butthat's what networking is for
right.
It's not just to say, oh, niceto meet you, nice to meet you,
hi Marie, hi Anne, hi Julie, andthen forget about it, because
then you've actually wasted yourtime.
You went to these festivals,you went to these networking
(25:51):
events to have contacts, but,like any relationship, you need
to put some work in it to makeit work.
And also, you don't becomecollaborators just by meeting
once for five minutes at a filmfestival.
It's something that willnurture over time.
So these people are potentialfuture collaborators,
co-creators, future allies.
(26:11):
So don't let these moments slipaway.
And yeah, take an extra twohours to have an Excel sheet or
whatever works for you, or afollow-up email or whatever, but
to make sure that it's not lostIn these professional cocktails
, you have basically an open bar, so people can.
It's only for an hour or two.
(26:31):
It's open bar and it's a VIParea, so only people of the
industry that are invited can goin.
It's very difficult to make thefirst move.
So I'm going to give you acouple of top tips that I've
been using so as much as you arehoping to make new connections,
also the connector, becausepeople appreciate it, and I will
(26:53):
tell you afterwards how.
I created a new whatsapp groupfor Belgian filmmakers.
I have been a connector and Itruly believe people have
appreciated that effort.
But they also appreciate whenyou say, hey, this is Stefan, or
this is Jonathan or this isMarie, and they do this, and
then the domino effect can gofor them, and then they start a
(27:13):
domino effect for you.
Then people always forget otherpeople's first names because
they get to know so many peoplein an event.
They always forget that Cindy.
But then what I would do is I'mlike yeah, cindy, cindy
Crawford.
Even though I have nothing todo with Cindy Crawford
aesthetically speaking or likethe fact that she's a model, the
(27:37):
fact that she had long hair,like we have nothing to do with
each other, but Cindy Crawfordis now like a tiny reminder for
them.
Oh, yeah, that's Cindy.
You know like often when you'rein a theater class, there is
like an icebreaker game whereyou have to introduce yourself
with your name plus an adjective, for example like Pretty Janine
(27:58):
, right, and then you do a movePretty Janine.
And then everybody followsPretty Janine.
But now you remember that she'sPretty Janine, with the move,
and it kind of helps youmemorize their name.
So I'm doing it to myself.
When people meet me, cindy,what's your name again?
Cindy, cindy Crawford All of asudden it kind of implements, it
(28:21):
puts a seed in their mind ohyeah, I cannot forget that for
next time.
Also, I am forgetting people'snames, but the thing that I try
to do is never feel guilty forforgetting their names.
I try to very quickly if I seethem for the second time or a
third time.
Hey, excuse me, I forgot onyour name.
What's your name again?
Oh yeah, because if we aregoing to talk five times, if
(28:44):
we're going to meet each otherat five different events and I
still can't remember the name ofthe person is awkward.
If I ask for their name thesecond time I see them or the
third time I see them, it's lessawkward.
Also, my Excel sheet I put itin oh yeah, this person had a
nose piercing or was really tallor something.
So that just helps me to justremember who they were.
(29:07):
But never feel bad to say, hey,what's your name again?
Oh, can you remember how we met?
Because just the fact that youremember them, I know your face.
People already feelacknowledged.
People are like, oh yeah, atleast I'm not an anonymous in
the crowd.
When people tell me oh, I knowyour face, we've met before,
haven't we?
I'm already happy.
I'm like, okay, at least I'mbeing noticed.
(29:27):
Now it's just that we stillhave to develop a relationship.
And also, people appreciate itwhen you ask their name again,
because they realize you don'twant them to remain anonymous,
you want to build a relationshipwith them.
So yeah, I encourage you, justask it.
They will never take it wrongly, especially in those high
(29:48):
intensity networking eventswhere people are just meeting so
many people, they forgeteverybody's name.
Now, at this particular festival, the BSFF, I went to so many
industry events.
I barely had the time to watchany movies because I was so busy
with all the rest of it.
Busy with all the rest of it.
(30:14):
The thing is that going tofilms is important because then
you're going to meet peerartists and obviously it gives
you a topic of conversation.
It is not always easy, but Iwill tell you about other
festivals where I watched waymore movies and this led to just
very different conversations.
So, going back to the BrusselsShort Film Festival, one of the
things that it gave me was ahuge amount of self-confidence.
(30:36):
I had an idea for a film, thestory was clear in my head, but
I was very unclear on what thenext steps were in Belgium to
make it happen.
And I kid you not because ofthe masterclasses, because of
the networking, because I'vebeen speaking to producers,
because I've been speaking toother filmmakers seven days
(30:57):
later I had written the pitch, Ihad shaped the treatment and I
was actually ready to send itoff to a pitch from another
festival and I was able tosubmit it.
You know.
So since then, like literallyseven days after that festival,
I was able to start contactingproduction companies.
I was sending it off to grantopportunities, to pitching
(31:21):
opportunities.
I'm still busy with it.
Probably my pitching stillneeds a bit of shaping, but the
thing is I found the confidenceand I found, okay, this is where
people are going, that's howthey are contacting each other.
This is like how the industryworks, specifically in Belgium,
specifically in this country,because it doesn't work the same
way in different countries,because I've worked in the UK,
(31:44):
I've worked in Spain, and eventhe ways of thinking, the way
that you talk to people isdifferent I've worked in Spain
and even the ways of thinking,the way that you talk to people
is different, so it gave me ahuge amount of self-confidence.
In other words, there wasmomentum.
Now, another thing that I'msuper proud of like I said, I've
been in Belgium for what?
Seven months, at the time ofrecording, and I found it very
difficult so far to network.
I realized the Dutch-speakingpeople didn't really know the
(32:07):
French-speaking people and viceversa.
Actors knew each other,directors knew each other, the
technical teams knew each other,but in between them there was a
lack of communication.
So I thought you know what?
I'm going to set up a WhatsAppgroup.
Why a WhatsApp group?
When I lived in Barcelona, acouple of people started a
(32:28):
WhatsApp group a few years ago,and right now there are a
thousand people on this WhatsAppgroup.
It's called the BCN FilmmakersGroup and obviously a thousand
people making film have a tonamount of things to share, so
there's always the casting beingshared.
I have to clarify.
I have to clarify.
So this WhatsApp group is foractors, directors, makeup
(32:50):
artists, composers, sound people, cameramen, dops, anybody that
is working in the world of film.
So in Barcelona, this group isjust on fire.
Everybody's always looking forsomebody to collaborate, so it's
buzzing.
So I thought, you know what,let me start a WhatsApp group.
(33:11):
So I started the BelgianIndependent Film Network
WhatsApp group.
A couple of weeks later, we arenow 90, almost 99, zero members
in this group, and I'm super,super proud for somebody that
didn't know many people you knowhaving been able to build that
(33:32):
network, and I'm really lookingforward for it to grow and see
how we can support each otherand just make more films happen,
whether we have fundings or nofundings, just make it happen.
And then I went to theInternational Toledo Action Film
Festival International ToledoAction Film Festival organized
by Nacho Serapio, and that wasnear Madrid.
So I went to that festivalbecause it was focused on action
(33:58):
movies.
I knew it was a small festival.
I knew it was not going to belike the other film festivals
that I attended in Belgium.
It was not going to be Canneseither.
It was just going to be fourpeople that love action movies.
I also had a friend of minecalled George Caraga.
He has LK Stunts, a stuntcompany in Madrid, and I knew he
(34:20):
was also going to be screeninga feature film he was a part of,
and so I was just excited tosee his work as well, I also
wanted to see if, eventually,the short film I'm working on
now or any future films that I'mworking on, if they would be a
good fit for this festival.
So I went and two of my friendsfrom Barcelona were like, oh my
(34:41):
God, let's go together.
And I was like, oh my God, yes.
So my dear friend John and mydear friend Simon, who both have
been on the podcast, came withme and again.
Obviously, when you don't goalone, it's a buzz.
So what happened in this verysmall festival is I was able to
(35:04):
watch way more movies in thisfestival, way more movies in
this festival.
I actually only did that watchmovies because there were not a
huge amount of industry eventsLike there was.
Well, there was an event on taxshelter, so it was more about
financing.
And then there was a day ofworkshops about screen fighting
(35:26):
and how to fight for the camera,and that was freaking amazing.
And then they were justscreening a ton of movies, a lot
of short films, a couple offeature films, and it was in a
very small cinema, but it wasamazing to just watch
independent action filmmakers dotheir thing.
(35:48):
This actually allowed to haveway more artistic conversations
with all the people afterwardsbecause you just saw their film
and then it was really easy totalk to them because it was such
a small event.
So there were actors,filmmakers, people that just
have that fire in their belly tojust to make it happen, because
also in the world of actionfilms it's not easy to find the
(36:11):
financing, and so a lot of thesepeople just say you know what F
this?
We're going to make it happenanyway.
And so there is a real sense ofinitiative, a real sense of
entrepreneurialism, which issuper inspiring to watch.
We talked about the craft,about what makes an action scene
a good action scene, all ofthat kind of things, and that
(36:33):
was great.
And then, as an actress, I wasable to also show my skills
during the workshops, because Idid all the fighting workshops
and that was an opportunity forme to actually show what I can
do.
A little surprise was Nacho.
So the organizer of the eventgave me an award and it was
(36:54):
really a symbolic award, but Iactually got a little award to
take home because he was sotouched by the fact that I made
it all the way from Belgium tohis festival.
He was really touched and hewanted to give me an award for
my dedication to the craft andmy passion for the making of
(37:17):
action movies.
Because, even though thefestival is international and
they screen international movies, I guess filmmakers would
travel to see their filmsscreened.
International filmmakers wouldtravel to see their films
screened.
International filmmakers wouldtravel to see their films
screened, but not that manypeople would travel from abroad
just to be a part of theaudience, just to just feel the
(37:38):
vibes and celebrate people'swork.
And it felt so rewarding, Ifelt so honored, I felt so
touched by the fact that, like Ifelt, nacho saw me, somebody
saw me, somebody saw my passion,my energy, my craziness, you
know, for researching.
(37:59):
So I felt, even though thisaward was very symbolic, I felt
extremely touched.
It's now in my living room andI look at it every day and it
just makes me smile.
So obviously, so far I've beentalking a lot about me as a
writer, director and how I madeconnections, and I've been
talking a little bit about me asan actress.
(38:20):
And it's important to make thedifference, because the
conversations we have as actorsand the conversations we have as
somebody that carries a projectand is a go-getter to make it
happen, these are differentconversations.
At the first festival that Iwent to, the Beef.
I went there because I was anactress on screen and I had zero
(38:43):
strategy.
This is also the reason why Ididn't get anything out of it.
It was a failure because I hadno strategy.
However, I met an actor or twothat I then saw in the other
festivals and that helped theball.
Going to make other connectionsAt the BSFF, the short film
festival, I didn't really makeany connections as an actress
(39:03):
Because, in regards to theindustry events, the industry
events were really focused onmakers, people that were writing
, people that were directing,but it was not so focused on
actors.
The third festival so the onein Madrid, because I came in as
an artist, with all the hatsthat I'm wearing, I was able to
(39:26):
have different conversationswith different people and
obviously get excited about thefact that we might work together
one day and maybe work with meas an actress as well.
Obviously, it's not likesomebody had written a script
ready to cast me there, butthere was an openness for these
conversations because it was asmall festival and because it
was really an artist to artistkind of connection that was
(39:46):
being made, Whereas in theBrussels Short Festival it was
more of a writer-directorconnecting to organizations,
connecting to productioncompanies.
There was no space for theactress in me to really network,
even though people know thatI'm an actress and people know
about it, but I'm not sure thatthat is what really landed in
(40:07):
the conversations.
However, there was the lastfestival I want to talk about.
However, there was the lastfestival I want to talk about
and that again brought moreunderstanding to how to network
and how to navigate these events, both as an actress and as a
filmmaker.
So the last event I went to soall of these festivals I did
that within a space of twomonths, right, so it's been
(40:28):
festival intensive.
So the brief BrusselsInternational Film Festival this
particular festival is inBrussels, but they only select
and screen feature films.
I took my accreditation way inadvance so that I would pay
(40:49):
cheaper for it.
And also, what I learned fromthe other festivals is all their
industry events, akamasterclasses, pitching events,
opportunities to talk about yourwork, whatever it was,
roundtable conversations, allthese events.
You have to look at theirwebsite in advance because there
(41:09):
is nothing on the website andthen all of a sudden, poof, they
announce one out of the tenopportunities that there will be
happening, but if you don'tregister straight in advance,
you will actually miss outBecause it will be booked out,
sold out.
So, for example, there wasanother festival where I just
(41:29):
applied for a writer's residency.
They gave grants to femalewriters who have a concept and
mentoring, but this festival ishappening in one, two, three,
four months, so four months inadvance.
They've put it on the website,but the deadline was yesterday.
If you don't look at thesewebsites in advance, and both
(41:52):
for your accreditation to payless and for all the industry
opportunities, you're gonna missout.
So select the festivals whereyou want to go to way in advance
and really look at theirwebsite regularly, because a lot
of festivals are run by well,not run by but a lot of
volunteers are working on it.
So sometimes the updates areslow, or sometimes the
(42:14):
communication is a bit lastminute or not last minute, or
they announce one event but notthe nine others, and sometimes
things are announced two daysbefore the festival is opening.
You need to really be on it andI feel the first festival I
didn't do that and I missed outon a lot.
So brief, I was like, okay, Iwas checking their website every
(42:37):
single day and I was like I'mnot going to miss out on
anything.
And that's what I did.
I got a spot in every singlemasterclass, in every single
industry event.
I went to the professionalcocktails again.
I met way less producers andthe professional cocktails were
not as busy as the short filmfestival.
I don't know why.
(42:59):
I have no idea why, but this ismy explanation and my take on
it.
I believe that the Brusselsshort film festival there is a
huge amount of people that wantto create shorts, make shorts
because you want to build alarge CV and portfolio of short
films before asking for moneyfor a feature film, because it
(43:22):
will give you more chances Onceyou start making feature films.
That's another playground and Ifeel all the people in Brussels
, at least all the productioncompanies that are playing at
that level, they probably allknow each other already.
So is it really useful for themto come to the professional
cocktails?
(43:42):
I don't know.
There are way less films thatare being screened, because
obviously it's a festival thatonly screens feature films.
So a film is an hour and a halflong, whereas before, in an
hour and a half, you could seefive or six short films.
So there are less people, lessindustry people maybe attending,
(44:04):
and so these professionalcocktails.
There were still people to meet, but less production companies
and, generally speaking, the VIParea was not as busy Doesn't
mean it wasn't interesting, justless busy.
The masterclasses that they wereorganizing and all the other
pitching events and so forth atthis particular festival was way
(44:26):
more selective.
So, as I said, these industryevents get sold out or get
booked up, but for the brief yousometimes also had to apply for
it to be selected.
So, for example, I sent in mypitch for my feature film and I
was not selected to pitch.
(44:47):
I then learned that theyreceived 98 proposals and they
only selected seven.
So that kind of put my heart atpeace.
I was like, okay, 98 peoplesubmitted, only seven got
through.
It's all right, we'll be forthe next time.
But all the people that hadsubmitted a film or a proposal
(45:08):
were invited to a masterclassaround pitching and we could
also be a witness to the sevenpeople that were pitching to see
how they would pitch their ideapublicly, which is it's a
privilege, it's an honor, andalso you learn a lot from
watching other people pitch.
Another thing that theyorganized was the casting
(45:30):
process in a multilingualproduction.
So we could either apply as adirector either apply as an
actor.
I decided for that particularone to apply as an actress, and
we had to minimum speak twolanguages.
So I applied I speak fourlanguages and they selected six
(45:50):
actors and three directors.
I was selected as an actressand it was two days of the
exploration of a multilingualscript.
So there was a creative processwith the director, a creative
process for actors about whywould we use this language
instead of the other or whywould we switch languages.
(46:11):
And then casting directors wereinvited to be a part of the
conversation table because we,over those two days, we had been
filming as well, and so we weprojected it for a very small
crowd and casting directors werethere to talk about it.
So as actors, we also hadaccess to those casting
(46:33):
directors, but it was a veryselected group.
Yeah, we were only nine in thatmasterclass right for two days.
So here, for example, at thisparticular festival, there was a
specific activity that was opento actors and casting directors
were invited.
So here, at this particularfestival, as an actress, I feel,
(46:55):
yeah, I've been able to show mytalent.
Some directors have been seeingmy talent.
I was able to do my thing as anactress.
I've been able to show it tosome casting directors, and so
if there are opportunities likethat, definitely it's easier to
network as an actor, but thefestival needs to open up these
kind of opportunities, right.
(47:18):
However, I know as actors it isreally difficult to network.
I kind of network with mydifferent hats, but I would say
I always say that I am anactress and that I am in the
world of action movies.
I think it's all aboutexpectations.
I think when you network as anactor, don't expect people to be
like oh my God, I was lookingfor your profile right now.
(47:41):
That very rarely happens, youknow, whereas when you are
carrying a project as a writeror director, you're ready to
come in, ready to eventuallycollaborate.
It's going to be a long-termthing, we know it, and so it's
about managing expectationsreally.
But then also it's about okay,what can I put on the table as a
human being to contribute tosociety?
(48:03):
So, for example, for me or forany other artist, really, we all
know, sometimes we're busy withprojects, sometimes we're not
busy with projects, sometimes wehave no work.
Sometimes we're not busy withprojects.
Sometimes we have no work,sometimes we have a lot of work.
Sometimes we can talk aboutwhat we're up to and sometimes
we're just hiding that we're upto nothing.
But I think one of the things,for example, that opens up
(48:23):
conversations for me is, forexample, the podcast.
The podcast is a way for me tohave guests to talk about
certain topics, to shareknowledge, and also when I'm
networking as an actress, as afilmmaker, sometimes I meet
somebody interesting and I'mlike hey, do you want to be a
guest on my podcast?
You have something reallyinteresting to say here.
(48:44):
So that is also me contributingto society if we zoom out, and
this can also open upconversations.
Society if we zoom out, andthis can also open up
conversations.
The fact that I have started aWhatsApp group just for Belgian
people that are in film to startsupporting each other.
People are excited about it, away to open up conversations.
(49:07):
I give you an example.
So I met somebody at thefestival.
The person at the festivaltalks to me about a filmmaker
that's interesting, that Ishould follow on Instagram.
I follow this person onInstagram.
I see that he's working withthree, four, five actors or
whatever.
Start following these actors,one of those actors.
So imagine, already like thechain right.
One of these actors sees on myInstagram that I have this
(49:31):
Belgian independent film network.
He DMs me about it and I'm like, yeah, I'll add you to the
WhatsApp group, whatnot.
And then all of a sudden he'slike you know what I'm actually
casting for a project right now?
You kind of have the profile.
Can I submit to you, would yoube interested?
And I'm like, oh my God, yes,because I read the synopsis.
(49:52):
It looks like freaking amazing.
It's totally up my street.
So you see, like a one littlething can have a huge domino
effect.
So also ask yourself if you arenot the one that is making a
project happen.
If you are an actor, don't justbe in a waiting position as in
I'm just waiting for somebody tooffer me a job.
(50:13):
It's like how can you bringsomething to the table?
I think that also helps a lotwhen we are networking.
I'm sure I could still sayanother thousand things, but I
hope that sharing my experiencegives you already some detailed
top tips of how to navigatefestivals as an actor, actress
or filmmaker, when you have noproject that is being screened
(50:35):
but you literally go hoping toopen up more doors for yourself.
So remember, select yourfestivals in advance.
Look at their website inadvance, take your
accreditations in advance, checkif it's an audience developing
kind of festival or if it'sreally an industry focused kind
of festival.
Always go with some sort ofstrategy.
(50:57):
Go with your business cards, beready to, you know, screenshot
people's instagrams, put alittle bit of effort in it
afterwards, log all your newconnections in an excel sheet or
whatever else works for you.
The follow-up is as importantas making the initial connection
and obviously, let me know ifyou enjoyed this episode.
(51:17):
I love receiving feedback.
I love hearing when it'shelping people Share about the
Loud Whisper Takeover podcastwith your peers and I will hear
you or see you in the nextepisode.
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