Indie Film Hustle® - A Filmmaking Podcast

Indie Film Hustle® - A Filmmaking Podcast

The Indie Film Hustle Podcast is your #1 source for how to hack the film business and indie film world! The show is here to help as many indie filmmakers as I could. We wanted to bring the best guests, industry leaders, creative legends, and film business friends to you, the IFH Tribe. Some of the past guests include 3X Oscar® Winning Writer/Director Oliver Stone, Barry Sonnenfeld (Men in Black), Alex Proyas (The Crow, I, Robot), James V. Hart (writer Dracula, Hook), John August (Big Fish, Aladdin), Jim Uhls (writer of Fight Club), Oscar® Winner Russell Carpenter (DP of Avatar, Titanic) Joe Carnahan (Smokin' Aces, The Grey), and David F. Sandberg (Shazam!) to name a few. We hope this podcast can help you along your journey as an artist, filmtrepreneur, filmmaker, screenwriter, and as a human being. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/indie-film-hustle-a-filmmaking-podcast--2664729/support.

Episodes

IFH 816: From Extras to Director’s Chair: The Filmmaking Journey of Rocky Costanzo

August 19, 2025 • 52 mins
The journey of Rocky Costanzo is a testament to the raw, unpolished path of independent filmmaking. Beginning as an actor and extra on shows like The Wonder Years, he quickly discovered his true passion behind the camera. Without formal film school, Rocky turned to public access television as his training ground, learning through experimentation, trial, and error. From lighting with hardware store lamps to filming with rollerblades...
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IFH 815: Lessons in Filmmaking, Failure, and Persistence with Greg Travis

August 12, 2025 • 54 mins
In this episode, veteran actor and director Greg Travis dives into his decades-long filmmaking journey, culminating in the release of his once-abandoned 1984 feature Dark Seduction. Shot on 16mm black-and-white film, the noir-vampire hybrid languished in post-production limbo for over 30 years before digital technology made its completion possible. Greg shares candid stories about the ups and downs of making the film—from lost inve...
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IFH 814: Why Your Script Still Isn’t Getting Read; And What to Do About It with Whitney Davis

August 5, 2025 • 49 mins
In this episode, Whitney Davis, a seasoned literary manager and script consultant, breaks down the real-deal process of getting noticed in Hollywood—from landing a manager to crafting query letters that don’t suck. Sharing her own unconventional path into the industry, Whitney offers raw, practical advice for screenwriters and indie filmmakers on how to pitch like a pro, avoid rookie mistakes, and build lasting relationships that a...
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IFH 813: Building Films from Scratch: Mastering Microbudget Movie-Making with Evan Kidd

July 29, 2025 • 62 mins
Evan Kidd is a passionate indie filmmaker who believes great stories don’t need big budgets—just big heart. In this episode, he shares how he created his feature film Son of Clowns using the resources he already had: friends, favors, and faith in the process. With a deep respect for collaboration, Evan emphasizes the importance of building a reliable team, staying grounded, and keeping ego out of the equation. His filmmaking philos...
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IFH 812: How Tremors turned into a Masterclass in Storytelling with S.S Wilson

July 22, 2025 • 38 mins
In this episode, screenwriter and filmmaker S.S. Wilson shares the behind-the-scenes journey of creating the cult classic Tremors, revealing how creative limitations, meticulous story structure, and a deep respect for character and sound design brought the film to life. From his writing process with partner Brent Maddock to the evolution of the Tremors franchise and his advice for aspiring filmmakers, Wilson offers a masterclass in...
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IFH 811: How Pixar’s Story Secrets Can Transform Your Filmmaking Process with Brit Cruise

July 15, 2025 • 52 mins
Brit Cruise—educator, filmmaker, and producer of Pixar in a Box—takes us on a journey through the fusion of storytelling, science, and education. From his early days editing videos with dual VCRs to his innovative work at Khan Academy, Brit reveals how deep focus, analog creativity, and a love for explanation helped shape his approach to teaching complex subjects through immersive visuals. With storytelling as the core, he shares h...
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IFH 810: The No-Excuses Filmmaking Philosophy of Len Kabasinski

July 8, 2025 • 53 mins
Len Kabasinski shares his journey from childhood dreams of monsters and martial arts to becoming a prolific force in the world of independent B-movie filmmaking. He recounts the origins of his first feature Swamp Zombies, revealing how a passion for horror and action films, coupled with sheer determination and minimal resources, propelled him into the director’s chair. With stories of on-set challenges, like actors no-showing and r...
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IFH 809: No Budget, All Hustle: The Filmmaking Grind of Staci Layne Wilson

July 1, 2025 • 43 mins
In this colorful and deeply personal episode, Staci Layne Wilson shares her remarkable journey from a childhood surrounded by Hollywood legends and horseback riding to becoming an award-winning filmmaker and bestselling author. Born and raised in Los Angeles to a famed musician father (Don Wilson of The Ventures) and a glamorous pin-up model mother, Staci’s life has always been steeped in creativity. Yet, her entrance into filmmaki...
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IFH 808: Behind the Screams: How Shae Smolik Brought The Hatred to Life!

June 24, 2025 • 24 mins
Shae Smolik, a talented young actress from Iowa, shared her journey from local modeling to leading a feature film in Los Angeles. Starting with commercials and gradually advancing to TV and web series, Shae embraced each step with enthusiasm and resilience. Her audition technique—spontaneous and emotionally driven—reflects an innate gift for performance. This approach helped her land the lead role in the horror film The Hatred, a m...
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IFH 807: Making Your Own Damn Movies: Inside Dave Campfield’s Troma-Fueled Filmmaking Path

June 17, 2025 • 57 mins
When two Daves walk into a podcast, you don’t expect to stumble upon a meditation on art, failure, persistence, and horror-comedy. But that’s exactly what happened in this electric and delightfully unfiltered conversation with Dave Campfield, a filmmaker, actor, and host of the Troma Now Podcast, best known for his work in the cult Caesar and Otto comedy-horror film series.Dave Campfield is a fiercely independent filmmaker whose jo...
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IFH 806: Shooting Sharks in Your Living Room: The Art of DIY Filmmaking with Ron Bonk

June 10, 2025 • 58 mins
In this episode, we dive into the wild, wonderful world of Ron Bonk, an indie filmmaker and founder of SRS Cinema known for the cult horror-comedy House Shark. Ron shares his journey from studying accounting and criminal justice to becoming a self-taught director, driven by a passion for storytelling and a deep love for genre cinema. With no Hollywood backing, Ron used camcorders, community college equipment, and his own home as a ...
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IFH 805: Why Your Film Isn’t Getting Made (And What to Do About It) with Ron Newcomb

June 3, 2025 • 75 mins
When the moon is high and the muse is low, we often find ourselves in deep conversation with our own souls, asking, "Why do I do this?" And on today’s episode, we welcome the steadfast and visionary Ron Newcomb, a former Marine and police officer who has traded in his uniform for a camera, answering that very question not just with thought—but with action.

Many walk the tightrope between dreams and reality. But Ron doesn’t walk it; ...
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IFH 804: How I Made a Cult Zombie Movie for $75 and Took On Hollywood with Marc V. Price

May 27, 2025 • 92 mins
When a zombie filmmaker makes you laugh so hard you forget you're talking about death and destruction, you know you're in for something special. On today’s episode, we welcome Marc V. Price, a fiercely independent British filmmaker whose claim to fame is making a cult zombie feature called Colin for just £45. That alone should make you lean in. But that’s just the prologue. This is a man whose journey into the heart of DIY cinema i...
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IFH 803: From Wrestling Rings to Public Access Mayhem: The Wild Ride of Mad Man Pondo

May 20, 2025 • 56 mins
The world is far more peculiar than most of us dare to admit. Somewhere between a demolition derby and a wrestling ring, between the crackle of VHS tapes and the shriek of late-night public access, lies a man who has turned mayhem into meaning. On today’s episode, we welcome the unparalleled and unfiltered Mad Man Pondo, a professional wrestler and author whose life has been a whirlwind of body slams, topless TV hosts, and late-nig...
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IFH 802: Studios, Scores & Secrets: The Untold Story of Rotten Tomatoes with Patrick Lee

May 13, 2025 • 44 mins
When the lights of the cinema dim and the hum of anticipation fills the air, something magical happens—stories come alive. And sometimes, the stories behind the storytellers are the most fascinating of all. On today's episode, we welcome Patrick Lee, a man whose quiet curiosity and geeky love for film statistics helped shape the very lens through which millions of people now view cinema. Patrick Lee is the co-founder of Rotten Toma...
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IFH 801: Breaking the Rules: Crafting Powerful Films Without Hollywood Money with Shawn Whitney

May 6, 2025 • 52 mins
Sometimes, the fire of creativity is struck not by lightning but by the slow, smoldering ache of dissatisfaction. And in today's soul-stirring conversation, we welcome Shawn Whitney, a filmmaker who found cinema not in the corridors of academia, but in the quiet rebellion of self-taught screenwriting and micro-budget filmmaking. Shawn Whitney is a screenwriter, director, and founder of Micro Budget Film Lab who empowers indie creat...
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IFH 800: Behind the Scenes of Sharknado: Turning Sci-Fi Madness into Storytelling Gold with Andrew Shaffer

April 29, 2025 • 27 mins
The mind is a curious trickster, delighting in dreams where logic pirouettes in absurdity. In today's extraordinary episode, we welcome Andrew Shaffer, a humorist and New York Times bestselling author whose wit slices through the storms of reality with a twinkle in his eye and a chainsaw in hand. From the earliest pages of his life, Andrew Shaffer was destined to dance with the ridiculous and sublime. As a child, he devoured horror...
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IFH 799: What Every Indie Filmmaker Can Learn from a $5K Zombie Movie with Bojan Dulabic

April 22, 2025 • 87 mins
A spark of madness is often the first step toward creation. On today’s episode, we welcome Bojan Dulabic, a passionate Vancouver-based filmmaker who pulled off a small miracle—he made a full-length zombie movie for just $5,000. But this isn't just a story of budgeting brilliance; it's a tale of relentless passion, artistic vision, and the kind of self-taught wisdom you can't get in film school.Born in Bosnia, raised in Germany and ...
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IFH 798: From Pills to Pictures: Cynthia Hill's Unlikely Path to Documentary Filmmaking

April 15, 2025 • 56 mins
Cynthia Hill, a filmmaker from North Carolina, discussed her journey from pharmacy school to filmmaking, highlighting her documentaries "Tobacco Money," "Private Violence," and the upcoming eight-part series "Road to Race Day" on NASCAR. She emphasized the importance of storytelling and character development, sharing her experiences with funding through foundations and the challenges of balancing art and business. Cynthia's work of...
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IFH 797: From Instagram Mysteries to Indie Horror: The Bold Experiments of Joe Kowalski

April 8, 2025 • 70 mins
When the winds of curiosity rustle the mind and stir the soul, they often bring with them storytellers—those rare beings who don’t just recount events but breathe life into them. On today's episode, we welcome Joe Kowalski, a young filmmaker from Cleveland whose creative spirit dances between shadows and light, weaving stories through film, mystery, and innovation.

Joe Kowalski is a filmmaker, game designer, and storyteller whose pr...
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