Comments on: Another Producer Describes the Same Closed Loop in European Film Funding“Everyone knew each other. Like true buddies sharing a secret.”

By: Film Industry Watch

Film Industry Watch — Mon, 11 May 2026 10:35:04 +0000

Dear Pete,

Thank you for your comment.

Beyond concerns about corruption and nepotism, many people today feel that identity increasingly matters more than character, merit, or talent. If you are perceived as a white, able-bodied man, some assume you represent a category that is no longer considered valuable or marketable in certain cultural spaces.

Martin Luther King Jr. spoke decades ago about judging people by the content of their character rather than the color of their skin. Ironically, parts of society now seem to be moving back toward defining people primarily through identity categories rather than individual merit.
Thank you for sharing your perspective.

By: Pete Conrad

Pete Conrad — Mon, 11 May 2026 10:11:45 +0000

I feel like my own story as a writer is every writer’s story to an extent. I write novels and adapt them to screenplays. I’ve gotten pretty good at it. Self-published, I’ve sold (or given away via Amazon) well over 30k books. Each have about 4.5 stars. I’m proud of them. The first screenplay I wrote got me an agent. It was called The Suicide Flowers. (A rockstar on his way down. A devoted fan. A connection). I flew out to LA. We partied. Started attaching people and bands. Created a marketing plan. Things were moving. This was it! Then I had this “brilliant” idea to cast Corey Feldman and Corey Haim in opposing roles. Their manager loved it. As we began pitching, Haim died, RIP, and the film lost its momentum. My agent quit and I was left scrambling. I finally gave up on that film, though I wrote a prequel novel and screenplay of their teen years. Nothing. I wrote several more novels and adapted them. One, Survival of the Sparrows, was gathering momentum. It’s the story of an elderly Black couple as they try to survive an invasion on American soil. My readers love it. It’s relatable and I kinda predicted Trump, nationalism, and the fall of America. This is the meat of my story. I started pitching it. In 2018, I pitched The Blacklist. It scored an 8. The reviewer really thought it would be an award-winning film. I did, too. Then, it was Stage 32, Inktip, et al. These efforts and moneys landed me net zero, though I used every bit of input I received. 20 rewrites later and who comes along? Scripthop and its gauntlet. Finally, a proper screenwriting vetting machine comes to Hollywood, I thought. The goal is to get through 3 “stages.” My first run garnered a lowly score of 38 and didn’t get past stage 1. But I took every bit of advice given and rewrote it and resubmitted it. My score jumped to 51, but still stage 1. Again, more rewrites and my next score … 55. Stage 2! A little disappointed, but I thought about the direction, the actual real producers giving me invaluable input … (mind you, this costs $380 every time you submit) and then created a screenplay I, myself, truly loved. I resubmitted it. This time, I hit Stage 3 with 10 producers giving me recommends with a score of 71. But I didn’t “beat the gauntlet,” which is the goal. I missed it by one recommend. No producers have called. No writing assignments have landed in my inbox. No producers have reached out and said, “Hey, we can make this story work.” I’ve done everything I’ve been being told I had to do to make it this industry, proving myself, my work ethic, my willingness to bend. And so I quit. Moved out of the US. I barely even write anymore because Amazon makes it impossible for an author to make money and writing for the intrinsic value just isn’t enough for me. Thank you.

By: Gerald Martin Davenport

Gerald Martin Davenport — Thu, 07 May 2026 17:24:25 +0000

This article touches on so many branches of entertainment from a viewer and creator’s point of view. As I a viewer in my youth, I sensed the entertainment we were fed changed in the late 70s to early 80s and more so in 2000. Shows and films looked similar to each other as though there was a formula they used to rehash what we already seen. As though they were afraid to try something new, different, and unknown about its popularity metrics.

Elliot Grove wrote: “The film industry is all run by the conglomerates and studios who hatch small boutique companies to trade on the name “independent.” These production companies are run by the same moguls as their bigger budget Hollywood counterparts. In this corporate realm, moguls offer actors scale work on the promise that the cool films and directors they work with will enhance their careers. The producers of these lower budget films are offered elusive back end deals based on the success of the distribution process. Of course, any profit is gobbled up by expenses.” From his article https://www.raindance.org/10-dirty-secrets-of-independent-film/

As a creator, I have experience knowing that they, the conglomerates, do not fear trying something new, different, and without data metrics, because It is not in their vocabulary, thoughts, or interest — they avoid it at all cost.

As I have written: https://ariapictures.com/weblog/2025/independent-film-festivals-driven-by-big-money/, I have experienced in my 25+ years as a creator, and a few of them in the industry before I ran away to a clearer piece of mind with moral grounds, I know the difficulties it is to try and break into their exclusive group.

I get frustrated, depressed, angered, and motivated when I see a film or a television show that is a rehash of something, the story is weak, the acting is horrendous, and/or it has the same group of investors and people manipulating the puppet strings.

But, does the audience care? They are too stupid to even know it is happening, even when they see it happening, because they are caught up in their own, “I want to be entertained” world they do not care if it is a cat doing something stupid to a couple having an argument. There is no accounting for taste. Most importantly when there are “Reality Shows” that have no reality to them. People want to watch fake drama that has not plot. And the conglomerates take advantage of this by creating these programs on the cheap.

There is a group of independent creators working on bringing back creativity in art, film, and tv, the only problem is the venues to showcase the work are small, not well attended, and are sabotaged by the conglomerates. They do not want to share any of the pie. And if you eventually do get a piece of the pie, it is so small you cannot live on let alone keep creating.

It is hard to fight the big conglomerates in their own pool. They have the keys, they make the rules, and they have the minions who do their bidding to keep you out.