Here’s Four Inspiring Things We Learned From Francis Ford Coppola’s Latest Film
The OG is really going for it with this film
Francis Ford Coppola’s life story already plays out like a legendary fable – this is a guy who’s epic film Apocolypse Now almost drove him to the brink of insanity, yet somehow went down as one of the greatest films of all time. And don’t get us started on The Godfather trilogy, which had Coppola dealing with the real-life mafia during the making of the film. Point is, the man has proved that he’s willing to risk it all to make his films, and that rings true once again with the upcoming Megapolis movie. Like the rest of the film world, we’re inspired and hyped to see what becomes of this lifelong passion project. Here are a few things that we’ve learned from the project that we’re applying to our NYC Video Production Company.
Never too late to create your art
The best part about filmmaking in my eyes is that you don’t age out, you only get more seasoned. Life experience makes you a better artist, and as long as you’re of sound mind, you can create. Francis Ford Coppola is 85 years old, and he’s still going for it. He’s still taking risks and doing so with a childlike exuberance. The guy is making a “Retro Futuristic Epic” that he first conceived of in 1977! There’s no excuse for us to not make films at any age.
Chase passion over paper (Sometimes)
We all gotta eat, but passion projects are a must. The word around the industry is that there is zero chance that the Megapolis movie will make back its $150 million budget, but I doubt Coppola cares. He had an idea that must’ve tormented him for decades and he had to get it out, so he self-financed it. Now we all don’t have 100s of M’s laying around, but we can learn from that on a smaller scale. Our video production company put up 50k to make our latest film The Sound of Southside, because we knew no one else would. At the end of the day, these films are gonna outlive us, so once in a while, make something that you really care about.
Make something original
We’re just like y’all, for real. We’re exhausted with sequels, remakes, and spinoffs of the same tired concepts. At the same time, we understand why it’s done. The familiarity of those stories usually make for easy cash grabs, which is what it usually comes down to in Hollywood. Still, there is nothing like a truly original story that is pulled directly from the mind of a passionate creator (Versus a film coming from a corporate office filled with guys in ill-fitted suits). We need your ideas, so give them to the world.
Fail Big
Okay so here’s the dark side of chasing your passion – everything is not always rosy on the other side of that fence. The word is that the Megapolis movie premiered at Canne’s and got destroyed by critics. The Guardian even called the movie “megabloated and megaboring”. But the thing is this – I imagine that Francis Ford Coppola is at peace with the fact that the idea is no longer just a figment of his imagination. He willed it out of his mind and into the world and he did so with a level of audacity that is nothing short of inspiring. If we don’t like it, that has nothing to do with him. His work is done. As for us filmmakers? We need to learn from that, and get started.
As usual, if you’re looking for video production in New York City, get at us.