Listmania!
The Best Books and DVDs for Aspiring Filmmakers
Save the Cat!: The Only Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need: The Last Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever NeedSave the Cat!: The Only Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need: The Last Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need by Blake Snyder
Buy new: £6.44 / Used from: £5.31
Excellent book. Blake makes writing fun and doesn't add loads of graphs, templates and statistics.
The Guerilla Film Makers HandbookThe Guerilla Film Makers Handbook by Chris Jones
Buy new: £20.74 / Used from: £18.82
A big encylopedia which shows you everything about making low budget films.
Your Screenplay Sucks!: 100 Ways to Make It GreatYour Screenplay Sucks!: 100 Ways to Make It Great by William M Akers
Buy new: £6.92 / Used from: £6.31
100 ways to help you write and rewrite your script!
How to Write a ScreenplayHow to Write a Screenplay by Mark Evan Schwartz
Buy new: £8.09 / Used from: £4.66
A screenplay that teaches to you how to write a screenplay. Brilliant! Includes Loglines, Treatments & Synopsis as well.
Get Started in Short Filmmaking: Principles, Practice and Techniques: an Inspirational Guide for the Aspiring FilmakerGet Started in Short Filmmaking: Principles, Practice and Techniques: an Inspirational Guide for the Aspiring Filmaker by Chris Patmore
Buy new: £11.99 / Used from: £3.49
A great introductory guide to short films.
Making a Good Script GreatMaking a Good Script Great by Linda Seger
Buy new: £7.14 / Used from: £3.64
Shows you a clear path to re-writing your script. Uses references to '80s movies, though.
Teach Yourself Film Making (Teach Yourself (McGraw-Hill))Teach Yourself Film Making (Teach Yourself (McGraw-Hill)) by Tom Holden
Buy used from: £4.73
This is recommended for first time features. Cheaper if you shop around.
Film Finance Handbook 2007/2008: How to Fund Your FilmFilm Finance Handbook 2007/2008: How to Fund Your Film by Nicol Wistreich
Buy new: £20.47 / Used from: £17.65
Tells you where's the money supposed to come from...
Living in Oblivion [DVD] [1995] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]Living in Oblivion [DVD] [1995] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]
Buy used from: £7.08
Just a little example of the stress you'll go through... ;)
How Not to Write a Screenplay: 101 Common Mistakes Most Screenwriters MakeHow Not to Write a Screenplay: 101 Common Mistakes Most Screenwriters Make by Denny Martin Flinn
Buy new: £7.77 / Used from: £5.62
More useful than you'd think.
Master Shots: 100 Advanced Camera Techniques to Get an Expensive Look on Your Low-Budget MovieMaster Shots: 100 Advanced Camera Techniques to Get an Expensive Look on Your Low-Budget Movie by Christopher Kenworthy
Buy new: £9.56 / Used from: £8.19
See the Amazon US reviews...
Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure for WritersWriter's Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers by Christopher Vogler
Buy new: £9.98 / Used from: £8.91
Constantly referenced and used as a text book in film schools...
The Independent Film Producer's Survival Guide: A Business and Legal SourcebookThe Independent Film Producer's Survival Guide: A Business and Legal Sourcebook by J Gunnar Erickson
Buy new: £11.05 / Used from: £9.08
A legal book. I have at least one and so should you.
The Documentary Film Makers Handbook: A Guerilla Guide (Guerilla Guides): A Guerilla Guide (Guerilla Guides): A Guerilla Guide (Guerilla Guides): A Guerilla Guide (Guerilla Guides)The Documentary Film Makers Handbook: A Guerilla Guide (Guerilla Guides): A Guerilla Guide (Guerilla Guides): A Guerilla Guide (Guerilla Guides): A Guerilla Guide (Guerilla Guides) by Genevieve Jolliffe
Buy new: £18.99 / Used from: £16.99
Got something to say about life? Go right ahead.
Writing Treatments That Sell, Second Edition: How to Create and Market Your Story Ideas to the Motion Picture and TV IndustryWriting Treatments That Sell, Second Edition: How to Create and Market Your Story Ideas to the Motion Picture and TV Industry by Kenneth Atchity
Buy new: £7.26 / Used from: £5.43
A treatment is essential since most producers & investors read it before your script.
The 101 Habits of Highly Successful Screenwriters: Insider Secrets from Hollywood's Top WritersThe 101 Habits of Highly Successful Screenwriters: Insider Secrets from Hollywood's Top Writers by Karl Inglesias
Buy new: £5.74 / Used from: £3.25
A great book that shows you how some of the best Hollywood screenwriters work!
Shine: A Professional 4-Step Plan for Becoming a Star in Anything You DoShine: A Professional 4-Step Plan for Becoming a Star in Anything You Do by Larry Thompson
Buy used from: £1.50
A very inspirational book. Every time I read it I feel good!
The Player [DVD] [1992] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]The Player [DVD] [1992] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]
Buy used from: £6.97
When you're up there, never forget the 'little people'!
THE Big Picture: Money and Power in HollywoodTHE Big Picture: Money and Power in Hollywood by Edward Epstein
Buy new: £8.02 / Used from: £6.75
How Hollywood operates... it's actually all about the DVD and TV sales...
One Hundred Films and a Funeral: The Life and Death of Polygram FilmsOne Hundred Films and a Funeral: The Life and Death of Polygram Films by Michael Kuhn
Buy new: £16.99 / Used from: £11.00
We were so close to having a functioning UK studio... can we do it again?