Making Movies is HARD!!!: The Struggles of Indie Filmmaking
Liz Manashil & Alrik Bursell · Liz Manashil & Alrik Bursell, Bleav
Show overview
Making Movies is HARD!!!: The Struggles of Indie Filmmaking has been publishing since 2017, and across the 9 years since has built a catalogue of 614 episodes. That works out to roughly 720 hours of audio in total. Releases follow a weekly cadence, with the show now in its 12th season.
Episodes typically run an hour to ninety minutes — most land between 1h and 1h 19m — and the run-time is fairly consistent across the catalogue. It is catalogued as a EN-language TV & Film show.
The show is actively publishing — the most recent episode landed yesterday, with 41 episodes already out so far this year. The busiest year was 2025, with 103 episodes published. Published by Liz Manashil & Alrik Bursell, Bleav.
From the publisher
Liz Manashil and Alrik Bursell discuss independent filmmaking, everything from writing, producing and directing to working as crew. But this is not just a podcast about "making it," it's also about struggling with rejection, self-doubt and everything else that comes with pursuing a career in film. Follow along as we forge our own way through the industry and talk to guests who are also making it happen. Episodes 238-299 are available at our patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/mmihpodcast
Latest Episodes
View all 614 episodesNicholas Bruckman - BONUS Throwback Interview!
Loren Goldfarb - Finding the Story that Matters for 1st Feature Documentary!
AJ Bermudez - BONUS Throwback Interview!
Melinda Bryce - From Author to Set Mom to Screenwriter and Producer!
Rob Smat - BONUS Throwback Interview!
Gille Klabin - Riding The Wave of the First Feature to Feature 2!
Marc Smolowitz - BONUS Throwback Interview!
Julia Coulter - Live at the Phoenix Film Festival!
Alicia J. Rose and Alicia Jo Rabins - BONUS Throwback Interview!
Travis Wood and Alex Mallis - Collaborating to Shoot a Personal Indie Feature in NYC!
Mishna Wolff - BONUS Throwback Interview!
Arwen Elys Dayton - Forming a Team and Writing Features!
Anthony DiBlasi - BONUS Throwback Interview!
Daniel Goldhaber and Isa Mazzei - From High School Friends to Full Time Filmmakers!
S12 Ep 574Mark Pellington - BONUS Throwback Interview!
On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 401 from December 2022 featuring writer/director Mark Pellington! Alrik thought this was a good match for our episode with John Gaspard from Monday because while they are very different filmmakers, they both talk about re-releasing an earlier project, Mark with his first feature and John with one of his earlier books. After that we play another round of You’re the expert, enjoy! Don’t forget to support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/mmihpodcast Leave us a Review on Apple Podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-movies-is-hard-the-struggles-of-indie-filmmaking/id1006416952 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
S12 Ep 574John Gaspard - Writing and Learning the Lessons from the Greatest Low-Budget Movies of All Time!
This week we welcome writer and filmmaker John Gaspard on the show to talk about the 20th anniversary re-release of his book Fast, Cheap & Under Control: Lessons Learned from the Greatest Low-Budget Movies of All Time and his approach to indie filmmaking and how he changed his approach based on the lessons he learned writing his book. After that we play another round of the GAME, enjoy! Don’t forget to support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/mmihpodcast Leave us a Review on Apple Podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-movies-is-hard-the-struggles-of-indie-filmmaking/id1006416952 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
S12 Ep 573Hudson Phillips and Jordan Noel - BONUS Throwback Interview!
On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 321 from June 2021 featuring director Jordan Noel and writer/Producer Hudson Phillips talking about making their first feature This World Alone for $30k. I thought this was a good match for our interview with Stephen Sanow from Monday because while Hudson and Jordan made a traditional narrative feature and Stephen’s is more of a mockumentary/improved feature, they both pulled their films together in a short amount of time on low budgets. After that we play another round of You’re the expert, enjoy! Don’t forget to support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/mmihpodcast Leave us a Review on Apple Podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-movies-is-hard-the-struggles-of-indie-filmmaking/id1006416952 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
S12 Ep 573Stephen Sanow - Transforming Real Life into Feature #1!
This week we welcome filmmaker, actor and director Stephen Sanow on the show to talk about his latest feature Stripper Boyz, which he wrote, directed and starred in! After that we play another round of the Game, enjoy! Don’t forget to support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/mmihpodcast Leave us a Review on Apple Podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-movies-is-hard-the-struggles-of-indie-filmmaking/id1006416952 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
S12 Ep 572Oz Krakowski - BONUS Throwback Interview!
On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 447 October 2023, featuring Oz Krakowski, CFO of DeepDub.ai on the show to talk about starting an AI based company in the film business, what DeepDub does and why AI isn’t going to be the job stealer everyone thinks it is. After that we play another round of You’re the expert, enjoy! Don’t forget to support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/mmihpodcast Leave us a Review on Apple Podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-movies-is-hard-the-struggles-of-indie-filmmaking/id1006416952 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
S12 Ep 572Heather Brittain - From Filmmaker to Programmer to Festival Fixr!
EThis week we welcome filmmaker, film festival programmer and founder of Festival Fixer, the new AI driven Festival Consultant, Heather Brittain. After that we play another round of the Game, enjoy! Don’t forget to support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/mmihpodcast Leave us a Review on Apple Podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-movies-is-hard-the-struggles-of-indie-filmmaking/id1006416952 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.