DV Filmmaking

D.I.Y. or Die: Taking Your Work on Tour

In 2002, Michael W. Dean completed his first film, D.I.Y. or Die: How to Survive as an Independent Artist (http://www.DIYorDie.org). The film features interviews and performances by artists ranging from Lydia Lunch and Fugazi to GWAR and filmmaker Richard Kern. The cost-effective nature of digital production enabled Dean to create exactly the film he wanted to as an independent producer, without having to answer to anyone else.

In an interview for this book, Dean explained that after he finished his film, he then brought the same sense of enthusiasm and self-determination to making sure his work found an audience. “I sort of made the film my mission for about two years. I lived, breathed, and slept that film. I jumped out of bed every morning excited to work on it. If something doesn’t make me feel like that, I won’t be involved in it.”

Independents often bring tremendous passion to their work, only to find that traditional means of distribution, such as a public television broadcast or a large theatrical release, may not be available to them. At this point, all too many filmmakers give up in frustration. Rather than waiting idly and allowing his film to sit on a shelf collecting dust, Dean created his own distribution plan. “Even though I got turned down by PBS, and every indie film ‘art’ distribution company in America, I took the film on a tour myself, showing it in clubs and bars across America. Then I did the same in Europe.” As a result ...