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Sam and Leah Business Plan Written and Directed by Steve Cosmic Who We Are |
Steve Cosmic is a multiple award winning writer and director. Before becoming a filmmaker, he spent 20 years as a bushpilot, logging 15,500 flying hours. This is equivalent to flying 65 times around the world with 48,000 take offs and landings. He is extremely resourceful, and an inventor with 6 patents in Canada and the US. Steve is committed to making entertaining and meaningful movies that people want to watch.... more than once. Leaning towards creative over high budget, Steve has proven that he has a keen visual sense for directing, and helped an actress win a Best Actress Award. He has also proven his ability to write stories with strong characterization and natural dialogue. Steve is a rising director to be watched for. His current project, a feature film entitled "Sam and Leah", is currently in advanced pre-production stages. The Story Sam and Leah is an enduring and timeless love story between a younger woman and an older man. Leah is 24 years old, struggling with addictions to cocaine and alcohol. She is living with a drug dealer while secretly working part time as an erotic model. Her modeling ad in a newspaper is answered by Sam, about 45 years old, and a former pro baseball player who has managed to kick his addiction to alcohol. When Sam meets Leah, he sees a chance to help her and he comes up with a plan to help her quit her addiction. However, things get complicated when Leah's boyfriend, Orlando, enters the picture. Orlando supplies Leah with cocaine and begins to menace Leah and Sam, unable to control his anger fuelled by his jealousy. Sam comes up with a daring plan to help rescue Leah and to prevent a murder that Orlando is planning. As Leah starts to wean herself off drugs, she begins to notice Sam in a more romantic light. But Sam has developed a relationship with a woman his own age. Leah becomes jealous of Sam's relationship with the other woman. Sam and Leah is a relevant film that is poised to gain attention. Cast and Crew Sam and Leah will be directed by Steve Cosmic. Award winning actress Sarah Sands is onboard for the role of Leah. Sarah's award winning performance can be viewed on a link by CLICKING HERE. Dan Ellis is on the short list to be Orlando. He has studied the character for 8 months. Reese Alexander is on the short list to be Peter, Orlando's friend. Leo Award nominee Julie Blue will be composing the film score. Julie Blue has composed scores for over 36 film and TV projects. She has also been the subject of many magazine and newspaper articles that spotlight her talent and achievements. Julie Blue has also agreed to a licensing deal for the use of one of her songs in the movie. An award winning Director of Photography (DP) is onboard! Our DP is Tony Papa, who has received many awards for documentaries, dramas and music videos. You can find out more about him on the "Progress to date" page. An award winning producer is onboard! Our producer is Eva Wonderman, with 19 years in the film business and 16 major productions and numerous awards. Locations and Schedule Sam and Leah will be shot in High Definition video. Rehearsals and pre-production will be 60 days, filming 20 days and editing 50-60 days. This will make the film ready for distribution within 6 months. This is one third of the normal time that it takes for many movies to be made. Return of investment will occur faster on Sam and Leah as other films take upwards of 18 months to be completed. The main location has already been secured for filming. The other locations are inexpensive and easy to find. The locations are practical, everyday locations that do not require any building of sets. Set decoration and costumes are inexpensive and straight forward as they are every day locations and costumes. Significant pre-production has already taken place. Practice scenes have been shot and edited. Market, Structure and Growth of the Industry The independent film has seen a huge revival in recent years and continues to grow. The advent of digital technology has lowered production costs dramatically. Sam and Leah will take advantage of the new technologies, both in production, and in profit making new distribution methods as well. The internet and technology have made internet streaming and online marketing profitable options. There are new technologies becoming available that will be ready for us when the movie is completed. Below are some comparables of movies with similar budgets: Adam and Evil (2004). Budget $250,000.00 CAD. Sold 235,000 DVD copies, grossing $1.2 million from DVD sales alone. Chuck & Buck (2000) Budget $250,000 USD. Total US theater gross of $1.1 Million Chasing Amy (1997) Budget $250,000 USD. Total US theater gross of $12 Million Sam and Leah will take a multi-faceted approach to distribution. It can be classified as a romantic drama or "chick-flick" for which there is a steady market. The theme of love never goes out of style. Sam and Leah will be distributed on DVD, theatrically, on the internet, and on TV. DVD Distribution DVD distribution has become an easy option for independent filmmakers. The internet has made marketing and receiving payments for DVD's easier than ever before, and there are companies set up do do this. Internet Distribution There are many new emerging possibilities for independent filmmakers, with the biggest one being internet streaming. Sam and Leah will be available for online viewing. There is a vast untapped potential on the internet that even major studios have turned their focus on. These new technologies will increase the audience for Sam and Leah. Theatrical Distribution Theatrical distribution will be actively pursued. Sam and Leah will play at as many film festivals as possible to increase exposure. This exposure and key contacts made at the festivals will aid in official theatrical release. Many independent films have gained distribution deals by being shown at film festivals. Such films include Little Miss Sunshine, Groove, Tadpole, Teeth, and King of California. All were picked up for $1.5 million to $4 million USD each. TV Distribution Sam and Leah falls into the category of "chick flick" or romantic drama. There is a steady market on channels such as Women's Television Network, CTV and CBC for these types of movies in Canada. In the USA, there is The Lifetime and Oxygen Networks who play similar movies regularly. Sam and Leah is a timeless movie that will be aired for years to come, which will increase the revenue potential. Financial Strategies and Assumptions Given similarly budgeted films, we project Sam and Leah to be shown on TV regularly over the course of your investment. We also anticipate strong DVD sales with an average profit of $5 each. It is common for sales of a DVD movie to sell from 200,000 to over a million copies. This can generate profits of 1 million to 5 million dollars. CTV and CBC currently pay about 70K for broadcast rights. Broadcast rights in the US are higher. Globally, the potential for broadcast rights could easily equal 700K. Return on Investment A generous return on investment package is offered. Investors will be given their share based on the amount of their investment. This can be compared to much more modest returns with mutual funds and real estate investments which appear to be in a decline. An incorporated company has been formed to handle this project and proper accounting records will be maintained. Such records will be made available to all investors upon request. Investors will be paid by a trust fund for 10 years. Investors will also be given the exciting opportunity to attend the wrap party, and all premiere screenings, and to meet the cast and crew. As well, investors will be given the opportunity to be in the movie. The writer director will be investing his own money in this project, and if there are cost overruns, he will pay for them with his own money. Risk Many people believe investing in movies is very risky. However, the past decade has proven that films are a safe investment choice. Movie studios have increased their demand for independent features which proves that there is a large market for them. Even during the Great Depression of the 1930's, people still attended movies. It's a fact people will attend movies regardless of what is happening in the world. It is their escape. Sam and Leah offers a profit potential for a full 10 years, and it is helmed by an award winning writer and director who will be working with an accomplished and talented crew. A note from Steve Cosmic I set this all up to ensure at least a minimal profit, with the chance at really big profits. The budget is very low. It takes very few, small, and easy to achieve TV sales to cover the budget. If this were baseball, a few TV sales is like an unknown team getting a few singles and scoring a run. And even underdog teams sometimes hit a few home runs and beat the Yankees! I have set this all up so we come out ahead with just a few singles and just a run or two. Even unknown bench players sometimes hit home runs! This is what I am going for. I fully expect this movie to be highly acclaimed, and to win awards, so that suddenly our unknown team gets a big win! |