FILMMAKER SUCCESS BLOGS

"I Need A Producer"... but Why?

August 03, 2025•3 min read

"I Need A Producer"... but why?

by joannefilm

In my July workshop “I Need A Producer,” we surveyed all the reasons that amongst the 35 attendees they believed they needed a producer:

To raise money
To get me to Netflix
To get me to a Sales Agent
To get distribution
To attach actors
To get a casting agent
To oversee the budget
To hire a better level of crew
To work with the Unions
To take the load off myself
To deal with the things I don’t want to deal with
To raise funds
To believe in me and my scripts
To have connections with agencies and actors
To do all the things I am not good at
To be able to articulate “what is in it for” the investor
To know how to produce a film

I want to thank all the participants for sharing these ideas. It’s a great list!!!!!

If you read through this list, I wonder what you notice? What I notice is that there are 3 main “buckets” of topics:

1. I need a producer to do the things I don’t want to do

2. I need a producer to provide access for me

3. I need a producer because I don’t know everything

What I see in this list is that it is very possible that you can hire the help you need or get this help through connections without attaching a producer.

I need a producer to do the things I don’t want to do

Yesterday I was talking to a filmmaker and I said: “Email me about a time to talk, because then my assistant will schedule you. I’m not allowed to touch my calendar.” “It must be good to be you,” she said (in a tone of some resentment, LOL!) I said, we are all very clear that it is not in the best interest of my business for me to touch my calendar because I KNOW I will mess it up! In other words, I recognize there is something I am really not good at, so I hire help with that, and focus on spending time on what I really excel at which is teaching filmmakers how to raise money.

Filmmakers often mistakenly think they need a producer, when actually they need to hire people in positions so they can delegate work.

I need a producer to provide access for me

Upleveling our connections in the industry is one of the most important actions we can take. I was talking to one of my clients who was being introduced to a seasoned producer and he asked me what he was supposed to ask for. I reminded him that in this industry, relationships are everything! And that going to a meeting thinking we are supposed to ask for something just creates stress. Instead go to the meeting planning on developing a relationship. Find out if they have kids. Find out what they find is fun to do.

People make connections for people they like, know and trust. Build the relationship.

I need a producer because I don’t know everything

Well, there will never be a time when we will know everything. My recommendation is that the #1 thing you focus on learning is How To Raise Money. Of course I am biased because I think that fundraising IS the most important skill for a filmmaker to have.

It is easy to find training in grantwriting and crowdfunding. But it is more difficult to find training in how to land investors and many other kinds of fundraising. I teach 7 different types of fundraising and I like to have my clients do as many of these as possible.

Attend as many of my events as possible. Find other training opportunities. But as far as I can tell, filmmakers MUST learn how to raise money. Make this your priority. You will always be inspired to write, to direct, to edit and make films. But begin everyday with learning about raising money and you will become a successful filmmaker.

Joanne Butcher (joannefilm)

Joanne Butcher is a film business coach with a roster of clients that have over 143 feature films in various stages of development and over 21 clients with feature films in distribution, as well as one client with a series on PBS. She has experience consulting on over 40 successful crowdfunding campaigns. She uses her decades of experience as a fundraiser in multiple sectors through her business, Filmmaker Success, where she runs The Film Box Office S.U.C.C.E.S.S. Formula™ and The Virtual Fundraising Team to help filmmakers and non-profits change their way of thinking, raise money, and achieve their goals.

Back to Blog

I'm Joanne Butcher

Film Business Coach and Consultant

"Are you ready to take a leap of faith and make the film you've been dreaming of making?

Have you given any thought to how to make your films financially viable? Profitable?

Is it time to finally tell the story you were always meant to tell?

Filmmaker Success Break Through SessionBook Now!

Make Movies. Make Money. Make the World a Better Place.

Filmmakers are the most creative people in the world. Whether you write, produce, direct, act, compose scores, storyboard (the list goes on!), I truly believe that you have a unique story to tell and that that story can change the world.

Where I most often see independent filmmakers (second and third feature filmmakers
not excluded) struggle, though, is in turning that creativity into a well-made, successful, and financially viable film.

And that's where I come in.

With my experience in marketing, fundraising, and producing, I have guided clients through writing Nicholl's award-winning scripts, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars, producing the films they've always dreamed of, and transforming their overall thought processes around creating.

My clients currently have 13 films in distribution, with 5 more on the way later this year. Others have nationwide programming on PBS, and many are working on internationally produced documentary and narrative feature films.