About us

Learn how independent films actually get made from a director who's done it more than 20 times. This group is led by Steve Balderson, who's made 20+ feature films outside the Hollywood studio system over a 30-year career. His films have premiered at Cannes, won a Roger Ebert Special Jury Award, and been preserved in the U.S. Library of Congress. He's ranked #47 on IMDb's Top 100 Gay and Lesbian Directors, guest-lectures at UCLA, contributed to The Advocate and MovieMaker magazines, and has authored four bestselling books on independent filmmaking.

You don't need credits of your own to join. If you've never held a camera and just want to start, this is where you begin, with working filmmakers around you. If you're already on your fifth feature, you'll get straight answers from someone who's been exactly where you're headed. Anyone serious about the craft belongs here, at any level.

Each meetup is an open Q&A with Steve. You ask, he answers straight: how movies really get funded, cast, shot, and sold, from someone who's done it more than 20 times. Bring the questions you can't get answered anywhere else. Actors, directors, writers, cinematographers, editors, and producers are all welcome, along with anyone curious about making films.

Come with a project, a question, or just the ambition to make something real.

Keep making, keep doing, keep going.

*Y aunque Steve está aprendiendo español, los MeetUps serán en inglés.