hope iām in the right place to ask about this. i find other subs that have a largely male audience give very oversimplified responses to these types of questions, and iām hoping the nuance of my situation will resonate more with other women.
iām an aspiring scriptwriter, looking to do a course with good industry links on it next year. i have two solid short film scripts i want to produce to have something to āshowā for my efforts. i know enough actors to fill the roles, and have a few locations i could use for some (but not all) scenes. i could edit it myself and even have just enough cosplay experience to do the makeup and costuming myself without it looking too amateur. my friend is a designer who would help with promo materials and i have another friend i trust who gives me script feedback. i have a few things really holding me back:
- iām a solo parent. a lot of my time is taken up parenting despite getting lots of support from family, and it makes finding the time and energy to try and make this stuff happen feel like a borderline insurmountable task. also, iām fairly broke on account of how expensive kids are.
- iām chronically ill. some days iām housebound, and apart from *knowing* my period week will be hell i cant predict when iāll be struck down. severe endo, we think its spread, cysts, lots of nice painful yucky stuff like that. iykyk.
- crew. a lot of my friends are ill or carers themselves, can be a bit flaky despite how much they love me and would do anything to help **in theory**
- location. the actors i know would totally travel to help me out if paid, but they would need accommodation. if i want to meet crew and directors at events, theyāre all over an hour away from me, and travelling that far with my health as it is throws up too many challenges, especially when i have to plan childcare in advance. there are basically no resources for connecting with people in my town who might have the skills to help, and i am too fatigued to be the one to spearhead that almost-certainly-futile project myself. if i was in a better state i totally would, but its mot realistic rn.
- money! as i said, iām skint, and currently looking for remote work that hasnāt been overtaken by AI. iām not young enough to qualify for any of the āyoung filmmakerā grants, i try to apply to stuff but its so competitive. i want to pay actors and crew an actual wage, and accommodate them, and be able to afford gear rental and tracks and hiring a location as needed. both of my completed scripts could be done for 5k or less. trying to think up other ideas that could be made for under 1k but, realistically given my current situation, even that would be a stretch.
i feel so out of control and disconnected from achieving my goals because of things like money, and where i am cutting me off from a lot of opportunities (especially to meet crew!) and my health. i refuse to give up but i just need a realistic starting point or something. iāve gotten really detailed and helpful advice previously like āyouāll find a wayā or ājust keep applying for grantsā but thats not actually telling me anything useful, or sharing different approaches. hoping other parents/chronically ill filmmakers here have realistic advice, especially on managing goals with fatigue and daily life responsibilities (and if any of you have found a money tree for project funding, let me know about that, too).
27, based in the gloriously grim north of england, for reference.
