Hello, and welcome

The Beginning

At the end of 2022, I returned home from producing a feature film internationally in Cape Town, South Africa. It was an incredible experience that was meant to be followed by another film, a true indie with a small budget that we would start shooting a month after we landed back at home.

And then it fell through.

I felt helpless, embarrassed, and frustrated. How could this happen? How could I have let this happen??

It sparked a series of questions that led to where I am today, this website, and much more.

The Past

I’ve been an independent producer since 2009, starting with our first script that needed a producer to take it to the marketplace to find investors. My co-writer and business partner selected me for the job.

I produced hundreds of videos through our boutique video production company - shorts, docs, industrials, and more.

I left that business in 2017 to pursue the dream of producing a feature film. The first client I worked with turned into a four-season gig with a TV show called Relative Race on BYUTV.

While working with that show I produced a TV pilot and a documentary. Then COVID hit and I got furloughed for a few months.

We returned in August to film that season, but about halfway through I knew it was going to be my last one. It felt the same, and that’s not the energy and mindset that the show deserved. So I left.

A few months later, Amy Redford called and asked if I’d help produce her feature, What Comes Around. I said, “YES!” before I knew what I was getting into, but it proved to be an amazing experience with a successful outcome.

I was hooked.

Since 2021 I’ve produced four feature films, three of which got theatrical releases. That brings us to today.

The Present

Over those four films, I was a “hired gun” - brought in for the prep and production of the film, then thanked while they took the film into post-production and out into the marketplace.

I felt the same pain and frustration as I did after the film fell through in 2022. Over and over again. It grew until it reached a threshold I was no longer comfortable with.

I diverted off of the path I was on - producing films for other filmmakers - to set up my next chapter. I needed to limit the ability for others to say “no” to me and my projects. I needed to become Truly Independent.

That meant setting up a film fund (financing), developing projects before greenlighting them, and controlling the marketing and distribution of the films.

If you’re a filmmaker you may feel disheartened by the state of the indie film industry. If you’re an investor, you might be disappointed by the lack of sound investments in this space.

I started to create a new model for myself – a framework for producing profitable films where everyone involved benefits: the filmmakers, the investors, the audience, and the industry at large.

It had to be profitable because profit equals permission. The more responsibility we take for the final outcome, the more control we have to realize it.

It’s a slower approach, a thoughtful approach, a measured approach. One that requires altruism, fairness, equity, and quality over quantity. We need to make films, not content. We need to invest in indie film.

As I turned 40 in November 2023, I began this new decade of my life and career with a renewed sense of purpose - to create a profitable, truly independent film ecosystem that benefits everyone involved.

I want more movies that I can watch with my kids, that they’ll want to watch with their kids in 30 years. Movies that change people for the better. Movies that impact and influence and yes, turn a profit.

We're just getting started. If any of this resonates, you’re my people. Join me. Join us. We need investors who want the same, and filmmakers who are in it for all of the right reasons.

Please reach out anytime. I read every email, and can’t wait to meet you.

Daren