Discover ways to build a great cast and raise funds to get your project made. We’ll examine how casting and financing can go hand-in-hand while also creating very different challenges and how to get the best out of both worlds.

THE NELMS BROTHERS. Eshom Nelms (L) and Ian Nelms (R), grew up in central California, waging two hundred man G.I. Joe wars and dreaming in John Ford Landscapes. Though their evolving passions temporarily took them in different directions — Ian went to college on a wrestling scholarship, along the way discovering a new interest for English and Literature, and Eshom pursued an education in fine art painting, but found the illustration of comic books better suited to his tastes — the two would always find themselves returning to their love of film. While Ian has produced various projects independently and Eshom has worked as a professional storyboard artist for over a decade, the Brothers Nelms always write and direct together.  All of their films —  from their debut with NIGHT OF THE DOG to , both of which were official selections at Tallgrass — have gone on to win multiple awards at numerous film festivals across the U.S. Currently, they are in post-production on SMALL TOWN CRIME, a feature they wrote and directed starring John Hawkes, Academy Award® Winner Octavia Spencer (who also serves as an Executive Producer), Anthony Anderson, Robert Forster, James Lafferty, Michael Vartan, Caity Lotz and Clifton Collins, Jr.

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Discover the do’s and don’ts of music licensing from a filmmaker and musician’s point of view. Learn the importance of a symbiotic relationship between the worlds of music and film.

Ingrid Serban was born in Transylvania, Romania and spent the first part of her life studying piano and voice at the Sigismund Toduta Lycee in Cluj-Napoca. When she moved to the US, she continued her music studies alongside acting and filmmaking. While living in Los Angeles, she had the distinct honor of learning filmmaking directly from Oscar- winning director, Peter Bogdanovich. Aside from being featured by CineWomen in their biannual publication on Outstanding Emerging Female Filmmakers of 2015, her award-winning debut film All Sales Final (2014) played at festivals around the world and her short film Who's There, directed by Tallgrass alumn Cassie Jaye screened at the Tallgras Film Festival. Her first short documentary, Transilvania Frumoasa (Transylvania the Beautiful) is set to premiere at the Nevada City Film Festival, CA. Among her upcoming projects is a feature length documentary on vampires, entirely set in Transylvania, Romania. My Search for Dracula is a San Francisco Film Society fiscally sponsored project. Please visit Goat Lips Productions ™ and www.ingridserban.com to find out more.
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Interested in 360 degree video? You’ll be shocked how simple it can be to get started! 360 video expert Justin Johnson will tell you what gear you need, and demonstrate how easy it with a few simple tools. After a short presentation, we’ll have a Q&A and then you’ll have the opportunity to try some cutting-edge VR and 360 experiences yourself with the Oculus Rift CV1 and Gear VR.

Justin Johnson is a filmmaker and entrepreneur known as the “internet’s first video blogger,” who has created and posted thousands of videos online for the past 15 years. Starting his professional career in 2007 as the head of the promos department at the cutting edge web content company Next New Networks, his work has been viewed hundreds of millions of times across dozens of channels. When Next New Networks was acquired by Google in 2011, Justin was sent around Europe to shoot short documentaries about notable YouTubers. After leaving Google and striking out on his own, he and his creative partner Erik Beck have produced for television on EPIXhd and Headline News, as well as created viral web content for Conde Nast, Google, Star Wars, LEGO, and General Mills. His work has been spotlighted on Time, Huffington Post, Gizmodo, Popular Mechanics, and many more. His feature documentary Double Digits: The Story of a Neighborhood Movie Star, follows the filmmaking career of Wichitan R.G. Miller.

Forget special effects and ‘splosions! These storytelling techniques create all the excitement you need to make a compelling film with no money.

Born and raised in Southern California, Justina Walford started writing at a very young age. She owned a theater in Hollywood during the early 2000's where she produced full length plays and storytelling events that included much of her original work. After winning the 2004 Women in Theatre Red Carpet award and receiving positive reviews with her dramatic play "Evolution of Sunday," she left Los Angeles for New York and began creating movies with husband John Wildman. Her first feature film as a screenwriter and producer, the critically acclaimed grind house thriller, The Ladies of The House can now be seen on Hulu. As a director and screenwriter, she is in post-production with her experimental short, Dinner With Others. She was also producer on the short film The Money Store, which is currently making the film festival rounds. Her follow up feature as writer and producer, All God's Children, is currently in development.

MEET THE FILMMAKERS | FRI. OCT 14 2:00 PM
Meet the 2016 visiting filmmakers. | Hosted by: 2016 Filmmaker Advisory Board

DISTRIBUTION 101 | SAT. OCT. 15 11:00 AM
Visiting distributors share what you need to know about the basics of modern film distribution for features and shorts. | Featuring: Richard Matson/Matson Films,
Bill Thompson/Cohen Media, Jon Gann/Reel Plan, and Doug Klinger/Vimeo

EPA Q&A | SAT. OCT 15 12:30 PM
2016 Tallgrass Emerging Programmer Apprentices ask visiting filmmakers all of their burning questions.

WOMEN MAKING MOVIES | SUN. OCT 16 1:00 PM
A panel discussion featuring visiting filmmakers focusing on the challenges and benefits of being a female indie filmmaker. Hosted by: Filmmaker Andrea Allen

RUNNING DRY: EVERY DROP COUNTS | FRI. OCT. 14 3:30 PM | GREAT PLAINS NATURE CENTER
Our most precious resource and the global crisis that is evolving from the
depletion of ground water will be discussed by filmmakers and local experts following the screening of the shorts program, WELL GROUNDED, and the feature films, THIRSTY LAND and PUMPED DRY.

RACE RELATIONS | SAT. OCT 15 4:00 PM | AWAKENING
Filmmakers from the preceding films, MAYA ANGELOU: AND STILL I RISE, TIME SIMPLY PASSES, AND WALK WITH ME: THE TRIALS OF DAMON J. KEITH, will join local scholars to discuss common themes in black history and civil rights found in these amazing stories of artistic expression and the struggle for freedom and justice.

Fletcher Powell, Jedd Beaudoin, Hugo Phan and special guests broadcast live from The Classroom at The Lux, discussing their favorite movie scenes of all time. Free and open to the public.