Hey All! Mike Rudd here from Sports Networker. Mike Newman is a filmmaker and finishing up his second documentary on Buckeye Nation, aka the Ohio State Buckeyes fan base!
Today we do an interview with Mike on the Buckeye Nation Movie and how you can help if you feel so inclined!
We always talk about following your dream job and how to land a job in sports. Mike Newman has been able to do both of those.
Film making, editing, and producing is his passion. The Ohio State Buckeyes are a sport – and Mike has spent the past few years coming up with the documentary that is going to show the power of community and the impact of a fan base to the whole world!
Mike has just launched an IndieGoGo Campaign and if you are interested in helping him support his dream you can head to the page right HERE!
Enter Mike Newman and our Buckeye Nation Movie Interview!
Mike is a 32 year-old DIY video producer/shooter/editor. He has been a one-man-band for over 12 years and is in the process of building his own production company. “Nuts” is his second feature documentary and should be finished in early 2014. He is currently in production on two other feature documentaries, one about a stand-up comedian and one about higher education. When he isn’t producing, shooting, or editing, he is training to be a 21st century digital wizard.
You can connect with Mike on his website, on Twitter and on Facebook. You can also check out his IndieGoGo campaign right here.
The Interview
Q: Mike, in two sentences introduce yourself to the Sports Networker readers and tell them what you are doing out there in this wonderful world.
I’m a 32 year-old DIY filmmaker, born and raised in Ohio. I’ve been on this filmmaking path for almost 12 years.
Q: What was your tipping point to decide to make this a reality?
The year of 2013 was the tipping point. This season has the chance to be a magical season for the Ohio State Buckeyes and will be an amazing backdrop for this documentary.
Deep down I knew that I had to make the movie this year or I would never get it made. Waiting for almost a decade was long enough. Filmmaking technology, particularly funding and self-distribution technology, has finally gotten to the point where someone like me can produce and distribute a professional product in a DIY setting without the help of middlemen. The viability of crowd funding made my decision to begin this project a lot easier. This is the first project in my filmmaking career that is perfectly suited for crowd funding.
Q: We talk about finding your hot dog stand, aka passion and calling in life on here. What advice do you have for someone trying to find their “hot dog stand” in life or for someone trying to break into the sports sector/industry as a career?
Before you can find your true hot dog stand I believe you need to find yourself first and learn what inspires you. Learn what gives you purpose and meaning. If you don’t know who you are then you can’t possibly know your true calling.
I’m paraphrasing here, but Buddha once said if you want to get to Heaven then you must travel through Hell first. I firmly believe this. Following your calling and using it to create the life you want is as close to Heaven on Earth that I’ve experienced.
Unless you’re a trust fund baby you’re going to have to work extremely hard for it and make a lot of sacrifices to get to where you want to be. It also requires a lot of practice, persistence, perseverance, and patience. You’re going to fail a lot along the way so you definitely can’t be afraid of failure. And, above all else, you can never give up. Never.
Q: What are the three coolest parts of the process so far of making this Buckeye Nation Movie?
- Having my first successful crowd funding campaign in April [after a few failures for other projects] was definitely the coolest part of making this. I raised $4910 [plus $2000 more after the campaign ended], which is small in comparison to most campaigns, but it was the most funding I raised to date for any of my movies. After 10 years of trying I finally got this project off the ground by doing the hardest thing there is to do in indie film – get funding.
- Learning new skills and pushing myself in new ways is a close second. Before this project I had no experience with building a community and spreading the word about a project. It’s hard to break through all the noise in today’s media over saturated world, but I’m slowly learning how to do it. Damn, it is hard.
- Traveling to parts of Ohio that I’ve never been before and meeting new people has been really cool. It has given me a better appreciation for Ohio and its people.
Q: What was the best part about your journey that you learned about yourself and this world?
I’ve learned many things about this wonderfully weird world, but the one that sticks out the most is that good things will happen if you don’t give up.
I could’ve given up on this project at many different points along the journey, but I somehow found a way to keep pushing forward. There are times right now when I still think about giving up because it’s extremely exhausting doing everything by myself. There never seems to be enough time or money to do what I want with this documentary.
I don’t want to do another crowd funding campaign b/c I’m an introvert and it’s an extroverted thing to do, but I have to do it. I have no other choice. I want this to be The Best Damn Sports Fan Documentary In The Land and to do that requires more funding. I’m afraid I might fail, but I can’t let that fear stop me from trying. As long as I keep working hard and don’t ever give up, then the universe will reward me.
Eventually. I hope. Fingers crossed.
Q: What advice do you have for anyone who wants to try to launch their own IndieGoGo campaign?
There’s nothing that I can say about crowdfunding that hasn’t been said online by much smarter and more experienced people than I. I’m only batting 1 for 3 in terms of successful crowdfunding campaigns. I still have a lot to learn.
If you are serious about it, then take the time to do a lot of research. Many artists have written about their successful campaigns. Find projects similar to yours that have succeeded and learn from them. A crowdfunding campaign is a full-time job so be prepared to treat it like such.
Q: What is next for Mike Newman?
I’m hoping this documentary will open more doors to expand this documentary into a bigger and better project, create new documentary work, create more crowd funding campaigns, and possibly even teach/talk about my experiences.
I have a few more ambitious feature documentaries that I’ve been working on over the last 3-6 years and I will probably focus on finishing them next.
Q: What do you want this documentary to be viewed as by someone who IS and IS NOT a buckeye?
For someone who is a Buckeye, I want this project to make them proud of being a Buckeye and be a source of inspiration. For the non-Buckeye, I hope they will be able to relate to this story on a human level and enjoy the stories of the fans that I present in the Buckeye Nation Movie. On the most basic level we all want to be a part of a community and this movie is a celebration of one of the best damn communities in the land.
YOU Can Help!
Thanks for reading Sports Networker fans! I hope Mike helped inspire you and give you some ideas! Leave questions and comments below or email me at mike@marketingfunwithmike.com and I’ll make sure he gets them.
And, once again, if you want to donate to his IndieGoGo campaign you can check out the video above and then help out HERE!
This design is spectacular! You most certainly know how to keep a reader entertained.
Between your wit and your videos, I was almost moved to
start my own blog (well, almost…HaHa!) Excellent job.
I really enjoyed what you had to say, and more than that, how
you presented it. Too cool!
He is my all time movie star. This is been nice interview. I have seen many interviews of him and this is the best one so far.