Stop Networking. Start Building a Working Circle.

The entertainment business loves the word “networking.”

Go to networking events.

Network at festivals.

Network online.

Build your network.

I understand the idea.

But I think we have turned networking into an activity instead of an outcome.

A filmmaker can collect thousands of contacts and still have nobody to call when it's time to make something.

That isn't a network.

That's an address book.

What filmmakers really need is a working circle.

These are people who know what you do, respect what you bring to the table and will actually answer the phone.

Your working circle might include:

A producer.

An attorney.

A cinematographer.

An editor.

A casting professional.

An actor.

A composer.

Someone who understands financing.

Someone who understands distribution.

Someone who knows locations.

Someone who always knows good crew.

And, most importantly, other filmmakers who are serious about moving.

You don't need every person immediately.

You build the circle project by project.

The biggest mistake I see people make when networking is approaching every interaction with:

What can this person do for me?

Reverse it.

Ask:

What can we create together?

Or:

How can I be useful to this person?

Strong professional relationships are usually built around exchanged value.

Someone sends you a great DP.

Later you recommend their project to somebody.

Someone gives you feedback on a script.

Six months later you introduce them to an editor.

Someone helps your production.

You help theirs.

That's how an ecosystem develops.

Another mistake is focusing entirely on people “above” you.

Everybody wants to know the studio executive.

Nobody notices the filmmaker standing beside them who might run a studio ten years from now.

Build horizontally.

Build vertically.

Build genuinely.

And pay attention to who actually follows through.

Talent matters.

Reliability matters more than people admit.

A brilliant collaborator who disappears every three weeks can become a liability.

Your working circle should consist of people who help things move.

That's the type of community I want Film Faster to encourage.

Not collecting strangers.

Building teams.

Because movies aren't made by contact lists.

They're made by people.

Film Faster Question: Who are the five people currently in your filmmaking working circle—and which role is still missing?