Spend your summer making your movie

Sponsored by

_{NOTE: I’m trying out a sponsorship placement for this newsletter. LMK if you have any feedback.}

The cavalry isn’t coming—but we know that already.

Last night at dinner with two of my closest collaborators—writer-actor Madison Lanesey and editor Christina O’Sullivan (star/EP/story-by and editor of I Really Love My Husband, respectively, also of Yes, Daddy fame)—we all came to the same conclusion: despite our collective successes with the movie over the past few months, which have opened doors, our lives look very much the same.

We’re working our side jobs to pay the rent, hustling at networking events, letting ourselves be angry that at first no talent was signed by agencies out of SXSW… and then, they signed one dude. It’s the same old story.

And yet, I’m feeling invigorated—to keep going, to fight for the next one, and to push for the previous ones. Because yes, it’s great—critical—to have external validation and “heat.” But real heat is self-generated. It comes from within.

And I’m seeing that self-generated heat open doors for my friends. Christina is learning how to sound design. Madison is directing her first short and finding costumes for an upcoming microbudget feature that shoots this month.

It’s on us to figure out how to keep our projects moving forward and how to make the next one. How to keep pushing. That could look like a lot of things: pulling together a table read, meeting with producers you admire, making a lookbook, emailing a festival programmer just to say, I like your taste.

Today’s Work In Progress is a study in creating your own heat.

Nic Wiley is a filmmaker from Springfield, Missouri, who took the leap into feature filmmaking after just one short film… and a whole lot of podcast episodes. In the fall of 2022, while working as a dishwasher at a local Thai restaurant, Nic discovered the No Film School podcast and decided it was time to stop waiting for permission.

At the time, he was a business major—having left a film program that wasn’t hands-on enough—and had just wrapped his first short. Four months later, he finished writing Bouya Rage Bomb, held a living room readthrough, and dove headfirst into the indie feature production.

Now, Bouya Rage Bomb is ready for its hometown premiere: Wednesday, June 4th at 7pm in Springfield, MO: SCREENING DETAILS HERE

If you’ve ever wondered whether one short film is enough to make a feature… Nic says yes…

Looking for unbiased, fact-based news? Join 1440 today.

Join over 4 million Americans who start their day with 1440 – your daily digest for unbiased, fact-centric news. From politics to sports, we cover it all by analyzing over 100 sources. Our concise, 5-minute read lands in your inbox each morning at no cost. Experience news without the noise; let 1440 help you make up your own mind. Sign up now and invite your friends and family to be part of the informed.

Subscribe to 1440 today.

WORK IN PROGRESS: BOUYA RAGE BOMB

_{WORK IN PROGRESS deep dives one microbudget film with the filmmakers, in the process of making it.}

You mentioned the film was born while working as a dishwasher and listening to No Film School. What clicked for you in that moment that made you say: “Yeah, I’m making a feature”?

I had just finished a small short film called "James" in 2022, and thought to myself "What's the next step? How can I go bigger?" I still had two years left of college, so I thought I had enough time to finish one final project before graduating. There was a lot of uncertainty in what was after college. I always loved making videos and films, but I just didn't know if it was a career that I could fully pursue. I figured that if I were able to make a feature film, hopefully doors would be opened in the future. I stumbled across the No Film School podcast in the Fall of 2022, and it really motivated me to fully pursue a big project. Hearing filmmakers who had finished their own features, or were starting to work on their own features (such as yourself) was super inspiring. I learned a lot about each step of the filmmaking process, and it sounded doable. Hard, but doable.

You shot this film over just 8 days, with a skeleton crew, no sound mixer, and a full college schedule. How did you pull it off — and what did you learn about yourself in the process?

It was a miracle that we got through all of our shoot days with just minor hiccups. I had an extremely low budget at the time of filming, most of which was going to our DP (who deserved every penny). I actually wasn't even able to afford him for the whole shoot. He shot 6 out of the 8 shoot days, and I shot the remaining 2 days. He shot on the bmpcc 6k, and I borrowed my friends bmpcc 4k for the days I was shooting. We shot on the weekends during the month of September, 2023, because I still had school during the week. It worked out nice, after a weekend of shooting I had a small break to prep and get ready for the next weekend. It was a lot to juggle, and a lot of stress. Especially that first weekend.

I had packed our schedule so tight because I could only afford those 8 shoot days, but I didn't think about how it would affect the cast and crew. Luckily, Phillip pulled me aside after the first weekend (which consisted of 14 hour long shoot days) and told me it was too much. He helped me rework the schedule in a way that put a lighter load on the cast and crew. I was worried at first that we wouldn't have time to squeeze in every scene with the new schedule, but it ended up all working out in the end. I learned a lot about myself during the process of bringing this film to life.

I'm not a big planner, so pre pro was a stressful portion of the process for me. But it taught me to slow down, and really think about every detail of the film. The biggest thing I've learned through the whole process is that you can really do anything as long as you put the time and effort in. I'd made short films with friends before, but I had no idea what making a feature film would be like.

The making of this movie was such a long, and at times daunting process. Spending over two years on one project brought up a lot of thoughts like "What am I doing, I'm spending so much time on this thing I don't even know is going to turn out." But I'm proud of myself for sticking with it the whole way through, taking it one step at a time. In my life I've always tried to reach the finish line as fast as possible. But making this movie has taught me to focus on what's in front of me, and do the best that I can in that moment. The finish line will come.

You wrote, directed, produced, and edited this feature while still in school. Was there ever a point you thought, “This is insane”? What got you through?

Yes, the whole process felt insane haha. But at the same time it brought me so much life. I was going to school for business and had no idea what I was going to do after college. It was scary, because nothing I was learning in school sparked any interest in me. But working on the film gave me purpose. It felt right, like I was doing something I was meant to be doing.

You’ve said you’re “not a planner” — and yet, you got this movie made. How did you navigate the stress of pre-production?

Pre pro was a scary step. After the script was done, I didn't really know what was next. The most helpful step I took in pre pro was setting a shoot date. I met with Phillip in March of 2023 after I had sent him the script (Phillip is a much better planner than I am). I asked him how long he thought I should spend planning the shoot, and he said I could probably get it all in order in 6 months. It was scary setting a deadline, but it motivated me. From that point on I just took it one step at a time, trying not to get too overwhelmed. I spent a little bit of everyday working on some aspect of pre production. Whether that was sending out casting calls, storyboarding, location scouting, getting props, gear, and crew, and making a schedule. Eventually, everything came together. 

Now that you’ve had an audience react to the film, how are you approaching your final polish before the festival run?

Audience reactions were so helpful. After each screening, I had a QR code that took the audience to a short google form where they could leave their opinions. I was expecting to get around 5-10 responses (because who wants to spend time filling out a google form) but after the week of showings I received 55 responses in total. I'm so glad I added that google form, because it allowed me to hear raw critiques from the audience, and gauge what needs to be tweaked. The most common response on the form was that the pacing was a bit slow. After watching the movie a thousand times from editing, I almost got desensitized to everything. I look at minor details rather than the film as a whole. That fresh pair of audience eyes was very helpful in pointing out necessary changes. I'm currently working on tightening up the edit and adding some more sound effects and score to aid the flow.

A lot of filmmakers talk themselves out of making a feature until they have the “right” budget or team. What would you say to someone on the fence about doing it scrappy?

The best way to learn is to do. Going into this project, I had very little knowledge of what a feature film would entail. But I think one of the hardest parts is starting and committing. Also, don't be afraid to ask for help. Especially artists and filmmakers understand the struggle of trying to make a passion project while strapped on cash. If you reach out, I'm sure you'll find other creatives who are willing to collaborate and aid you in any way.

What were some of the biggest things that didn’t go as planned — and how did you pivot?

One of the biggest things that didn't go to plan actually happened before our first production day. There are scenes in the movie where the characters are watching their favorite wrestler on an old box tv, so I had to film the wrestling sequence before we started production. I had location scouted a boxing gym in town and talked to the owner a couple of times about using their space after the sun goes down to try and fake an illusion of being in a wrestling arena with added lights. The owner said we were welcome to use the space...until the day before we were supposed to shoot.

I called to make sure we were still good to come the next day, and for some reason he changes his mind about us coming once it got dark. He said it could only be during their hours of operation. The shoot wouldn't work with daylight, so I had to come up with a plan B. I bought a big blue tarp and an orange hose from home depot, and built my own wrestling ring in my backyard. It looked...bad. Very bad.

I was nervous, too, because this was the first time I was meeting Kyle, the actor playing Nicholas Rage. To make it even worse, the next day Kyle texts me he's on his way three hours before we had planned to start shooting. I responded saying we aren't supposed to shoot for a few more hours, and he said he knew. He was driving from St. Louis. That really freaked me out. This actor I haven't met before is driving three hours to some college kid's backyard, he's going to see this crappy looking "wrestling ring," get back in his car, and drive right back home. Luckily, that didn't happen. Kyle was the coolest guy, he somehow wasn't even phased by the ring. So with some editing, we were able to get some shots that didn't look half bad.

Another stressful hiccup happened two days before the first day of production. I was sitting in class when I got a text from my friend, whose grandparents were letting us shoot at their house. Their house was supposed to be Bonnie's house, the main location. The text read, "Hey man, I'm sorry but my grandparents don't want you to shoot at their house anymore." My heart dropped when I read that text. All of the planning I had done revolved around that location. Storyboards and all. As soon as class let out I went to my car and immediately started location scouting again, frantically calling friends and family and asking if I could use their homes.

I got ahold of a family friend that was open to letting me shoot at their house, so I drove over and started taking photos. While I was at their place, I got another text from my friend - turns out we could still use the yard and bedroom, just not the kitchen and living room. So we used my dad’s house for those scenes and I just had to factor in a small relocation into the schedule. Crisis averted. Luckily, as soon as production actually started, it all went fairly smooth.

You’ve said the goal was to make a “goofy movie with friends.” What makes Bouya Rage Bomb yours — and what do you hope audiences take from it?

I started out just wanting to make a fun, goofy movie with my friends. But Bouya Rage Bomb became so much more than that. It’s still lighthearted and ridiculous—but it also touches on real fears around chasing your dreams, and what happens when they fall apart. I put a lot of myself into the main character, Bonnie. Where he’s obsessed with wrestling, I’ve been obsessed with movies.

I’ve always second-guessed going into film because of how uncertain the industry can be. But through this project, I’ve realized that storytelling is truly what I’m meant to do. I hope when people watch Bouya, they laugh and enjoy it—but also get a sense of the passion behind it.

What’s next? Are you planning to keep the indie hustle going for your next project? 

I'm getting ready to move to Chicago to work for a production company, but I definitely plan to keep the indie hustle going. I've learned a lot through the process of making this film, and I'm excited to put that knowledge into the next one!

What was it like premiering Bouya Rage Bomb in your hometown, and how did it feel to see those packed-out showings?

Premiering Bouya Rage Bomb was such a surreal experience. I got incredibly lucky with the theater. Back in December 2024, I reached out to College Station Theaters about hosting the premiere. At the time, I wasn’t even sure if the place was open. The old Hollywood Theater had shut down during Covid, but I’d heard a local had taken over and was in the middle of remodeling. What drew me in was their clear love for my hometown, Springfield. They’d painted a giant mural on the building featuring actors from Springfield—Brad Pitt, John Goodman—and stocked local products like Coffee Ethic coffee, Pineapple Whip soft serve, and even had a small arcade from downtown Springfield. It felt so personal.

When I reached out, I told them how much I appreciated their local pride—and that I was born and raised in Springfield, and had just shot a feature film entirely there. I wasn’t expecting much; it’s a bigger theater, and I thought I’d get brushed off. But within a few days, one of the managers got back to me and was completely on board. They were incredible. We met a few times, picked a date, and started marketing. They ran our trailer in the lobby, displayed our poster, and even had a slide on their checkout kiosks. The manager went the extra mile—literally going on KY3, a local news station, to talk about me and the movie. It meant the world that someone I’d just met put so much effort into supporting this project.

As for the premiere night itself—honestly, it was overwhelming in the best possible way. The theater let us set up a merch booth and even rolled out a red carpet and backdrop. I didn’t realize just how many people were going to show up. Family came in from Chicago, Kansas City, and Columbia, and actors drove in from St. Louis. It meant everything to see how many people were willing to make the trip to support this film.

Seeing the cast in person again was wild—it had been almost two years since we filmed back in 2023. The 6:30pm screening was reserved for cast, crew, and family. Before it started, I gave a short speech thanking everyone and talking a bit about the process. I sat next to our lead, Phillip Cloepfil—my best friend since we were kids. Our production company, Stanhope Films, is named after Stanhope Terrace, the street where we grew up across from each other.

I was nervous—no one had really seen the film yet. But watching it on the big screen with everyone who helped bring it to life? It was unforgettable. I’ve watched the movie hundreds of times while editing, but that night felt like seeing it for the first time. After the showing, Phillip and I held a short Q&A, then spent the rest of the evening in the lobby meeting people and catching up. Between the 7:30pm and 9:00pm screenings, the whole night was a beautiful blur. So many kind words were shared—it was overwhelming, and incredibly special.