🧐 How To Fund Student Films (without crowdfunding)

Nepal Arlsan started his first “business” during his freshman year of high school, riding his bike to local stores and offering them free promotional videos. That hustle gave him the resources to win awards and get into a top film school.

You know the drill… here are 3 movies from the past 4 years, and Nepal’s lessons on funding his projects.

All-American Best Drama Winner

✅ Strings is being screened in film classrooms across the United States.

RT 12:37

Strings follows a young musician as she buckles under the pressure of perfection.

Through a combination of grants and personal funds, Nepal was able to piece together a story that is resonant, vulnerable, and well-paced.

✨ It didn’t take long for people to love Nepal's work. In 2019, he took home the award for Best Drama at the All-American High School Film Festival.

Honestly, I think my artistic style was all over the place at that time. I made action short films with no budget and dramas that took months of pre-production. That was pretty fun.

Client Work

I think the biggest lesson I’ve learned is to love the work that isn't "mine"

Four years after “Strings”, Nepal is wrapping up his degree at NYU. To fund his shorts in college, he took his work with clients to the next level.

  • 🎥 Nepal produces documentaries for businesses in New York

  • 💵 This gives him the money to reinvest in his shorts

A lot of people try to crowdfund their shorts, but I pretty much always fund my projects with the money I save from client projects.

Tahz (2021) Short Film

✅ Tahz is being screened in film classrooms across the United States.

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Nepal’s description of Tahz speaks for itself:

A young dubious boy must convince his parents that their firstborn son is not who they think he is.

This was a film made during the covid-19 quarantine. Written in 4 days, shot over 3 days, it was a month of beautiful chaos. We just set out to have some much needed fun

👋🏼 Editor's Note

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We'll see you next week.

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