Why Game Developers & Filmmakers Fail And Why You Shouldn’t Give Up
Let’s face it.
Making video games and feature films
In fact, the average AAA video game today has over 200 employee credits and sometimes hundreds more for 3rd party sources. The same goes for film, I’m sure you’ve seen at least one credit roll at the end of a movie which can sometimes seem longer than the movie itself!
But this doesn’t mean small teams or individuals cannot come up with incredible video games and captivating films worth playing again and again. There are hundreds of examples and thanks to the rapid evolution of technology, it is becoming easier and easier for small teams to come up with BIG results!
So why do so many filmmakers and game developers fail?
There are numerous reasons, but the one I keep running into FAR more frequently than any other reason is also the most simple:
They give up.
It is easy to become focused on the problems you face during the production of a film or video game.
The big ones I hear the most frequently are: “I don’t have enough time,” and “I don’t have enough money.”
Well, first off, I have proven again and again that it doesn’t take money to produce a great video game or film.
Sure there are basic necessities one must have such as a computer and the film equipment or software, but even those can be purchased second-hand for huge discounts, rented or even donated.
And that’s not even mentioning the power of modern crowdfunding platforms like
As far as time goes, that’s a tough one to address since I don’t know your life situation, but I do know that people who have a dream or idea powerful enough will make the time for it.
Whether this means taking more time off from your day job, sacrificing social time, going out less, or simply fitting it in around your busy schedule, you can find the time.
There is a solution, I promise.
If it means only working 30 minutes a day, that’s still progress!
What are some of the other excuses I hear?
Clearly, the team size is important. If you are trying to produce a video game or film with a reduced team size this can seem like a serious issue that’s impossible to overcome.
After all, if you need an artist, composer, sound guy, actor, etc. and you aren’t one yourself then how are you supposed to make this work?
Well, let’s take a look at the countless examples of movies and games that have achieved huge success without even having one of these critical components.
Examples:
Look at Undertale the video game for example.
Here’s a game created largely by a solitary 23 year old who could have produced the entire game easily with less than a $5000 budget (which was the original Kickstarter goal), yet was afforded a far larger $51,124 thanks to a successful crowdfunding marketing campaign, and to date it has earned well over 1 million.
The game lacks defined art, it is short, it doesn’t have fancy physics, the story is fairly standard save the world fare and there were numerous limitations to its design. So why was it so successful?
The execution, the lovable characters and well, the obvious fact that Toby Fox, it’s creator, NEVER GAVE UP.
And how about the films El Mariachi and Primer which both cost $7000 to produce, yet earned over 2 million and 400 thousand respectively?
Both films were created by incredibly small teams in limited locations with little to no props. The budgets were probably spent exclusively on the actors and the equipment! The odds were clearly against them and numerous times I am sure the directors and key members of the team felt like giving up.
There are many more examples. Just search “Most Successful Low Budget Films” or “Most Successful Low Budget Video Games” on Google.
So what does it really take to make a successful video game or film?
Dedication, perseverance, and focusing on strengths. You already have what it takes for the first two, but maybe you just don’t know how to play up your strengths.
So what are your strengths?
Not a good writer? Use a story prompt generator or focus more on the characters.
Not a good artist? Use free art resources or focus more on style.
Not a good music producer? Keep it minimal, get a volunteer or use free royalty free music.
Need video that you can’t possibly record? Use free stock film resources like
No sound effects? Use free SFX from sources like zapsplat.com and soundeffectsplus.com
For every problem, there is a solution. Focus on finding solutions on search engines, forums, etc.
Become solution oriented.
I hope you don’t feel like I’m just preaching to you, and I hope this has inspired you to never give up on your project because no matter what obstacles you think you have, there is a solution.
Thanks for reading!
Jordan Winslow
Electronic Music Producer, Composer & Audio Engineer
https://jordanwinslow.me