How Niche Filmmaking Can Move Your Filmmaking Career Ahead

We all know that getting your first film made is hard. With the added pressure of expectation, getting a second made can be even harder. And then there are the Julie Cohens of the world. Cohen is a documentary filmmaker who has completed and distributed 8 feature docs and 5 shorts in the past ten years, and won three Emmys along the way. And this is after a prolific career as a producer at NBC, where she produced more than 20 hour-long and two-hour programs for Dateline. Cohen’s latest, available on iTunes now just in time for Veteran’s Day, is called AMERICAN VETERAN. It tells the story of Army Sergeant Nick Mendes, who was paralyzed from the neck down by a massive improvised explosive device in Afghanistan in 2011, when he was 21. Liz Nord sits down with Cohen to discuss tips on speeding up production, how to reach niche audiences to market your work, and steps for sustaining your career in this unpredictable business.