To me the film industry is separated into two sections: Professionals vs Dilettantes.
Dilettantes say stuff like this:
“Why can’t we just pick up a camera, shoot something, and fix it in post?”
“I have this great idea for a tv pilot that will work on any major branded network.”
“I’m sorry I have to drop out of your project at the very last meeting forcing you to push back your shooting dates and mess up everyone else’s schedule but I just remembered that I have brain surgery in a few days and I can’t reschedule.”
“I can’t show you my short film script without an NDA. That’s what I read online.”
“Can I say action while you take a picture of me in the moment?”
“I just want to be on set so I can take pictures for my blog.”
Professionals are the ones that don’t pull the kind of shit listed above.
The number one problem for those serious aspiring filmmakers is that they’re going to come across a lot more dilettantes than professionals. I know! I know! That really sucks! Dilettantes have a tendency to misrepresent themselves in the first few meetings. They’ll come across as creative, driven, knowledgeable, reliable, honest, etc. But as you start to work with them, it quickly becomes clear that they’re nothing but a bunch of time wasters!
Fear not serious aspiring filmmakers: the higher up you go, the less of them you’ll see.