05/09/2025
When I made my previous micro-budget feature Alma Wants New Playmates, the ambition was simple: to prove to myself and my filmmaking friends that you can make a feature without it having to cost too much – neither financially nor emotionally – and that you can actually have fun all the way through, despite all the problems that always show up during a shoot.
And we succeeded. It was, and still is, the most fun production I’ve ever been part of. The result was a strange erotic vampire film with plenty of dark humor. But it was a simple film – in many ways a chamber play.
With Freedom, Truth, Chaos, Death, the ambition was much higher: to make a bold, ambitious film with far more people both in front of and behind the camera, a film that can stand next to productions with much bigger budgets. And to prove an important point: you can make a truly good film with little money, because it’s not the money that matters most – it’s the people, their energy, and the refusal to compromise.
Did we succeed? I believe so. Yes, it’s still a micro-budget feature. But in terms of ideas, imagination, risk-taking, acting, and technical ex*****on – it’s a very strong film. At least in my eyes. What you think, you’ll have to decide in a cinema this fall 😉
It’s funny, the whole thing about film and budgets. Many people don’t really understand what a film costs. I’ve only worked with micro-budgets, but as I’ve started making features and connecting with more people in the industry, I’ve had some interesting conversations.
Take this example: someone I spoke to had a script and a budget of one million SEK. For most, that sounds like a lot of money. But in film terms, it’s not.
If you count the “invisible” money behind Freedom, Truth, Chaos, Death, then yes – it’s a million-kronor film. Almost 60 people have been involved, and if everyone had been paid properly for their work (which I wish could have been the case), then the budget would’ve been around that. Instead, everyone worked for future revenue, for the experience, for the networking, and for proving something together.
So in the end, it doesn’t matter if you have a million in budget or not. The leap up to state-financed or studio-backed films is so big that the comparison is pointless anyway.
But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try.
Because as they say:
A good song is a good song.
The same goes for film.
A good film is a good film. No matter the budget.
/Daniel
