Mad Doc Pictures

Mad Doc Pictures Indie Film Production Company 🇿🇦
Founder: Kiresh Bedhesi
Building our first $1M feature film
Sharing the real filmmaking process
Follow the journey

Thank you directors_guildofsouthafrica for the nomination. Grateful to be listed amongst the greats in the game! Current...
20/03/2026

Thank you directors_guildofsouthafrica for the nomination. Grateful to be listed amongst the greats in the game!

Currently in development on our coming-of-age sci-fi for the young, ambitious dreamers out there, and a personal docuseries about the first Indians to arrive in South Africa. Stories of darkness and light coming your way 🌝

Swipe to see what research has done to me 🥲

We wrote our entire film before validating market need. An ex-Netflix executive just showed us why that’s backwards.We j...
02/03/2026

We wrote our entire film before validating market need.

An ex-Netflix executive just showed us why that’s backwards.

We jumped on a Google Meet hoping for distribution guidance.

What we got was a complete reframe of how we’ve been thinking about making films.

Where we went wrong:
We wrote our script, developed our story, got production-ready.
Then started thinking about who might want to distribute it.

That’s backwards.

If you want to build a filmmaking business, market research comes first. Find out what distributors are buying, where underserved markets are, then develop your stories around that.

We did it in reverse.

Now we’re sitting here with a story that only fits international markets - which will take years to develop.

The real lesson:
To build a film business, you need commissioned work from local markets first, then international.

Passion projects don’t keep the lights on. Commissioned work does.

We’re first-time feature filmmakers learning as we go. Yes, it’s uncomfortable admitting we built a passion project when we should have validated what local distributors commission.

But that’s learning in public.

What we’re doing now: reaching out to distributors and sales agents before production. Asking what they’re buying locally, what commissioned work they need, where underserved markets are.

Then we’ll know: Does our film work as is? Do we adapt it for local markets? Or do we develop commissioned work that builds our business and then funds our passion project?

It’s terrifying. It’s also right.

Because passion projects don’t build film businesses. Commissioned work does.

SAVE this if you’re making an indie film.
—
First-time filmmakers making our first indie feature. Learning what it takes to build a film business. Documenting the real process - mistakes and all.

Follow the journey

18/02/2026

"I don't have contacts in the industry."

We get it. Preston Jonas Jr. heard it too. But here's what he actually did about it.

In this clip, Preston breaks down the difference between having connections and building them. Spoiler alert: they're not the same thing. And if you're waiting for the industry to hand you an opportunity, you're already behind.

You don't need to know everyone. You just need to know how to show up where the work is happening, and have the guts to make yourself useful.

Preston's story proves it's possible to go from zero contacts to building a network that actually sticks. This is the advice you need to hear if you're still waiting for your shot.

👇Comment "MILLION" below and we'll send you a link to watch the full interview on YouTube.

I’ve written two award-winning shorts. Now I’ve finished writing my first feature and it was a much bigger beast than th...
07/02/2026

I’ve written two award-winning shorts. Now I’ve finished writing my first feature and it was a much bigger beast than the shorts and I’m relieved it’s done 😅.

What’s wild is I can tell how much my writing has evolved.

I’ve learned to protect the process. To stay inside scenes longer. To trust the mess before I go in and clean it up.

These three habits pulled me out of my own way and let the work actually get better.

If you’re early in your writing journey, or you’ve been stuck on the same script for months, try one of these. See what shifts.

Swipe through for the full breakdown.

(script writing, screenwriting, filmmaking, indie film, screenwriter, film writer, short film, feature film, writing process, screenplay, filmmakers, indie filmmaking, writers life, creative writing, film production, storytelling, writing tips, scene writing​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​)

Behind-the-scenes from this week.Mostly planning, conversations, and figuring out what’s actually doable at this stage o...
03/02/2026

Behind-the-scenes from this week.

Mostly planning, conversations, and figuring out what’s actually doable at this stage of the film.

This is the pre-production part of filmmaking that doesn’t photograph well but sets everything up later.

Taking it step-by-step, working together, breaking it down, asking questions.

More soon.

(Filmmaking, indie filmmaking, filmmakers, south african film, lovesafilm, film director, director of photography, producer)

22/01/2026

I spent years hesitating.

I stayed in medicine because it was safe. I stayed because that’s all I knew. But deep down, I knew I was letting fear dictate my life.

Every day you hesitate, the gap between who you are and who you want to be gets wider.

We are building this film from scratch, not because we know exactly what we’re doing, but because we are brave enough to do it wrong until we get it right.

Audacity > Safety.

20/01/2026

In 2020, I made the decision to move from medicine to film. I kept it a secret from my friends and family, obsessively dissecting movies, scripts, and scores in every spare moment I had. I finally made the transition in 2022.

I’ve always been captivated by movies and how they’re made. A great movie translates a visceral feeling, not just a topic. But as content streaming increases, that feeling is being lost.

During my time in the hospital, I learnt that the patients who made it out quickly were the ones with drive, belief, and an unshakeable willingness to adapt to whatever comes their way. Medicine is the study of life and the living, and so are great stories.

I went against every piece of advice and rejected the safety net to chase a career in an industry where I was an unknown - no contacts, no knowledge. But I gambled on the truth that if I had that same drive, belief, and willingness to adapt, I’d make it out too.

My story is still being written, but I carry that belief within me wherever I go.

Let this be your sign: If you are walking a path that doesn’t feel like yours: IT IS NEVER TOO LATE TO TURN AROUND.

To everyone who ask why we do this: We lied to you.We told you we were stressed. We told you we were tired. We told you ...
14/01/2026

To everyone who ask why we do this: We lied to you.

We told you we were stressed. We told you we were tired. We told you that trying to raise money for an indie film in South Africa is a nightmare.

And while all of that is true, we left out the most important part: We wouldn’t trade it for anything.

There is a specific kind of adrenaline that comes from building something with no blueprint. From pitching a movie that doesn't exist yet, to solving problems that should have killed the project months ago.

We aren't just trying to make Grow's Giant - we are trying to prove that you don't need permission to build a sustainable film business.

The script is evolving. The team is locked in. The coffee is brewing.

We’ve had to get really comfortable with the phrase “good enough” on the small stuff so we can be world-class where it a...
05/01/2026

We’ve had to get really comfortable with the phrase “good enough” on the small stuff so we can be world-class where it actually matters. It’s about not burning out before we even hit the halfway mark... 🫠

We’re obsessing over the big things and letting the 2% tweaks slide - for now. Because at the end of the day, a perfectly polished transition won’t save a story that doesn't hook you. This we are applying to our story, our marketing, our team etc etc.

To other filmmakers in the trenches right now - what’s the one thing you’ve finally stopped overthinking and what was the payoff? 👇

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