Co-writer/director Morgan Evans entertains us with his mockumentary about indie filmmaking, Micro Budget, co-written by Patrick Noth. This meta-comedy follows Terry (Noth), who is a stubborn, brash, and egotistical director. He and his pregnant wife, Erica (Emilea Wilson), move to Los Angeles to film his passion project, a low-budget feature about a meteor disaster. Erica supports Terry in his ambitious goal, putting her relationship with him to the test. Terry’s cousin, Devin (Morgan Evans), films a behind-the-scenes documentary covering all the chaos and dysfunction on set.
The cast and crew are on pins and needles due to Terry’s authoritative behavior and vague information about the film’s budget. It is a sweatbox of intensity; they are confined to filming in an Airbnb without the owner, Toby (Chris Parnell), knowing about it. Chris (Jon Garbus), the assistant director, does everything he can to keep the production on schedule. The crafts service worker, Jasmine (Carla Jimenez), is frustrated with Terry’s lack of payment and proper food budget. The filmmaker projects his masculine inadequacies onto his lead actor, Garry (Brandon Micheal Hall), by forcing him to act in humiliating situations. A romance forms between Garry and the lead actress, Jenny (Nichole Sakura), which fuels Terry’s insecurities. Rick (Bobby Moynihan), the inexperienced VFX animator, has beef with cinematographer Tom (Don Fanelli). Other difficulties arise along the way, such as filming key scenes outside while a helicopter is flying overhead. It crescendos to a climax that you will not see coming!
“The cast and crew are on pins and needles due to Terry’s authoritative behavior and vague information about the film’s budget.”
Micro Budget accurately captures the stakes of low-budget filmmaking. You can feel the powder keg of tension and clash of personalities. As someone who has done freelance work in the indie/student and local commercial space, the characters feel familiar. Evans and Noth wrote an excellent screenplay with its clever usage of the mockumentary format. Many subplots and character beats feel like they are based on actual situations. Terry is a compelling protagonist, though some viewers may interpret him as vain, out-of-touch, and unlikable. Wilson gives the strongest performance. She is the anchor/heart of the story, due to her compelling vulnerability. Her arc visualizes the love, support, and worry from family members and friends outside the film industry. The whole cast makes the film an enjoyable experience. Neil Casey’s scene-stealing role as a crass intimacy coordinator is a major highlight.
Jonathan Michael Maroney’s cinematography thoughtfully captures the frenzy. To reveal key moments, he frames shots around tight doorframes and claustrophobic angles. The lenses also change to reflect Terry’s aggressive vision through the use of traditional widescreen. Maroney’s creative choices help us connect with the characters on a deeper level. The production design by Caitlin Nunes captures all the scrappy details of a film shoot, right down to the cardboard used to block out lighting.
Meta comedies of the film industry can be tricky in developing an original story because there is a tendency to revel in Hollywood’s mythology. Filmmakers have a habit of leaning into tabloid-levels of exploitation, or are at risk of becoming self-referential tributes. Micro Budget is instead a love letter and cautionary tale of risk-taking. If anything, Evans’s film encourages an empathetic understanding of the challenges in indie filmmaking. Moviemaking is tough; sometimes you need to just laugh at all the idiosyncrasies of the process.
"…accurately captures the stakes of low-budget filmmaking."
