Film Producing: Core Elements
Session: June 2026
About this Self-Paced Course
Do you have a short or feature film you plan to produce? In this eight-week self-paced online course, you will learn the fundamental concepts of creative producing for independent fiction films - from development to financing to budgeting and more with an accomplished producer as your guide. Throughout the course, you will have the opportunity to create pitch materials to communicate your project’s vision to funders and key collaborators and get feedback on your work from a Sundance Collab Advisor.
This is a self-paced course. Self-paced courses allow you to watch pre-recorded lectures at your own pace, while working on deadlines to get individualized feedback on your work.
What you bring to the course:
- an interest in producing. (You do not need to have a screenplay or active project to participate.) Creators at any level of experience are welcome.
What you’ll get from the course:
- An understanding of your role in creative development and how to identify your core producing philosophy.
- How to assemble a strong team and key crew.
- An understanding of the process of optioning material as well as collaborating with screenwriters.
- Knowledge of industry-standard deal terms and the fundamentals of deal negotiation.
- An overview of financing available to independent filmmakers and how to develop your financing strategy.
- How to break down a scene and schedule your days on set.
- An understanding of the key steps of the marketing and distribution process.
- How to consider festival and distribution options for your project.
This course will:
- provide tools and techniques to apply to any project.
- offer opportunities for designated homework to be reviewed by a Sundance Collab Advisor.
- connect you with other creators via a discussion board where you can discuss core concepts and share your work.
You will submit your work to a Sundance Collab Advisor for written feedback at two points throughout the 8-week course. For an additional fee, you may elect to meet with your advisor for a 60-minute 1-on-1 session during the course term.
A limited number of need-based scholarships are available and are considered on a rolling basis as they are received. Those who apply earlier will have a greater chance of getting support. To apply for a scholarship, please complete the course registration form.
Sundance Collab provides accommodations and support services to participants with disabilities. Accommodations and services are designed to meet the needs of each participant. Please email us at accessibility@sundance.org to arrange for services.
Self-Paced CourseScholarships
Sundance Collab offers a limited number of full and partial need-based scholarships for individuals who need assistance.
Due to limited scholarship funds available, we prioritize one course scholarship per participant in a 12-month period. Scholarship applications are available up to one week before the registration deadline and do not stack with discounts or promotions, including early registration.
Outline
Topics covered include:
- Introduction & course overview
- The role of the producer
- Understanding producer credits
- Developing a producing philosophy
Topics covered include:
- Development: the foundation for producing
- Creative development pt. 1: Conceptualization, rights, and legal counsel
- Creative development pt. 2: The producer-screenwriter relationship
- Pitching
- The pitch deck
Topics covered include:
- Assembling your financing team
- Financing options
- Understanding tax incentives
- Preparing your budget assumptions
- Finding comparable films
- The film market
- Setting up a Limited Liability Company (LLC)
- Crafting deals
Topics covered include:
- What is pre-production?
- Assembling a producing team
- Scheduling
- Budgeting basics
- Collaborating with your director
- Hiring key crew
- Contracts and negotiating deals
- Working with a casting director
- Scheduling rehearsals and table reads
- Clearances and E&O insurance
Topics covered include:
- Production overview
- Working with a script and actors
- Supporting your team and the project's vision
- Staying on time and budget
- Overcoming challenges and making decisions quickly
- Troubleshooting relationships for optimal collaboration
- Sustainability and inclusivity on set
Topics covered include:
- The producer's role in post-production
- Creating a post-production schedule
- Budgeting for post-production
- Approaching ADR sessions and sound mixes
- Working with a composer and licensing music
- Preparing your deliverables for festivals and distribution
Topics covered include:
- Creating a festival strategy
- Finding a publicist and sales agent
- Preparing your press kit
- Controlling the narrative of your project
Topics covered include:
- The producer's role in distribution
- Revenue streams and waterfalls
- Developing a distribution strategy
- Dealing with reviews and pivoting
- Building your career as a producer
Team
Simon TaufiQue
Instructor
Simon Sohel TaufiQue is an Emmy-nominated, award-winning British-Indian producer and film composer based in NYC.
A dedicated alumnus of the Sundance Film Festival, his films include the Dramatic Directing Award-winner Ricky (2025) and the 2026 Nominee Run Amok. His recent slate includes the studio film The Alchemy of Being Okay, directed by Sundance fellow Sarah Mohk. TaufiQue's festival accolades also include the Berlinale Forum Prize-winner She’s Lost Control and the Tribeca Untold Stories grand prize-winner, Land of Gold.
As a producer and composer, his credits span auteur-driven work, including the Emmy-nominated documentary The Interpreters, to studio projects such as Imperium (starring Daniel Radcliffe and Toni Collette) for Lionsgate/Universal, Amazon Originals (The New Yorker Presents), and HBO MAX (Weight of Gold). He has collaborated with acclaimed directors including M. Night Shyamalan, Cary Fukunaga, Reinaldo Marcus Green, Mary Harron and 2022 Oscar-nominee Jessica Kingdon.
Simon is a fellow of the ASCAP/Columbia Film Composing Lab and the Gotham Episodic Producing Lab. He currently teaches producing at NYU and leads the Core Producing course for the Sundance Institute’s Collab program. An Oscar-qualifying festival juror and BAFTA diversity committee member, he is a member of the Producers Guild, the Television Academy, and serves on the board of the Composer Diversity Coalition. TaufiQue is represented by IAG and records for the Warner-Chappell label. His work has been profiled by NPR, Medium and NBC News.
Justin Gonçalves
Advisor
Justin A. Gonçalves is a New York–based filmmaker and creative producer working at the intersection of storytelling and emerging technology. He is currently a Creative Producer at Primordial Soup, where he leads a team of AI artists and collaborates with filmmakers, technologists, and partners to develop original narrative and documentary projects that push the boundaries of cinematic expression.
He is also a Producer with Protozoa Pictures, the production company founded by Darren Aronofsky. His producing credits include Holding Liat (dir. Brandon Kramer), which premiered at the 2025 Berlin International Film Festival where it won Best Documentary, was shortlisted for the Academy Award for Best Feature Documentary, and was named one of the best films of the year by The Washington Post and The Guardian. Additional credits include Ancestra (dir. Eliza McNitt), Pi (2023 remaster), Caught Stealing (2025), and, most recently, Goodnight, Lamby (dir. Dustin Yellin), which will premiere at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival.
Gonçalves began his career in editorial and production, working with organizations including CNN, NBA Entertainment, and Great Big Story. He later served as an assistant to Darren Aronofsky, contributing to projects including The Whale and the Madison Square Garden Sphere experience Postcard From Earth.
He holds a BA in Creative Writing and American Studies from Columbia College and an MFA in Screenwriting/Directing from Columbia University’s School of the Arts.
FAQ
Sundance Collab’s Self-paced courses provide flexibility to complete the work on your own time, but also within a structured timeline that helps you to advance your project. You will travel through the course with a cohort of creators like yourself, and - if applicable - are given assignments with due dates during key weeks of the course:
- Each week you will view pre-recorded lectures by the instructor structured around key topics.
- Post-Video Activities after each session are designed to apply concepts to your own work, and move your project to the next stage.
- If assigned, a course advisor will give you feedback on elements of your work.
- You will have the opportunity to join live class exercises or group office hours, hosted by Sundance Collab Advisors, at critical points in the course to ask questions and discuss concepts.
- In some courses, you will have the opportunity to purchase a 1-on-1 Zoom session with your assigned course advisor.
All members of the Sundance Collab community are welcome to take Sundance Collab Self-paced courses. Please review the course description to ensure the course is a good fit. If you have any questions about a course, please email collab_courses@sundance.org.
Note that each Self-paced course has a registration deadline, so please check the date and time to ensure you don’t miss the cut-off. If the registration window is open, you will see a "Register” button on the course page.
We do not allow creative partners to do our Self-paced courses as a team. However, both creators can individually register for the course.
We often offer a limited number of need-based, full or partial scholarships. Check the course description to see if that course currently has scholarships available. Scholarships are prioritized for one per person per year (from the date of issue). Scholarship applications are available up to one week before the registration deadline. To apply for a scholarship, complete the registration form by clicking the REGISTER button above and selecting the scholarship option, if available.
Applicants will be notified about their scholarship decision prior to the first day of the course. Due to the volume of applicants, we are not always able to provide a scholarship, but we may still offer a spot in the course.In this case, depending on the course, payment plans may be available and can be selected at checkout.
Yes, we offer two or three-part payment plans for Self-paced courses, depending on the length of the course. In all cases, the first payment is due at the point of registration. The remaining payment(s) are spread out throughout the course term. For specific payment plan dates for a course, please reach out to our team at: collab_courses@sundance.org.
In courses with live class exercises or group office hours, the sessions are recorded and usually made available within two business days. The videos will also contain the chat and transcript from the session, viewable in the video playbar.
Participants will have access to the lecture recordings and course materials for one year following the last class session.
All participants will receive a Certificate of Completion. The certificate will include the name associated with your Collab account.
You can find any courses that you are enrolled in or have already completed in the profile section of your Collab account under “Courses.”
You can access the course videos via a computer or mobile device. All of our live class exercises and group office hour sessions are conducted via Zoom.
Download and set up the Zoom software (https://zoom.us/download) and make sure you have the latest update. Here are some great resources from Zoom’s Knowledge Base to take a deeper dive into using Zoom:
- Watch Zoom's Video Tutorials or review training materials on the Getting Started page
- Join a Live Training from Zoom
If you have any further questions, please email collab_courses@sundance.org.
Sundance Collab provides accommodations and support services to participants with disabilities. Please contact us at (435) 776-7790 or email us at accessibility@sundance.org to ask any questions or to discuss your specific needs after you have been accepted into the course.