Hollywood filmmaker Timur Bekmambetov, who is currently in post-production on his new movie Mercy with Chris Pratt for Amazon MGM Studios, has made a name for himself in recent years by disrupting the film business with box office hits like Unfriended, Searching, and Missing, all set entirely on a computer screen. He now aims to inspire more filmmakers around the world to adopt his approach with the release of his first guidebook on making screenlife films, a format he pioneered.

In Screenlife: How To Start Making Movies With Nothing But A Computer And A Story, Bekmambetov and other creators of the most successful screenlife films guide you through the entire moviemaking experience, from coming up with an idea and writing a screenplay to shooting, editing, and distributing your screenlife film. Along the way, they unveil challenges, tips, and professional tricks to help you avoid common mistakes and successfully make your first screenlife film, or perhaps your first movie ever.

Screenlife: How To Start Making Movies With Nothing But A Computer And A Story is designed for filmmakers of all levels, from novices with no prior experience to seasoned professionals looking to explore new creative avenues. By focusing on accessible technology and budget-friendly techniques, Bekmambetov empowers readers to craft compelling stories using just their digital devices.

Bekmambetov managed to prove box office success for his unconventional film format. His debut screenlife production, the teen horror film Unfriended, was picked up by Universal and went on to gross more than $65 million against a budget of $1 million. His next screenlife production, Searching, starring John Cho, became a sensation at the Sundance Film Festival, grossing over $75 million. This film also spawned a sequel, Missing, released in 2023, starring Nia Long and Storm Reid, which grossed $48.8 million worldwide and topped the US movie chart on Netflix last summer. Bekmambetov’s only directorial experience in screenlife to date, the journalist thriller Profile, won an Audience Award at the Berlin Film Festival in 2018.

He also proved that screenlife could work across all genres and types of content. In 2018, BuzzFeed released his documentary web series Future History: 1968, which let users experience historical events through the lens of social media and mobile device screens. In 2019, Snapchat released the zombie apocalypse hit series Dead of Night, produced by Bekmambetov and shot in the screenlife format for in-app smartphone-only viewing by Snapchat users. The screenlife filmmaking technique earned Bekmambetov’s production company, Bazelevs, a place in Fast Company’s Top 10 Most Innovative Video Companies in the World in 2021.

The guidebook is part of Bekmambetov’s initiative to popularize screenlife in both established and emerging film markets and build a global community of screenlife filmmakers. He recently announced the launch of the Screenlife Accelerator Program in the UAE, in collaboration with Image Nation Abu Dhabi, to boost digital filmmaking production in one of the fastest-growing content markets in the world.

Available on Amazon: Screenlife: How to Start Making Movies with Nothing but a Computer and a Story: Bekmambetov, Timur, Stepanov, Vasily, Shavlovsky, Konstantin, Kushner, Barry, Zinovkin, Alex: 9781917185264: Amazon.com: Books

About the Author

Timur Bekmambetov is an acclaimed Hollywood filmmaker and producer, known for creating technologically innovative and visually arresting genre films. Bekmambetov has just finished directing the Amazon MGM Studios sci-fi thriller Mercy (set for release in 2025), starring Chris Pratt and Rebecca Ferguson, that he produced with Oscar-winning producer Charles Roven.

Bekmambetov broke out with the fantasy epic Night Watch (2004). His directorial debut in Hollywood was Marc Millar's comic book adaptation Wanted (2008) which starred Angelina Jolie and James McAvoy. The action film grossed $341 million, earned two Oscar nominations, and was Universal’s highest grossing “R” film at that time. With Tim Burton, Bekmambetov produced the animated feature 9 (2009) and directed and produced Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (2012).

Bekmambetov is the pioneer of screenlife films in which the action is set from the point of view of smartphone and computer screens as characters utilize their devices that drive the narrative forward. His debut screenlife production - a teen horror pic Unfriended (2015) - was picked up by Universal and went on to gross more than $65 million against a budget of $1 million. His next screenlife production, Searching (2018) starring John Cho, became a sensation at the Sundance Film Festival, grossing over $75 million. This film has also spawned sequel Missing (2023) starring Emmy-winning Storm Reid that grossed $48.8 million and topped Netflix US movie chart. Screenlife films earned Bekmambetov’s US production company Bazelevs a place in Fast Company’s Top 10 Most Innovative video companies in the world in 2021.

Book Name: Screenlife: How to Start Making Movies with Nothing but a Computer and a Story

Author Name:Timur Bekmambetov 

ISBN Number: 1917505930

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