The Independent Critic Interviews Princeton Holt

The always fantastic Richard Propes of The Independent Critic just conducted an exclusive, in-depth interview with our CEO/producer Princeton Holt. Here it is after the jump:



One way or another, Princeton Holt was determined to make it in the film industry. The year was 2000, and Holt was on the verge of graduating from the New York Film Academy when he stepped out boldly and launched One Way or Another Productions LLC, a New York-based independent film production company that produces independent films, documentaries and online TV content. In 2005, Holt directed the acclaimed short film "Phish" and by 2008 had completed his first full-length feature film, the even more acclaimed "Cookies & Cream." It was during the Summer of 2008 that Holt landed a gig in the production office for television's "Law & Order: SVU" and had the opportunity to spend a season picking the brain of Executive Producer Ted Kotcheff. Holt left the show at the end of the season with a fierce determination to take what he learned and apply it to his own work in independent film. Holt began feverishly building a catalog of niche-specific, ultra indie projects that have without fail garnered considerable critical acclaim while building a reputation for quality and fiscal responsibility for One Way or Another Productions LLC. Holt is currently in post-production for his second directorial effort, "The 10 Commandments of Chloe" starring Naama Kates, and is now working just as feverishly as ever on putting the pieces together for his third film, "The Butterfly Chasers," based upon one of his earliest scripts while continuing to produce, cultivate and nurture the growing community of One Way or Another Productions, LLC.

THE INDEPENDENT CRITIC

Let's start off simple...Tell me about your latest film, "The Butterfly Chasers."

PRINCETON HOLT

"The Butterfly Chasers is a relationship comedy about 7 adults in NYC who are each at relationship crossroads. Each character is the ex or current husband, wife, girlfriend, or boyfriend of another - that's how they are connected. It has some really good actors attached to it."

THE INDEPENDENT CRITIC

You're approaching funding for "The Butterfly Chasers" a bit differently in that you're using a hybrid of equity investors and crowdfunding. What made you explore this way of funding your film?

PRINCETON HOLT

"Well, necessity, really. It took us 5 years total to raise money for this film, and after getting so close to our full budget recently, we attempted to try to add crowd-funding to the mix. But we are approaching failure in the crowd-funding option, and that's based on a few technical things (like commitments from a couple people on our campaign team being unfulfilled because of unexpected changes in their lives, etc). We did everything else right - kept content going and fresh, constant updates to friends, family and associates, and our social media presence stayed strong. But outside of crowd-funding, we raised most of it through equity investors - the traditional way, and that is where I think we are best suited. Equity financing just simply works better for us - although it takes time. This past Kickstarter campaign just solidifies this for us, and I'm actually quite pleased with having that factual, proven information about us as a company." (Critic's Note: "The Butterfly Chasers" did not reach its Kickstarter goal, a campaign that had been primarily targeted at financing one additional "name" actor for the film).

THE INDEPENDENT CRITIC

You've populated your cast for "The Butterfly Chasers" with a combination of regular collaborators and known "names." You've proven with your previous films that you can make quality ultra-indie films by identifying and nurturing talent. What's making you reach inside Hollywood a bit this time?

See how Mr. Holt answered this question, and others in the full interview.

- Lena