reported by Kaela Corning, CyberScreenwriter.com

Sean C. Covel and Chris Wyatt, producers of the international hit Napoleon Dynamite, will discuss the pleasures and pitfalls of independent film production next month at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design with "Making Your Own Dynamite: Producing Independent Film."

Beginning July 10, Covel and Wyatt will deliver a four-session course detailing the process of creating an independent film and preparing it for international distribution. The production team will outline the delicate balancing act that comes with fighting for a film's artistic merit while ensuring it can still reach the widest possible audience.

"There's a long-held belief that economic thinking is the polar opposite of the artistic process," Covel said. "In making independent films, this is absolutely untrue. Prepared producers are able to both fulfill a creative vision and look out for the bottom line."

Covel and Wyatt are expected to bring their Napoleon Dynamite experience to the table as they demystify the process of acquiring rights and developing screenplays; provide a how-to guide to securing investors and budgeting and scheduling projects; and discuss the producer's role in pre-production, production and post-production. The team will also go over the business of marketing films, showing at festivals and closing deals with distributors.

The producers are looking forward to sharing their expertise at MCAD, a college they feel is at the forefront of nurturing new creative talent.

"MCAD is devoted to empowering the next generation of local filmmakers, which is a mission that's very close to our hearts," Wyatt said. "There's sometimes a general sense that Los Angeles and New York are the only places where you can find emerging filmmakers. This isn't true. Napoleon Dynamite was created because a talented young writer-director from rural Idaho had something to say."

"Making Your Own Dynamite: Producing Independent Film" meets from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. on July 10, 12, 17 and 19 inside MCAD's main auditorium. The noncredit seminar costs $260 per attendee, with a discounted rate of $234 available for MCAD alumni and members of The Minneapolis Institute of Arts. To register, go to http://www.mcad.edu or call the MCAD Continuing Studies department at (612) 874-3765.