Getting Into Sundance With A $30K TV Pilot

About this episode

Filmmaker Alec Goldberg discusses his journey creating the micro-budget comedy pilot 'Soft Boil' and its acceptance into the 2026 Sundance Film Festival.

In this episode filmmaker Alec Goldberg joins the show to break down how his micro-budget comedy pilot Soft Boil went from a bootstrapped production to a blind submission acceptance at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival. We talk about Alec’s path from documentary and commercial work into scripted narrative, how a key creative partnership with lead actor / co-writer Camille Wormser shaped the project, and what it took to pull off a festival-ready pilot on $30,000 across a handful of shoot days. Topics covered include: Why Alec believes casting + voice was the “X factor” (and how to recognize it) The tactical micro-budget choices that mattered most (locations, rehearsals, scheduling) How to direct comedy with improv-friendly actors without losing the spine of the scene The producer “role-splitting” approach that let Alec focus on directing How Alec thinks about finding your “voice” as a filmmaker, and why it's so critical The films and filmmakers shaping his taste (Kaufman, PTA, Von Trier, Aronofsky, Kubrick) Links from the show: Alec D. Goldberg - Instagram Camille Wormser - Instagram Madison Shamoun - Instagram Vivian Kerr - Instagram Patrick Tabari - Instagram John Gemberling…

People in this episode

Host: Noam Kroll

Guest: Alec Goldberg

Topics covered

• micro-budget filmmaking
• Sundance Film Festival
• comedy pilot production
• casting and voice
• directing actors
• filmmaker voice
• creative partnerships

Keywords

• micro-budget
• Sundance
• comedy pilot
• filmmaking
• casting
• directing
• improv
• creative partnership
• voice

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Soft Boil

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