Olaf de Fleur

Creative unlocker. At your disposal. I direct and write films. Two-decade experience. Fifteen films. Sold high concepts. Corporate consultant.

Personal Stuff

The Healing Mantra That Saved My Life

Someone said that pain is just a rock in the pocket of happiness. And to get it, we face the black sun of emptiness.

Writing Tools

Unleash Your Creativity: The "Once Upon a Time" Ulysses Short Story Contest

Competition - write a short story (400-800 words) that starts with "Once upon a time..." and win a three-month subscription to the stell writing app Ulysses

Filmmaking

My First Short Film: No Budget Go!

In the year 1996, I found myself embarking on an adventure with a tool that was still quite new to me - a camera and decided to make my first short film.

Writing Tools Featured

Ulysses: A Writing App That Rocks! Your Essential Guide

I've just completed a new 10-minute video about one of my favorite writing applications "Ulysses"

Writing Tools

Novelty As A Writing Tool: My Session Today

I use the fear of feeling bad in the future to keep myself on track in my writing.

Members only

Free Film Seminar

Free Film Seminar on Zoom - Saturday 15th April 2023

Dear Film Students, the next Free Film Seminar will take place on Saturday 15th of April 2023.

Writing Tools

What Project To Work On? Using Metaphors To Help You Focus

Like any creative person, my biggest agony has to do with the question 'what specific project' should I work on today?

Members only

Film Seminar

Free Film Seminar on Zoom - Saturday 4th March 2023

The Seminar is free and open for all subscribers (free and paid) of this website. To register for the seminar, sign in/up to my website here - and after you have done that, you will find the Zoom Link for the Seminar below.

Interview Featured

Interview: Director Olaf de Fleur on his Icelandic roots, mixing genres, and his emotional new doc ‘King of the Butterflies’

Interview by Meghan Cook (The Insider): "I had the opportunity to sit down with filmmaker Olaf de Fleur and Guardian journalist Claire Armistead to discuss the director's early production days, his documentary King of the Butterflies"

Members only

Film Seminar Featured

Free Film Seminar on Zoom - Saturday 4th Feb 2023

The next Free Film Seminar will take place on Saturday the 4th Feb 2023. The Seminar is free and open for all subscribers (free and paid) of this website.

Writing Blog

The Ideal Of A Creative Work Session: The Dopamine Of 1,000 Pull Ups

The Ideal Work Session: First I attend to my physical position, define the project and mark the time frame with an outcome.

Financing

Twenty Development Grants Of $25,000 USD To Documentary Filmmakers

The deadline for documentary development grants is on the 13th of February 2023

Film Class Featured

New Film Class: Making A Film Proposal For Investors

In this class, you'll learn how to craft a compelling and professional document to present your film project to investors. I share the tools for making a Film Proposal that has helped me finance twelve feature films.

Industry Tips Featured

"How Do I Get A Manager/Agent?"

My tips and thoughts on how to get a manager are as follows. Put your electric pickup truck in rear gear and stack it with a grain of salt.

Members only

Free Film Seminar on Zoom - Saturday 10th December 2022

Dear Film Students, the next Free Film Seminar will take place on the 10th of December 2022. The Seminar is free and open for all subscribers (free and paid) of this website. To register, please find the Zoom link at the bottom of this page. In this seminar, I will

Writing Tools Featured

How To Write A Book

I've often wondered how best to explain to myself how to write a book in a visual simplicity. And then I can across this nifty little drawing from the book: "Show Your Work," by Austin Kleon. Over the last few years, I've been focusing on metaphors and symbolism to understand

Writing Tools

Are You Stuck Creatively? Try This Simple Method

The technique that is used here is a form of clean language, that is, you use a form of neutral questions with yourself to dissolve creative obstacles. The most important thing here is to avoid judgment or shaming and have a calm conversation with yourself.

Writing Blog

THE SUPERMARKET: The Moment That Changed My Life

I'm stuck in my car and I've managed to remove the seatbelt. My mind attempts to invite my body to get out of the vehicle. I've not been in an accident and my car isn't upside down. I'm parked outside a supermarket in my home city of Reykjavik, Iceland.

Documentary

KING OF THE BUTTERFLIES: Review

Olaf de Fleur’s new documentary is an intimate, endearing portrait of a man who tries to reclaim his life after 20 years of incarceration

Writing

My Chitchat Before A Writing Session

I was about to go into a writing session just now and I thought it would be an excellent idea write a bit about it before I start. The shadow side of me suspects that this is a camouflaged procrastination, but in all honesty, most things can be defined as

Creative Gadgets

Knit, Count, Breathe - Protecting Your Creative Mood

My mother used to knit like there was no tomorrow. There was always something peaceful and harmonious about watching her click the pins through the wool.

Documentary

"King of The Butterflies" Nominated For Best Nordic Documentary

Our documentary King of the Butterflies has been nominated for best documentary competition at the Nordisk Panorama Film Festival.

Writing Blog

Novel Work This Summer; A Brief Check-in

Dear students, I hope you're having a good summer. This summer, I decided to take a little break from teaching and have been working on a novel that I've been breadcrumbing, inch by inch, over the last few years. I'd been writing a chapter here, a chapter there, until finally,

Writing

On Writing And Being A Bee

If you sting, you die. If you make honey, you nurture. That is if you're a bee. I sometimes think about being a beekeeper and find it a helpful metaphor for writing. I have to go slow not to get stung by the inner critic.

Film Class

New Film Class: From Idea to Video

In "Indie Filmmaking: Transform Your Idea Into Video" - You will learn how to develop, write, produce, film and edit a short video out of your original idea.