Barbie Castro is a one-woman dynamo. Born in Miami Beach, FL, she is a hard working actress and producer who knows how to bring a project full circle from beginning to end. She has a keen eye for talent and a great sense of business. She has created a name for herself as a prominent entrepreneur in South Florida.
In 2011, Barbie Castro formed Concord Films, LLC and starred and produced “Conduit,” a short film directed by Alyn Darnay. She won several Best Actress Awards in the 2011 Film Festival Circuit, including Best Actress in a short Film at the New York City International Film Festival, Buffalo Niagara Film Festival and FMPTA Crystal Reel Awards.
Film Review: Killer Island (dir by Alyn Darnay) https://t.co/8FscLHP7yU pic.twitter.com/ykHh891DLw
— Lisa Marie Bowman (@LisaMarieBowman) May 24, 2018
In 2011, she also wrote, produced & co-directed a Pilot called “Miami 3oh5,” which won a Silver Award at the 2011 California Film Awards in the Television Pilot Division, as well as a Silver Sierra Award at the 2012 Yosemite International Film Festival in the Television Pilot Competition
In 2013, Castro was named a Semi-Finalist in the NexTv Acting & Directing Talent Search for her work in “Conduit.” The short received over 16 accolades, including Best Produced Script at the FMPTA Crystal Reel Awards, Golden Reel Award at the Nevada Film Festival and Best Faith Based Film at the Action on Films International Film Festival.
The passion didn’t stop there as Castro was determined to not only act in, but produce feature length films. In 2013, her first feature film, “Assumed Killer” premiered on Lifetime starring Armand Assante, Casper Van Dien, Eric Roberts and Castro. In 2015, she produced and co-starred in her second film, “Patient Killer,” once again opposite Van Dien. This year has brought two more successful TV movies to the A&E networks, “Boyfriend Killer” and “Girlfriend Killer.”
“My original intention was not to make KILLER movies. I just fell into it and now I love the idea of having a KILLER library of movies…it’s branding for my company as well. When people see KILLER in a title of a movie, I am hoping they automatically think it’s a Barbie Castro, Concord Films production.”
In between films, Barbie Castro is a prominent Real Estate Broker and Real Estate Investor in South FL. She continues to juggle her acting and producing passion with her real estate success, and has recently added music clients to her company’s roster.
Barbie credits her parents, loving husband, Eric, and two beautiful daughters, Rhys and Taylor as her greatest accomplishments.
Barbie Castro in Boyfriend Killer
indieactivity: Why did you get into filmmaking?
Barbie: From the age of about 10, I engaged in the entertainment industry. I started as a singer/dancer and transitioned into musical theatre… my dad passed away when I was 18 and shortly after my desires shifted into wanting a family so I put a stop to my stage career, married and had 2 daughters. When my children were older, I decided to get back in acting… I was just going to do community theatre for fun but slowly realized my appetite was greater… I started taking acting classes and developed a passion for acting again.
Shortly after I realized that if I wanted to move faster, I had to take my career into my own hands and I decided to produce my first movie, ASSUMED KILLER. To answer your question, it was my passion for acting and performing that promoted me to produce. I produce because I want to act
indieactivity: How does an indie filmmaker distribute his or her films?
Barbie: I cast Casper Van Dien, Armand Assante & Eric Roberts and the distributors started calling me. I researched each distributor to see which one had other films that matched my film and I went to see them at AFM (American Film Market) to see how they would represent my film and then I decided to go with Mar Vista Entertainment… and later Reel One Entertainment for Int’l sales.
It’s important for producers to realize that distributors are like realtors, you hire them to sell your movie… it’s really that simple. It’s important to find one that sells your style/genre of movie… there are other platforms now a days for producers to distribute their own movies. I recently started transitioning into that.
Barbie Castro & Casper Van Dien on the set of Assumed Memories
indieactivity: When should an filmmakers start to plan for distribution?
Barbie: Ideally before you produce the movie you should already have a distribution agreement in place. I went in stages… my first movie, I made it in the blind and met the distributor after I finished the movie… but from my 2nd movie on, I already had a distributor attached from the moment the script was in development.
indieactivity: How do I get my film into a theatre with an indie budget?
Barbie: I do not know the answer to this. I suggest searching for seminars geared to answer these questions and more. Often times, film festivals and film markets provide seminars to answer questions like these.
indieactivity: How can filmmakers finance their projetcs?
Barbie: It is hard for me to answer this question because I fund my productions but in a case where a filmmaker/producer does not have the funds to produce their movie, they could possibly work for a distributor or find a distributor that will go into a co-production with them to produce their movie… in this case, it is very important to prove you are talented and worthy of their trust… and it is also important for the filmmaker to study the catalogue of the distributor to make sure they know what type of movie they produce. If you want to produce comedy, find a distributor that sells comedy etc.
Barbie Castro in Patient Killer (2015)
indieactivity: What films have you written?
Barbie: I am not a writer, I am an Executive Producer and Actress… as an Executive Producer, I come up with an idea or concept for the movie and then I hire a proven screenwriter within my genre to write the script. OR a screenwriter can come to me with an idea and if I like it, I move forward to script development. You can find my catalogue of movies on my website.
indieactivity: What films have you made?
Barbie: Assumed Killer, Patient Killer, Boyfriend Killer, Girlfriend Killer, Killer Island and Marriage Killer
indieactivity: What is your concept on collaboration?
Barbie: I collaborate with the buyers. I listen to what they want to buy and what they can sell and I provide that product to them. They trust my input and I trust theirs. We work together on cast, crew, script, final edit etc. I have earned that trust. Lastly, I do not have a budget for a Director’s cut so in my case, we go straight to the Producer’s cut. In terms of collaborating with the crew, both for pre production and post production… we have an open channel of communication and we tackle comments on the edit until we are happy with the final product and lock edit. It’s a fun and inviting environment. I work with a very talented group of individuals.
indieactivity: How do you find the process of indie filmmaking as a filmmaker?
Barbie: I love it. Every stage has its challenges but we chip it away until the film is completed. Script development is usually 3-5 months followed by 1-2 months of pre production and 4 months of post production. I like to take my time because it’s a creative process and I never want to loose sight of the fact that this is supposed to be fun.
Barbie Castro & Carlos Guerrero on the set of MIAMI 3oh5!
indieactivity: Describe your process for making a movie from start to finish?
Barbie: Before pre production, I work on the script, and once the script is locked, I copyright it… During pre production, we cast, complete SAG AFTRA paperwork, get short term insurance, script research to make sure that every name we mention on the script is allowed by law and we get a legal opinion with that, we get permits, lock schedule, schedule flights/hotels for the actors, lock locations, get the cast/crew paperwork taken care of, wardrobe, props etc… during production, it’s approx. 21 days of 12-14 hour days making sure we get all the shots we need to complete the movie, catering has to be delivered for breakfast & lunch, permits have to be in our possession, cast/crew have to be given a call time, location & prop list for the next day and so much more… in post production, we sync sound, lock edit, compose music, create Foley, ADR and soundtrack for the film, sometimes we have to add visual effects and sometimes we need to reshoot a scene or two, we color correct and then we merge all the files and create deliverables – deliverables are the items required by the distributor in order to clear title and prove that you own the movie.
indieactivity: What are your future goals?
Barbie: I plan to continue to act & produce movies as long as I am having fun… I also want to look into different genres as well as series… I am also looking into Directing my first film summer 2018… Dream Killer.
indieactivity: What actors do you long to work with?
Barbie: Kevin Bacon, Andy Garcia, Michelle Pfeiffer, Mark Wahlberg, Julianne Moore, Ben Affleck, Reese Witherspoon, Will Smith, Samuel Jackson, Sylvester Stallone… every actor I have already worked with in my Killer Films and many more..
indieactivity: Why
Barbie: Something about the way they captivate the screen. ..
indieactivity: What advice would give to actors?
Barbie: To believe in themselves and to realize they are a business, that they are an entity and that they can create their own work. To network, to go where producers and casting directors go, rather than where more actors go… think outside the box and practice your craft.
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In Conversation with Michael Oblowitz Director of Confidential Informant
Confidential Informant stars Mel Gibson, Dominic Purcell, and Kate Bosworth
