David Gutel’s theatrical directorial debut “Forty-Seven Days with Jesus” hits over 900 theaters this March! In this episode, we get into how David set his feature up for success through casting from similar popular series “The Chosen”, distribution resources and tips for independent films, how he used real estate tech to pre-viz musical numbers, why he decided to do a faith-based film after initially being hesitant and how he transitioned to directing after 8 years as a 1st Assistant Director. BREAKDOWN: 6:00 - Pre-viz for a musical: Lidar mapping (real estate tools?!) 13:34 - Challenges: strikes, Texas heat, mechanical failures of picture vehicles (sinking boat!) 18:08 - Getting theatrical distribution partly through casting actors from “The Chosen”  24:10 - Distribution resources - Fathom Events & Pinnacle Peak as a resource for independent films, getting distribution abroad through hitting minimums at home 26:30 - Getting distribution tips recap + David’s initial connection to distributors  29:10 - Market festivals vs. competition film festivals 30:25 - From 1st AD to director 41:03 - First job as second unit director 45:19 - Challenging shoots: When to rise to a challenge vs. abandon impending disaster 55:30 - Recap of David’s path in the industry 58:30 - Is film school worth it? David’s experience paying $24k for CSULB 1:04:00 - TIME CAPSULE CONNECT WITH DAVID: Instagram @davidmgutel / @fortysevendaysfilm  Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/shop/DeadMediaStore CONNECT WITH THE SHOW All platforms: @NoSetPathShow  www.NoSetPathShow.com / bio.site/nosetpath  --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/rebecca-doyle3/support