This is Thomas Percy Kim’s bi-weekly newsletter, your stories for independent filmmaking, permissionless storytelling, and building a sustainable creative career.

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Stop Saving Money on Your Creative Career

What it means to invest in your creative energy

👋 Hey, it's Thomas.

If you're anything like me, writing scripts (by yourself) is one of the hardest things you can do as a filmmaker.

Yes, other parts of production are hard – dealing with actors, finding producers, raising money – but it’s a different kind of hard when you are alone in your room, sitting at your desk for days on end, staring at a blank page or revising early drafts that feel like loose threads that don't quite all interconnect.

Your back starts to hunch. Your pour-over doesn't hit the same. You can’t sleep, cause you’re lost in these characters.

Being on set and working long days is hard, but you're surrounded by people. You're solving problems in real time, and the adrenaline carries you through it because you're actually making progress.

“Development” or “writing” is the opposite. It's just you and your laptop and your own doubts and fears for days, weeks, months, or years at a time. There is no immediate feedback loop, no finish line in sight, no one really keeping you accountable.

And you're constantly getting pulled by the things that feel productive but aren't... cleaning your bathroom, making food, replying to your friends, clearing out your email. There are many things that make you feel like you’re working, but you’re not progressing the one thing that matters — the writing, the editing, the filmmaking.

Then you go outside.

You get groceries. Run an errand. The sun hits your face, the clean air in your lungs, and you see other humans walking their ugly/cute dogs. Maybe you even spend $7 to treat yourself to a latte.

Same coffee, right? So why does it taste different, and why do I feel so much better?

I bought an espresso machine last year because I thought I'd save money making coffee at home. And technically, I did.

But that $7 at a cafe? It’s not just coffee, it’s a reason to leave your apartment, it’s a change of scenery, it’s a boost in your creative energy.

You're buying the thing that makes you more creatively attuned. That $7 is probably the highest-ROI investment you make all week – because you will likely write more quantity and quality pages than if you were alone in your room slamming your head on the keyboard.

Same with an occasionally DoorDash or a gym membership. We both feel like it’s a waste of money, but the same way an athlete will invest hundreds of dollars into training and equipment, we, too, must think about our return on creative energy.

You are an athlete. Your body/mind is our instrument. And a $20 DoorDash or a $3 pastry could boost your creative output exponentially.

We run on movement, sunlight, variety, and human contact. We have to feed our minds to create great work, not just "be productive."

If you're stuck on a draft, in development hell, or in that weird purgatory between projects – spend 30 minutes and go outside. Spend a few bucks getting that drink you like. Tour the neighborhood and find a new cafe, library, or park to sit somewhere you've never sat before.

It sounds counterintuitive and I forget it all the time, but this one hack (in moderation) has boosted my creative output tenfold. Your creative energy is your most important asset. So protect it, and invest in it.

See you in the next bi-weekly newsletter,
— Thomas Percy Kim

📌 Thomas’s Bookmarks

My favorite links of the week to help you be wiser and more creative.

• Casey Neistat's latest video on his "Productivity Matrix" – Landed in my feed the same week I was writing this. Casey breaks down how he thinks about structuring his time and energy, and it rhymes with a lot of what I'm getting at here. Worth the watch.

💾 Community Plugs

Resources for filmmakers, content creators, and industry professionals.

• 🎬 Michael Morgenstern's Reality Games premieres May 16 in San Francisco. Nearly 10 years in the making. Red carpet premiere with Q&A and an afterparty filled with community art. If you're in the Bay Area, get tickets here – with code RG-GUMDROP for 15% off.

• 🎥 Rishi Gandhi's short film The Beasts We Carry is nearing picture lock after raising $31K on Kickstarter. Sound and color grading are next, and he's packaging it into his first feature. Follow his journey on Instagram @senor_rish!

• ✍️ Phiona Gikundiro is making her first short film, Before I Told Them – a minimal-dialogue film shooting in Kigali, Rwanda. She's looking for a female lead and a remote-friendly editor. If you're interested, reply and I'll connect.

• 🎓 The Vandalist Academy waitlist is open. We're building a live community for filmmakers who want resources, feedback, and connection – and we're leaning toward making it completely free...! Join the waitlist.

• 💡 Community spotlight: If you've recently wrapped a short, locked a feature cut, or hit a milestone you're proud of – reply and tell me about it. I want to highlight community wins here. :)

📹 Behind the Scenes

The weather is finally warming up here in New York City, and here are some photos of beautiful fruits and veggies I found this week. Mother nature is the greatest artist!

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