An artist painting about art. A writer writing about writing. Here is a film from a filmmaker about filmmaking. Yes, this film may appeal most to all filmmakers of any trade, but aside from its low-budget-independent-film-reference-allure, the film is just as funny as it is smart and can be enjoyed by a wide audience.

Filmmaking in the independent scene is not an easy trade. Boom microphones find their shadows in shots. Good craft service can be hard to come by. The camera assistant might not understand how to keep a shot in focus. Your actress will do her best performance when the camera is not on. And, you can wake up sweating, from this terrible nightmare.

Sound like fun yet? You’re sleeping with the actor, who is just about the most egotistical person to work with on set. And your assistant director has a crush on you. All of these things may or may not be in this film, but it’s the things like this that are the fun of watching it. Then there are those golden moments, such as when that 5-second shot, in which every element worked, made every bit of trouble worth it.

Animal Factory is the story of a young man (Furlong) who gets prosecuted for drug dealing. He is sent to a maximum-security prison, putting his life and soul at stake.

Edward Bunker and John Steppling’s screenplay is raw to the bone writing—not trying to spice up the dialogue, rather providing a very realistic cadence to the way these prisoners speak and interact. The screenplay is based on Bunker’s novel, which was inspired by his own stints in the penitentiary. Modern audiences mostly know the author as “Mr. Blue” in Quentin Tarantino’s debut Reservoir Dogs.

Steve Buscemi (Fargo, The Big Lebowski) is mainly known as a character actor, but after making his directing debut with Trees Lounge, he has aptly helmed some good cable television projects (Sopranos, Oz)— proving to be as talented behind the camera as he is in front of it.