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June 16, 2002 -- Attention all wannabe directors: You don't have to be humiliated on TV to get $1 million and big names to star in your debut film.

Unlike Pete Jones, who directed "Stolen Summer" thanks to Project Greenlight and an HBO documentary that portrayed him as a fool, four other first-timers put out new movies this season through sheer pluck.

The group, without winning any contests or having any Hollywood relatives, cast such A-list talent as Wesley Snipes, Jodie Foster, Jeff Bridges and Isabella Rossellini, to name just some of the stars.

How?

The 32-year-old Dylan Kidd, whose film "Roger Dodger" will be released this fall, made the most of a chance meeting with actor Campbell Scott at a cafe in the Village.

Kidd, a Queens native and grad of the NYU film school, wrote a script that no agent would touch. But when he spotted indie actor Scott ("Big Night," "The Sheltering Sky") having a cup of joe, he marched up and introduced himself.

"I told Campbell: ‘I have a copy of a script here and I think you will be wonderful for the lead role. I wonder if you would read it,' " said Kidd. "To my shock, he said ‘Yes.' I thought maybe he's trying to get rid of me."

But three weeks later, Kidd picked up his cell phone while shaving. "Hey, it's Campbell," said a voice. He didn't recognize the name. "It took me 20 seconds to realize that it was Campbell Scott. I said, ‘Oh, my God! He's actually calling me back!' "

Scott told him he liked the story, in which lead character Roger conspires to help his teenage nephew lose his virginity.

He also helped Kidd enlist Rossellini and Jennifer Beals - which netted the budding director $1.5 million from investors.

The movie, which won the top award at the Tribeca Film Festival, has been sold to Artisan for an undisclosed amount.

"It's like a Cinderella story," said Kidd.

David Goyer, a 35-year-old writer, was a hot property after selling the script to "Death Warrant" (with Jean Claude Van Damme) at 22. He also wrote adaptations for "Blade," "Blade II" and "Dark City."

Even so, Goyer got little interest when he proposed directing his own film, "ZigZag," a story of a troubled black kid redeemed by a social worker based on Landon Napoleon's novel of the same title.

"No one wanted to finance it," said Goyer. "They liked the script, but they said it was a difficult film. Some people offered to make the movie if I were to make the kid white."

So how did "ZigZag," which stars Snipes and John Leguizamo and opens Friday, go from nowhere to the big screen?

Goyer credits his acquaintance with Snipes, who starred in "Blade." "Because ‘Blade' was successful, I think he felt that he would return the favor in a way," said the director.

When Snipes came on board, that was enough to try again with investors - and to rope in Leguizamo. "I didn't know John at all," said Goyer. "I just begged and begged to meet him."

Leguizamo liked the script, but was not so crazy about a three-month commitment with a novice director. "John would have to turn down potential big checks if he accepted the part," said Goyer.

To prep for his pitch, Goyer watched all of Leguizamo's movies.

"I think I impressed him that I did my homework," said Goyer, who landed Leguizamo, then added Oliver Platt and Natasha Lyonne, plus $2.8 million of venture capital.

French director Dominique Forma, 38, and British director Peter Care, 45, did have one advantage as they pursued money for their movies: They both knew Hollywood.

Care, who directed music videos for Bruce Springsteen and R.E.M., vowed to tackle the big screen after falling for the book "The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys."

Tipped off that Jodie Foster was looking for a teen project, he and a producer friend, Jay Shapiro, brought the movie to Foster's Egg Pictures.

Their instincts were spot on.

Foster, who told The Post she's "met a lot of first-time directors," warmed up to the story of a small-town adolescent romance in the 1970s - so much so that she not only agreed to help find the financing, she also wanted to co-star.

"We never thought in a million years that she'd be in it," said Care. "People were wary of the story because it involves incest, death and the mocking of authority. It's a teen movie but serious."

Why did Foster agree to back Care?

"His work is very raw, truthful and personal," she said.

Forma's story of how he nailed Jeff Bridges for "Scenes of the Crime" also seemed out of a fairy tale.

Forma, a French musician who moved to L.A. in 1995 to try his hand at directing, befriended fellow countryman Mark Frydman, who had produced "The Contender," starring Jeff Bridges and Joan Allen.

Forma had a script, "Scenes," which he sent to Frydman, who liked it and sent it to Bridges. When he got word that the actor wanted to meet, Forma flew from Paris to L.A. and cemented his participation.

The star and the plot, about a crooked businessman who turns the tables on his kidnapper, attracted a German company, which put up $5 million for the film.

"It wasn't as easy as it sounded," said Forma. "I spent two years working on the script and gambled everything I had on it."

By JOSLYN YANG DIRECT ROUTE UP Attracting celebrities "wasn't as easy as it sounded," says former musician Dominique Forma (above, directing "Scenes of the Crime").

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