Pushing The Envelope Without Emptying Your Wallet

A couple of film-makers and I were talking the other night, about making movies, financing movies, and the challenge of reeeallly wanting to make something, but feeling like a full-length project might be out-of-reach because of the budget required to make anything.

This got me thinking...both philosophically, about the merits of Cheap Art (I hate feeling like my friends -- and I -- are locked out of making something because we can't get to money), but also much more PRACTICALLY.

My question:
How do you create a beautiful movie on a non-existent budget?
How do you "push the envelope" without emptying your wallet?

A few initial ideas (and PLEASE, more welcome!):

(1) Start by reading Fast, Cheap and Under Control by John Gaspard (which I still need to get my hands on).
(2) Invest in Story -- write a story so compelling that it doesn't need "bells and whistles" in order to captivate audiences.
(3) Push the technical envelope -- Think of Hitchcock's Rope, which was contained to one room...and one long shot (or at least, so it appeared).
(4) Push the envelope in terms of what your movie is willing to discuss.
(5) Use limited locations to your advantage -- create a story where claustrophobia is one of your themes, or the claustrophobia works to your story-telling advantage.
(6) Shoot in a place that is remote and beautiful -- so that the natural scenery can do some of your heavy lifting in terms of keeping things visually interesting.
(7) Create characters compelling enough that actors will kill each other to get to play them -- or at least work for next to nothing.  Consider that less-established actors are usually willing to work for less, but that you want to write roles that can be played by people who are experienced (i.e., it's harder to find a terrific 11-year-old than a terrific 22-year-old).  I mean, you should do this anyway, no matter what your budget...
(8) Really spend time thinking about what will make this project different and compelling.  If you're reaching into your own pocket to fund the thing, you can't just make a "good, solid" movie.  The world is full of expensive, good, solid movies.  Figure out how you're going to work on every level to create something new, something that will challenge you, challenge your collaborators, and challenge your audience (artistically, intellectually, morally...).