How did you get inspired to become a filmmaker?
I was inspired by all of the great directors and story tellers from the classical movies to the new generation and all in between. I was originally just inspired in general to storytelling for my love of reading which created a sandbox in my mind to visualize my own character looks and the way the worlds looked and that was by the novels of Mr. Stephen King.
What is your favorite part about the short film form?
Short films have escalated in to something much more then they ever have been and that’s my favorite part about them. Telling a short story in half or less the time a feature film would is great for the attention span of the new generation but I personally love it for two reasons: It’s an open market to advertise our work to enter into huge festivals and meet the right connections and the other part is that it’s a lot more possible to tell a short story without the million dollar budgets of a feature.
Who were the people that supported the making of this film?
Friends, family, coworkers and anybody I meet can tell you that I have the love for filmmaking because it’s one of my key subjects to talk about so naturally I get support from most of my acquaintances. Family of course was the biggest support for this short film for following our dreams and re-locating to Southern California to work on these types of projects as long as we can breathe.
What resources do you use as a filmmaker? Music, locations, props, editing, crew, etc.
Film is an art-form, full of different aesthetics and opinions to create the vision on one’s mind come to life and that requires all mediums of the art world. Music helps drive the emotions, tensions, feelings someone gets from a movie whether it be the climactic scene of the film or a subtle score to just know the character better, it’s really my number one aspect of telling a story and that goes for lack of music as well depending on the genre or passing. You need all resources from the right locations, props, editing, cinematography, all departments down to the production assistants running notes back and forth. The film alone can be wonderful but in the end the creating and the help of every aspect is all a systematic art-form in itself.
What is your next project?
The next short film we are working on is titled, Gone. Gone is an alien abduction film based on an Indiana farming plantation and revolves around a boy who is abducted from inside the barn outside of the farm-house one fall night. This leaves the older brother and father to go on a search for answers and to see how far one would go to bring the ones they love back, even if that means going to another part of the universe. [The genre will be Sci-Fi – Thriller] So please on July 5th when Voting opens up for the Pre-Production category of the filmmaking contest, check out our teaser trailer and help make this project come to life!
The independent film business is a difficult one. What keeps you motivated? Where do you see the industry going in the future?
New directors and filmmakers are being noticed every single year from festivals and their work on the internet. I work in the television industry in Los Angeles, CA which helps motivate me everyday being surrounded by so many people who talk, shop, and create films. The industry is only headed up as far as I can see from a marketing aspect. The world is in a rut of reboots but this is actually helping the industry make tons of money and their are a few original films they will sneak in every year. I predict the future of movies to stay true to the art of storytelling but only get technologically more advanced every year.
Which filmmakers, artists or individuals have most influenced your work?
There are so many greats in the world that it is very hard to narrow down who influenced my love for film the most. If I had to say, it would be first and foremost John Carpenter followed by Spielberg, Zemeckis, Scorecese and John Hughes. These directors have a way of showing their visions and motivated their stories without telling you through dialogue and cheap editing tricks. John Carpenter has been my biggest for the love I have in the horror genre and how I just think they havn’t really grasped that fear of storytelling since the 1980’s classics which were always my favorite for using real prosthetics and storytelling instead of all CGI and “jump-scares.”
What advice would you give new filmmakers?
The best advice I could give a filmmaker is follow your heart. If your heart is always burning to tell stories then consistently find a way to use that craft and put out some form of art into this world. Not only is it such a strong passion and hard work but it can be very healthy and fun at the same time. Otherwise MAKE CONTACTS is the number one thing to remember! Meet everybody and anybody and learn to be comfortable with being uncomfortable.
Also in the scheme of trying to get your dreams come to fruition I always remember my favorite quote from a novel called “Way of the peaceful Warrior” and that is, “The journey is what brings us happiness not the destination.” Really try to live by that and amongst all the stress you can find a peaceful sanctum.
Watch and vote for SPECTRUM.
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This pitch is competing in the REELPITCH Challenge, Remember you can vote once a day for the duration of the contest for as many pitches as you deem worthy!
VOTING OPENS
Aug 09, 2016 at 9:00am MDT (America/Denver)
VOTING CLOSES
Aug 18, 2016 at 9:00pm MDT (America/Denver)
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