I love watching movies. It’s all about suspending disbelief and seeing the world through a different pair of eyes and ears. Good films bring you to this place of discovery – sometimes beyond your experiences and perception, sometimes within you. They move you in a manner measurable by the way you relate to people, places and things soon after viewing them. Great films bring you to this place and leave you. They help shape you from the inside out; they inspire lasting change immeasurable by the way you return to these fictionalized people, places, and events time after time.
Sometimes even bad films are worth watching. They can offer hidden gems buried within their poor execution: a thoughtful concept, an interesting character, a twist on a familiar conflict; perhaps a stand-out performance or an outstanding piece of writing. Bad films often inspire me just the same as good and great films because of these gems. “What would I have done differently,” I ask myself, reaching for a pen.
I love making movies. As an actor, stepping into a role is an opportunity to be born again, with a new body, soul, mind and voice to discover and new experiences to explore with them. Acting, for me, is a series of lessons in human behavior, psychology, and philosophy; in studying others I often end up learning more about myself.
As a writer, my imagination is freed like a genie rubbed out of a lamp, fostering me to paint worlds and characters projected from my psyche. Either emotional or analytical, buried or excavated, the colors I use are my own and how I mix and set them become part of a process that frees me; at different times this process can relax me, heal me, humor me, comfort me, or provide me with a purpose to my existence.
Directing is an exercise in welding all forms of the human experience into one unified, purposeful piece. Creatively you must weave together all aspects of storytelling – character, plot, conflict, theme, etc. – so that the result is coherent, unique, and entertaining. Constructively you must call upon and collaborate with a variety of skilled talent in order to harness their creative efforts into a singular vision. All attributes necessary to yield great leaders are likewise necessary to yield great directors. It’s an honor to be at the helm of a talented team that believes in your vision and trusts your instincts; and it’s an absolute pleasure for me to be challenged as a director creatively and personally.
Then there are the other aspects of filmmaking that intrigue and delight me. Editing is the only place I know where real magic exists. Producing fuses networking and collaboration with problem solving. Lighting and art direction breathe life into settings and story. A camera operator discovers and records moments that reveal mankind at its simplest and most complex, nature at its best and worst.
For these reasons and more, filmmaking is the best way for me to communicate with and relate to the world. I look forward to sharing my films with you, and I look forward to experiencing your worlds as well.
Films
“The 10 Commandments of Chloe” (feature/narrative/2012) Producer
“For Lease” (short/narrative/2011) Co-Writer; Best Boy Grip
“Rethinking Beauty: Shortstack Delivers a Tall Order” (short/doc/2010) Producer
“Miranda” (short/narrative/2010) Co-Producer; Assistant Editor
“Uptown” (feature/narrative/2009) Producer; Director; Co-Writer
“Carter” (feature/experimental-narrative/2009) Producer
“Cookies & Cream” (feature/narrative/2008) Producer; “Dylan” (supporting)
“Phish” (short/narrative/2005) “Peter” (featured)
“Hostage Person” (short/narrative/2004) Director, Writer; “Bad Guy 1” (lead)
“Harry and Lance” (short/narrative/2004) Co-Writer
“Can’t Do It Alone” (short/narrative/2003) Producer; Director; Writer; Editor
“The Vagina Monologues: A Documentary” (short/doc/2003) Producer; Director; Editor
“La Fleure Sans Vie” (short/narrative/2003) Director; Writer; “Marc” (supporting)
