Uncategorized

0

Meet the Filmmaker: Paul Jensen, “IRA”

Posted on by efpdenver

Q: Why did you become a filmmaker?

A: From an early age, I remember having an interest in film/moving images. At that time, I think much of that interest was expressed in a consumption of film and digital media. I’m also a skateboarder, which is a culture heavily influenced by visual language.

I find the more I research, learn and participate in visual culture, the more I find, develop, and deepen my own understanding of my voice as both an artist and filmmaker. As I continue to grow and learn, I find I discover that voice more and more, a process that is ever-changing.

Q: What are we going to see at the EFP? Has it screened elsewhere and what are your plans for it?

A: At this edition of EFP you will be seeing “IRA,” my first short film and a project I spent the past five years working on. Produced independently by myself and a number of former students, the film is a testament to the life of Ira Sanders, a high school economics teacher in the Twin-Cities area who has bravely and selflessly shared his story with students for years.

The film had its world premiere in NYC last fall and has been screening exclusively at film festivals/theatrical exhibitions since earlier this spring. This includes screenings in Los Angeles, Chicago, Austin, Portland, San Francisco, Minneapolis, Toronto, England, South Korea and more!

After a considerable festival/tour run, the film is preparing for a VOD launch this fall. The film also had an awards qualifying run at the Music Box Theater in Chicago in late July. I have a deep commitment and belief in the film and its story, so I plan to challenge myself and push for a Documentary Short Subject nomination at this year’s Academy Awards.

Q: What else are you working on?

A: While handling promotion and production of the film has proven consuming enough on top of my regular work, I have yet to commit to my next project. I’ve been approached with some ideas, in addition to a handful of my own curiosities, but am still waiting for the right project. I believe good things take time and patience.

Since completing the film, I’ve been enjoying my job as an editor in Los Angeles, working on promotional film campaigns for a number of Hollywood studios in addition to an upcoming docu-series produced by Netflix.

Q: Tell us one weird thing about you and/or your movies?

A: One weird thing about me is that I am endlessly committed to my art.

Q: Where can people go to find out more about you and your work?

Instagram: @have.a.gr8.day

Portfolio: cargocollective.com/PaulJensen

Q: Is there anything you’d like to say about The Emerging Filmmakers Project?

A: I’d like to extend my deepest gratitudes to the The Bug Theatre and The Emerging Filmmakers Project, not just for showing my film but for a dedication to their platform for emerging and independent filmmakers alike.

IRA will screen during The Emerging Filmmakers Project on Thursday, September 15th, 2022 at The Bug Theatre.

0

Meet the Filmmaker: Benjamin Hunter, “True North”

Posted on by efpdenver

EFP: Why did you become a filmmaker?

BH: To tell great stories and to connect with people on life events that we can all relate to.  Movies are so engrained in our view of the world and its a great way to bring light to a life skill or experience that someone had.  The second answer is Star Wars got me interested in how to make my own special effects and led me to make my first film.  The rest as they say is history.


EFP: What are we going to see at the EFP? Has it screened elsewhere and what are your plans for it?

BH: True North is a Boy Scout Short film about a young man who is very sure of himself, until he gives away his compass, his map, his water pump and gets lost on a backpacking trip.  Its also a father and son relationship story and how to navigate being adopted and losing a parent.
The film has played at a local premiere back in March of this year and for a special screening at my boy scout troop.  I have submitted it to several festivals here in Colorado and a few abroad.  My plan is to have this available for rental and purchase on my website and to continue showing it to local boy scout troops to talk about the buddy system and getting lost in the mountains.  The moral of the story is tell someone where you are going and when you should be back, so they know when to call for help if you don’t come back in time.

EFP: What else are you working on?

BH: We just received the greenlight to make a documentary about the Yachats Music Festival in Oregon next year.  I will be the Producer on the project and my good friend Jake, who produced True North will be Directing.  That project should be finished by this time next year.
I am also finishing shooting and editing a documentary on Cerebral Palsy, featuring my youngest brother Joshua Hunter.  He lived with Cerebral Palsy his whole life and enjoyed life in spite of the disability, but sadly passed away in 2018.  The film is meant to be an uplifiting message to anyone with a disability, to show them there is hope and you can still live a great life.  Life Matters should be finished by next summer and hopefully will be playing on PBS shortly after that.


EFP: Tell us one weird thing about you and/or your movies?

BH: Up to this point, all of my main characters have been in High School or College.  It might be time to have them “Graduate” and start telling stories about adult characters and their lives after school.


EFP: Where can people go to find out more about you and your work?

BH: They can visit my website here: https://www.33yearsproductions.com/ True North andLife Matters both have a page on the site with more information on the films.


EFP: Is there anything you’d like to say about The Emerging Filmmakers Project?

BH: Its great to be able to show a piece of my work to a group of filmmakers trying to get off the ground just like me.  Denver is full of great indie filmmakers, you just have to look in the right places for them.  Emerging Filmmakers Project is a great way to get feedback on a film and the share it with others in the Denver Area.  Keep up the good work!

True North will screen during The Emerging Filmmakers Project on Thursday, September 15th, 2022 at The Bug Theatre.

0

Meet the Filmmaker: Tyler Holme, “Stockholm Sweet Home”

Posted on by efpdenver

EFP: Why did you become a filmmaker?

TH: After I saw all 3 original live-action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movies at a young age, I knew what I had to become.

EFP: What are we going to see at the EFP? Has it screened elsewhere and what are your plans for it?

TH: Stockholm Sweet Home is a dark comedy about a young woman who gets kidnapped and locked away in a nondescript warehouse with a bickering couple. She then quickly realizes her captor may be the least of her worries. The actors and I wrote, produced, and shot the whole thing in a week as part of a week-long film camp at MbM studios in Chicago a few years back. The film had a nice little festival run. It screened at film festivals in Chicago, Portland, Nashville, Milwaukee, and elsewhere. We even got nominated for a few awards along the way, which was really nice.

EFP: What else are you working on?

TH: I recently wrote a humorous satire book lampooning health & lifestyle culture and social media influencers called, Beet Life. You can check it out, and buy a copy for your friends, family, and mortal enemies here: https://booksbybeetsbybeth.com/

EFP: Tell us one weird thing about you and/or your movies?

TH: A fun fact about this movie is that we shot the whole thing in one day for the price of an extra-large pizza from the pizza place down the street. It was probably the most expensive film I ever worked on up to that point.

EFP: Where can people go to find out more about you and your work?

TH: You can check out more of my work on my website: https://www.tylerholme.com/

EFP: Is there anything you’d like to say about The Emerging Filmmakers Project?

TH:I would just like to thank EFP for screening our weird little movie, and I can’t wait to check out all the other great films from local Colorado talent!

Stockholm Sweet Home will screen during The Emerging Filmmakers Project on Thursday, February 17th, 2021 at The Bug Theatre.

0

Meet the Filmmaker: Bill Johnson, “Pickup Man”

Posted on by efpdenver
Q: Why did you become a filmmaker?
BJ: I have been a landscape photographer since I was a teenager with most of my work using a large format camera.  When it became difficult to travel with film after 911, I switched to digital cameras and discovered video.  Video allows me to do stories about people in the landscape and I learn about different ways of life.  I find video is much more complex than photography and gives me greater creative opportunities.  

Q: What are we going to see at the EFP? Has it screened elsewhere and what are your plans for it?

BJ: Pickup Man is a four year effort that brought me to Colorado from Los Angeles.  It is a story about a family that has ranched on the Plains of Colorado for over a hundred years and is facing a historic drought.   I lived with them for months at a time in all seasons of the year.  Rodeo is an integral part of their lives, and I followed the protagonist, Jessica Mosher, as she competed throughout Colorado, Wyoming, and Texas.  Pickup Man premiered at Blissfest in 2017 where it was voted the Best Documentary, and it is a semi-finalist in the documentary category and will be shown in the Utah Film Festival on April 6.  There is a longer Director’s cut version of the movie that I also offer to festivals through Film Freeway.

Q: What else are you working on?

BJ: I grew up in Hawaii and visit every year.  That has resulted in Night Fishermen, a story about those who go out at night to stand on a cliff by the edge of the sea.  It is from the perspective of three life long fishermen as they each face aging.  It will premier at this year’s Colorado Short Circuit Film Festival on March 29 and 30th.
I have co-produced a fashion show at Denver Open Media for the past three years and completed over three dozen profiles on designers and others in the fashion industry here in Denver.  I have also started doing stories about dancers and musicians that I post on Vimeo.  I find that in doing documentary stories, background video to illustrate interviews is essential.  I need access to people’s daily lives and sometimes that takes time or doesn’t happen.  I often have to wait for the action to come to me, so I work on many stories at a time.

Q: Tell us one weird thing about you and/or your movies?

BJ: I am fascinated by the combination of sound and images into movies.  When I am wearing a headset and listening to the environment around me, I can hear so much better than in real life.  It has become a vicarious thrill to do sound.

Q: Where can people go to find out more about you and your work?

BJ: I recently completed a new web site, billjohnsonstories.com, and people can see the best of my past work as well as recent efforts.

Q: Is there anything you’d like to say about The Emerging Filmmakers Project?

BJ: I am thankful that The Emerging Filmmakers Project is here.  It gives me a forum to share my work and learn from the work of others as well as meet the moviemaking community of Colorado.

Pickup Man will screen at The Emerging Filmmakers Project on Thursday, March 21st at The Bug Theatre.

0

Meet the Filmmaker: Don Markus, “Trevor & Janelle”

Posted on by efpdenver

Q: Why did you become a filmmaker?

Markus: As an actor and improviser in Chicago, it was a natural progression to get behind the camera and start creating content. For me, filmmaking is an extension of acting, and all under the umbrella of storytelling.

Q: What are we going to see at the EFP?
Markus: Has it screened elsewhere and what are your plans for it?It’s a short comedy poking fun at a Denver couple who have no idea what they’re doing in the mountains. Logline: Ill-prepared for the mountains, Trevor & Janelle realize they’ve brought the wrong map, are lost, and have dwindling food rations.

Q: What else are you working on?
Markus: Currently working on a handful of short films and pushing towards a first feature film.

Q: Tell us one weird thing about you and/or your movies?

Markus: This short was completely improvised by the fabulous Wolfgang Stein & Stephanie Jones. I had a loose outline: This is the moment you realize you’re lost. Now what? My wonderful wife Brittany Markus and I were behind the camera and Spencer Nelson ran audio. Once we got set, we essentially said to Wolf and Stephanie, “Ok, go.”  They then did what they do best! You can, and should, go see Stephaine in Barkley & Makeshift Shakespeare at https://voodoocomedy.com/ You can catch Wolf around town often at Voodoo as well.

Q: Where can people go to find out more about you and your work?https://www.joywreck.com
https://www.instagram.com/joywreck/
https://twitter.com/JOYWRECK
https://www.facebook.com/JOYWRECK/
https://vimeo.com/joywreck
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5KwogcO__gBK2b5fAm_PTg

Q: Is there anything you’d like to say about The Emerging Filmmakers Project?
Markus: Thank you so much for having us. It is great to have a place like The Emerging Filmmakers Project for us filmmakers to show our work.

0

Meet the Filmmaker: Carter Dodd, “Miscommunication”

Posted on by efpdenver

Q: Why did you become a filmmaker?

Dodd: I became a filmmaker because I realized I had all of these wonderful stories banging around in my head and only one way to tell them.

Q: What are we going to see at the EFP? Has it screened elsewhere and what are your plans for it?

Dodd: You are going to see my first dialogue written film “Miscommunication.” It has not been screened anywhere else except for the classrooms located at the Colorado Film School. I plan to submit it to as many short film festivals as I can.

Q: What else are you working on?

Dodd: I am currently working on the script to chapter 2 of “Miscommunication.” Production should begin sometime this summer.

Q: Tell us one weird thing about you and/or your movies?

Dodd: I became an actor by accident. In high school, I remember signing up for classes one day and accidentally took a film class because I thought that it had to do with radio broadcasting. Everything else is history!

Q: Where can people go to find out more about you and your work?

Dodd: If people want to find out more about more about me or my future work, they can follow me on Instagram @amongallthieves or by checking out my youtube channel by just typing my full name “Carter Dodd.”

Q: Is there anything you’d like to say about The Emerging Filmmakers Project?

Dodd: I’d like to thank EFP for this wonderful opportunity. I feel incredibly honored to have my film chosen by them. I think it’s a great organization that really cares about up and coming filmmakers.

Miscommunication will screen at The Emerging Filmmakers Project on Thursday, March 21st at The Bug Theatre.

0

Meet the Filmmaker: Ryan Frazee, “Redlands – Losing My Mind (Official Music Video)”

Posted on by efpdenver

Q: Why did you become a filmmaker?
Frazee: I’ve always enjoyed capturing moments and telling the stories that surround them. Since then, I couldn’t get enough of telling stories in the most interesting way possible. 

Q: What are we going to see at the EFP? Has it screened elsewhere and what are your plans for it?
Frazee: This is a music video that I created for a band called Redlands. It’s about a man finds himself wrapped up in the dizzying spell of a seductress unsure of what is reality and what is a dream. 

Q: What else are you working on?
Frazee: Lots of music videos and other music-related projects! Day to day I direct and edit corporate and commercial projects.

Q: Tell us one weird thing about you and/or your movies?
Frazee: I tend to care more about the sound in my films than I do the visuals. I come from a music background and have spent a lot of time with musicians in studios filming videos for them and seeing them add tiny little elements to songs that really make a song “pop”, made me want to start adding that to my films! Since then I find myself spending a lot of time adding layers of sound in moments that it fits.

Q: Where can people go to find out more about you and your work?
Frazee: You can follow my Instagram @rfrazee or see all of my film and photo work at ryanfrazee.net

Q: Is there anything you’d like to say about The Emerging Filmmakers Project?
Frazee: I’m excited to get involved in the film making community that you’ve created and love that Denver has the Emerging Filmmakers Project to look out for and support independent filmmakers!

Redlands – Losing My Mind (Official Music Video) will screen at The Emerging Filmmakers Project on Thursday, March 21st at The Bug Theatre.

0

Meet the Filmmakers: Jamey Hastings & Travis Duncan, “Waiting on the Space Poets”

Posted on by efpdenver

Q: Why did you become a filmmaker?
TD: Film involves so many creative disciplines. There’s no other form quite like it.
JH: I wanted to tell stories, and I think film is one of the best ways to do that.

Q: What are we going to see at EFPalooza? Has it screened elsewhere and what are your plans for it?
T&J: Waiting on the Space Poets was created as part of a technology themed art exhibit in Oct. 2017 at Pikes Peak Library District. It actually won 2nd place in the competition, which was sweet. So far that’s the only place it has screened. We’re sending it to experimental fests and exhibits and perhaps some sci-fi type fests/conventions.

Q: What else are you working on?
T&J: What aren’t we working on? We are wrapping up post production on a creepy film called I Am Awakened, which Travis wrote. Jamey is editing a feature-length documentary we filmed last summer about Dragon Theatre Productions, a community-inclusive theatre group in Colorado Springs. We are also in the research phase of a short historical-fiction/bio-pic set around, or exactly in, 1905. Oh, and we also just wrapped post on a mini-documentary about the Rocky Mountain Flyathlon, so hopefully you’ll see that one soon.

Q: Tell us one weird thing about you and/or your movies?
TD: I’m a musician and composer. I particularly enjoyed composing a piece consisting of typewriter, ukulele, flute and trombone for this film.
JH: I knew exactly where to find the satellites for this film, because many years ago I worked at the TV station where they’re located. It’s now a custom countertop store.

Q: Where can people go to find out more about you and your work?
T&J: You May Clap Productions is on Facebook and Twitter or you can check out the website: http://youmayclap.com
Oh, and also: https://vimeo.com/jameyhastings

Q: Is there anything you’d like to say about EFPalooza or The Emerging Filmmakers Project?
T&J: The Emerging Filmmakers Project is one of our favorite places to screen and meet filmmakers and actors. We’re super grateful that it exists.

Waiting on the Space Poets will screen Thursday, February 21st at 8:00 p.m. at The Bug Theatre as part of the Emerging Filmmakers Project block during the 2019 EFPalooza Film Festival.

0

Meet the Filmmaker: Henry Jarvis, “Forgive Me Father”

Posted on by Kate Lowell

“Forgive Me Father”

HeadshotQ: Why did you become a filmmaker?

HJ: I’ve wanted to be a filmmaker for as long as I can remember. The medium of film attracted me because it was one of the few art forms that can be reached by a broad audience in a fast amount of time. It is really the most convenient art form in terms of storytelling and that is something that always drew me to it.

Q: What are we going to see at the EFP? Has it screened elsewhere and what are your plans for it?

HJ: You will be seeing “Forgive Me Father” as short film I made over the course of three hours. It has been rejected from every film festival I have submitted it to thus far except EFP. My current plans are for it to be rejected from the remaining film festivals and then I can release it online finally.

Q: What else are you working on?
HJ: College! I’m currently applying to film school. So if a Film School admissions person is reading this, please accept me to your college. I’m 19 and set goals higher than I should have. Please accept me. I’m desperate.
Q: Tell us one weird thing about you and/or your movies?
HJ:  I tricked my high school into thinking that I was attending the University of Havana in Cuba. So if anyone asks, I live in Cuba.
Q: Where can people go to find out more about you and your work?
HJ: You can friend me on Facebook. You can follow me on twitter: @byronichenry. You can come and talk to me if you see me on the street. I’m a pretty open and friendly person.
Q: Is there anything you’d like to say about The Emerging Filmmakers Project?
HJ: I’m glad this outlet exists. Even if people watch my film here and hate it, I’m glad this outlet exists for those who are more talented than I am and I’m honored to be a part of it.
“Forgive Me Father” will be screening at the December 17th Emerging Filmmaker’s Project.
0

Meet the Filmmaker: Elgin Cahill, “Oleander Trailer”

Posted on by Kate Lowell

“Oleander Trailer”

www.oleandertheseries.com

946779_10151647724049510_724419593_n

Q: Why did you become a filmmaker?

EC: Ever since I was a kid I’ve been intrigued by the process of taking stories from books or scripts or even just ideas, and bringing them to life on the screen.

Q: What are we going to see at the EFP? Has it screened elsewhere and what are your plans for it?

EC: We will be screening the trailer for Oleander The Series, starring Luba Bocian.  It is an edgy, sexy, spy-thriller.  We shot this project in anamorphic widescreen, which is a task, but I think that the cinematic look and feel are totally worth it.  The first two episodes are done and are viewable on youtube.  This is the first theatrical screening of the trailer.  We are going to keep working on the series, and working to build an audience.

Q: What else are you working on?

EC: My production partner, Wendy Winterbourne, and I have several projects in the works, including an anthology series, a short film, and two documentaries.  We are also currently in the process of packaging some projects for production next year.  And we are gearing up to start production on a supernatural thriller feature film this summer (August 2015).

Q: Tell us one weird thing about you and/or your movies?

EC: I frequently write a shooting script or block a scene around a single, killer, must-have “money-shot”.  More often than not, that shot doesn’t make it into the final cut of the film.

Q: Where can people go to find out more about you and your work?

EC: www.oleandertheseries.com, www.thelakethemovie.com

Q: Is there anything you’d like to say about The Emerging Filmmakers Project?

EC: The EFP is one of the happiest places in Denver.  I always look forward to seeing great indie cinema, meeting up with old friends, and making new ones.

“Oleander Trailer” will be screening on July 16th at the Emerging Filmmaker’s Project.