Hip Hop Ninny Shoe Satisfaction (2004)

I have only a handful of movies in my filmography that I'd actually categorize as stereotypical film school flicks. These are movies that are overly artsy, ambiguous, reference suicide or death, and every film student makes one at some point. They're experiments. That said, Hip Hop Ninny Shoe Satisfaction is actually quite an innocent and playful short in the guise of something far more pretentious.

The project was a joint undertaking with my friend Jennifer Eisler in the winter semester of 2004. We were both taking Film 202, which was a second year core production class focused on experimental film. This project specifically was an exercise in shooting with several types of 16mm film using the Bolex camera. Subsequently, my short Keys to Existence was my final project in this class.

Our original concept involved comparing and contrasting various parts of the body with similar machines and their functions. It seemed like a good idea when we wrote our proposal, but come the day of the shoot we were both feeling pretty uninspired. After a lengthy and cold Regina winter we were finally starting to see the effects of spring roll in so we decided to go for a walk instead.

Jen was wearing her classy 'old lady Eisler shoes' and that mixed with the melting snow, mud, sunshine, and project deadline had us going on a spontaneous whim. I started shooting Jen walking through the park, through puddles and on the playground equipment. It was honestly a big risk on our part, not only being concerned about our exposures with the film, but switching up our concept so suddenly. All I really remember about it now though, is that we both seemed to have a lot of fun that afternoon, which for me ended with a home cooked meal with the Eisler family - a big bonus after all the canned food I'd been eating in the dorms.

When all was said and done, I can't really remember the screening in class, but it's likely because our final projects would've also been in the works at that time. What does stick with me is the process of how this production unfolded, and the memories created from the stress and excitment of essentially winging it.

To me the title explains it all. Hip - as in artsy. Hop - quite literally jumping around. Ninny - foolish. Shoe - the subject. Satisfaction - the feeling after getting it done. Hip Hop Ninny Shoe Satisfaction, it just rolls off the tongue.

I can't expect everyone to respond to this short the way Jen and I would, but for us, I think this stands out as one of our classic film school experiments. And for that, it's hard not to be nostalgic.

Hip Hop Ninny Shoe Satisfaction (2004)
Directed by Luke Fandrich & Jennifer Eisler

Chico Bandito: Episode 4

This latest episode was filmed over the Christmas holidays, and is my first brand new short to debut in 2009. The Chico Bandito series can now be seen in HD directly on my YouTube account, which offers an excellent viewing experience, however, it's still nice to see things unfold here on the blog.

Episode 4 has been the most time consuming of the series to produce, and I expect that trend to continue with the episodes to come. Not only are the schemes getting bigger, but I'm trying new things each time and also trying to work my way along to the big conclusion. Like I've mentioned previously, this is all an exercise in editing, staging and movement as there's no dialogue to explain things throughout. It makes Chico's escape all the more universal. Plus, it's simple, clean and I like the structure of making serials as the concept is already there.

I can't say what's going to come next exactly, but it's sure to be good. In the meantime, enjoy the fourth installment of Chico Bandito!

Film School Lesson: Creating Options

I think one of the best lessons any young filmmaker can learn is to search out as many outlets as possible to share, discuss, and promote your work. When I graduated high school in 2002 YouTube wasn't even an option yet, and that's just one outlet that's made it considerably easier to get yourself noticed - and cheaper than film school.

When considering film school you have to weigh your financial situation, etc. to see if going is even feasible. While I'm not entirely convinced that the financial obligation is worth it, what film school does provide is a tremendous opportunity to network, gauge the level of your skill, and the time to experiment and improve. All of this provides you with more options as a filmmaker. Allow me to expand on this:

Networking

Whether it's with your classmates, your profs, the girl you met in Art History, or the friends you made at the campus pub, university lends itself to meeting new people on a daily basis. This is valuable for numerous reasons. The more people you have in your court, the more people you have to support you. You never know when you'll need someone to act in one of your shorts, someone to hold the camera, someone to vote for your movie in a contest, someone to tell you about the contest in the first place, someone to refer you for a job or get you hired themselves. Just like a spider spinning a web, the larger your network the more likely you are to catch opportunity. You have to work at this! People aren't just going to approach you, and you need to teach yourself how to take advantage of Facebook, Myspace, YouTube, etc. not just as a way to waste time, but as a way to build a following. The internet is the cheapest and most global outlet for reaching a lot of people with your ideas quickly.

On the surface I know all this sounds like a no-brainer, but of all the people I've met through film school and various student festivals, so few people actually take the time to do this. Start as soon as possible. The time and work it's taken for my blog and other online accounts to grow to the point of actually being able to significantly help me took months. But, the work does pay off if you're dedicated. This blog itself helped me campaign for votes in early 2008 and helped me win $3500 in an online video contest, as well, when I mentioned it in my job interview with Stream Media in May 2008 it immediately helped me make a strong first impression. I think you get the point.

Gauge Your Skill Level

All first year film students think that they're 'the shit'. We all start off this way because we're young and we've grown up having all our friends and family tell us that we're the next Spielberg because of that one video we made in 8th grade. Don't get me wrong, it's great having people cheer you on, but at some point you have to step up to the plate and ask yourself if working in film is a career choice or just a hobby.

As much as I've been impressed and inspired by my peers time and time again, I've also been incredibly embarrassed by some of the lazy work that I've had to screen my projects with in production classes. While no one is without their occasional flops, having film classes that allow you to talk about and receive feedback on your work allows you to see where you fit in the spectrum of things. It's where I was able to pinpoint my love for editing, and build confidence by giving and receiving critical comments. Just knowing that I'd have to defend the choices I made with my videos in class motivated me to work harder and produce the highest quality of project that I could. The exposure to lots of student films allowed me to see that all the work I had been doing helped put me above the curve.

Time to Experiment

To each their own, but for me, film school allowed me the time to experiment with various types of equipment, software, genres and styles. Had I gone from high school straight into the workforce I wouldn't have had the time to produce the number of short films that I did so quickly. I was able to learn techniques and tricks by being challenged by other peoples standards, and because of that, was able to refine my own style and develop a portfolio of work that represented the variety I was capable of. Practise is the only sure fire way to improve, and often without someone pushing us we don't feel the need to be quite as productive - and certainly in such a short period of time. 

Remember that in film, as in any art, you're competing against the person who may not necessarily have the best work, but instead against the person who is able to best sell it. Keeping an open mind, pushing yourself to grow in as many creative directions as possible, and learning to promote yourself will give you plenty of options when opportunity comes knocking.