I've had a peculiar relationship with Hollywood over the last couple years. It was about two years ago today that I submitted my application to USC's film school, which is funny, because prior to that I had never made a film in my life (unless you count a few stop-motion Lego epics made by 10-year-old Teddy, and a music video made by 16-year-old Teddy in a fake mustache).
You see, I had developed the idea that by studying with masters of film and television, I could learn valuable lessons about storytelling that I could then apply to my video game productions. I could study where to put the camera in a scene, how to pace a story, and a variety of other skills that film creators share with game developers. However, a year later at USC I felt the call of my first creative love, and moved to the Interactive Media Division at USC to reunite with game design.
To be fair, I was right. I came to USC's film production department and learned from some incredible professors from all roles in Hollywood. I made a few films, finally learned what a gaffer does, and had a fantastic experience. In some strange space-time paradox, I am now living both life IN film school (my department is a part of USC's School of Cinematic Arts, home also to the film production department) and life AFTER Film School (I am in the Interactive Media Division and don't make many films these days).
Fortunately for me,
Life After Film School has granted me the chance to continue to learn from my peers in the film and television industries. Not only are my fellow student hosts incredibly talented filmmakers, but just last week, I got to sit down with guest Rob Letterman, the director of
Gulliver's Travels!
In a way, he too is a man of two creative industries: He spent years working on animated features before making his live action feature debut with
Gulliver's Travels, which comes out this December. What a fantastic opportunity! I got to talk with him about the differences between creating animation and live action films, what lessons he took from one to the other, and what he plans to do next. I don't think I could have asked for a more perfect guest for me to interview on the show.
I can't wait to have my next experience on set at
Life After Film School. I may not literally be a filmmaker anymore, but I am a cinematic storyteller, and I have so much to learn from the incredible cast and crew of the show!
