COURAGE AND TENACITY
By Nick Smith
When I first approached editor David Triana and offered to write for Conexion, I set out to highlight all the hard work that goes into local filmmaking and celebrate some of the hardest working people in our regional showbiz.
Over the past few years, I’ve been able to describe the movie world from the perspective of directors, producers, camera operators, actors and screenwriters. But I’ve only scratched the surface of what goes on in our film community, which continues to expand as its members educate themselves and gain more experience.
I checked in with some gifted past interviewees and they’re as industrious as ever, telling entertaining stories on stage, online and on the big screen. The main takeaways have been the importance of industriousness, family support, and the fact that no one is born a film prodigy with a camera in their baby hands – the skills have to be earned and learned.
Nicole Dickson, who I wrote about back in May 2022, has been busy with her Improbable Cause Mystery Theatre (ICMT), Gulf Coast shows and a new film project! ‘It’s an upcoming docu-comedy series,’ she says, ‘centered around a trailer park in Northwest Florida. The HOA attempts to solve the problems of the park (and the people) as they try to live together as a community.’
The film is written and directed by Renee Luke Jordan, who also directed monster comedy The Skunk Ape, a short Florida-made film that’s still stomping around the festival circuit. It was recently selected for the 15 Minutes of Fame Film Festival in Cocoa Beach and the 8 & Half international film festival in Rome, Italy. ‘We were selected for 10 festivals,’ Renee says. ‘We won Best Practical Effects and an Honorable Mention.’ The latter was for the Panama City (FL) Independent Film Festival.
One of the actors involved with ICMT and The Skunk Ape is Marianne del Gallego, who was profiled in the June 2021 issue of Conexion. She’s been busy with the live shows, which according to her, ‘are a very different experience, especially with murder mysteries. There’s a whole lot of audience interaction and you get to give just as much as you receive from them. You feed off of each other’s energy. That connection with your audience is something you don’t get to experience on film.’
Not all actors can make the leap from theatre to film and back again. Del Gallego does it with seeming ease; she is a joy to watch on stage and screen. She is one of many excellent actors here, all devoted to their craft and well worth watching.
Behind the scenes, instructor William Legarret – featured in September 2022 – has been busy training on Cinema 4D and making a sandwich. That’s the animated, inedible kind. ‘Producing any level of animation or motion graphics, whether rookie or pro, takes courage and tenacity,’ he says. ‘Courage to fail and tenacity to grow. This is why I love animating.’
In July 2022 I followed the incredible journey of Louis Chaix, who rollerbladed across the States to raise awareness for Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis, the life-threatening skin disorder he suffered from as a child. Now he’s scooted over to Sweden, where he is playing professional hockey for Sollefteå. ‘If you can’t find a way, create one,’ he says. ‘The path to success isn’t always clear, it’s often complex and full of obstacles… You can accomplish anything you set your mind to, just create the way.’
What can we do with all these positive comments? As I’ve pointed out on a couple of occasions, you don’t have to be in the industry to learn from these filmmakers and succeed in business, a creative endeavor or both combined. Whatever you want to achieve, determination and a willingness to ask for help are essential.
Thank you to everyone who has been featured in these articles, to David Triana for his editing skills, John Gorman of Woodpecker Designs for his eye-catching layouts, to my girlfriend Dana for her patience and support, and to you for reading my articles. Now you know how much work goes into making movies, I hope you enjoy them more than ever.