Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: People are sick of trailers. Like, people are, because they give too much away. And it's like, is that because it's a failed trailer? Like, maybe not. Maybe it's because it's a failed movie. Like, again, like, I think that movie trailers do exactly what the. What a film has failed to do. You know, like, screenwriter had this idea, filmmaker had this idea, this is what the movie is. And then they had to make it, and then they had to edit it. It became not what they imagined. And so as a result, the best chance of getting that back is the movie trailer. And that's why, in my opinion, it is the most pure form of the movie itself, where it's like, yeah, after I watch a three minute long movie trailer for, you know, a superhero movie or a blockbuster or whatever, I don't need to see the movie. But I never needed to see the movie. But I always needed to see the trailer, you know.
[00:00:52] Speaker B: Welcome to the 5050 podcast, where we've made it our mission to nurture and empower the next generation of industry talent. Through this podcast, we expand the reach of the 5050 film festival by giving an exclusive peek behind the curtain into the creative and business sides of the entertainment industry. We sit down with folks from all corners of the biz garnering educational insight into process production and execution.
[00:01:19] Speaker A: In a world deprived of informative podcast.
[00:01:23] Speaker B: Episodes, one man steps up to the plate to fill the void.
[00:01:28] Speaker A: Ladies and gentlemen, it's Andrew Gerstenblatt.
But, you know, it would be nice to get back into it because when I was in high school, like, I did, like, plays and theater and stuff, and that was fun.
[00:01:50] Speaker C: Did you. I didn't. I didn't know that.
[00:01:51] Speaker A: Were you acting?
Yeah, like. Like, I loved it in school, in high school, and I'm not. I wasn't much of a singer and so I didn't do, like, the musical so much, but the plays I was always in with my friends and I did do the musicals in like, smaller roles or like tech. But the. Yeah, I loved theater and like, when I was. I played Sherlock Holmes at one point. I played Wadsworth and Clue, which was so, like, the guy, like Curry plays him in the movie is so good. So that was like, really fun. And I miss the feeling of, like, being on stage. So, like, maybe one day I'll.
[00:02:30] Speaker B: Is it the best being on stage? Have you ever thought of. I know. I assume you still collaborate with Arthur these days. Have you ever thought of just jumping into a sketch?
[00:02:40] Speaker A: Yeah, maybe, you know, maybe one day. Arthur does a lot of Sketch comedy, but like low key. Like Arthur and I, like, what if we just like put on a play and like, just did it.
[00:02:51] Speaker B: I'll be first to see that.
[00:02:52] Speaker A: But I think, I think it's like, you know, we were in each other's movies like in film school and like very early on too, when we had to like Covid years, like make movies in our apartment only and with ourselves.
Like we would act and everything.
So that was really fun. And like, getting to do that again, I'm sure would be awesome.
[00:03:13] Speaker C: Can you talk a bit about that roommate situation in, in school?
Because it, it really is like, like.
[00:03:21] Speaker B: Any drama that happened throughout it.
[00:03:23] Speaker C: No, but, but you, you hear about it right from like the Seth Rogens or like, yeah, those types of groups and it's always like, yeah, like make stuff with your roommates and like, you guys are a rare case of like the roommates that like actually did the thing and like still do the thing.
[00:03:37] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah, that's true. We got really lucky. And it is a really interesting story for sure actually because, like, I moved to LA on January 6, 2021.
[00:03:48] Speaker B: Perfect timing.
[00:03:48] Speaker A: Yeah, perfect timing. Yeah, it was.
[00:03:50] Speaker B: At least you have a place in time.
[00:03:53] Speaker A: Yeah, that's what everybody says. I have an alibi.
No, but it was like so scary. I didn't know what was going on.
[00:04:00] Speaker B: Like, truly, oh my God, what the.
[00:04:02] Speaker A: Heck was happening in the government? And it was like on the TVs in the airport, my mom is like, I don't think we can get on this airplane right now. And I was like, I'm going to usc.
Coming with me or not.
Like, it was a total. And like everybody was having a little bit of like visa problems, I think I remember Cavan in particular had some issues and we just didn't know if they were going to be let into the country and. But it was all smooth and it was all fine. And we all lived together in an off campus apartment, four of us guys, and we're all still connected. Arthur and I obviously are living together now. Calvin's in New York, Angelo's still here in la.
And you know, it was a really crazy experience.
Like, like surreal. Like just film school. But it was great. It was like we had this like, just us four guys, like literally making four movies a week, week after week, three or four, you know, whatever. All different genres, all different.
This was like for our first film production class, you know, in that spring semester. And so that's how it really started. And we just kept writing and collaborating from there and Arthur and I found we shared a lot of similar sensibilities in terms of the genres and inspiration that we liked, which ended up, like, developing a partnership between us. And we've since made bigger movies and sketches and different things, projects across the board, you know, festivals and all that whole thing.
And that's just where it started, is just being in that environment which was like, totally surreal, fun and scary and weird at the same time. And obviously, as film school progressed and Covid sort of vanished and came back and whatever it, you know, the circle expanded and we met new people and we developed new collaborators and. And we were put into, you know, school, assigned projects with different people who we still work with today, you know, so, like, the people you meet in film school are going to be the people that you work with forever, you know, it's. It's very true.
[00:06:04] Speaker B: Absolutely. Well, it's so fascinating hearing that story and fascinating that it all worked out like, really well, you know, like you always are talking with people, in other words, places, and then you. You just move in with them and then. Will it work out? Who knows? And it. And it did, which is really, I think, a testament to your. Your drive, your. Your mutual drive and your mutual goals there.
[00:06:28] Speaker A: We all wanted to, like, you know, learn from each other and have fun.
[00:06:31] Speaker B: Totally.
[00:06:32] Speaker A: Really great in film school. How.
[00:06:33] Speaker B: I mean, how do you think since you. Since you arrived January 6, 2021.
[00:06:42] Speaker A: To.
[00:06:42] Speaker B: To now, how do you think you have grown as an artist, specifically in terms of growing as a collaborator? Because I feel like I'm always attracted to the collaboration side of. Of writing, specifically.
So how do you feel like you've grown as. As a collaborator, specifically?
[00:07:01] Speaker A: Yeah, it's a good question. I mean, in so many a million small ways, for sure. And it's like I've been living in LA for four years now, and like, I really like working together with people, like, in making movies and. And it's stuff. It's a. Obviously everybody says it and it's true. It's an insanely collaborative art form. Like, you can't do it alone.
And what has really, like, sort of blossomed out of it is like, Arthur and I being writing partners and stuff. And I think it was like, it. It was like literally being in the same classes together and learning the same material and then developing our style together was really great. But growing as a collaborator, I think came from learning about every different aspect of the craft, like, I think in the film and TV production major at usc, which is what I love about the program and why I wanted to go is you learn everything. Like, Luke and I were in a directing class together.
But you do have to do sound and you do edit, and you do write and you do cinematography. And you will hold the boom and you will load the film camera, the film into the film camera. Like, you will do everything.
And so you appreciate the jobs that other people are doing with you and for you more. You know, like, outside of school, I directed a big film, like, in between my junior and my senior year. And I felt like at that point I knew what every person on a film set was supposed to do and what I didn't have to worry about because I could trust other people to do their jobs totally. And it's about. It's all about finding people who are passionate and dedicated and talented. Like all of my friends and everybody I've worked with and kind of trusting them and letting go. Especially I'm talking about this from a directing perspective because it's like in high school, I was everything. I was shooting, producing, writing, directing, editing, sound. I was doing it all by myself. And so at film school, you have the liberty, but also the obligation of a crew. You have people that you have to work with and you have to collaborate with them. So, like, I like to joke that at USC film school, you don't learn how to make movies, you learn how to work with people. But that is kind of what I.
[00:09:23] Speaker B: Learned, the most important thing. Right.
[00:09:25] Speaker A: And so you, You. You pick up on dividing and conquering and collaborating. Like, there are these hidden patterns that I just didn't know about before, which are so obvious to me now out of film school. I learned something with my degree. But, like, the production designer and the dp, like, they have to talk a lot. And the editor and the cinematographer, they have to talk a lot about coverage, too, and the sound and edit, editorial, sound and directing. Like, there's a lot of overlap, the.
[00:09:55] Speaker B: Different pairs you find on set. It's a really important thing. Yeah, yeah.
[00:10:00] Speaker A: And. And so it translates from being on set, very production focused, to, of course, the editing room when you're dealing with post production, picture and sound and color, but also writing, which is like. Like, I'm, you know, my friend Harlow, sort of put together a little writing group like, like outside of school. And it's like we are now holding each other accountable to turn in pages on time and read each other's pages and give each other feedback. Like, it is important to collaborate in every sense of and every part of filmmaking. Like, you have to be super open to feedback and open and willing to give feedback.
Especially, I think, in writing when a movie's getting made and the idea is getting kind of put to the page for the first time.
But you're all. The most important thing is, like, everybody has to be on board for the same story. You know what I mean? Everybody's got to know what the story is, what the mission is. And it's like, if you have a unified team who's super passionate and dedicated, you're going to do great.
[00:11:09] Speaker C: I would love to. To dig into what you're doing now on, on the cutting trailers front and just talk about, you know, where that passion stem from. If, you know, were you always thinking about cutting trailers or did trailers stick out to you? Or is this something you kind of fell into and what is your perspective on it now? You know, you know, being in it for, for X amount of years now?
[00:11:36] Speaker A: Yeah, that's a good question.
And so for context, like, I'm not like, cutting trailers anymore. Like, I'm. I'm. My role as a creative coordinator at a trailer agency called Motive, which I started at a few months ago.
I guess I'll rewind and start from the top. But, like, I've always loved movies. Like, I have been obsessed with filmmaking since I was a really young kid. Like, I knew I wanted to do this very early on. Like, my dad showed me Star wars when I was five, and he then showed me the bonus materials, dvd. And I fell in love with filmmaking. And I always knew I wanted to be a filmmaker, film director, writer, whatever.
And growing up, I would make Lego stop motion. I would do zombie movies with my friends in elementary school, and then they got bigger through middle school and high school and whatever. But when I was a kid, I like, literally iMovie08 on my mom's desktop computer.
Like, Imovie has this thing when you go, like, file new, it says movie or trailer. And I was, like, addicted to the trailers. Something about it really got to me.
[00:12:46] Speaker B: It creates the format for you kind of.
[00:12:49] Speaker A: Right?
[00:12:49] Speaker B: Like, doesn't it create, like, the template? What about that was so appealing?
[00:12:54] Speaker A: I, I can't say I, I. It was like, it's like this, like, crazy passion that I had. And I remember seeing movie trailers in the theater and online and whatever that I was like, I'm obsessed with movie trailers. It's kind of the one thing I like more than movies is movie trailers.
For many, many reasons, but it's a little hard to explain. It's just have this, like, weird obsession with them. And I have like, a Strange encyclopedic knowledge about them too. Like, I feel like I know hundreds of movie trailers off the top of my head and I was super hooked on them. And when I was a kid, I would shoot my movie and I would, before editing the movie, edit a trailer for the movie in imovie and put them in the template and like discover what the movie, what I wanted the movie to be.
[00:13:41] Speaker C: How old are you doing that?
[00:13:43] Speaker A: I was, I was maybe eight or nine. Eight, maybe.
[00:13:48] Speaker B: All right, for sure.
[00:13:49] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:13:51] Speaker C: Because that's like a, that, that's almost like, like with someone telling you to do that. Because that, that's, that's like a really interesting, like, that's what almost like a, a seasoned business professional in filmmaking would tell you to do is like, what's the marketability of this story? Yeah, like build the trail.
[00:14:10] Speaker B: Like what beats should you hit that, should you hit in, in a, in a two minute time period to hit the audience's emotional? Yeah, that's crazy.
[00:14:19] Speaker A: Like, I just started doing that like, and I will, I'll talk about this later, I'm sure, but like, yeah, making trailers has helped me pitch movies like very efficiently and very well.
[00:14:30] Speaker C: Talk about that. Like, yeah, and I, we'll, we'll get back to all of this, but I feel like it all falls under, you know.
[00:14:35] Speaker A: Well, like I learned, I learned a lot about trailers, like in the more professional sense when I did some internships and assistant work and now being in the industry. But like trailers, like, obviously, like if you look at them on paper, they're theatrical marketing and entertainment marketing. And it's like what I would technically be working in is advertising. Like, that's. But that's not how I see it. That's not what I think of like, I think trailers are like this beautiful, awesome art form that captures like what I would, what I've been told and also like to think about as like the soul of the movie, which is like the log line and the very essence and the core of it. When it's like you pitch a movie and it's like you, you get a sense of what it is, you have an understanding of it. And what like a trailer is for me, which is part of why I really like them so much, is like say, say you're a film director and you're writing a movie and you have this vision for it. You start to have lines of dialogue, images, different, different sound moments, different shots, different scenes, different music that you want to put in this movie, what you're thinking of before you write the movie. This, like, seed of an idea is the soul of the film.
And in my opinion. This is literally my opinion. Like, I work at a trailer agency, but this is just me. It is, like, the trailer maker's job to communicate and capture the soul of the film from the idea of, like, the filmmaker and, like, present it to the audience for the first time. So interesting, because you have this idea. You have this, like, log line, like, this possibility of, like, what the movie could be, and then you have to, like, make the movie, and it gets lost in the sauce along the way. You have to write it, and you have to direct it, and you have to edit it. And the actor is sick one day, and then it rains, and then the camera's fucking broken. And then, you know, you didn't get all the coverage you needed or whatever. It's, like, the process of making it. The soul gets a little lost along the way.
In my opinion, the trailer does what the movie could never do. It's the idea of, like, the raw, uncut, pure form of it. And so that's why I liked editing it when I was a kid, where it was like.
And not that I thought that my movies were gonna suck. It's just, like, I knew that what I wanted was the trailer a little more than the movie. And so I would just put visuals to, like, different music that I liked and whatever. And I was like, this is what I want the movie to be, you know?
[00:17:02] Speaker B: Can you.
Can you think of an example of one of your favorite trailers that you think captures the soul of a film in a very interesting way to you?
[00:17:14] Speaker A: Yeah, I mean, I think this is kind of a basic, obvious example, but I think I can speak on it a little bit. Is the trailer for the Social Network, which is a little bit of, like, if you know a little thing or two about the whole story is a bit of a revolutionary trailer, because the first minute of it doesn't include any video from the actual film.
And it's. And it's very. It's a very simple trailer.
And when I was in school and kind of growing up, I sort of heard about this company called Mark Woolen and Associates that made a lot of trailers for some of my favorite movies, a lot of them Oscar winners.
And I was like, I wonder if I can try to be an intern here. And I reached out and I sent them my resume and had an interview, and I was lucky enough to intern there. Like, I think it was between my sophomore and junior year of college that summer, and I was there, and I was just an intern. So again, like, I don't want to say that I'm doing anything more than really just learning about it, but the people I met there and the sensibility that I was sort of introduced to in the trailer world was really interesting because the CEO and founder has a lot of good relationships with filmmakers and is often.
There's a lot of press about this online and you can kind of read about his story, but makes trailers that are very like, geared for the filmmaker. Um, and that was one of those trailers. If you look at like trailer history, that was like a pretty pivotal moment that sort of introduced, for example, like, you know, how maybe you watch a movie trailer and you hear a customization of a familiar song or whatever. That kind of started with the Social Network a little bit. They used like a cover of Creep by Radiohead. This is a super, like famous kind of story in the. In the. The trailer world.
[00:19:13] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:19:14] Speaker A: And so it's like, it's a very unique piece of.
If you watch a lot of the trailers that come out of that company and come from him as an editor, you'll find a lot of that I think are very. That speak to me a lot as like the stuff that I like. And I was like a huge admirer of his work that he was turning movies into these really boiled down pure raw stories that were less than two minutes.
[00:19:44] Speaker C: Was he having conversation with the director or filmmaker like, like in that process of cutting trailers? And like when you say like he was someone that like would make a filmmaker's trailer, like the director's trailer, like, what is that? Communication? And is that not happening from like a marketing, like a studio marketing level?
[00:20:05] Speaker A: Yeah, so what I don't. Again, I really don't want to speak to like this gentleman's experience.
[00:20:10] Speaker C: And just in general, maybe like making.
[00:20:12] Speaker A: Making a generalization, but in general, like, like from what I've learned and just hearing about as again as an intern and an assistant at the company, like, yes, it would be very direct. This is uncommon in theatrical marketing and trailers. Which is why I was really drawn to this company to start with, was I know he would work directly with filmmakers. Not all the time, but sometimes to work on a trailer. And I think he had a very unique and talented perspective. He has a unique and talented perspective in doing this a lot.
And now at my job, like, I get to be a little more client facing and it is working with studio marketing departments in creative advertising and stuff. So it's a little more removed from like working with the filmmaker. But I Think it is a really. It was a really unique process, which is why I was super drawn to it. As somebody who was like, editing movie trailers on imovie and then. And then, you know, watch. Like, I like, watched his trailers in school and I was like, this is so awesome. This is so cool. And I was such a nerd for it. And, you know, I didn't. I didn't have like, many interactions that I like, you know, I wasn't directly learning from him in the bay. It was more just like osmosis. Like, I want to make that super clear. Like, I was really sitting there watching people's cuts, watching people edit, you know, watching the lexicon and the history of these movie trailers, like just on their website and soaking it all in and kind of learning about the sensibility of what I would consider the art of trailer making. Like, because it is kind of an art. And I'm not the one that popularized this idea. I'm literally just a super fan of the medium and was fortunate enough to like, be in the company of others who are really talented at doing it.
[00:22:05] Speaker B: So this trailer making talent of yours and this affinity towards the trailer, I'm curious because you obviously make your own stuff and collaborate on your own stuff, has that been helpful with the marketing of your own projects? And how do you approach, first of all, how do you approach your projects? And are you approaching it trailer first or since you're collaborating with other people, are you doing things differently? And then the second part of that question is, how do you approach the marketing to a film?
[00:22:36] Speaker A: Yeah, it was.
Yeah. So when I was growing up, like, I would make trailers for my movies. And when I was in high school especially, like, I would still do this. I would shoot a movie and then come home and put the SD card in the computer and like, copy it over and edit a trailer first, like before a movie was made. And I just, like, I was like, this is what I have to do. Like, this is what I want to do, is put the footage to music. And it started like, it all starts with, like, writing. Like, I write to music, I listen to music. When I think about the film, I have, like, ideas for, like, what I want the visuals to be. I like, this sounds, like, weird. I don't know how to say it without sounding weird, but I definitely have what is like, called synesthesia, which is like, the associations between different senses. Like, like, music looks a certain way to me and color and numbers have certain colors to me. And it's just always been that I thought everybody was like that. But then I got older and people are like, what the fuck are you talking about?
Like, when I would listen to certain music, I like see trailers. I like see these visuals and stuff. And so it like sort of came naturally to me where I was like, I know what I want to cut and. And I know what I want to cut it to. And then I would like make trailers for my high school student films and put them on my Instagram and people would like it and my friends would comment and like it. And I just thought the hype was so fun of like a little bit of advertising, like getting it kind of.
[00:24:10] Speaker B: A campaign for something like building a community and stuff around it.
[00:24:13] Speaker A: Yeah. And I did like a whole campaign that. My most recent film is called the Deep End. And it's like a coming of age love story set in Rhode Island. And it's like totally a personal movie, like inspired by a lot of true experiences in my life. And I was always like kind of shooting for the trailer. Like there are two scenes that we shot in that movie that we deleted that are in the trailer for the movie because in my opinion they represent the soul of the film and don't necessarily have to be in the piece itself.
[00:24:42] Speaker B: It's a great thing to know that you can utilize footage in, in multiple ways. And even if this angle doesn't work in terms of the way a scene is covered, like you can, you can still think maybe that captures the soul of something that is not meant for the film. But I could put it in the trailer. There's. Especially with marketing, you can get really creative with marketing.
[00:25:02] Speaker A: And I'm speaking from like also just the. The real experience, professional side of it. The truth of the matter is a lot of times, not all the time, but a lot of times like it is very common for trailers to put stuff in to. For studios to put stuff in the trailer that might not end up in the final film. Whether that's pieces of dialog or certain covers.
[00:25:23] Speaker B: I mean if you look at the Barbie trailer like that, that's a full different scene that they shot.
[00:25:28] Speaker A: You know, I don't particular example of that.
I mean they had to do huge reshoots on that, but there's like so many shots that are just not.
[00:25:37] Speaker C: What are you guys getting like scene packs? Like what does the studio or like what material are you receiving in to then cut? Are they sending you an entire movie and it's okay, I have to watch this entire thing and pull the soul out of it or is it through conversations you're getting the soul. And all of a sudden they send you, you know, 25 scenes and you're picking and choosing.
[00:26:01] Speaker A: Yeah.
Before I answer that, I will say for. But for like, for my own movies, like for the deep end, like, I would make. I made like so many trailers for that movie. There's like six that I made.
And I mean, it's like a 17 minute movie. You can't make a two and a half minute trailer out of that because that's like so much of your movie. But I would make all these trailers and hype it up and get people excited because I liked doing it and I liked the feeling of it where it's like, I think the trailer is better than the movie. Like, you know, like, it's, it's a fun, it's a fun, cool little thing that I got to do.
But I really like doing it and I think it helps with.
Does it help you get into film festivals? Like, no. Maybe. Yes. I don't know. It's more presenting the movie and presenting the idea of like, this is what I wanted to make.
So. But to answer your question, typically, yes, we get a full film.
So what's cool about my job is I get to watch movies before they come out, you know, and before there's even trailers for it. So you get to experience a movie totally pure for the first time.
Often the film isn't done. Like if the movie has visual effects, like there's like temporary vfx or not all the sound is in, or not all the score is in, not all the color's done.
But you do get the full film.
With some projects you get on board really early, before the film is even edited. So you get dailies which are like the. Just the clips that they shot and you just have to put stuff together.
[00:27:32] Speaker B: And you are, you guys are the ones who are. If you get something that's more so raw footage than complete things, like, are you, are you guys then the ones to color it and add sound and line up dialogue? Or how does that work?
[00:27:46] Speaker A: When you send something incomplete, you cut stuff together with knowing that things will get replaced down the line. So actors on blue screen or whatever, you just cut it in knowing, you know, they're like, hey, this is the scene where there's going to be a monster. So just that's. That's what's happening here.
[00:28:05] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:28:05] Speaker A: And later down the line it gets replaced. And then like you have to do what's called like overcutting and replacing the footage as new VFX come in and whatever. And you know, you get. I've gotten to see that for big projects recently too, where it's like you start off with stuff that's totally uncolored, that's whatever. And then they send more and more stuff that looks more and more finished. And, and then even it's like you won't see how it finally looks sometimes until it's out, until the trailer's out. Because you send them a lot of like turnover, techy materials that help them re online the final high res footage and stuff like that. So that's like, that happens in like the finishing process.
And the sound mix is like after the trailer's locked. So you edit what's called an offline, like meaning it's not completely done and you kind of understand that. And it's got like time code burn in and all this stuff where it's like, you know, it doesn't look like a finished movie.
It looks like incomplete. Yeah, but sometimes, sometimes we get stuff that's more finished and that's cool to see too. But, but oftentimes it's like if you get on early, you'll get early stuff and then later down the line you'll get updated cuts, updated shots, updated music, whatever.
[00:29:18] Speaker C: Can, can you walk us through that process of you get the feature film and they're like, cut a trailer. Like, can you walk us down that path from start to finish or to distribution?
[00:29:32] Speaker A: Yeah, the process looks like you'll get a film, you'll watch it so that you know what's happening in the movie. And then usually you'll have a kickoff with the client at the studio who will give kind of the creative brief on what they're looking for in this trailer. They're like, hey, this is going to be an Oscar contender next year. This is what we want to market it as. You know, here are some moments that we want to call out that we really like.
We think this actor could get a maybe nomination. So let's emphasize their performance.
Or if it's like, hey, this action scene is really cool. We really want to highlight the explosion in act two that happens here. That could be a great moment. Music. We're thinking this. Graphics. We're thinking a little bit of that. And then you kind of get kicked off and you, and then you, you take that like a producer, somebody who. And a creative director who produce and creative direct trailers would be at that meeting. They take that information, they take the notes, turn it around to the internal team, like the editors, graphics department, music department, you know, coordinators, like me to kind of relay the notes and be like, this is what's happening.
And then an editor will start watching a movie and doing what's called like a breakdown. And so I think it varies place to place. Like, I don't specifically know here, for example, what their breakdown process is. But the, but the process that I did when I would break down movies for practice, like, like when I was at Mark Woolen, like the company as an intern and then as an assistant, like, I would stay late and come early and like practice doing it for movies by myself, where it was like, first you watch a movie just to watch the movie. The second time you watch the movie, you pull lines of dialogue that you think would be good for the trailer and you just pull that into a sequence. Then you watch it a third time without sound and just look for visuals.
And I've heard rumors, I don't know if this is true, but sometimes some editors or so on and so forth, sometimes they'll watch it a fourth time without sound and backwards to watch kids look for visuals that they might have missed. And basically now they have.
Instead of a two and a half hour movie or a two hour movie, you'll have breakdowns of a string of dialogue which would be called your selects. Like, this is what I've selected. Part of my job as an assistant editor was to do reorders of Editor Select. So if us three were in a movie together, my job would be to reorder the selects of like all the Andrew lines, all the Luke lines, and all the Wyatt lines. You know, like I would like put them in different bins and stuff like that.
[00:32:17] Speaker C: Oh, oh, simply organizing or to build a narrative for the trailer. Okay.
[00:32:20] Speaker A: No, just organizing. All the creative would be happening with an editor and a producer.
So a lot of my job is assisting, making their lives and creative processes easier. Yeah, um, and, but, but yeah. So like sometimes, for example, like I would have to, in essence watch a chopped up movie four times in a row for work that day, you know, and it taught me a lot about like, what's important in a story, what is important movie. And, and then seeing.
And then after. So after an editor will break down, they'll start working on a cut. And then it's a collaborative process where they'll show a producer and a creative director who, who will give them notes. Then they start cutting in graphics and music and they start trying things. Once internally, it feels like it's in a good place to send. We'll send what's called a V1 your version, one to the client and then we'll take notes and do it all over again, you know. So it's a very organic, like, bouncing around process, which is why it's helpful, I guess, in the company like that to have somebody like me who's a coordinator who helps manage just the flow of communication and workflow and materials and.
But that's kind of vaguely what the process looks like. It's very creative. And like, why, like, to your point, it's insanely collaborative. Like, one trailer. Like, so many people work on a single movie trailer and typically what happens is not like, say, Netflix has a new movie and needs a trailer for it.
One company isn't going to be making trailers. Several companies are going to be making trailers at the same time. So you're kind of competing against and whichever one they like more, they're going to continue working with.
[00:34:08] Speaker B: Is that always the case or is it just because Netflix.
[00:34:11] Speaker A: No, no, no. Across all studios is like, unless it's an indie movie that doesn't have a big budget. You know, it's like typically speaking, studios will send out their movie to different vendors and then you work. Different people work on trailers. And sometimes it's like one company will do the first trailer, the second company will do the second trailer. You know, a third company will do all the digital spots. It's like very organic. So it's like company X and company Y will both be working on, you know, the new, you know, Andrew Gersten Black future, you know, but whatever. It's like. So it's like a big process where it's like you could work on a trailer for a really long time and it'll never see the light of day. You know, it will never go to. To go to finish.
[00:34:56] Speaker C: What is a really long time for a trailer? Or what is the normal amount of time to cut a trailer? Because this sounds like a massive production.
[00:35:03] Speaker A: It's a big process for sure. I think it varies. I wish I had like a better answer because I think it so depends. But a trailer process could be a month, it could be several months. A campaign could last for a whole year. Like, I think it really varies, but what's good about the business is like, you know, projects come and go. It's like you work on something for a really long time and you hate it, and then it's over forever. And then you get a new cool project and then it happens over and over again. Because movies, this is what I like to. I wish I said this earlier, but what's. What I think is that, like, all movies become trailers. All movies will become a movie trailer. So it's like, it's important to, like, funnel all the information in the best possible way to get the best version of the movie idea out into the public. Which is why they need a bunch of different creative minds at different agencies cracking a film. And sometimes films are hard. Sometimes, like, imagine doing a trailer for, like, a movie like Pulp Fiction, which has, like, different storylines and different timelines. Like, could be pretty cool because there's a lot of great material to work with. But imagine, you know, stuff that is narratively pretty complex or heavy. Like, how do you navigate that? It's just all part of the process. It's very fluid, it's very organic. It can be stressful at times, but it's fun to see.
Like, the editors that I've seen work are so talented. Like, I'll watch a movie and I'm like, I cannot wait to see what they come up with. And they pull the best lines.
That's visuals, things I would have never thought of. And same with, like, coming up with solutions where it's like, client wants to see a little more of this. Producers, like, I don't really know exactly how. Here's a few ideas. An editor will cook it up. It's very collaborative. Producer could present some ideas, creative director could present some ideas, editor can present ideas. And the trailer can kind of be an amalgamation of all that.
[00:36:58] Speaker B: Are these roles that you're talking about? Creative director, producer, editor? I assume the editor is within the company, but are these other roles within your company as well? Or are they the actual producer on the film? And if there are producers on the film in the studio, like, how. How common is the communication between you all?
[00:37:17] Speaker A: Like, day to day, producer and creative director will be like, in the agency. Okay, so like, you know, they're like. An agency could have 10 editors and four producers and two creative directors. The producers and creative directors, like, sometimes they do both. So it's like a little bit of both. A producer is like somebody who deals with the client, like somebody more client facing and relays the information and back and forth. Whereas a creative director might be a little more internal and not dealing so much with the client and more helping with the ideas and the creative, just pure creative.
And then the studio side is like, you know, creative advertising executives, different marketing folks.
I think it varies just project to project, of course.
And, you know, not often, like, you know, it's. It's. It's like I said, like, it's uncommon for filmmakers to be a part of the process. Like, it's just studios, marketing department is dealing with this.
But you know, the occasional, you know, send it to the filmmaker for approval can happen, especially with high profile projects or big names who want to see.
It's like, you know, I would imagine very well known auteurs and directors will want to see their trailer before it goes out to the public, you know, which is why, like I want to be a film director who edits his own movie trailers. Because it's super important, you know, it's like a big part of, you know, how the public perceives your film, but also what you want the film to be, you know.
[00:38:53] Speaker B: Absolutely.
[00:38:54] Speaker C: You mentioned cutting trailers teaches you what is important, you know, in a film and exactly what has it taught you?
Like, if you were to point it out, obviously there are some clear factors and what is important in a film. But our audience is comprised of, you know, what 50, 50's goal is of nurturing the next generation, empowering the next generation of filmmakers. What can young filmmakers learn from trailers?
[00:39:27] Speaker A: That is such a good question. I feel like I wish I had a better answer. But like, it's all about like the story. It's like, and it goes back to like the soul of the film. Like, what is the film really about? Like, there's like, in screenwriting class, you learn about plot versus story. The plot is like, it's about a guy who's a hitman who has to kill a future version of himself. Cool concept. That's the plot. But the story is about a cold blooded killer who has to become selfless. Right? Like, and that's what a trailer presents the story.
Yeah, it's packaging the story in a digestible way for the audience to understand what the true purpose, like, it goes by different names, like the soul of the film, or the theme, or the theme stated and debated.
And you can package it in a very clear structure for people to understand.
[00:40:26] Speaker B: So it's not as much about getting people to be like, oh, this is exactly what happens in the movie. It's more about capturing sometimes.
[00:40:36] Speaker A: But like, but like, if you're like, this is just for me, like on the marketing side, people are like, like this. We want people to know what this movie, what they're getting themselves into. Like, right, this Captain America movie is gonna be this. Like, that's what we want to sell. And you're gonna, you're promising them fun and action and excitement and popcorn and good times or whatever, you know, and that is certainly like a huge part of the movie. Like the fourth sequence of a. Of an eight sequence feature film is like the promise of the premise. And like, that's like trailer moments, you know, but deeper than that is like the unspoken story, like the very kind of hard to describe, untouchable quality about a film that you want to, that you want an audience to really understand. And I think, like, what can a young filmmaker learn about movie trailers is like, when you're writing your movie or when you're making your movie, like, again, like, shoot for the trailer is always my thing. But, like, what are the trailer moments? Like, what are the most important pieces of material that you have to get on set that day?
[00:41:45] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:41:46] Speaker A: Understand what the soul of your movie is. Like, what are the lines of dialog?
[00:41:50] Speaker C: You know, there, there are, there's so many different ways to go with this because it's. I don't know about you, I like, I'm like, this is like, so interesting.
[00:41:58] Speaker B: I know, I know.
[00:42:01] Speaker C: Because there. And why you mention it of like, there are those trailers that like, tell you the whole story. And that's when you're in a theater and you see a trailer and you're like, I don't need to go buy it.
[00:42:09] Speaker B: I've seen the whole thing.
[00:42:10] Speaker C: I've seen the whole thing. So in your eyes, is that like a failed trailer? Is that. Was that the. The intent was to show literally, oh, my God, like, we, we just learned that they died and then they have to do this.
[00:42:22] Speaker A: And.
[00:42:22] Speaker B: And why is that happening more nowadays? I feel like is is a question that I have, because I have noticed that, that you see that they give more and more stuff in trailers now.
[00:42:33] Speaker A: Yes, that is so true. And like, it's definitely a trend that's happening where it's like, people are sick of trailers. Like, people are. Because they give too much away. And it's like, is that because it's a failed trailer? Like, maybe not. Maybe it's because it's a failed movie. Like, again, like, I think that movie trailers do exactly what the. What a film has failed to do. You know, like, screenwriter had this idea, filmmaker had this idea, this is what the movie is. And then they had to make it and then they had to edit it.
[00:43:04] Speaker B: And at some point in the process, it became not what they imagined.
[00:43:09] Speaker A: Exactly. It became not what they imagined. And so as a result, the best chance of getting that back is the movie trailer. And that's why, in my opinion, it is the most pure form of the movie itself, where it's like, yeah, after I watch a three minute long movie trailer for, you know, a superhero movie or a blockbuster or whatever. I don't need to see the movie, but I never needed to see the movie, but I always needed to see the trailer, you know. But the reason that's happening from a logistical standpoint is studios do not trust audiences enough to go to the movies anymore. And they need to overcompensate by promising something that you can only see in theaters. And it's like they do huge marketing campaigns and huge pushes and reveal too much and because they're afraid that audiences won't sit down and take two hours of their day to go to the movies anymore. And you have resurgences like Oppenheimer and Barbie and Wicked and Top Gun and stuff that really helps the box office and stuff like that.
But, you know, a movie trailer is shaped by the client. The client gives you what, tells you what they want to see out of the movie trailer. And ultimately, like, it is your job and as sort of client services is to like, deliver and to like present even though it might not be. Maybe what you think is the best idea or approach, like, if I was like the overlord of movie trailers in the world, all of them would have no dialogue and would just have like music.
And there are trailers that still do that, but they're really groundbreaking and, and far, few and far between. Like the most recent one I would say is 28 years later, which, like, we gush about this at work. Like, I didn't work on it, whatever, but like, it was a huge inspiration for like the team that I work with because it was like, there's like very little dialogue, maybe no dialogue, this haunting music queue that like ramps and ramps up with very clever copy. It's like the second sequel to 28 Days Later, I think, for that, like zombie movie. And it presents like just everything that you need to know. And that's what like, that's like. I think it would be cool to like reshape trailers and to reframe trailers into thinking of like, if all movie trailers were just teasers that were like, you know, just this like really simple nugget of like, holy shit.
[00:45:37] Speaker B: And standalone artistic pieces too. I feel like that's the attractive thing to you guys about that.
[00:45:43] Speaker A: That would be amazing. But of course, you know, it's like a client and a studio, rightfully so, wants to demonstrate all the fun and all the excitement that this movie has to offer, which will make like some this summer blockbuster worth seeing. And you're not going to want to miss this and there's going to be three trailers. Like, think about like Dune 2 had three trailers, three main trailers. They were. And they were all like two and a half, three minutes long because the studio was like, people have to see this in the movie theater.
[00:46:15] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:46:15] Speaker A: And we have to convince them.
[00:46:17] Speaker B: Yeah. They have to make money. It's like a. It's a very real business. I wanted to pivot a little bit just in terms of the business.
We talked to a lot of people in a lot of different parts of the industry and obviously the past four years specifically have been so tough because of COVID and the strikes and the fires most recently and everything so volatile. And there's not a lot filming at times when there should be a lot filming. Is your part of the business affected by that sort of things? Like, what are the conversations going on when you're in those, you know, trailer editing houses when the strikes are going on and people aren't releasing movies and stuff like that?
[00:46:59] Speaker A: Yeah, it definitely impacts like all of the industry, including trailers, because if there's less movies being made and then there's less trailers being made too, where it's like, you know, you think about stuff that would need, like, buy it now on DVD in like 2000 this summer. Yeah, exactly. It's like that doesn't happen anymore. But.
But there, there is a huge resurgence or there's a huge demand for digital stuff, like a lot of social media stuff, like so many different kinds of, like, what would trailers and spots and digital assets that go beyond the scope of a theatrical teaser or a. Or a full, you know, movie trailer, whatever.
So that brings a lot of business and stuff and different works and opportunities and stuff. But what's important to do, I think for what I've started learning at the company that I'm at now is like doing sitting down. And like, part of my job is researching movies ahead of time that are in development, pre production, production and post that we might want to do the trailers for.
And then it's up to the producers to reach out to their client contacts at the studios and maybe get a feel of if we could maybe work on this.
So it's all about staying proactive, I think is part of it.
But I think it varies agency to agency. Like, I'm not super tapped in enough to know, like, how every agency is handling things. Like, I think some maybe are better suited than others because of the work that they typically do. Like, I would imagine if you do a lot of Marvel movies or blockbusters, like, your business is going to be Pretty good.
But if you only do like documentaries and indie movies and stuff, like, maybe then you'd struggle a little more.
But yeah, I think it's like there's just all around the business, from what I gather as like a very young person fresh out of school, experiencing this is like there's less and less food to go around.
So it's always like, that's why we want to do the best job we can at making a good movie trailer and, and doing what the client asks for while staying creative and original and trying things.
And I think because of that it's like, yeah, it's a complicated system, totally.
But yes, it certainly has affected the business. And I think I'm really lucky though because I found this really, like, to be honest, like niche in the business and then the, in the entertainment, you know, it's like you're not going to go to film school, even the best one, and get hired as a film director right out of college, but you might and that could be cool and it could still happen down the line. So it's. I'm really happy that I got to find something, that there are some opportunities for someone like me and where it's like, whoa, I really like this. And they are looking for people who like this stuff. Bingo.
[00:50:09] Speaker B: It's a great situation. Absolutely. So it's.
[00:50:12] Speaker A: So I feel lucky in that regards personally. But yeah, it's really a challenge in the business for sure. And I think it all, all trickles down through every department.
[00:50:23] Speaker C: You, you, you brushed upon social media and obviously it's such a mess. You're where you're working with marketing teams, you're cutting trailers and teasers and, and a lot of these end up on social media like Instagram or YouTube.
How much of an impact does the algorithm or retention rate have on the editing process? Like, are you guys now cutting with a thought of like, what's the hook? What's the. Because honestly, on Insta there are some trailers where like, it'll do the crate, it'll like hook you and then I'll be like, like now like the Dune 2 trailer and then it plays the trailer. So.
[00:51:03] Speaker A: Yes.
[00:51:03] Speaker C: Right. So is that, is that social media all of a sudden, like kind of controlling or YouTube controlling Hollywood all of a sudden or what is that exactly?
[00:51:15] Speaker A: I think it's people's attention spans and like the evolution of media to being more social tiktoky short bites kind of thing. And the thing that you're referring to that happens where it's like, watch trailer now and Then the trailer will start, is called a bumper. And so you'll see that quite frequently as like, you know, sometimes we have to edit a bumper for our own trailer and then put it in front of the trailer.
[00:51:36] Speaker C: A trailer for a trailer.
[00:51:37] Speaker A: Yeah, exactly. I mean it is truly the craziest thing. I think it's like a very. And they're all six seconds long bumpers.
It's like, it's a really interesting, strange phenomenon where it's like, yeah, you have to cater towards the different ways in modern times.
[00:51:58] Speaker B: I'm sure that 6 second number is so studied by psychologists and marketing teams and everything. And it, it's more than anything, it just speaks to the point that we're in with attention spans and, and the way people view stuff.
[00:52:13] Speaker A: Yeah. And a lot of my job as well is because like producers are busy dealing with like the full pieces, the full theatrical pieces, you know, will be helping navigate and resize trailers for social formats like 4 by 5 and 9 by 16.
And.
Yeah, so it's like. And I will help be a part of doing that or adapting. Like, a lot of studios have like very specific branding requirements where they need to see the logo within the first X amount of seconds of the trailer so that before like the ad skippable period or something like that.
[00:52:50] Speaker B: Oh yeah.
[00:52:51] Speaker A: You know, it's like all this stuff where they, where studios have had to. And marketing teams have had to adapt to just the changing tide of social formats, you know.
And again, like, I'm no expert. Like, I'm really young. I'm really young and I'm no more.
[00:53:10] Speaker C: Than you think, dude.
[00:53:10] Speaker B: Well, you're, you're our expert. We don't have anybody else to ask. So.
[00:53:15] Speaker A: I'm the 5050 podcast. Yeah.
[00:53:18] Speaker B: You're the consultant here.
[00:53:19] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah. On the movie trailer business.
[00:53:22] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:53:22] Speaker A: But I always like mention it because it's like there are so many cool people that I work with who have been doing this for the amount of years I've been alive or longer or like whatever that have just had so much experience, who have had to transition and adapt and understand and you know, like, and have to like deal with like, well, shit, now we got to do the Instagram version of this trailer or, and it might be a little different or whatever. Like it happens all the time and it is just like part of the reality of like the trailer business now. It's not just like we need a teaser, it's like we need a teaser and, you know, something that's resized to fit our platform. If you're scrolling through, you know, on the streaming service. And we'll need something for socials, and we'll need something that's, like, square, and we'll need an Instagram and a TikTok, which means all the graphics have to be resized to fit things, you know, so it's like, it's a huge operation, and I think, yeah, it's a huge adjustment that that has happened where it's like, nobody's an expert in it. Nobody's an expert in social media.
[00:54:28] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:54:28] Speaker A: Studios are still figuring it out. The trailer agencies are still figuring it out. It's just part of the deal where it's like, yeah, we're going to have to do this now. Yeah.
[00:54:37] Speaker B: I think on a greater marketing level, one thing that they have figured out is, is the art of. And this doesn't necessarily have to do directly with trailers, but like, organic marketing and how you want to have a.
[00:54:50] Speaker C: A.
[00:54:51] Speaker B: The gentle minion phenomenon. Like, you want. You want something that you're able to, you know, start a trend somehow, and then people take it on their own, you know, like, it's. That's really interesting.
[00:55:03] Speaker A: Yeah. People are always looking for, like, the next cool thing to market a movie. Like. Like, I. I've seen a lot of press about, like, Mickey 17, where it's like, 17 guys dressed up as Mickey are on the red carpet, you know, or whatever. Crazy like that. It's like, you know, that's really funny.
[00:55:23] Speaker C: It's funny.
[00:55:24] Speaker A: Or it's like, you know, interviews, candid interviews with the star or the director, where it's like, you know, so and so star and so and so director sit down and do a challenge, you know, challenge together.
[00:55:39] Speaker B: The what's in my bag Sort of thing.
[00:55:41] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah. But, like, also like that, I think that is, like, a lot of cool press, too. Like, I've been seeing, like, I follow, like, GQ on Instagram and like, Walton Goggins is on my feed every day where he's like, this is the cool guy.
[00:55:54] Speaker B: And it's, oh, he's so cool.
[00:55:55] Speaker A: Lotus, you know. Yeah. So it's all part of it where it's like, there are beyond just trailers. There are so many kinds of advertising that I'm not interested in that will help a movie.
[00:56:10] Speaker B: These are your brothers and sisters in the advertising business?
[00:56:15] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:56:15] Speaker B: Wow. Crazy.
Well, I'm curious. Let's expand it a little bit beyond marketing and beyond trailers, too.
We have a lot of people who are in the same boat and want to be a director or want to be A filmmaker and have graduated college but need to make money somehow and are wanting to find there, whether it's going to a talent agency or working at a smaller company or finding their way in somehow.
What is your experience been with, you know, having a day job that's exciting to you, but at the same time having different aspirations ultimately. And do you find that you're able to maintain creative fulfillment when you're in the weeds with trailers and things like that? And how is that sort of struggle back and forth?
[00:57:04] Speaker A: Ben, that is such a good question and I'm so glad you brought it up and that we get to talk about it on this because I think there's a lot of people who are in a similar boat who are my age where it's like the bottom line is yes, you, I mean unless you don't need a job. But I think you should have a job in ideally in the film industry where you get to make money and have a paycheck and have some sense of stability in your life while pursuing the other thing outside. So it's like if somebody's trying to figure out what to do and I'd like, that would be my recommendation. Hopefully something that gets you creative fulfillment. But like I speak to that as like, like that can't.
That's really hard to happen. Like I think I'm in a, like I said this before earlier, but I think I'm in a really unique boat because I was lucky enough to get some internships and chops that were all movie trailer related while I was in school. So that out of school I already had the resume pieces to be welcomed into the, to this part of the business. Yeah, a lot of my friends are at, you know, talent agencies or are doing assistant type work. You know, whether that's like an assistant editor, like stuff like that or like an actual like creative assistant to like you know, somebody at a production company or, or like again like an agent or manager or whatever.
And I think that it is hard to balance. It is hard to balance because it's like I write in the mornings, the evenings and the weekends. Like that's what I have to do. And I work from 9:45 in the morning to 7:00 clock at night and I will have to eat dinner, see my friends, take care of my body, you know, do human stuff. But I also will have to like write a movie because I have big dreams and because, you know, and that's hard. Like it is a little severancey where it's like, okay, I'm Turning off my trailer brain, and. And I'm turning on my I'm a screenwriter brain. And sometimes I can't do that, but I have to try really hard. But that's what's so great about having a writing partner is, like, we hold each other accountable. And, like, Arthur and I can do different stuff together. Where Arthur is insanely good at dialogue. Like, he. I mean, it's kind of what he gets paid to do, but, like, he is really, really a very talented comedic writer.
And I think, you know, I have some of that too, but not to the extent that he has. And I'm a little more macro focused, I think. So it's like, we can divide and conquer and approach things together. So it's easier to do it together with other people than alone. And that's why I like this writer's group that my friend put together is really great to hold each other accountable, give each other notes, you know, be part of it. And I think it is truly about, like, as cheesy as it sounds like, which is what I'm struggling with this. Like, I have to practice. What I preach is, like, holding on to the dream and, like, not getting in my own way. Like, I do want to be a filmmaker. I want to make movies. I would love to direct a feature before I'm 30 years old or something, you know, like.
Or earlier, hopefully.
But, you know, it's like, my job brings me so much creative fulfillment. I love it. I hope to be where I'm at for a long time. Like, I think I found a cool, forever home. You know, I'm really. If they'll. If they'll. If they'll keep me around.
And it's like, it's something where it's like, could I write movies, sell them, and run a trailer agency maybe? Could be cool, you know, could I be a guy who directs indie features here and there and.
And works on trailers and produces movie trailers? Like, totally. You know, could I be a writer and a trailer editor? Like, maybe. But it's. It's like somebody once told me, because I had this conversation with somebody at, like, a job like this.
Like, I was like, look, this is what I want to do with my life. What do you think?
And the truth is, it's like, you don't do this to do something else. I'm not going to advance my film directing career by being a movie trailer guy. I will advance my movie trailer career, which is something I do want to do and would be happy doing, but on the side, like, my innie and my Audi severance style. I have to do this not on company time and like hopefully elevate together until one day the other thing takes off.
[01:01:52] Speaker C: I may never happen.
[01:01:54] Speaker A: Like I hope it does, but it may never happen.
[01:01:56] Speaker C: And it's like, I just want to pause you for one second because I completely agree that to be a director you have to direct. But I also think that you're not necessarily adjacent. You're like very much deeply entrenched in like editing the Denis. Right, Denis Villeneuve.
But like that guy has said several times, like, if I wasn't director, I'd be an editor. I love editing. Yeah, like editing. Sometimes the best directors are fantastic editors. Like that has happened time and time again and is a proven, proven path for editors, great editors to become great directors.
[01:02:32] Speaker A: Yeah, and that's super true.
[01:02:35] Speaker C: But I just want to say to you of like cutting trailers and the experience and knowledge that you have vast knowledge in like such a short amount of time. You're. How old are you? 22? 21.
[01:02:45] Speaker A: 20. 22.
[01:02:46] Speaker C: 22. Like it's insane, man. Like, you know so much and you're already applying. I guess you've been doing it your entire life. But like even applying what you learn from cutting trailers to your own writing. How do I. I'm getting better at pitching, as you said. Like, yeah, if you take a. It's easy to fall into. I haven't made a movie in a year, so I'm not doing my thing. But you've cut crazy amounts of trailers, I'm sure. Incredible trailers with your team, maybe not. You personally.
[01:03:17] Speaker B: Take credit for it though. Yeah. You've been involved in it.
[01:03:21] Speaker A: Making my trailers for my movies.
[01:03:23] Speaker C: But I think you see what I'm getting at in the way of like, and what. Why didn't. I really want to make clear with this podcast too, on a larger level to our audience is like being a filmmaker is a lifelong journey. There's no rush here. Like, that dream of yours is not just going to go away when I.
[01:03:40] Speaker A: Turn 30 years old.
[01:03:41] Speaker C: It's not, it's not, it's not. And if, and by the way though, if it really is something that you need to do before you're 30, you'll do it.
[01:03:48] Speaker A: Yeah.
[01:03:50] Speaker C: You know, like it's as simple as, as you're still. You don't. No one's telling you to write with a full time job. Right. Like, you'll. If, if this is something you want to do, you'll do it period. You know, and it's good to have.
[01:04:03] Speaker A: People around me, friends and peers and you know, people like you guys, like, who are like, encouraging and who are part of the journey. Like, it's like a journey that definitely does not happen alone. It's like we all come up together. Like my friends have assistant jobs and, you know, you know, some jobs similar to me. And, and it's like we will all rise together. That is the part of what happens when you go to film school is like, you know, sometimes people take off, but people come up together. Like John M. Chu directed Wicked, his cinematographer. They made like their thesis together at USC film school. Like she shot his thesis. Like it just happens.
[01:04:42] Speaker C: I didn't know that. That's crazy.
[01:04:44] Speaker A: Yeah. And that you hear that story like, like Ryan Coogler and Ludwig Goranson, like together were in USC and you know, came up together and that. It's like the collaboration, the journey. You're right.
[01:04:58] Speaker B: It's how it goes.
[01:04:59] Speaker A: I mean, it's also a collaborative journey.
[01:05:02] Speaker B: So much of collaboration is about trust. Right. And who are you going to trust more than the people you've gone through it with and the people you've gone through Covid with and the people you've lived with? And you know, all those things, It's. It really is a testament. It's why Luke and I still work together.
[01:05:15] Speaker A: We.
[01:05:16] Speaker B: We did presentations with each other in kindergarten. Like we've known each other for so long. So it's. It's inherent and very organic that you, you're working with these people.
[01:05:27] Speaker A: Yeah, I'm lucky and I'm lucky to have people like that in my life. It comes with film school, it comes with life experience. It's like, it's like a family. It's awesome.
[01:05:37] Speaker C: I have. I have a really big question for you.
How is your back?
[01:05:44] Speaker A: My back hurts.
My back hurts.
I went to the doctor this week.
[01:05:50] Speaker B: Is there a story behind this? Is this the way we wrap up the episode?
[01:05:55] Speaker A: The story is.
I like, it's. I think there's so many, like just random systemic issues of being a highly anxious guy who has like a reactive body. But like, this is part of my. I guess I'll plug the deep end. But like, I made a movie called the Deep End. I mentioned it earlier. It is a coming of age romance that's set in Rhode Island. But it's loosely based. Not loosely. Pretty heavily, actually. Based on my experience of when I was 17 years old, I had what's called a spontaneous pneumothorax. My left lung collapsed randomly. It sucked. It was crazy.
And as a Result, like, after I healed and got surgery, like, I just became a sheltered person who stopped, like, moving his body so much because I was, like, afraid my body, either consciously or unconsciously. And. But what doesn't help that is I sit at a desk all day and watch movie trailers, you know, so. And right. So it's like, you know, you got to stay mobile, you got to stay active. And, you know, luckily, like, the. The truth of the matter, having, like, gone to. This is so funny that we're talking about this, but, like, having gone to the doctor and, like, get an mri, whatever, there's nothing seriously wrong, which I'm very lucky to say. But it. It's like, yeah, if you're a filmmaker and you're stressed out, like, we should be working out. We should be working out, stretching our backs and going on walks and, you know, but it's like, I joke that my back hurts because of the weight of the world on my shoulders.
So I've been trying to alleviate that.
[01:07:33] Speaker B: People in other industries are just like.
[01:07:35] Speaker A: Shut up, shut up, shut up. You know, lives. I'm a doctor. Yeah.
[01:07:40] Speaker B: You're not doing anything important.
[01:07:41] Speaker A: Yeah.
I literally work in movie trailers, and it makes me stressed. I get to write movies and make movie trailers and.
[01:07:50] Speaker B: And you're like, yeah, my body just physically cannot handle this anymore.
[01:07:55] Speaker A: But I think that's a piece of advice that I would want to share, honestly, while we're on it is like, I.
I will be candid and say I've. I've had a lot of success in my young career so far.
They're the only enemy that has been in my way is myself. And it is about.
There's, you know, throughout my filmmaking journey, which will take a long time, it's allowing. Trying to get myself out of my own way. For me to be my most creative self, to be my most productive self, to worry less and have fun more. Because the truth of the matter, as stressful as filmmaking can be, and as stressful as editing or writing, directing trailers can be, it is so fun. It is a gift and, like, a total awesome thing that we get to do by, like, making movies with our friends and film school.
You go to film school and you learn how to make movies, but it's kind of like, you see the man behind the curtain, you learn all these secrets that maybe take the magic away. And part of my next steps and my next several years of being out of film school is rediscovering the joy of making movies again. You know, making Lego movies and opening up My mom's absolutely.
Trailers. You know, it's like doing it just to do it. And it's. It's hard. It's hard when you're out of school and you feel like your whole life is on the line and your career is on the line forever. But I'm trying to be less anxious about it and enjoy it more because trailers, like, they're so fun and movies are so fun. And when I watch a good movie, I'm like, that's a good movie. Movies are back, you know, and it's like Top Gun Maverick, you know, it's like, it's. It's really like. Yeah, it's a fun collaborative thing. And, you know, I just want to not only get better at doing it, but get better at having fun doing it.
[01:09:48] Speaker C: You know, what are the types of movies you want to make?
You know, is it a Top Gun Maverick or is it like a Sundance darling? Like, what is the.
What do you lean towards?
[01:09:58] Speaker A: My taste is, I would say, like, I really like blending the sensibilities of like an indie movie with the high concept, appealing, entertaining nature of a blockbuster picture. Like, I love Back to the Future and I love Birdman and it's like high concept movies that are presented really well. Like, you know, why can't, like, I really love coming of age movies. I love dramedy and comedy. Like, why can't a coming of age movie be shot like an inary to film? Like, that's what I would love to do, you know, and sometimes you see that with like a movie like Garden State or Me and Earl and the Dying Girl that have really clever filmmaking sensibilities that are a little more auteur esque, auteur driven, but are still about like very holistic, entertaining, digestible, enjoyable, heartwarming concepts. Like, those are the movies I want to make. Like, I want to make movies that people quote lines from, you know, like, it's like, you know, they found me. I don't know how, but they found me. It's like, you know what I'm talking about. And it's like I love movies like Superbad and I love movies like Moonrise Kingdom and I'm a big like 80s 80s movies. Like, I'm really into like Back to the Future, but I'm a big like John Hughes fan and I love like so coming of age also. Like, I hold a really deep soft spot for coming of age because, you know, Covid kind of screwed shit up for me a little bit. Like I didn't get a high school graduation or a prom or whatever. And I hold that period of my life near and dear to my heart. And everybody experiences that. Like, everybody knows what it's like to be in high school. You know what I mean?
And I love capturing that feeling. So, yeah, that's. That's kind of the blend of stuff that I want to make quotable, entertaining, relatable, enjoyable.
[01:12:01] Speaker C: And you will. And you will.
[01:12:03] Speaker B: And you'll make the trailers too.
[01:12:05] Speaker A: And I'll make the trailers for those movies.
[01:12:07] Speaker B: Absolutely.
Yes, you will. And there will be not a lot of dialogue because that's the way you like it.
Perfect. Perfect. Well, this has been what a great interview. You have mentioned things that are so niche yet so, like, broadening at the same time. It's been really, really enlightening, personally talking to you and just I feel like Luke and I get re inspired through this podcast a lot.
Is there anything that you want to plug, you know, whether social media or, you know, anything, you know, that you've made recently?
[01:12:43] Speaker A: Well, I thank you for having me. This has been fun to talk about, you know, my experience and my journey. Like, I love talking trailers. I love talking movies. So thank you both for having me. And yeah, I mean, you can watch my movie the deep end on YouTube. Look up my name, Andrew Gerstenblatt. You know, all the stuff is on my website, Andrew Gerstenblatt.com or at a Gerstenblad on Instagram. All the trailers, all the movies are there. And, you know, I'm excited for what's to come next.
[01:13:12] Speaker B: Amazing.
[01:13:13] Speaker C: Thank you, Andrew. Appreciate it.
[01:13:14] Speaker A: Yeah, thank you guys.
[01:13:15] Speaker B: Thanks so much.
[01:13:19] Speaker C: Did you learn something? I'm like your mom. Did you learn something in this episode? I hope so. Or not. That's okay. Thanks for hanging. Make sure you follow us at the 5050fest on Instagram. And I think we have a TikTok. I don't know. Go check it out. Okay, bye.
