Brent Nowak

Guest: Brent Nowak

Projects: Harvest Moon: Horror
Nightmare: Horror (short)

Production Company: Cedar Street Productions

http://www.harvestmoonmovie.com/
http://www.cedarstreetproductions.com/nightmare.html

Brent Nowak was tonight’s guest. He kind of reminded me of one of my college buddies who I haven’t seen in forever. That was cool. His film Harvest Moon sounds like a great example of Micro/ No budget filmmaking. You can definitely see the humility and appreciation in Brent for having gone through the process and gotten his film done.

As a first time feature film director, Brent also shared the process of preparing, and his working relationship with, his Dp Matt Boyd. For horror fans or filmmakers, Brent also broke down how he and his visual effects supervisor, Lincoln Smith, made it happen with minimal resources. I think we had a good exchange on this topic, important for filmmakers of any genre that will be utilizing visual effects.

In talking about why he chose horror for this film and for his immediate future as a filmmaker, Brent correctly points out that it is a hot genre that is “easier to sell, especially if you’re working without stars and on a shoestring budget then other genre’s.”

A general cautionary note I would offer to filmmakers is that more and more horror is being made as result of the fact that horror is kind of known right now as being the “it” genre; so, it is a train that has a lot of people riding it. Brent adds the importance of having a good story, which is great and also true. I would add, the importance of trying to find something original to bring to your project, and the importance of having a good marketing plan. These things may help to distinguish your gore from someone else’s gore; and perhaps most importantly, don’t get lazy thinking that oh you’re doing horror so it’s going to be a piece of cake. Still make the effort to try and get “names”. Still pay as much attention to all the aspects of filmmaking, preparation, rehearsing actors, etc., to make the best film possible. And, don’t rely on gore and nudity to sell your film. In the end you’ll make a better movie if you do. (Though I must admit, gore and nudity have sold many a film :), at the micro level don’t rely on it is all I’m trying to say.)

So what would Brent do over again if he could? Well, he made some great points here about working with different types of actors that if you haven’t already, take a look and listen to the show!

*Updates (04/25/07) The film was in post production as of this airing and has since been completed ** On the show, Brent mentioned he got a good deal on his digital camera rental from www.indierentals.com I checked their site. It looks good. Especially the P & S Technik Mini 35 lens adapter. Current rates look to be even lower then when Brent was on the show. (As of this writing $850 a week)

Thanks for tuning in!

Jeff Schubert
www.myspace.com/powerofnow