Interview with Alex Emmert : X-pose.net

Jeff (X-pose): You graduated from Harvard, how did you wind up going into making films from that? Did you alwayswant to be a film maker or did that come around later?

Alex: While pursuing my Master's degree in Classics, I started to chomp at the bit. I had every intention of becoming a career academic, a Professor of History, and that would have been a splendid life in my opinion. But my nature needed challenge, and so I ceased study at the Master's level and rather than pursuing my PhD I started off on another course entirely, that of an Executive Recruiter in Manhattan's Silicon Alley. I rose to a high level within my company; from initially placing Electrical Engineers and other manufacturing job orders in Silicon Technology, I went up the food-chain and was recruiting CFOs, COOs and CEO candidates. I was glued to the phone in my office for 14 hours a day, unless I was out schmoozing the clients and candidates. It was getting a bit old, and I needed a social milieu outside of work. So I started hanging out at a writer/actor's bar in the Theater District and talking to the people there about acting, dialogue, plots and themes, etc. It was there that I started becoming excited about writing in script for the ideas that rolled around in my head. I heard through the grapevine there about a role in a production of George Bernard Shaw's SAINT JOAN, and asked the principals if I could audition for the part. They accepted, and I got the role. I loved it, absolutely loved being on stage, acting, the whole process behind it. I shortly thereafter started working in film and television, since I was more attracted to the naturalistic style of acting, rather than theatrical staging/blocking/expression. But being a large-scaled thinker and having that background of History, it was film that really held the best medium of expressing my stories, and i began to write and develop ideas while learning by observation what was going on on film sets.

Jeff : Your first film, The Judas Kiss, recently finished filming and is now in post production phase. Tell me some of your experiences on the set and behind the scenes that surprised you, lessons learned ,and advice for new film makers on their first movie

Alex: The set is a great place to be: full of life, action and amazing surprises. Probably the best things that happen on the set are those moments when you see an actor really channel the character, "become" the role, especially in an important scene to the plot. There are always problems and weird situations that come up, especially if you are filming outdoors or using natural light...There aren't enough hours in the day, and weather can turn in a moment! That having been said, I think the best advice I could give is to be thorough, be prepared, have setback plans and contingencies and really be generous with you actors. And most importantly: get the best actors you can find, that you can afford. They will represent your words, they have to capture and translate your characters for people who don't know the material, and they have to be interesting to look at as these people. There was a tremendous learning curve for me with "The Judas Kiss"...I had to play artist, businessman, logistical wiz and negotiator. It wasn't easy, and there were many problems that came into being because it was my first film and I was so green. But learning to absorb and rise above those challenges, solve the dilemmas and do what was needed to do the film the way I wanted to was an amazing experience that I'll never forget.

Jeff : Being that i am a "net guy" i have to ask this since i am fascinated by the fact that you used myspace so much for finding your cast and crew, tell me about how that worked out and give me a little commercial for myspace from Invictus films

Alex: Haha...OK. Most of the crew came from Temple University's film school, and I have no connections there. It's actually a Top 10 film program, and that's not very well known in the area or in the general public. I basically found them by posting a crew call on MySpace, going through the responses, then meeting the top candidates for beers on South Street! There was some attrition, but the core of the crew stuck through the entire process and we're all MySpace buds! hehehe...It proved to be a valuable resource for that reason, and also for smaller parts and extras. Additionally, it has been a way to get the word out about the film and also network toward future, cooperative endeavors. There are so many cinephiles and filmies on MySpace, with their own ways of networking and promoting themselves, getting help with cast and crew, etc. But for the most part the Classified section, the bulletin board and groups (there is now an Invictus Films group on MySpace) is how I have hired people, found sets and set dressings and promoted from the grass roots level.

Jeff : Tell me about your first project, the Judas kiss.. sell the movie to me as a fan in the theater, what's it about and why should i see it

Alex: During the past 6 years, we've seen lots of legal and perceptual intrigue in American politics; from the Whitewater investigation to a concerted effort to marginalize dissenting voices by the standard, corporate media during the preparation for and the invasion and fighting in Iraq. It was this I was thinking of when I took an idea that my mother had cooked up, and gave it flesh, bone, psychology and vital force through voices and personalities. "The Judas Kiss" is a tale about the political betrayals of McCarthyism, and the personal betrayals between people. The characters in the story are entertainers, and their perceptions tilt toward their own dramas, on stage, on film, and off. It is only through performance, be that in front of a committee that can pass sentence, to their familiars or their lovers, that they can play out their love, jealousy, malice and absolution. The love triangle between the main three characters, played out against the backdrop of McCarthy's hearings, deepens their feelings of betrayal toward one another but ultimately leads to their redemption as human beings. The larger the betrayal, the more salient the redemption.

Jeff : Tell me just ONE piece of art, weather it be music, film, poetry, painting, etc that affected you and changed your life and how

Alex: I have always loved film, stage, acting and writing, but knew I had to become a filmmaker one day after seeing "The Insider" by Michael Mann. I consider that to be the best executed, most creative synthesis of true story, dramatic license, fascinating characterizations, acting portrayals and photography I have ever seen. It took a few years for me to get there, but that tale of private power (business), personal conviction and media manipulation was the most influential work that influenced not only my choice of vocation, but the types of themes I emphasize.

Jeff : Tell me a bit about the projects your working on now and what the future holds for the creative minds at Invictus films

Alex: We would really like to continue to political and historical angles in the films we produce, and want to make memorable, philosophical statements with those stories. We are presently in talks with Miramax about coproduction of "The Bonus Army", a Depression Era political/action film, and attempting to move a few projects in development into preproduction as indies. We also have our fingers in a few other pies: cable TV pilots and rock video production, so we are busy and quite driven to grow our little ProdCo into a larger, more recognized entity.