Film Courage: What do you love about being a director?
Tom Oesch, Writer/Director of DANGER ONE Movie: Good question. I mean this might sound cheesy and I’ve said this before but it kind of goes back to the experience of me being 13 and seeing something so awe-inspiring as JURASSIC PARK.
And again if that film hadn’t been made, my life would have been completely different. Like if I hadn’t seen that movie…that Saturday afternoon put me on a very specific path in life. If that hadn’t happened I would not have moved half-way across the world, I wouldn’t have gone to USC, I wouldn’t have met hundreds of interesting people here in LA, I wouldn’t be speaking English 24/7 (I would be speaking German), and I would have never made this movie.
As a matter of fact, none of these people that I met on this movie would have ever met each other. It’s just insane how it snowballs just because someone made a movie.
And I’m not saying I’m going to make JURASSIC PARK (because that’s absurd) because it’s so good. But the idea…and maybe that’s just me being sentimental…the idea that a movie, that some day, some where in this world, some kid might see the thing you’ve made, and respond to it in a certain way for whatever reason and then decide to pursue a certain path in life, that’s pretty wild you know? To affect someone’s life like that with something like a movie, we’re not doing brain surgery.
And again maybe this will never happen, I’m just me being sentimental, but I like that this could happen.
And I think I said this before, just because my life is very structured and organized on normal days, there’s no routine to direct and to be on set. It yanks you out of that routine and you kind of just get thrown in the deep end of the pool and it’s exciting, it’s thrilling. And also because so many things could go wrong. It just kind of feels that you’re parachuting out of plane (it’s a little adventure) and even on this film (like on any production) there were moments where there was a lot of tension and people bumped heads but I would always tell them like Guys, we could be sitting in an office right now doing nine-to-five and then go home. We’re in Vernon crawling around in this creepy neighborhood telling story. How amazing is that?
Oftentimes it will click with people and they’ll be like Yeah, you’re right. And every day is so different. There is no day that is just like the other one because you’re at a new location, there are new actors, and that’s just an amazing job. And I don’t even look at it as a job, you just feel very alive. You feel like Oh, my God! Now you’re living life because it’s so the opposite of routine.
Film Courage: And is it too the sense of possibility that everything could totally fail? And there is that challenge of trying to keep it from not failing…it’s almost like a game?
Tom: Yes, and when I say you almost feel alive maybe that’s just the anxiety of Oh my God, everything could go wrong. But you just feel very awake. I mean you obviously don’t want it to go wrong but I look at it as a little adventure.
Film Courage: So then on the flipside, what do you dislike about being a director?
Tom: I mean I guess it’s…and we’ve addressed it before…it’s the waiting game. It’s the stuff between the directing where it’s just like you’re getting your stuff out there, you’re hoping it’s going to click with someone and it’s a lot of waiting before people take weeks to get back to you. So once the ball gets rolling it’s the most awesome thing. It’s just the in between, you know. Because especially as freelancers you’re always (and I know a lot of actors and editors, they all feel the same way), you think you’re never going to work again every time you’re not working. You’re like This is the last time. I’m never going to get another job. So the downtime is no fun.
But you try to fill that time with creating new stuff, getting things ready so when you meet that next person that wants to make something, you have things to show.
Film Courage: I’ve heard some people saying they like that not knowing in-between because if someone has had a 9-to-5 job, it’s like an endless just calendar full of…you know exactly what’s going to happen, pointless meetings and meetings about meetings.
Tom: Oh, you mean when you have a 9-to-5 job, the downtime then?
Film Courage: No, when you don’t have that. Some people enjoy that not knowing, there is something very thrilling about…even though it’s scary there is something…so you’re saying like a high…
Tom: It’s similar guess then…(Watch the video on Youtube here)
WATCH THE TRAILER TO ‘DANGER ONE’
https://youtu.be/ve95enHIVUs
CONNECT WITH TOM OESCH
IMDB
Instagram
Like this video? Please subscribe to our Youtube channel. Or love this video and want more? You can show additional support via our Youtube sponsor tab (hit the JOIN button on the front page of our Youtube channel in the upper right hand corner or underneath any video if watching on Youtube) or through Patreon.
Advertisement – contains affiliate links:
Lights, Camera, Save! is a teen video contest that encourages teens to educate themselves and their peers about the value of saving and using money wisely. Each fall students enter the contest by submitting videos to local participating banks. These banks then choose a local winning video and submit it for judging at the national level. No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited.
Film Music Mentor – A Youtube channel for filmmakers, television producers, content creators and media professionals of all kinds. Film Music Mentor will help you circumvent problems even the most seasoned professionals face.
Multiple award-winning composer/music producer Andrew Markus breaks down every challenge that motion picture creators face in the process of putting music in their projects. Why it works and why it fails.
How should a screenwriter approach a producer especially if they have little or no credits? What do producers look for in a script? What should the independent producer focus on when attempting to get a production off of the ground? What do financiers look for? How do I make the most of the small crew and budget that I have? Join us on Tuesday, November 13th from 7-9pm (the night includes a Q&A).
