About Terryville Kids Productions
Although my own personal origins as a filmmaker go way back (read the next section for what I have to say about that), it should be noted what this production company is, exactly. Well, first, it's probably not accurate to call it a "company," seeing as how nobody who's ever worked on any of these projects has seen a dime from them and probably never will. It's more or less a name, a banner, an ideal, that creative people gather under. It's a select group of people, chosen for their creative abilities and interests, who work together on a project, focused on a vision that by the time we are finished, we just might have something that's worth watching.
The cast and crew changes from one video to the next, and in most cases I'm the only common factor between any of them. But besides the obvious concept that we are all kids (I draw the title more from the context in which it's used in Kids in the Hall sketch comedy show than I do from our actual ages) and most of us are from Terryville (though that doesn't hold true as much as it use to now that I've left Connecticut), the title of "Terryville Kids Productions" lends some authenticity to the work. It gives a sense of ordinary teenagers creating something that's unique, and unique because it was our backgrounds, culture, and creativity that lent themselves to its creation. I use the name on most of the things I work on with other people because it is that scope of mind that makes them what they are.
In essence, I guess you could say that Terryville Kids Productions is much more an identity than it is an organization--but that alone makes it worthy of an individual name.
So collected here are my most prominent (that happen to be digitally available) works. At each page you'll find a list of cast and crew, synopsis, links to watch them on Google Video or YouTube and download them, links for you to check out some of the music we used in each, and my personal notes on how we filmed them, aspects of the shoot, some info about the actors, and other little pieces of trivia that you might not have otherwise picked up on by just watching them. All of your enjoyment.
Because, after all, we made them to be enjoyed by a viewing audience. If you have any comments, you're more than welcome to email me.
About My Work as a Filmmaker
Five years ago I picked up a camera to make my first film with some friends of mine. It wasn't a digital camera, or anything high-tech. It was at least ten years old, the kind where a full-sized VHS tape could be inserted. The camcorder's batteries had stopped working a long time ago so we had to bring hundreds of feet of extension cord to any location we went to. Because there was a delay in the recording function, our cameraman had to get accustomed to how much time there was between when he pushed the "record" button and when the camera started actually recording. Each time we had to do another take (which was often), we had to stop the tape, rewind to the beginning of the scene, and record it again.
The entire process was painstakingly tedious, but the results were worth it. By the time myself and my crew (three other guys who were dedicated to the work as much as I was) finished it, we were proud of what we had done. It was shown in school to the joyous approval of our friends and classmates.
The whole process of creating a video, even the simple five minute piece we first made, was intoxicating for me. There was the planning of every last line and detail of the original script, usually handwritten on sheets of notebook paper; the decision of how we were going to shoot it, whose house and in which rooms the scenes should take place; and basking in the final product after shooting the last scene, as editing was not an option with such antiquated equipment. The final product always filled us with a mix of emotions. We would laugh at the jokes we purposely put in the script and the odd ways we acted throughout the movie. We would point out all the little goofs in the camera work and what each of us were feeling at any given point in the feature. We would sit on the floor by the television and watch with suspense over what was going to happen next, even though we had finished taping just an hour or two beforehand.
The emotions that we felt making the film were felt by our audience, too. When we sat in the darkened classroom during the premiere of our first piece, we watched our classmates as they watched our creation. We watched them laugh at our antics and wisecracks. We watched them smile and their eyes widen as we flexed our thespian muscles to portray our shock, our sorrow, and our panache. We watched them sit at their desks with suspense as they anticipated what we were going to do next and where the story would take them.
It was then that I first realized what effect movies can have on people. I realized that with video we could communicate with each other on a unique level, one that could convey human sentiments unlike any other. There was a connection, through the magic of the motion picture, between those who created it and those who watched it. The laughter, emotion, and suspense that we felt in making the story come to life was shared by the audience who watched the story come alive for the first time. After we made our premiere feature, I decided to pursue a career in cinema. I decided that I wanted to learn everything I could about making this magical connection so I could make a living out of it. I wanted to be a part of this intoxicating rush of making a something like this from start to finish and spend the rest of my life repeating the process.
It was this desire that inspired me to create another five minute film a few weeks later and a full twenty-minute short thereafter. With it I started to develop my own personal style to how I approached the process. My satire and wit created both aspects of the script and aspects of the shoot. My hopeless romanticism underlined each character�s actions and reactions to any given circumstance. Over the course of these three videos, my own unique and recognizable voice started to develop.
Today my camera is a top-of-the-line digital video Panasonic. The battery lasts an hour, eliminating the need for piles of extension cord. I can edit scenes on my computer in ways that I never dreamed were possible back then. The scripts are neatly typed and printed. Music is added in post production, so I no longer need to carry around a keyboard to provide the soundtrack. I don't rewind the tape when I make mistakes (although I still make just as many). The magical connection that I try to make with the audience, however, is still just as much of a challenge and just as rewarding as when I picked up that old camera five years ago.