Film Matters Magazine

Jeremy Borum is a film composer and well-established artist in Hollywood. Not only has he composed for dozens of major projects, he teaches seminars, performs for enormous audiences, has built multiple studios, and even co-owns ZMX Music, a digital sheet music publisher. Most recently, his accomplishments include becoming a published author. After reading his end result, Guerrilla Film Scoring, I called him to talk about his inspirations for the book, and why he saw such an inherent need for a work such as this.

Ty Johnson: Tell me a bit about you and Guerrilla Film Scoring.

Jeremy Borum: I’m a pretty busy film composer and orchestrator in Hollywood. I’ve been doing this for a while, and I’ve always focused on large ensembles. So my expertise is with large orchestras and big bands; conducting, managing the sheet music, all of these sort of live elements, which are increasingly and unfortunately rare in this industry. People don’t get big orchestras all that often. So there’s an increasing need to, with a smaller budget and with a smaller time frame, still chart out something that sounds equally good as the live orchestra you wish you had. That was kind of the feed for the idea for the book. You know, the standards are not dropping, the expectations remain the same, but budgets and schedules are shrinking constantly, and so there needed to be some sort of a guide for how to actually do that without sacrificing your art, and that didn’t exist until I made it. Continue reading →

Stephen Lee Naish

Get your IMDb app ready, because Stephen Lee Naish loves to reference both mainstream and independent films in this interview with Film Matters intern, Lydia Plantamura. Writing on a range of subjects in American films from digital manipulation in film editing, to the Mumblecore subgenre of the Obama era, to the quirky career of Dennis Hopper, Naish has authored two books: U.ESS.AY: Politics and Humanity in American Film and Create or Die: Essays on the Artistry of Dennis Hopper. His anticipated third work, Deconstructing Dirty Dancing is set for release in April of 2017.

Lydia Plantamura: You introduce your first book, U.ESS.AY, as the result of your “dissatisfaction with contemporary American cinema.” Many film viewers would agree with you that the digital age has produced films that offer visual spectacle, but ultimately ring hollow. What are current American films missing?

Stephen Lee Naish: From a mainstream perspective, there is an obvious lack of originality in modern mainstream cinema that I feel every time I visit a multiplex. There is far too much reliance on reboots, sequels, comic book adaptations, and remakes. There is still a sense of creativity at play, but Hollywood is just a machine of extreme commerce. That being said, it’s like being a casual drug user. I take a hit of spectacle of cinema and feel utterly elated for a few hours. Then the effects wear off and I’m left feeling completely hollow. But, I’ll do it again the next week just to feel that same high again. Independent films are still providing complexity and engaging narratives, but they have no chance to compete among these bigger films. That I find disappointing. Continue reading →

Paten Hughes

When her acting career grew unsatisfying, Paten Hughes found escape in the tomato garden. But her hiatus from the industry produced more than delicious produce. Hughes’s experience inspired her to create the new hit web series, Heirloom (streaming now on Vimeo). Hughes worked with writer Bekah Brunstetter (This Is Us, Switched-at-Birth) to develop a story arc following the character of Emily, a New York City-based actress who ventures across the country to Northern California after she inherits a small patch of farmland from her uncle. Emily is played by Hughes herself, supported by an outstanding cast of co-stars including Ryan Cooper, Luis Vega, Margaret Colin (Gossip Girl), and Tom Wopat (Dukes of Hazard).

Lydia Plantamura: Heirloom is based on actual experiences. Can you share more of the true events that inspired the web series?

Paten Hughes: Heirloom basically started after some friends suggested I turn my adventures in tomato farming into a story for the screen. I had stumbled into tomato farming after a film project fell apart (story of many actors’ lives). At that point in my career, I had been watching my friends get married and have children and get promotions and buy houses. And I was waking up to a hustle, to a grind that is addicting but also exhausting and somewhat intangible. There are moments when being an actor feels a bit like building a sandcastle. You don’t know when a wave is going to come and wash it away; you don’t know when a bigger kid will accidentally step on it. But for brief moments here and there, you look at this mansion you’ve proudly and delicately carved. And then you start over again when a play ends, when the TV show is over, when a part gets given to someone else.

Paten Hughes

I was simultaneously frustrated with the roles I was being offered or some of the shitty things you go through auditioning. Feeling like I needed to reconnect to my creativity and what I was passionate about, I sort of found that by planting tomatoes. (To each their own!) I didn’t know anything about cooking or gardening or food or how to make invoices. The “real” Raul was a rock and constantly laughing at my farming ignorance. Without giving away too much of the story, I also ended up dealing with what you start to see in episode nine: one of the prices you pay for creating a successful business!

Continue reading →