Interview John P. Fleenor

I got the chance to interview filmmaker John P. Fleenor. His current project really intrigued me.  The connection between humans and animals is remarkable.  I myself have  two cats (brothers who are rescues) and I can attest to that bond.  Read on to find out more about John's current project, his favorite filmmaker and a whole lot more.





What is the current project you are working on?

Well, this particular project is a feature-length Documentary
titled “Unconditional Companion”, a project that has its beginnings around the turn of the century (1999 I believe). In its current form, it consists of about 50 mini-DV tapes of all makes, created on about 6 different types of cameras and has no real sustainable story line, look or theme.

As I recall, there was a phone call from Heidi Huebner, a Producer and Animal Lover friend of mine asking me if I wanted to go to Seattle with her and another Producer named Carl Peoples. What sealed the deal for me going on the trip was the fact that I would be shooting with my Cinematography Mentor, Jeff Orsa. Our original goal was to just capture a story about a local Veterinarian who twice a month ran a free clinic to homeless people who had pets however, over the following few years that grew into an orgy of ideas and concepts, all of which took on their own momentum and “Unconditional Companion” took a back seat.

There might, at one time, have been some sort of rough edit, but nothing useable and all of the tapes ended up in an Agent friend’s office at UTA for years, Ruthanne Secunda I believe it was. Around 2004 I approached Heidi as to the whereabouts of the original tapes, the “uncompleted project” was gnawing at me really bad. We retrieved the tapes and I poured over them, searching for the story (a backwards approach to be sure) but it was clear that the “story” had not yet been captured. At that time, the entire project had been self-funded and the pockets were growing very empty and it was then when I came up with the idea of doing a Photographic Gallery show. The show would feature still images of homeless people who had pets, a 5-minute cut of “Unconditional Companion” as a teaser and all the proceeds from that show would go towards the making of the Documentary.

Well, to wrap this up, the show was a huge success but failed to generate the funds we wanted. Fast foreword a couple of years, we have now teamed up with Kickstarter to raise the necessary funds to finally shoot this story in the way it has always needed to be told and I couldn’t be more excited about it. You can follow us here…




http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/49526936/unconditional-companion

Did you always want to be a filmmaker?

I never knew what I wanted to be. If ADD had been “discovered” in the
80’s when I was in grade school, I would have been a textbook case. I
liked drawing, daydreaming and watching movies and TV. In Art School,
I became obsessed with the screenplay format, it was just the coolest
damn thing I had ever seen, so I started to write shorts (on a thing called a Word Processor) and they all sucked as stories, but looked super cool. My first Professional job was (and still is) a Photographer. Filmmaking is very similar to the Photography process, it’s all about the process and collaboration, one giant, silly mess that somehow ends up being a completed project.

So to answer that question specifically, no. I did not always want to be a filmmaker.

What inspired you to become filmmaker?

The desire to tell a story in a visual way, besides waving my hands around and drawing “air-pictures” is the main reason I make films. It’s a sexy job that touches the lives of just about everyone on the planet, yet at best, only about 2% of people have any clue as how those movies and TV shows they are watching are made. Public as the whole business is, it’s still a giant mystery… something about that makes me smile.

What is the best thing about being a filmmaker?

The absolute best thing about being a filmmaker is working with the super talented and dedicated craftspeople who actually make the project for you. There is nothing a good crew cannot do.

What is the worst thing about being a filmmaker?

Convincing people that your project is worth investing time and money
in, I would say, has to be the absolute worst part of being a Filmmaker.

Pitching projects ranks up there with getting a root canal, it’s not going to pleasurable on any level and leaves a lingering, lifeless pain.

What is the estimated number of projects you have worked on?

You can see a good chunk of my “projects” on imdb…
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0003379/
However, imdb doesn’t show Commercials (I’ve done about 12), Music
Videos (I’ve done about 8), PSA’s (I’ve done about 4) and all the hundred’s of “friends” projects that you do over the course of your career. I have been in LA working steadily since 1998; there really are a bunch of projects I have totally forgotten about.

Who is your favorite filmmaker?

Orson Welles… Someone else has made films?

What is one piece of advice you can give to someone who also wants to
make it in the movie business?

There is one thing that working on a ton of shows over the years has
taught me, it’s what NOT to do. Watching other’s fail miserably due to lack of communication, horrible people skills and simple poor planning is a big eye opener. As with any endeavor, the more you know about how it’s done, the better at doing it you will be. Watch how the great ones, or the people who you like their style, are doing things. There are several ways of becoming a filmmaker, but knowing the basics of the process is a must. I’m not saying go out there and PA on 50 shows to build up your chops, but at least have a fundamental idea of what you are doing. I swear, I have worked with Directors who scream “Action” before the camera is even rolling. That story is not as funny when you are into hour 16 of a Monday and you know that by Friday, call time is going to be 8pm.

Things I have picked-up along the way to become a great Filmmaker, use them or not. A) Get a good Crew and trust them. No one wants to be on a crappy show and they will go out of their way not to let it happen. B) Trust your Crew. More than not, they have already done what it is you are looking to do and they know how to do it quicker/safer/better. Think about it, people on the Crew go from show-to-show-to-show, sometimes working with 15-30 different Projects/Actors/Producers/Directors a year. How many shows does a normal feature Director do a year? 1? 2? 3? I’m not suggesting you abandon your shot list, storyboards or scene, just allow yourself to have an open ear. C) The person on the Set who knows the least is the person yelling the loudest. Don’t be that person. D) Trust your gut.

How would you describe your film education?

My real film education began the day I drove out to LA and went right to work on a “freebie” for 2 weeks. I started off as a Grip/Electric (why does every Producer think that those jobs are the best for inexperienced people, I mean, really?) and by the end of that week I was the entire Crew, literally everyone had quit except for the Director, Actors, DP and me. That was the best education in “Guerilla Filmmaking” ever. For someone to break into this business, you have to be quick and smart. Now I’m not saying you have to know everything, but just seem like you do as you are secretly figure it all out. To this day, I still see something new or different on set and I love that, it keeps me waking up the next day for more.

How would you describe the film "scene" where you live?

I live in LA, that’s all there is in my world. “Did you hear about XYZ?” “Did you know XYZ is going to be in the new XYZ movie?” “You know they are making another XYZ!” “XYZ is on set.” “XYZ just stuck his/her fingers in the m&m’s and I saw him/her come out of the honey wagon and they didn’t wash their hands.”

How has social media changed the independent film industry?

Like everything else in the new tech world, social media has allowed the small voice to be heard by many people, instantly. Being able to cover the world by just making a few posts is amazing and powerful. Not having to have a VCR/DVD player, TV, all the cables, remotes and crap with you at all times to show you project is HUGE! Fear it and die! A great person once said, or I’m making this up, “There is nothing wrong with Shameless Self-Promotion.”

How does independent film differ from the mainstream?

What a great question. I have always joked about how much “passion”
there is on the Independent Film sets vs. that of the larger gigs. Usually once you go beyond the “Independent” line with your film, many, many, many different hands grab hold of your project and it isn’t allowed to stay true to your original vision. Not having “heavy hands” on your project allows for much more creative freedom for filmmakers (Docs still seem to be the most free). There is nothing wrong with creating a modest film that most likely will never be seen by anyone outside festivals, I know because I have worked on MANY of them. I mean seriously, the difference is night and day. Show “A” has a $45K budget or show “A” has a $65 Million budget, do you think there is going to be any change in how you go into Pre-Production on those?

You could go back in time and see any classic film being made. Which film
would it be?

Casablanca

You could be any animal. Which would you be?

A Pelican

You could have any super power. What would it be?

Flying

Thanks to John for taking the time to do this interview.   Good luck with documentary I hope to get the chance to review “Unconditional Companion”