I started making films at fifteen with my friend Michael Rex (now a celebrated children's book author and illustrator) and his dad's Super 8 movie camera. We made stop-motions, recreated scenes from our favorite movies, invented a super-hero called "Bullet Man", and, finally, made our masterpiece, "The Pest", combining live-action and stop-motion, about a tiny monster created in a microwave that terrorizes its creator (me). Alas, all of these have been lost to time.
Soon after, I started directing plays. I loved theater and even met my wife on stage (we acted in the same production of Neil Simon's "Come Blow Your Horn"). But I never lost the desire to make movies - it just took me a dozen years to get back to it.
When I did, I formed a production company, Off Stage Films, with my best friend, Chris Furlong. We shot short films, commercials, industrials, and more. Along the way, we won some awards and I opened NJ Film School to share my love of filmmaking with the next generation of filmmakers.
Below is the trailer for The Strange Dark, my feature length film (now streaming on Amazon Prime and Apple TV). You can also find some short films I directed for Off Stage Films many year ago.
Feature: Sci-Fi/Thriller - 84 Minutes
Edgar believes he can see the future, but his wife thinks he's mad, his daughter thinks he's strange, and the agents from double star accounting will stop at nothing to get their data back.
The Strange Dark played at 27 film festivals and was nominated for 34 awards (winning thirteen). Fun fact: the film was cut by Emmy-nominated editor of "Severance", Erica Freed Marker, ACE, but the trailer was edited by me.
Branches
Short: Holiday - 6 Minutes
A holiday tradition, four friends trudge through the snow in search of the perfect Christmas tree. What they discover in the woods are lessons to last a lifetime.
Branches was shot in the middle of February at Crystal Springs Tree Farm in Pennsylvania with over a foot of snow on the ground. The highlight of the production was getting to work with Daniel Stern as our narrator. Having loved him in "Breaking Away", as the wet bandit in "Home Alone", and the voice of "The Wonder Years", it was wonderful to discover he cared about this unusual story of friendship as much as we did.
Facade
Short: Drama - 4 Minutes
Sarah's smile can light up a room, but the pain inside burns even brighter.
As a massive fan of silent films, I love the challenge of telling a story without dialogue. This was adapted from a one-page script and was an easy day shoot with the biggest challenge being figuring out how to do the makeup effects.
One Saved Message
Short: Drama - 3 Minutes
Emily's answering machine holds the memory of her love and the key to moving on.
Another one-page script, this one was created for a filmmaking contest about loss. This was inspired by my stepfather, Mark, who died suddenly at 37 - I always remember the day we deleted his voice off our answering machine.
Letters to Penthouse
Short: Drama - 8 Minutes
A lonely paraplegic keeps the young woman who cares for him at arm's length, masking a loneliness he shares only with his typewriter.
This was a challenging shoot with interiors shot in Montclair, NJ and exteriors shot in Brooklyn, NY. It is my most viewed short, but only because viewers are hoping for a much sexier film.
The Hunter
Short: Thriller - 4 Minutes
A search party combs the woods for a lost little girl.
This was my third film (as an adult). It stars my daughter (a frequent actress in my early films) and my father (making his only appearance). It was never as scary as I wanted it to be and my daughter never quite forgave me for having her teeth molded, but the bloopers from this film are some of my all-time favorites.
The Bad Cat
Short: Black Comedy - 6 Minutes
When a little girl's cat misbehaves, it's up to her to get revenge.
My first film with my daughter (who was 6 at the time). Working with children and animals is not easy. Two untrained cats are in this film and they hated every minute of it. This film and The Hunter were both created for Music in the Dark - a silent NYC Film Festival where composer Michael Whalen would compose music live in front of the audience (like the old days of silent cinema).
The Aggie
Short: Fantasy - 3 Minutes
An introverted nine year old boy living in the suburbs is obsessed with a marble and annoyed by the distractions of his family and a curious neighborhood girl.
This was my first film (as an adult). Like many of my early films, it's rough around the edges, but I still love this Twilight Zone inspired story about a boy who may or may not be modeled on my own childhood.
