Brett Ashby - Interview

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Two films that have marked your life for better or for worse…

For better: Camille Claudell, with Isabelle Adjani and Directed by Bruno Nuytten. It’s cinematically beautiful and the story, which is true, is quite powerful.  For worse (but through no fault of the director or cast):  A Girl Named Sooner, with Susan Deer and Directed by Delbert Mann. I saw it as a child and only remember the scene at the end... when Sooner, the protagonist’s beloved parakeet gets stoned by the kids she was trying to be accepted by.  Because Sooner was so desperate to be accepted and belong, she remained frozen and was unable to stop these terrible kids from hurting the one thing that was most important in her life, her bird. As for the bird, it was so loving and trusting that it never tried to move away from the stones that pelted it. That scene haunted me my entire childhood so that even to this day I would not be able to see it again.   




What do you think about Acting/ filmmaking schools?

I do not have personal experience with acting or filmmaking schools per se, but I know that top talent has emerged from them. In general, I think that anything that gets a person to the next level in their trade is great.  But I also feel that whatever a person decides to do, they need to do it for all the right reasons and have a unique vision...or something to contribute that’s meaningful. And of course, passion is an essential ingredient. If they have these things, then they should be okay, especially when the road gets difficult, the days long, and they start questioning everything. 


Have you ever hated your ambition?



Well, to be totally honest, yes. I have often wondered what it would be like to just kind of go through without having life this driving quest pushing me to go forward because it doesn’t really let me ever rest. I don’t mean that I want to achieve or accomplish great things to make a name for myself. I really don’t care about this. What I care about is to be in a position to change the world for the better on both a macro level and a micro level and to be able to reach the people who most need it. With respect to film, an example of this might be helping someone to feel less alone. Or perhaps I can inspire people to learn more about a historical figure or epoch or maybe see the world in a different way and to see things not just both ways but in all ways.


Francois Truffaut used to think that "Film Lovers are sick people…” was he right?



The “gravedigger of French Cinema.” Well, I suppose he meant that “film lovers are sick...” because many of them are addicted to watching or creating films and this is its own sickness in a way because they are continuously compelled to do this as if they have no free will. Perhaps he had also tired of his own relentless ambition because it had led to some serious challenges in his relationships and life. Whatever the case may be, being truthful or pushing forward a unique artistic vision is not often easy because it can alienate a lot of people for different reasons; and the truth is, no one really wants to stand alone. Maybe in the end all he wanted was to just sit in silence and stare at a blank wall without having to feel this overriding need to create or analyze anything.


Close your eyes…if I say “Cinema” what do you see?



An ocean of endless possibilities.


Who’s the Director\Actor\Writer that taught you the most?



There is no single person that I can think of but rather I’d like to think that I borrow my inspiration from many... and there is so much talent out there! I am a big fan of early Italian and French films by iconic directors, but I am also inspired by some of the films from the 70’s and 80’s and even 90’s and beyond. Just recently I watched: Le Cheval d’Orgueil or The Horse of Pride, a rural drama directed by Claude Chabrol. One of the things that struck me the most about this film, which is from 1980, is that every single scene was cinematically stunning. I mean, when you can literally freeze each frame in a film’s sequence and recognize it as its own legitimate work of art, then that’s just incredible. At least to me.  I also love black & white American films from the 1950’s and was crazy about Rod Serling’s series, The Twilight Zone, as a kid. And as for writers, I tend to favor the old European school of writers, but I also love Charles Bukowski, Joan Didion, Oscar Wao and of course many, many others. 


About your job, tell us your biggest dream and your worst nightmare…

My biggest dream is to change the world for the better in some way and to perfect my skills as a researcher and a writer along the way. I do feel that making films can be one highly effective avenue to reach this end and for this reason, I have promised myself that if any of my films make money, a portion of all proceeds will be donated.

As for my worst nightmare, it would be to live a life devoid of passion and meaning; to just kind of drift along like a boat with

 no sail or course.


How important is to have a good Cinematographic Culture?



I think the role of having a positive cinematographic culture is essential because it has the unique power to not only inspire new ideas, stories, and even artforms, but it also enlightens and educates the viewer on important topics in ways that they might not be reached otherwise. 

Some years back, when I wrote for a wonderful award-winning literary magazine that is sadly no longer around, I worked on an inspiring project with Harriet Mayor Fulbright. Many people will have heard of the Fulbright Scholarships but not be aware of the incredibly important work that the late Senator Fulbright’s wife, Harriet Mayor Fulbright, has done over the course of her lifetime. The project we worked on together involved dialogues centered around peace and cultural understanding through the arts. She was so inspirational to be around and her vision crystal clear. She felt very strongly that art could save us as a race because of its ability to reach many people at once while stripping away the barriers to understanding.  I remember that she’d travel the world as an arts ambassador and give these amazing speeches to very large audiences. My point is, all of this goes back to having a positive cinematic culture because it’s all in the art of the lens, the dialogue, in looking at things in all ways and from each side that can truly make a difference in this world. What do we have to lose?


What would you like to improve as a Filmmaker?



As a writer I would like to be able to express exactly what I see in my head and feel creatively in my heart but with an economy of words and cinematic vision. So, in other words, reducing everything to its most elemental form by keeping it simple but incredibly powerful.


A big producer gives you the chance to direct\to play (in) the remake of one of your favorite black and white Movies (if you have one)…what film do you choose?

 

I would possibly choose Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds” because I love birds and have always found that scene where the birds look like they are attacking the protagonist hysterically funny but rather sad. I heard that Hitchcock had their beaks taped shut and their feet tied which is not a very nice way to treat pigeons, especially since they don’t attack people. So, I would probably remake that scene. As for the European films I love, I don’t think I can make them any better. If I did it would be for tiny things like making a scene last a few seconds longer or perhaps changing a few words in the dialogue or the emphasis on certain words. Sometimes these small things can make a difference. I might have the soundtracks remixed too.

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The Film Industry is a tough place and sometimes it’s normal to feel lost and discouraged… who’s the person that keeps you motivated? 

Hmmm...I think I keep myself motivated. Every industry or profession can make one feel totally alienated or discouraged at times but at the end of the day, I always remember that it’s only me that I need to answer to and this always helps.


Alfred Hitchcock said: "To make a good film you need 3 things: The script, the script and the script".  Do you agree with him?

What’s your most ambitious project for the future?

I agree with Hitchcock in the sense that without great content there is no point. However, I think the role of the director/filmmaker is enormous because if they are talented enough, they can take a weak script and rework it with some magic so that the visuals carry it almost entirely. Of course, a great director is unlikely to take on a poorly conceived script or story in the first place though.




Do you think that sadness or at least melancholy lets you be more creative?

My life has been full of many mountains and many valleys and some of these valleys have been quite deep. When Fellini said “You have to live spherically – in many directions. Never lose your childish enthusiasm...”  I think he meant that life can’t be fully understood or appreciated without being able to exist on these different planes of existence... and sadness (or melancholy), is just one of these planes. However, a child-like enthusiasm is also needed because seeing the world through the lens of a child is not only beautiful but also necessary because it is the innocence and purity of that vision that is essential in conveying a deeper truth... and it is this truth that in the end can carry you through.  But I am also reminded of what Goethe once wrote, “the soul that sees beauty may sometimes walk alone.”

I also do believe there is a reason why many talented artists suffer from depression, and this goes back to them being born with an incredible capacity or gift to understand things from a very deep, almost elemental level; and of course, seeing things from this perspective can be very painful. I like to think of it as flying at a different cruising altitude. The higher you go the more you can see how everything is connected to everything else, but the downside is the fall can be steep. I think it’s far easier to go through life at an altitude of 5,000 feet than 40,000 feet and be immune from this often very real undercurrent of what I call reality sadness... but then of course you’d risk losing the incredible richness of life’s many layers. And creativity is often (but not always) born from a place of pain, struggle and the desire to reach out and be heard.




What do you wish to yourself as a Filmmaker?

For me personally it is essential to remain truthful to myself and to not create anything that isn’t inspired or at least felt from an honest and very deep place inside.