A Seattle-born up-and-coming filmmaker who considers Saipan a second home is setting his sights on Hollywood with the completion of his first feature-length directorial debut, which will have its world premiere at the 2011 Guam International Film Festival.<\/p>\n
Joseph Weindl produced and directed Antihero, a \u201cfun, silly movie\u201d about best friends and comedic duo Pork Rind and Weezie who \u201cembark on an all-too-easy burglary spree\u201d after the former discovers \u201ca psychic power he never knew he had.\u201d<\/p>\n
The movie, which took 21 days spanning more than four weeks to film, stars mostly students and graduates of Virginia Commonwealth University\u2019s theater department\u2014Brian Gartland, Joe Carlson, Nicole Carter, and Ryan Asher\u2014who either volunteered or were paid very low fees.<\/p>\n
Described by Weindl as \u201cmostly a comedy, with a bit of adventure,\u201d Antihero is an 84-minute full-length feature film shot in and around Richmond neighborhood that would most likely give Harold & Kumar movies a run for their money, being a classic road-trip movie \u201cwith a supernatural twist.\u201d<\/p>\n
Currently working as a bartender in Richmond, Virginia, Weindl said via email that the inspiration for the film originated from an old-fashioned brainstorming session with some of his coworkers during a particularly slow shift at work.<\/p>\n
\u201cRestaurant work is kind of clich\u00e9 for actors and filmmakers, but the reason for that is that you can make an okay amount of money, while having a very flexible schedule, allowing you to actively pursue your artistic endeavors,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
But Weindl\u2014who graduated from Marianas High School, was a teacher at Saipan Southern High School, and built relationships with family and friends who are still on island\u2014was initially a film critic, writing movie reviews for the Saipan Tribune back in late 2004 to early 2005. While he enjoyed his critiquing stint, he said he \u201coften felt like I was on the wrong side of the pen.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cSo, in a way, my writing job with the [Saipan] Tribune served as a pretty major catalyst to get me to stop writing about movies, and to finally pick up a camera,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s when Weindl took off work for a month and, with the help of a filmmaker friend who served as his only crewmember, shot Antihero on a shoestring budget.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs fun as the process is, overall, there were many times when I just wanted to pull my hair out since I was forced to do so many things at the same time.\u201d <\/p>\n
His biggest challenge? Working around a limited budget. The movie eventually cost Weindl $5,000 for production and another $5,000 for post-production.<\/p>\n
Still, \u201cthe creative process involved with filmmaking is simply exhilarating, so there\u2019s really no comparison.\u201d<\/p>\n
Weindl said that having his directorial debut featured at the inaugural year of the Guam International Film Festival is \u201creally terrific\u201d for two reasons.<\/p>\n
\u201cFirst, it\u2019s personal. Even if only a couple of friends that I grew up with are able to attend, I\u2019ll be very happy about that. Secondly, I just really like this festival, and the people who are organizing it, both of whom are filmmakers themselves. I think a prominent festival like this could lead to an influx of filmmaking in the Mariana islands, if not all of Micronesia, and that would only be a good thing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Antihero is one of eight feature narrative films in the festival, which runs from Sept. 30 to Oct. 2.<\/p>\n
Weindl\u2019s film has also been included in the finalists for the prize of Best Made in the Marianas, the winner of which will be chosen by a grand jury composed of head juror Baltazar Aguon, who received a Master of Fine Arts in Screenwriting from the American Film Institute\u2019s Center for Advanced Film and Television Studies; Gabrielle Kelly, an Associate Arts professor at the New York University; Tom Brilsin, professor and chair of the University of Hawaii Academy for Creative Media; and Daniel Ferranti, who co-founded Boston\u2019s Acme Theatre. <\/p>\n
Weindl said he made Antihero \u201cas a way of showing what I\u2019m capable of, as a director, so that I might be able to attract investors for the next big project.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cI certainly hope this film leads to more being made in the future. In fact, that was the entire reason for making this movie,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Noting that majority of Hollywood\u2019s top directors did not receive professional filmmaking training, Weindl advised aspiring filmmakers \u201cto just start making movies\u201d after obtaining basic equipment like an inexpensive camera, a cheap personal computer, and PC editing-station.<\/p>\n
Weindl said the basics of filmmaking can be found in free tutorials online. \u201cFrom there, all you need is practice, practice, and more practice. Early on, it\u2019s normal for a first-time filmmaker to rely on friends and family for cast and crew. As your skills grow, so will your contacts, and the caliber of people who are willing to work with you. From there, all you need is patience, persistence, and a whole lot of gumption.\u201d<\/p>\n
The up-and-coming filmmaker said that Antihero is recommended only for adults as it \u201ccontains mature content and persistent use of language that some might find offensive.\u201d <\/p>\n
Weindl invites the mature public to watch Antihero, which screens at 11:15am on Sunday, Oct. 2 at Stadium 5 of the Micronesian Mall Stadium Theaters. Tickets are only $5 each.<\/p>\n
To learn about the movie and to view the trailer, visit www.antihero-movie.com. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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