Since as long as I can remember, cinema was the media form I connected to the most. My early onset cinephilia eventually transformed into a craving to create my own films.
Welcome to Hurwitz.TV’s Directors Interview Series, where we chat with some of the most influential filmmakers from all over the world.
In this series, you’ll have the opportunity to gain profound insights from the minds and creative journeys of these cinematic storytellers. Our goal is to explore the art of filmmaking, discover the inspirations and motivations that drive these directors, and delve into the captivating stories behind their remarkable works. From seasoned veterans to emerging talents, we talk about their artistic influences, memorable experiences, and the challenges they’ve faced along the way.
Today, I am joined by Toronto-based filmmaker Ben Shane, who recently released his short film “Skip Credits?” on streaming. We talked about his cinematic journey, mentorship, inspiration, the challenges and rewards of filmmaking, and his creative process.
Dennis: Thank you for joining us! To kick things off, can you share the story of you wanting and deciding to become a filmmaker? What drove you to pursue this career path?
Ben: Since as long as I can remember, cinema was the media form I connected to the most. My early onset cinephilia eventually transformed into a craving to create my own films. I’ve always been the crazy guy amongst my friends to rewatch movies a dangerous amount of times (I’ve seen Oppenheimer seven times, an embarrassing number), and the precedent of such was set at the very beginning when the first two films I had seen in theaters were Finding Nemo, and Finding Nemo again the weekend after. I feel very fortunate and privileged to have always been in a position where family has supported my aspired career path from the very start.
Dennis: What was the greatest piece of advice given by a mentor that shaped the artist that you are today?
Ben: Two pieces of advice from two different people that fall in the same category.
- Never take commercial work.
2. As soon as you have to worry about paying rent, all other priorities get thrown out the window. Yes, I still live with Mom. In this economy?
Dennis: Which movies and filmmakers inspired you the most?
Ben: Having grown up in Toronto, Edgar Wright’s Scott Pilgrim vs. the World being released in theaters when I had just turned nine years old seriously changed my brain chemistry. Similarly, at thirteen, Linklater’s Boyhood was the first indie film I had seen on the big screen, opening my eyes to a whole other world of film. Lastly, having obsessed over the 6-minute prologue (that played before Star Wars 9), TENET was the perfect film for me to have re-opened theaters during the pandemic, in all its IMAX 70mm glory.
Dennis: What are the most challenging and rewarding parts of making a movie?
Ben: The most challenging part of filmmaking, in my opinion, is pre-production. The mental ticking clock anticipating the first shoot day always seems to move faster than expected, and it’s quite impossible to be prepared enough during this phase. People you need get sick, and stuff takes longer in the mail than you expect, it’s just scary and anxiety-inducing. The best filmmakers are those who in my opinion can work efficiently under the pressure of it.
The most rewarding aspect of filmmaking is likely the score-composing process for me. I’d describe myself as quite a kinetic filmmaker, music is an incredibly important medium for me too, so I always like to work closely with my composer. It’s like finding the final puzzle piece of the film! So many people my age use royalty-free scores in their films, and creating that from scratch makes an entire difference to me, it always gets compliments too!
Dennis: Can you walk us through your creative process when developing a new film concept? How do you start from an idea and bring it to life on screen?
Ben: It’s always an image or a story-beat that comes to me first. Often in the cinema while watching a film I either feel inspired by or think should’ve been written differently. It’s the process of working simultaneously backwards and forwards from that story beat that crafts the rest of the film for me.
Dennis: Your recent short film “Skip Credits?” is now streaming! Can you talk about what inspired you to make this movie?
Ben: It was my third-year in film school and for the first time, I was told I could make whatever-the-hell I wanted to. My mind was wandering all over the place wanting to make a movie that explored more than one genre I love, and the first script I wrote involved a drive-in wasn’t working. I had a film prof who was tough as nails, who I describe as being able to turn anyone’s lump of coal into a diamond. It was being in COVID isolation, my genre idea, and her strict nature of professing that created SKIP CREDITS? The entire film was written, shot, and edited in the span of less than four months! The shortest timeline I hope I’ll ever create something within.
Dennis: Lastly, name a filmmaker or an actor you would love to collaborate with and why?
Ben: Hoyte Van Hoytema is the greatest working cinematographer working in the industry today. Very few are lucky enough to shoot on IMAX 70mm film, and I’ve told myself for years I’ll never be satisfied until I’m amongst the list of those filmmakers lucky enough to shoot with it. Thus, it’d be my dream to work with the best DoP, that being Hoytema (the dude TAUGHT Kodak how to create the B&W IMAX film stock used to shoot Oppenheimer!).
