1) Can you talk briefly about your background, and how you first got interested in filmmaking?

I am a student Writer and Director going into my final year at Towson University in Baltimore MD. I got into the world of filmmaking at a young age and have been making shorts for the past several years. In addition to writing and directing, I try to do a lot of production department work- often as an Assistant Director or Production Manager.

2) What was the initial idea and how did it evolve from there?

Much of the work I create is based on my experiences growing up as a sibling of an older sister on the Autism spectrum. My exploration of families with neurodivergent individuals is what lead to the creation of For the Rabbits. I also wanted to take a nostalgic dive back into my years of high-school theater and all of its antics. To combine these two elements, my initial idea was a disrupted high school production of Of Mice and Men- everything else just kind of took off naturally from there.

3) What was the biggest challenge in making this film? And generally what part of the creative process do you enjoy the most? 

With this film I had two particularly large challenges. One was the fact that I knew I wanted to execute the project as a single long-take. Fortunately, I had the experience of directing a long-take short film already with my previous short 40-LOVE (https://vimeo.com/303816389). We structured the shoot over three days- the first for blocking, the second for pre-rigging and rehearsals, and the third for our actual shooting. Though it did require significant extra planning, the shoot actually ran incredibly smoothly the whole way through. The second large challenge was that I was juggling the hats of Actor and Director. This was only able to work because of my fantastic 1st AD, Laura Gede, and her own experience with directing. She met regularly with me in pre-production to not only plan logistics but also to understand what performance I was looking for of myself so that she could help me get to that on set. While it was at times stressful directing in my corny cowboy costume, I tried to always direct that stress into my performance of an anxious high-school actor.

My favorite part of the process, as it always is, was collaboration. I was blessed with fantastic department heads all around, and collaborating with them over those 3 days in the theater was honestly one of the most fun experiences I’ve ever had in my life.

4) What’s a film you’ve seen recently, new or old, that you really loved and why?

I recently saw John Cassavetes’ A Woman Under the Influence and I think it’s safe to say it’s my new favorite. The level of realism that Cassavetes is able to achieve with his style is unparalleled to anything I’ve seen before- and is an absolute inspiration for everything I plan to make. In addition, this particular film deals with many of the same themes I personally like to deal with in my projects- particularly in exploring the relationship of neurodivergent individuals with their families. 

5) What’s next for you? 

I am currently hard at work on preproduction for my next short film Monocacy. It will take place at a rural high school, and follow a Civil-War fascinated teen with undiagnosed Autism and his struggle to maintain his friendship with his reenacting buddy as she begins to gravitate toward the popular crowd. I’ve never been so excited for a project and I think it will be my most personal work to date. I hope to use Monocacy as I begin my application for Grad Schools in the coming year.

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https://vimeo.com/lincolnrobisch

IG: @lincolnrobischworks

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