5 Questions with Max Walker-Silverman
1) Can you talk briefly about your background, and how you first got interested in filmmaking?
I grew up in Telluride, Colorado, which for one weekend a year is the center of the film universe and the whole rest of it has a one screen theater that shows one movie per week (a few months after it's come out.) Sometimes we'd drive a few hours to Montrose, Colorado, to see Harry Potter or whatever. Maybe that accounts for my attitude towards movies: I like them a good bit, sometimes. Couldn't say exactly how I wound up making them. It was never a passion, per se, but I wanted to make art badly and when something is so clearly the medium of its time, well, who'd be fool enough to ignore it. Turns out I do enjoy filmmaking, much to my surprise. It's nice to find people smart people and hire them and take credit for their work!
2) What’s the backstory here - what was the initial idea and how did it evolve from there?
It's a patchwork of my truths, my lies, the truths of others, and their lies too. A web of personal things that are wrapped up in fiction because sometimes that's the only way to share. Frankly I hardly remember some of the initial ideas--they were scattered. I always knew how I wanted it to feel though, and I felt that all through the writing. I've come to believe that's the key. To feel it all. Happens rarely, but damn it's nice.
3) What was the biggest challenge in making this film? And generally what part of the creative process do you enjoy the most, and the least?
The production was smooth and lovely, or so my dubious memory claims. Nice people in a kind place. I love shooting in the middle of nowhere. Plenty of space to park the pickups and no one wanders into the damn shot. The hardest part was probably after tying a bow on 'er. No one wanted to screen it for about a year. And however much you don't want to admit it that erodes your belief in the thing. Fortunately I have some good friends who would tell me to snap the hell out of it when I got to thinking like that. And then, all of a sudden, it caught on. Ain't life fickle.
Regarding the creative process I suppose I like being on set the most. One works up a terrific appetite. Food tastes wonderful and coffee delights. I tend to work with very much the same little crew who know how to brighten a mood that needs brightening and focus a set that needs focusing. My least favorite thing is not being able to pay these people what they deserve and having to ask favors from those who who can not easily give them. That's something I really hope changes.
4) What’s a film you’ve seen recently, new or old, that you really loved and why?
I've received endless flack for this but I went to "Yesterday" two days running with each of my divorced parents and had such a nice time. I fear I have a high tolerance for the shamelessly sweet. Maple syrup is my favorite food.
5) What’s next for you?
Wrapping up a new short, Chuj Boys of Summer, the story of a group young Guatemalan men making a home for themselves in rural America. We made it in my hometown with a lovely group of Guati guys who live there and have been my friends for years. It's all in their indigenous language and I hope a lot of people see it. It's about kindness, really. About how the world could be.
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https://www.leftyrightyfilm.com/
IG: @max.w_s