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

I was one of those kids who grew up using his parents’ camcorder and asking his friends to dress up in old halloween costumes and run around the backyard. It was just a lot of fun. Time on set still feel like that. 

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

I came to Ellie (who plays Megan) with the idea that this guy had a very strict approach to crossing the street and that would cause his girlfriend to question everything about their relationship.  We met and talked about it, collaborated on refining the script, looped in my friend Alex to shoot it, and a few days later bundled up to go out in the cold for a few hours and see what we could get. 

3) What was the biggest challenge in making this film? And the easiest part?!

The hardest part? It was cold! We were shooting on a busy Saturday in February in Soho with no crew (literally, it was Ellie, me, and our DP Alex) in what felt like 15 degrees. Our faces started to tense up from the cold so we’d have to take breaks and only got a handful of usable takes before it got dark. Luckily we were really happy with one of them. 

The easiest part? I wanted to hold a big dumb gift with bright paper for some visual flair, and the bodega below my apartment had some ridiculous gold wrapping paper for two dollars. 

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

I just watched ‘Something’s Gotta Give’ (I have a soft spot for rom coms) and it was great. Dianne Keaton is the best. 

5) What’s next for you?

In some egregious albeit transparent self promotion, my debut feature “Vanilla” - a road trip rom com - is now streaming for free on Amazon Prime. Please check it out. And I’m writing another comedy feature and a sort of horror-action-thriller. Oh, I also am looking to make a couple ads for Joe Biden (just for fun) so if anyone is reading this and wants to help out - get at me!

—

willdennis.com

IG and Twitter: IG: willydennis