Behind the Scenes - focus on the filmmaker
Name: Patrick Phillip Stegall
Age: 23 as of 10/13/05 (happy birthday from the Haydenfilms staff!)
Hometown: North Little Rock, Arkansas
College & Degree/s: BFA in Film/TV Production, Tisch School of the Arts - New York University Current Title: Freelance Cinematographer, Electrician, Director (swore I would never do this after film school), Production Manager, PA, if it pays I take it.
1) Family/Personal info:
My father is a foot surgeon turned airplane mechanic and my Mother is an office manager and bookstore owner turned Methodist minister. My sister, Elizabeth, and brother-in-law, Thomas, joined me in the city not too long ago. Elizabeth works for Standard's and Poor's downtown and Thomas is a theatrical designer who currently works at Barbizon Lighting and Electric in their Systems division. I spend a fairamount of time in the Philly area visiting my girlfriend's family. I occasionally do work back in Arkansas and no trip home is complete without a visit to my family's 60 acre woodland property in the Ozark Mountains, the wellspring of my creative energy.
2) Favorite Film:
Currently (because favorites should never be permanent) it's David Cronenberg's "A History of Violence" -- THIS is an expertly crafted work.
3) Favorite Filmmaker:
Errol Morris. This documentarian seems to consistently find subjects so strange, compelling, or both that they FEEL scripted. Check out "Fast, Cheap, and Out of Control" or " The Thin Blue Line."
4) What person or event sparked your interest in film?
I was lead to filmmaking through a mix of different interests. My experience before college was theatrical lighting design, photography, writing, and works as a local news cameraman. None of the colleges I looked at would let me study them all with the depth I wanted to, so I assumed that studying film would at least give me access to those different things. In film school my skills as a photographer, lighting designer, and documentarian naturally lead me to cinematography.
5) What is your favorite film genre?
Genre isn't a binding agreement, although I see people working as though it is all of the time. I would say my favorite genre is drama, but that isn't really accurate. I like a well written, well thought-out, well executed, BEAUTIFULLY SHOT story.
6) What films have you worked on and what was your title?
As Cinematographer: "Static" (working title - formerly "The Prince") -- Feature Film (S16mm), "Children Lost" -- Feature Film (1080i HD), "Junior Kickstart - The Go! Team" -- Music Video (720p HD), "The Kite" -- Short (35mm), "Under the Table" -- Short (16mm), "Heads!" -- Short (16mm), "Skyy Scientists" -- Spec Spot (35mm).As Production Manager: "Disturbulance" -- Public TV Documentary for Radio Bremen, Germany
7) What is your latest film project?
In November I will be heading down to Argentina for 9 days along with director Clay Reed and writer Annie Anderson (from "The Prince") to shoot a trailer for an upcoming project. We will be shooting super 16mm action footage and black and white still photographs. This is the first step in a long process of raising the money to set the production in motion. Once the budget is secure we will shoot 35mm with locations in Argentina and stages in the United States.
8) How do you visualize a project from the script?
Do you have a specific process? In some ways the question doesn't necessarily apply since I've mostly worked as a DP. I will say that the director and the DP MUST be on the same page throughout the pre-visualization and pre-production processes. It sucks for a crew to stand around on set while the DP and director try to works things out. They need to find a language that works for the clear communication of abstract ideas. Perhaps most important is the quality of the crew. I've been on plenty of sets where the DP has more technical know-how than his or her crew and he or she ends up thinking more about running cable, sand bagging stands, etc. than about creative composition,camera movement, and lighting. My advice: find a Key Grip and a Gaffer who are A LOT better at the technical stuff than you are, tell them what you want, and let them take care of it. You should be thinking about the shot.
9) What's your next project?
Untitled James Rizzi Documentary - Director -- James Rizzi is a renowned artist who from New York. This winter a new gallery will be unveiled and the James Rizzi Foundation has asked that a documentary be produced to play in the lobby of the gallery and be distributed with a new James Rizzi book. "Children Lost" - Cinematographer -- "Children Lost" is a stage play by Aurin Squire that has been popping up in many New York City actor's workshops and One-Act festivals. Amy Leland Hemphill has adapted that play into a feature and we're shooting it in sections over the next several months.
10) What do you consider the best film ever made?
"The Princess Bride". Don't even try to change my mind. That movie has everything. Action, Comedy, Romance, Andre the Giant, and Fred Savage.
11) Where do you see yourself in five years?
I don't think its very Zen to look too far into the future. Hopefully I will be making enough money to stay in New York. If not I'll do something I love somewhere else. I've noticed that a lot of people wrap their identity up in their careers. Go pull beers and pan fry dumplings in the Montana Rockies if that's what makes you happy, and don't wait for an invitation.
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