Filmmaking Focus

Michael Conti has been directing films for over 20 years. He learned his craft at the “school of hard knocks” in Hollywood where he got his first job working for Roger Corman. Today, Michael lives in Boulder, Colorado. Michael says, “While I can work within the Hollywood structure of budgets, scripts and crews, I actually prefer to make films from a crazy wisdom perspective.” “Crazy Wisdom” is a Tibetan spiritual concept that guides much of Michael’s filmmaking. He explains how he applies it to his films: “I think of it as playing jazz in that we work more loosely with the normal elements and allow the moments to unfold more organically. This technique works well when everyone is already comfortable with their craft, specifically actors…The rule of thumb is that the process is organic, and it changes from the script, to the shooting, to the final edit. I like to make sure those opportunities exist in all stages because I think it lends itself to a better end result as opposed to be really stuck with keeping to the original concept.”

The crazy wisdom perspective can be seen in Michael’s recent short (and one of his favorites) Monkey Mind, which delves into what really happens during meditation.

Michael is heavily involved in his local filmmaking community, having established the Colorado chapter of Group 101 Films in 2003. This group commits directors to making six films it six months. “We currently have 280 contributors and over 25 directors have
entered the program.”

Apparently not content with the leisurely pace of a 30 day schedule, in 2004 Michael began The Shoot Out 24 Hour Filmmaking Festival Boulder, a furiously-paced event which gives filmmakers a mere day to complete a film, with only in-camera editing allowed. This has become an annual event taking place every October.

And Michael practices the fast filmmaking he preaches. He has made a habit of directing one short film a month and has completed 18 films this way. He adds, “One of my favorite short films was shot in less than two hours and was 58 seconds long.”

It is from the organizations he founded that Michael finds much of the personnel for his films.

To anyone looking to become a filmmaker, Michael advises, “Just start doing it by making short films, the age of the digital is upon us, and there is no excuse to not start. Just keep it simple and short!…I try to instill the possibilities in others that I work with, that creativity isn’t owned by anyone, especially those in Hollywood. We are all storytellers and filmmakers in some degree or another.”

Anyone wanting to learn more about Michael Conti or to view his films online can visit his website at www.conticonti.com.