Aspiring filmmakers work towards future in cinema

Aybika Kamil | The Chronicle

Two budding filmmakers recently set the scene for their journeys to Hollywood and beyond. 

Aspiring to make it big in the film industry, Mason High School (MHS) seniors Erdman and Flores embarked on producing a new film called “Nicole”, which will be released this fall. They grew up with similar passions for filmmaking and crossed paths just last year. 

Flores said he had always been inclined towards creative professions and never saw himself working a desk job. Watching science-fiction movies like “2001: A Space Odyssey” from a young age, Flores was drawn to filmmaking and movies. He has been creating his own independent short films ever since. 

“I just really like the visual component of storytelling and the ability to express things in film,” Flores said. “It’s just such a powerful medium in how it can make you feel things and I want to be able to do that with my art. There’s a sense of escapism, being able to go somewhere else and put yourself in the character’s shoes when you’re watching a movie and I think that’s really cool.”

Erdman said he has also always been creative and involved with the arts, whether it be painting, making music or reading. Producing films since he was 8 years old, Erdman has been a cinematographer for almost a decade. He had many ideas for movies but could not find films that fully captured the totality of his imagination, so he started making them himself. 

“Anything that’s creative makes me feel invigorated and feel like I can really do something, and [that creativity] gives me energy,” Erdman said. “I’ve gotten to work with a lot of people, and overall it’s a lot of fun, despite how stressful it can be. I really do enjoy and love [filmmaking], that’s why I plan on becoming a cinematographer.”

With the help of online classes and videos, Erdman said he expanded his expertise in films and filmmaking to compete in contests like the Teen Film Challenge (TFC). Erdman also took a Filmmaking class at MHS, which supplemented his knowledge of cinematography. 

“It’s really cool that as a school, we are giving opportunities for creative classes that aren’t exactly typical of most schools,” Erdman said. “It encourages students like Santiago and me to pursue filmmaking.”

Erdman and Flores began working together last year when they discovered their shared passion and views of movies at school. After doing a few assignments for a class together, the two filmmakers began working on some independent projects.

“I thought we should work together because film is a very collaborative art,” Flores said. “It’s really hard to succeed in the filmmaking industry by yourself. You need a group of like-minded people to be able to collectively make your visions a reality… and truly make something great.”

This past summer, Erdman and Flores created their own independent short film group, Sober Cat Films. They embarked on the production of their first-ever short film, “Nicole”, as co-directors. 

“We realized that we work really well together, and on set we don’t even have to talk much,” Flores said. “[Ethan] gives me a glance, and I know what he wants me to do. When we have conflicting opinions, it always ends up creating something better.” 

Erdman said he prefers focusing on cameras, lenses and lighting while Flores is into the producer aspect of filmmaking. However, Erdman said due to their small crew size often consisting of 4-5 people, both he and Flores have to take on many roles when producing a film. 

“We both wear a lot of hats and that comes inherently with having such a small crew,” Erdman said. “We co-direct and it’s honestly situational – what we’re doing now will not be the same for the next film.”

Using his lifetime experience of making music, Erdman composed the score for “Nicole” while Flores networked to find locations that would allow filming. 

“It was a struggle finding a restaurant to film,” Flores said. “We called a bunch of places, and we finally found out that Casa Mexico would let us, so big shout out to them because they helped us out there.”

The budget for “Nicole” came from both Erdman and Flores’ personal savings. Flores said they had to be inventive as student filmmakers with limited resources. 

“Working with your restraints is really important – you’ve got to see what you can do in order to achieve what you want,” Flores said. “It really takes a village to make a movie and it wouldn’t be possible without our very good friends helping us out. Everyone’s making sacrifices to help us achieve our goals.”

Flores said he wanted to make a Midwest-Western-style movie using the aesthetics of Ohio. Erdman and Flores infused some inspiration from classic cowboy movies like “A Fistful of Dollars” and “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” into the making of “Nicole”. The main inspiration for making “Nicole”, though, was the 1984 Western movie “Paris, Texas”.

“[Western] is just a really cool genre to me, it’s had such an effect on the cultural zeitgeist in Hollywood and the filmmaking industry,” Flores said. “We took a lot of inspiration from [‘Paris, Texas’] visually [for ‘Nicole’] and it kind of inspired us to do our own take on the concept of a Western in a place that’s not really a Western setting.”

The two protagonists of “Nicole” are the morally gray characters Javier (Javi) and Nicole. Javi is an old-school guy who is looking for romance while Nicole is a modern girl looking for a casual relationship. Erdman said they used fake cigarettes in the film to help depict the idea that both Javi and Nicole are flawed. 

“You’re not supposed to think that everything they do is good, you’re supposed to question them,” Erdman said. “The movie is about the middle ground between them that would be a healthy relationship, and how both of them are kind of on opposite sides, not quite hitting that middle ground.”

Erdman and Flores plan to submit “Nicole” to colleges as a part of their college applications. They said they would like to stick together even beyond high school. 

“We just want to keep making stuff in the future, hopefully make bigger things, get a bigger social media following and get more views to make more ambitious projects,” Flores said. “Through this movie, we want people to realize that we know what we’re doing and then get more opportunities to keep doing what we want to do.” 

Erdman and Flores said they both want to make it big in the film industry and impact their audience through their films. 

“I just think that there’s a lot left for me to do in [the filmmaking field],” Flores said. “It’s something I’m really passionate about, and I really want to make a name for myself, be able to be there on the big screen I’ve dreamed about my whole life. I don’t necessarily want to be the most famous in the world. I just want to be like, ‘this guy’s good, he knows he’s a good filmmaker, and his films leave a lasting legacy on people.’”