The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

It’s no secret that makin’ movies is a tough business. Graduates of Compass Film Academy go through fourteen months of intense, hands-on training where they work on over twenty short films, make two or three of their own, and then cap it off with an internship with industry pros. But even with all that preparation, it can be tough transitioning from student to working film professional. We caught up with one of our 2009 grads, Jeremy Waterbury, to hear all about the ups and downs of his first year in the biz.

CFA: So, Jeremy, if my calculations are correct, as of today it has been exactly thirteen months and two days since you and your Compass Film Academy classmates walked across the stage at Wealthy Theatre on graduation night. What have you been keeping yourself busy with?

JW: Well to sum it up, I’ve worked on six feature films, everything from an unpaid Office PA to a line producer to my latest job as the Assistant to Director Ruben Fleischer on the film 30 Minutes or Less (a 20 million dollar feature produced by Ben Stiller, which just wrapped in West Michigan featuring Jesse Eisenberg  from Social Network).

CFA: Ruben’s the guy that directed Zombieland, right?

JW: Yes, 30 Minutes or Less is his second feature.

CFA: Whoa, that’s pretty major. Just to be on a big-budget feature like that within a year of graduating film school, not to mention being the director’s assistant. Congrats!

JW: Thanks. It was a great experience.

CFA: So, I’m going to come back to that experience, because I definitely want to hear all about it - but let’s start from graduation. What was your fist job out of school, and how’d you get it?

JW: Sure, well, there’s a guy named Evan Koons at Compass.  He’s their Industry Relations Specialist. Basically, his whole job is to get Compass grads jobs. So when films come to Michigan to shoot, they call up Evan looking for crew. I happened to be there when he got a call from a production coordinator looking for unpaid interns for a Hollywood film that was shooting here. I emailed my resume and within three hours I was interviewing and hired for the job.

CFA: Wow. It’s amazing how fast those things happen.

JW: Absolutely, and Evan had drilled into our heads that you have to have your resume ready to go at all times; he was right. If I’d waited, I might have been lost in the flood and not have gotten the job.

CFA: So, now you have six feature films under your belt. I have to imagine you’ve had some ups and downs. What has been the absolute most surreal “Whoa, I’m actually making movies for a living!” moment?

JW: (laughs) Yeah, my best moment was on the set of 30 Minutes or Less. It was this scene where we had a huge crowd of extras and a ton of crew coordinating some really elaborate shots. Anyway, I happened to strike up a conversation with one of the extras, and he said to me, “Wow. I never realized how many people it takes to make a movie. I’ll never complain about a $12 ticket again.” That was perfect.

CFA: Definitely. Ok, everyone loves a good horror story - the worst moment since graduating?

JW: Getting fired from that first film job.

CFA: WHAT?!? You got fired?

JW: Yeah. It’s funny because they had told us at Compass, “You will get fired. Everyone gets fired. Learn from it and move on.” I remember thinking it wouldn’t happen to me; but sure enough, my first job out of the gate.

CFA: What happened?

JW: It really came down to not having a clear understanding of exactly what they needed me to do. I was green, so maybe I didn’t ask as many questions as I needed to. Now I’m much more upfront about asking for specifics when I go into the interview. That’s just one of those things that you have to learn by experience.

CFA: Wow. So how’d you get over it and move on to the next job?

JW: I think that’s where the Compass training kicks in, you know? They’d really prepared us for the realities of the industry and how demanding it is and how to be a professional at all times-even when things are difficult. Plus, just being able to walk into Compass and talk to everyone and be encouraged to go out there and get that next job and get “back on the horse”. Then they connected me with my next film. It’s invaluable to have the kind of support that you get at Compass. It’s not just while you’re in the program either, the opportunities they continue to create for you as an alumni are unending.

CFA: That’s interesting. There’s an ongoing debate in the industry about whether film school is worth it or not, but it sounds like you’d say it was?

JW: Definitely. I know for a fact I am a better storyteller than before Compass. I learned a great deal on how to craft a good story. Compass also provided me the opportunity to learn the importance of networking. Everybody knows somebody who could potentially lead you to another gig. Compass allowed me to grow into my desire of being a producer by giving me opportunities to actually produce content.

CFA: Ok, well, here’s what everyone’s waiting for: What was it like working with Ruben?

JW: Ruben was great. There were a bunch of crew on-set who had worked for him on [his last film] Zombieland and they followed him to Michigan because they want to work on all his films. He inspires an incredible amount of loyalty because he’s such a great guy. He’s so appreciative of his crew, and he lets them know it all the time. For example, one day he bought champagne for his camera crew because they pulled off a really complicated shot. He just wanted them to know he realized how difficult it was to get right. He wrote thank you cards to every single one of the crew at the end of shooting. HAND-WROTE these cards! I was his assistant, so I know he didn’t have anyone else do it.

CFA: Whoa. That’s a lot of cards.

JW: Yeah, can you imagine how long 200-plus thank you cards takes? But that’s him, he genuinely appreciates the amount of effort it takes from everyone to bring his vision to life. He doesn’t take it for granted.

CFA: That’s a lesson, right there.

JW: Exactly, you have to remember that as much as you love it and are passionate about it, at the end of the day - it’s just a movie. How you treat people is what speaks to who you really are as a person.

Compass Film Academy is an intense, hands-on, 14-month film program in Grand Rapids, MI. They are currently accepting applications and portfolios for this winter and next fall.

616.458.4238 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it www.compass.edu