A Few months ago, I posted a behind-the-scenes featurette from our very own Peter Espinal. Well this week I got to talk to Peter about working on his short film, and the final production.

So check out the FULL VERSION Peter's "The Savages" below, and make sure to check the interview after the vid. 

Wes: When did you first become interested in filmmaking?

Peter: I became interested in filmmaking back in High School. When I was in elementary school I had dreams of being a cartoonist. But I wasn't much of an artist. Then in Junior High I had aspirations of being a comedian. Unfortunately I get terrified in front of crowds. I've always been a natural story teller. I also have a very vivid and extremely visual imagination. I didn't think I would ever have a way of telling my crazy outlandish inner stories. In High School I became a a little bit of a film buff and realized that making movies is what I wanted to do with my life. Its the only way I can bring my stories to life. I can create an entire world where I call the shots. A place where anything can happen. My father is also some what of a film buff so I grew up around movies. For me there was no Boogey Man in the closet. I was terrified of Freddy Krueger. For me forcing down vegetables meant I would grow up big and strong like Arnold Schwarzenegger(or so I was promised). I never believed in Santa but I worshipped the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Making a decision to pursue a career in film felt natural.

Being a current film student, what do you think of the program, and do you have any advice to other filmmakers who are thinking if they should go to school or just try to make their own films?

I think colleges or even high schools with film programs are great. Not everyone can afford to go to film school so the next best thing is going to a school that has a film program. I think anyone who wants to make movies should take classes. You'll learn skills, concepts, and ideas that one simply can't teach him or herself. School is also a great place to make mistakes. Classmates and professors provide very helpful advice as well as constructive criticism on all your work. You'll learn so much more messing up in school than trying to nail it on your own. I'm not saying film classes are mandatory but those on their own are going to be working twice as hard trying to develop the same skills.

What was the first film you ever shot, how did it come out, and how much do you feel you've developed as a filmmaker since your first film?

My first real short film is of course a zombie movie. I made this during my Romero craze, its called called "Dusk of The Dead". I wanted to make a short that would shock my class(school project). I never really had any experience making a real short (a movie with a narrative)so I worked very hard to pull this off. I spent an entire weekend buying makeup, securing actors, and borrowing equipment. We shot the short the following Tuesday. The actual shoot went on for a few hours but I'm actually surprised how well filming went. I didn't have a script or storyboard and we pretty much shot the movie from what I saw in my head. I sort of had the entire movie planned out in my minds eye. Looking back it almost felt like a miracle nothing really went wrong. In the end I had a short that amazed my fellow classmates and one I can proudly call my first short film. I felt like I matured a lot since then. Instead of relying on my "artistic vision" to drive the production now I try to plan out every detail. Preproduction for "Dusk" was one weekend. The preproduction for my latest short actually spanned 5 months. Zombie movies are fun to make. But I think I got it out of my system for now.

Can you tell us a little about the experience you had with making your film "The Savages", and what kind of reception you got from it?

Making The Savages was a little bit of a land mark for me. Its the first time I wasn't operating the camera. It was also the first time I had a crew that wasn't defined by the size of my cast. In the past I've had actors set up lights, mic' s etc. But this time I had a (very small) crew. It felt more professional than any other of my previous projects. It was a great confidence booster and helped us get the shoot done in only 3 days. When "The Savages" was completed I got the responses I wanted from my classmates and professors. They were shocked, grossed out, and loved every second of it. But when it came time to submit our movies to be judged for our annual film festival I ran into a problem. The judges hated my movie. They found it to be completely offensive and too violent to show to a crowd of 300 people. The judges hated it so much they threatened to pull their funding, if my movie wasn't banned or censored. I really didn't want to edit my movie down to the equivalent of a PG-13 rating. But I also didn't want to jeopardize the chances of someone else winning. So I reluctantly removed most of the violence and the version that was screen during the festival was (what I call) the castrated version of The Savages. I had people come up to me afterwards and express their anger at the situation. I was happy to see that people got that upset because I didn't think my short really gave anyone a lasting impression. The real kicker is that the previous year the movie that won first place was a ninja movie. The movie was full of digital gore.It was just as gory as mine but my practical gore effects looked a lot better.

What is your advice for filmmakers who want to get their work out there and noticed?

Call me old fashioned but I think the key to getting noticed is hard work. Making movies is very fun and getting the chance to express ourselves with visuals and audio is something not many people can do. But what people seem to forget is that filmmaking takes a lot of hard work. Anyone can pick up a camera and make a movie. It takes a true filmmaker to go that extra mile for a project. For some that might mean proof reading your script a third time. For others it might mean staying up late meticulously color correcting trying to give your project a subtle but unique new look. Sites like youtube and Vimeo are great tools to get your work out into the world. But you should only put up projects you are proud of. When someone is surfing the web and comes across your work it not only has to speak for itself it also has to speak for you. No one is going to care why a project didn't meet your expectations. Also when you start going on the job hunt some employers are interested in seeing your previous work. Why would you want to show them anything that is sub par? Think of your page as a resume. What are your strengths and what do you want people to see?

How do you see higher quality cameras becoming available for continually cheaper prices, powerful computers, and free distribution video networks affecting how things work currently in this system?

I think that the quality of internet video is going to continue to increase. Up until a few years ago a lot of the internet videos getting famous was a lot of amateurish videos accidently getting famous. But with filmmakers purchasing more advanced cameras and with technology making it easier to produce videos with higher production values you start to see a lot of content on the net as good or better than most tv shows or feature films. I think we are going to see more and more celebrities, writers, and directors releasing material exclusively on the internet. The internet is a great market place that I believe hasn't fully been tapped yet.

What do you think is the most important piece of advice that you have to offer to aspiring filmmakers out there?

The best advice I can give to someone is something I actually heard Robert Rodriguez say on a DVD commentary track. If you want to make movies then go out and make movies. Don't worry about money. equipment, props, or anything. Just go out shoot and be creative. Its one thing to dream and its another thing to do. I'd say make as much movies as humanly possible. Each film should be a learning experience. The more you shoot the more you learn.

Thank you Peter! Great work, and nice talking to you!