No Film School is written by filmmakers, for filmmakers, and the upside of that is we bring real-world knowledge and experience to our daily writing. The downside, as far as the "daily" part is concerned, is that we are sometimes off working on projects and unable to blog (this is where that real-world experience comes from, though). So when I go AWOL for a couple of weeks (as I just did during the Tribeca Film Festival, as one of the Tribeca grantees), that means it's up to another writer to pick up the slack. The same goes for Joe and E.M., who also have real-world projects and responsibilities. While I want to make sure we're always covering the news, I also want the site to start focusing more on issues of art and craft -- as well as sharing short films and other content from around the web -- which requires more bandwidth. With this in mind, please give a warm welcome to our new writers, Justin Minich, Christopher Moore, and MarBelle!
First of all, apologies to the fairer sex -- this is so far a dude-only writer's guild. This is not by design at all -- in fact, the application process was entirely blind to name, sex, age, race, and location, as the very last thing I looked at was who the applicant actually was (this way I wouldn't be tempted to just hire the people I already know... and it's worked, as MarBelle is the first writer I knew of previously). At some point in the future there will be another call for writers, so ladies: please apply!
Finally, before we introduce the new writers, please feel free to let us know in the comments what you would like to see covered more on this site! This site is still fairly young (two years and change -- of which the first two years were just me), and we're always trying to improve.
Welcome, guys!
Justin Minich
Hi, I'm Justin Minich and I suppose my story starts just after I graduated from Columbia College Chicago in 2003 with a BA in Film & Video with a concentration in computer animation. I had come out of film school with some essential knowledge and skills, but most importantly a realization that a prescribed curriculum isn't always the best path. I continued learning my craft and pursuing my projects until the glacial pace and isolating nature of solo animation production started getting to me. I wanted to tell stories through a versatile medium, but for me, this wasn't it.
I thought back to the best times I had in film school, and they were inevitably the ones where I collaborated with people on various film projects. We worked hard on our creative efforts and we loved doing it. So in 2005 I set myself to the task of teaching myself the in and outs of video production. I started out as a PA on a cheesy horror production and have since made films that have been accepted into various film festivals, worked on a web series which is currently going into its 2nd season, and have taken on multiple roles in all areas of video production.
And as my process of constant learning continues I look forward to sharing things that will inform and inspire you, as well as learning and drawing inspiration from all of you in the NFS community.
Christopher Boone
I'm Christopher Boone and I write screenplays. To become a screenwriter, or more specifically, a professional screenwriter, I'll need to get paid for my screenplays. When that day comes, I'll let you know.
I currently live in Albuquerque, New Mexico, a great place to live as an independent filmmaker. And while my passion is to be a writer/director, I mainly focus on the writing at this point in my life (two young kids will do that to you).
I've had the good fortune to work on several film projects from no-budget indies up to bona fide features, wearing virtually every hat there is in the filmmaking world. I won't bore you with the details. I'll let you browse IMDb and mock my credits.
I'm excited to join the No Film School team and talk about screenwriting. I don't plan on giving advice on screenwriting. I'm not a professional screenwriter, so why would you want my advice? But I will write about what I find useful for screenwriters like myself and listen to the NFS community to learn from your collective experiences as we work on our craft. One day, I hope several of us can consider ourselves professionals.
MarBelle
Once upon a time I lived in a world free from the knowledge of that addictive thing known as "independent film." Then one night I stumbled upon Portishead's To Kill a Dead Man on Channel 4's late night short film showcase The Shooting Gallery and fell in love with these miniature narratives. Years later, a lone trip to see Vincent Gallo's Buffalo 66 had me in awe and addicted to the notion that directors were free to make their own rules when it came to filmmaking.
Since those early days I've steeped myself in film, working as Features Editor of Showreel magazine, editor of Shooting People’s Filmmakers Bulletin and Editor in Chief of Directors Notes. It's never been enough for me to just watch great work, a good film has to be shared, dissected and discussed. I've been doing that on Directors Notes for the past 6 years, through screenings, across 300+ director interviews, and more posts than I can remember. It's a compulsion I'm looking forward to sharing with you all on No Film School.
