Film Courage: Thomas, a comment came in from one of our viewers and we were curious how you
would respond “Guys, I'm so scared. There are a certain amount of movies I want to create
and I figured the best route to start would be with screenwriting but I just wish I had a
guide or something for the journey. Seems like people really spend years doing so much work
and only have results after maybe a decade. I'm not sure if I want to be a screenwriter
but I do know that I have movies I want to make, help.” What advice can y'all give me?
Thomas Verrette, Filmmaker: I think that I don't want to ever be discouraging
to somebody who's interested in film but I think it does take us
a special kind of determination to sustain like we have people who of course struck gold immediately
with a movie or script or whatever and but that's not normal most most of us that are working in Los
Angeles have put in 10 years before something even remotely like real like concrete happens as far as
making your own movie or editing even a a film that where you're the lead editor or something
like that what I mean like it is a climb and but I it in that sense though I don't know if that's
untrue for any other industry either I think that there's just maybe this sense of La La Land kind
of for lack of better term where you're like yeah of course we all want to do this I we all
have ideas in movies and and things that we want to do but if somebody isn't willing to put in that
time and effort to it then I I mean they like if you're timid about your ability to get there
then you either have two options you either start writing one script and see if you're any good at
it pass it along to people and get feedback and go from there but that process of writing a script is
going to take at least two years probably on your first pass and second and it's like you
can at least do that like without moving to Los Angeles to just to see before you decide to Jump
Right In because it's expensive it's all about networking and who and what your last project
was and there's a lot of Egos and all sorts of things that you have to kind of fight and I get
that that's not for everybody and frankly it's not for most of us but it's part of the of the deal
so it takes a lot of perseverance to kind of keep going and and if you're not sure if you
want to do it before you even begin then I think that that really you probably shouldn't do it
and don't waste your time but if you believe that you really have a knack for something and you have
a vision or a a voice that's unique then go for it and make sure that you
just plan just plan for it to be a long road like make sure that that's something you really willing
to invest in because it is a sacrifice to some extent too but it is possible at the end of a
decade let's say it doesn't have to take that long of course but but like I made my first
film out of film school and then it took me over 10 years to make another one to give you
some example I'm not upset about that I've had so many experiences as an editor and other jobs that
have have not only been fulfilling but have led to my experience really growing and allowing to
learn from others who have been doing this for a long time and that's really invaluable as well
so part of it is like just don't don't expect to start at the top because there's a lot of
people that have been doing it for a lot longer than you and there's always something to learn
great what what about I don't expect to start at the top but I want to cut it in half to five
years how can I hack the system how can I game it if you find out let me know I mean realistically
it's just like you have to love what you like the the idea of working on movies not even making your
own in order to do it if if it's only I just want to make my own stuff then stay far away
from Los Angeles and get your crew together and do it on your own and then take a a crack at the film
festivals and see if you get any attraction but that would be my advice anymore I just think that
like trying to cut corners and things like that it's I mean if I if I if I had the the ability to
to just cut my my success in half so I could get there further faster I mean of course we would all
be doing that so I don't know how to answer that other than be sure that you want to do this stuff
what advice would you have given to Thomas Ferretti 15 years ago probably the same I
mean like I knew that I was in it for the long haul but but I think that's what's interesting
for me is how much I've changed since like from 15 years ago to where I'm at now I think that
uh I I think I definitely like like drank the Kool-Aid of like oh yeah I made a movie and and
and now I'm ready to make another one kind of thing and and but but it was almost like the
moment I got to Los Angeles I was like nope I gotta figure out how to pay for the rent that
I I just got for this like place and it was also during the recession like and nobody was
paying anything everything everybody was like getting three month internships that
might hire you on and and then you'd be lucky if they did that so my priority really early
on changed to surviving survival mode kind of stuff and getting the best jobs I could
so the advice I'd give myself is stay keep at it and keep keep the determination to to get there
which I did so I I but I think the interesting thing part the interesting part for me is how
maybe my mindset changed over time because of the experiences I've had where I'm less
I'm less racing and I'm more going at my own pace if anything the stamina changes slightly but that
doesn't mean the determination changes I still want to go where I want to where like my dreams
are still the same but but how fast I need to get there has changed let's say between when I was a
kid and where I am now and I think that's just because I'm older I like I've I've have enough
experience to I also have other kind of aspects to my life where my my film was I mean sorry film
wasn't the only thing in everything where now I have my dog and my girlfriend and like I was
sort of like I it's just like natural that you you kind of like I want to balance my life out
a little bit and I am happy if it takes an extra five years or ten years for me to get to wherever
my end goal is because in fact I don't even really know what that is anymore so it's it's
it's making movies but is it making the Lord of the Rings I don't know I would probably love that
but but realistically I'm just like kind of like happy making movies and being involved in and if
I get a shot every once in a while to like direct a film that I really believe in then I'm gonna
take that but I also really believe that I don't need to direct every movie that I want to make
and that's maybe something that's different than I was when I was 15 where I was just all about
directing and stuff I think the industry itself has changed me quite a bit but also I find Value
in all these other things too I think it's cool so yeah I guess to wrap it around I would tell myself
um be open to all types of opportunities except for reality TV which is what I edit up early on
I told myself I wouldn't do that and I'm glad I I didn't because I saw people get kind of kind
of pigeonholed into that direction and I did not want to go down that road just for money.