The Short List: The Roundup
“The Short List” is a 100 percent locally produced TV anthology series airing on KFVE Mondays at 7:30 p.m. The Short List brings together local actors, directors, writers and crew in Hawaii’s filmmaking community to showcase their talents by creating high-quality short films.
The show’s premise is an anthology series similar to Steven Spielberg’s classic TV series, “Amazing Stories.” Each 30-minute episode features a stand alone story which is introduced by the mysterious crack seed shop owner, Mr. K. There are five unique stories by five different directors.
TalkStory Productions asked each of the directors to talk about their work on The Short List and their thoughts on the Hawaii film industry. This is the fourth in a series of interviews with the directors on the eve of their premiere.
Other interviews in the series:
The Short List airing Mondays 7:30pm on KFVE.
THE ROUNDUP — airing April 23 —
A by-the-book western sheriff arrests a wanted outlaw, only to find out
that they have a tangled conflicted past.
Director/Writer: Stefan Schaefer
Starring: Theo Coumbis, Benjamin Gouldthorpe, Kelly Mumme, Dan
Randerson
Producer: Dana Satler Hankins and Stefan Schaefer
An interview with Director Stefan Schaefer
What made you want to work on THE SHORT LIST? What about this project is different from what you normally do?
As a relatively new transplant to Hawai’i, I was keen to deepen my production relationships here in the islands. Too often I’m writing and directing films set in New York, Berlin, locales thousands of miles from my life and home here on Maui. I’d met Jason (Lau), John (Ching) and Debbie (Lau) (of TalkStory Productions) numerous times – during screenings of my films at HIFF – and when they told me about THE SHORT LIST I was excited to get involved. I pitched them three different shorts and they liked the Western best. I’d conceived of it as a Maui-set paniolo film, but they were interested in it having the look and feel of the Old West of New Mexico or Texas in the 1880s. I thought that would be an interesting challenge and wrote and shot accordingly.
One major difference in terms of what I usually do is that I’d never written and directed a short film! As a director, I have three narrative features under my belt, as well as several long-form documentaries; as a writer and producer I’ve been involved with numerous features. I enjoyed the economy of the short form.
What was most memorable about working on THE SHORT LIST? Were there any challenges?
Initially I thought the biggest challenge would be working with an entirely new crew and cast. I’ve worked with the same production team – based on the mainland – for over 10 years. But Dana Satler and the TalkStory team surrounded me with a great team and, by-in-large, production went really smoothly.
As a director I’d never worked with guns and horses – so that was probably my biggest challenge. Horses don’t hear “action,” “cut,” and “let’s take it again” in the same way. At one point the three we were working with got spooked and took off across Kualoa Ranch. It took a good 30 minutes to get them back. But, again, because of the wranglers and the great crew, we made our day and I got what I needed to make our scenes work.
Did you have difficulty finding Hawaii talent (in front of/behind the camera) to work on your film?
No. I was very impressed by all the actors who auditioned, and was really impressed and grateful to our crew for their expertise and dedication, especially given that none of us were doing this for the big paycheck! I look forward to working with these folks and the TalkStory team again on future projects.
How could Hawaii film community continue to have more projects like this?
In general, I think the film commissions and legislators could incentivize local production more than they do. The current tax incentives are geared more toward big studio (mainland) productions than to the local producer who wants to bring a local story to the screen. With the sun-setting of Act 221, I think there needs to be a new mechanism for supporting local stories, with all local talent, for films produced at more modest budgets (say under 3 million dollars).
How would you describe the film industry in Hawaii in general?
Having spent many years working in independent film in New York, I see the industry here as catering more to big productions than it should. There are many local stories to be told. There are many capable filmmakers. I see indications of a local indie film scene developing, but I feel it could be supported more. Ten local, modestly budgeted indie films shot in the islands would do more for the Hawaii economy than one studio film.
What could local government do better in supporting local filmmakers?
I’ve worked on three films with an Icelandic collaborator. That’s an island nation of 310,000 inhabitants. And they produce – through their arts council – eight to 10 films a year that play at top-tier films festivals, sell to international distributors, and propel their directors toward long and successful careers (e.g. Baltasar Kormakur, director of CONTRABAND). They support their local filmmakers through funding, but also through programming at local cinemas, promotion on the international stage, etc. That would be an interesting model for Hawai’i to look at.
Generally, I think it’s key to create production incentives specifically for local filmmakers, above and beyond the 15-20 percent tax credit. There should be a production fund set up specifically for local filmmakers. There should be a vehicle through which local investors are more incentivized to support homegrown films versus the next LOST or Adam Sandler picture.
About the author: *A founder of the production companies Cicala Filmworks and Silver Shepherd, Stefan Schaefer has worked in independent film for almost 15 years. His films have premiered and won awards at festivals such as Berlin, Hawaii Int’l and South by Southwest, among many others, and have been successfully released theatrically, via cable outfits such as HBO and the Sundance Channel, and on DVD. In the past six years he has written, directed and/or produced eight feature films, among them MY LAST DAY WITHOUT YOU (2011), the Maui-produced GET A JOB (2010), Michael Imperioli’s debut THE HUNGRY GHOSTS (2009), Olaf Johannesson’s THE AMAZING TRUTH ABOUT QUEEN RAQUELA (2008), and ARRANGED (2007).
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