Matt Seilback
Matt Seilback and his business partner John Pa (not related to Joe Pa, as far as I know) have recently ventured into film making.
I had a chance to view their very nice video promoting The Luminary Center for the Arts in St. Louis. After seeing it I had a few questions for Matt. In this interview, Matt discusses closet organizer supports doubling as sliders, the launch of Anastasis films, and the power of red boots…
Alternate Arts: Most of the shots are dynamic in the video (pans, focus transitions, etc.) How purposeful are you about this during filming?
Matt: Very intentional. In fact, when I look over my footage after I’ve shot it, I inevitably am wishing I had a couple more still/tripoded shots. I like shots that move. And a lot of this has to do with the fact that I’m still at the early stages of my film career. Young film makers (or at least this one) often want to try and accomplish a ton of dynamism that can’t always be accomplished with the equipment that they own. But they can’t help continuing to try! (I made a cheap “slider” with a small tripod and closet organizer supports turned on their side. There are a ton of different ways to create these DIY rigs). Creating masterful moving shots is actually quite difficult. And it’s easy to overuse them. Even placing too much attention on focus pulls (bringing one section into focus and then another) can very quickly be overused. I’m working to strike a balance, but the truth of the matter is that sometimes a stable close up or wide shot just can’t be beat.
With that said, I think a sense of intimacy is easily gained from the active and dynamic documentary style. That’s mainly what I like about it. Movement often helps to evoke emotion.
Alternate Arts: Brea’s hand on the pole at 2:06 is emblematic of some of the naturalistic communication style that both James and Brea have. How aware of this were you during filming and did you make specific attempts to capture this?
Matt: I came up with this shot as Brea was walking around. I wasn’t sure if it would come off as cheesy, but I ended up really liking it and found a place where it could fit. Brea and James have a great contagious attitude about their hopes for this new building and I wanted to show a very real and tangible physical representation of this by emphasizing their tactile interaction with the place.
Alternate Arts: The montage of the Cherokee area captured a lot of color and was fairly vibrant. Could you speak of your use of color in this video?
Matt: That was really more by happenstance (providence) then anything. I just walked up and down Cherokee street and shot the stuff that I found. It’s a vibrant and revitalizing area. A lot of artists are drawn to the area. Most of the color came from a graffiti mural that I stumbled upon.
Alternate Arts: Speaking of color, Brea’s red boots and the chair she’s sitting on at 0.56 is a dead match. Luck or purposeful?
Matt: This one was a mix. John, my business partner, pointed out that we should film Brea in the photography room because she is a photographer herself and there was great lighting in the room at that precise moment that we were working our way through their current building and filming. The boots were what she wore that day. The luck part is that I didn’t realize how beautiful those boots looked in the shot until I was in the editing room sifting through the footage! It quickly became one of my favorite shots.
Alternate Arts: Is Anastasis Films a new venture for you? Can you tell me about it?
Matt: It is. It’s how I’m going to try and make a living (Lord willing). God graciously guided John Pa and I’s paths together to create this new film company. We are focused on telling people’s stories. Whether it be businesses, retired individuals, non-profits or (hopefully in the future) feature films–story is king. Our desire is to tell these stories in a beautiful and compelling manner. To capture the human experience in whatever little slices of the world that we can get our hands on. We have several proposals out there right now and are hoping (and praying) for some work to come in soon!
To learn more about Anastasis Films, and to view “The Luminary” go the vimeo at: http://vimeo.com/anastasisfilms
