Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Samuel Fronsman. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Samuel, appreciate you joining us today. What do you think matters most in terms of achieving success?
The first thing to decide when thinking about success is what being successful means to you. For many, success comes from external sources like money, influence or the admiration of others. However, for me, success is something much more intrinsic. I define success as the ability to do what I love and create things I’m proud of.
Film is a very tough industry to break into if you look for gratification in wealth or fame. We live in a day and age where streaming has democratized independent films to an unprecedented level. On one hand, this means that it’s easier than ever to pick up a camera, shoot a movie and share it with the world. On the other hand, this ease of access has saturated the pool of independent films to new levels of competition that make it hard to stand out in a sea of similar titles.
Just this year, I wrapped production on my first feature film In the Hands of Fate. Five years ago is when I wrote the first draft of the script. Back then, I assumed it would be years before the movie could ever see the light of day. After all, I imagined I would need millions of dollars to produce this film, and I certainly had no access to that level of funding. In fact, when I finished my short film One Hell of a Ride prior to graduating college, I didn’t think I’d get a chance to direct another movie again for the foreseeable future.
Instead, when I left college, I discovered a world I never knew existed. In Northeast Ohio, there’s a thriving independent film community where talented artists pull together to create amazing projects with little to no resources. I first became involved by travelling up to Cleveland to work as a boom operator for a coming of age drama called Calendar. It was on this set where I met the brilliant actor Steven Scionti.
When I first met Steve, I was blown away with his talent and energy. I instantly thought back to that script I wrote in college and imagined him playing the role of one of the characters I wrote. After talking to him about it, he was ecstatic about the movie and the character I wanted him to play. His encouragement is the main driving force that inspired me to pick up that old script and rework it into what In the Hands of Fate is today.
Over the next couple years, I would work day in and day out, between my day job as a high school substitute teacher and my career as a filmmaker to take the script and bring it to life through pre-production. Last year, in particular, I also met another talented actor named Adam Joseph Turner while working on set for a zombie movie called Scavenged. His range was so impressive, I immediately offered him the lead role in In the Hands of Fate. With him and Steve on board, I held auditions for another major part, where I met the amazingly skilled Keith Migra.
With these three actors, I decided to shoot one of the scenes from In the Hands of Fate to use as a proof-of-concept in order to raise money for the movie. The production of the proof-of-concept went off without a hitch, and the chemistry between Adam, Keith and Steve was palpable. However, when I launched the Indiegogo campaign along with the proof-of-concept, the response was nearly non-existent.
Devastated by what I thought was a failed project, I nearly called it quits then and there. However, between the encouragement and support of my mother, as well as that of the cast, I decided to take the plunge anyway, funding or no funding. Eventually, I managed to scrounge a little more money from a second crowdfunding campaign, and the rest of the money came straight from my day job to self-finance In the Hands of Fate. The final budget took a page out of Robert Rodriguez’s book with just shy of $7,000 to put towards the movie.
To say production was difficult would be an understatement. The biggest challenge was scheduling. Given the lack of funding for the movie, it wasn’t easy working around the availability of the cast, many of whom were also committed to other, more lucrative projects. As a result, we had 18 total shooting dates, spanning from the beginning of March to the end of July.
Working around the availability of shooting locations as well, also meant that some days needed to be stretched out to film as much as possible. One occasion saw us shoot from noon to 2 AM the next day. However, even through all the challenges and complications that arose both on and off set, on July 28th this year, I announced to the cast and crew that it was a wrap.
Now, this movie that five years ago I didn’t even think would be possible to make is in post-production and set to premiere at the end of this year. To me, that’s success.
So, what does it take to be successful? Simply put, it takes resilience and an unwavering hunger to bring your dreams, whatever they may be to life. You can’t depend on certain outside conditions to be just right. If you’re always waiting for someone to throw an opportunity your way, you’ll always be dreaming. Instead, you have to take action and be proud of yourself for meeting the goals you set for yourself. If you make every effort to do something you love every day, and you base your success off that alone, you’ll spend your entire life winning, even when you lose from time to time.
Samuel, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I, first and foremost, am a storyteller by craft. Since I was a kid, I loved to write and tell stories. Even my elementary school teachers told my parents that I would grow up to be a writer.
However, I didn’t truly discover my passion for filmmaking until I went to college. When I first began studying media production at the University of Mount Union, I thought I wanted to be involved in radio. I always loved music, and being a disc jockey seemed like a fun career option. Yet, when I got the chance to do radio, I realized I wanted to do something more creative. There was a fire burning inside of me to tell stories, but I just hadn’t found the right medium.
That all changed when I took my first filmmaking class. I had been given the opportunity through this class to write and direct my first short film Crossfire, that later went on to inspire the story behind In the Hands of Fate. Today, I couldn’t imagine a life where I didn’t make movies.
As of now, I run and operate my own film production company Fronz Productions. The brand serves in part as my personal brand that I tie my passion projects to. It also serves functionally as a video production agency to work with clients. When I’m not working on my own movies, I spend my time helping others on their films, as well as partnering with clients ranging from small businesses to musicians to create video content for them.
I also use the Fronz Productions brand on YouTube as a medium to give back to the film community by spotlighting the work of other filmmakers and sharing advice on making movies from my own personal experience. I’m proud to see how much Fronz Productions has grown since I first started the company in 2021, where it now benefits the Ohio filmmaking community as a whole by championing the art of filmmaking and forming collaborative partnerships with artists from across the state.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.
From an outsider’s perspective, the path of an artist is one that breaks away from traditional expectations society’s placed on people. Growing up, I was always taught the mindset of doing well in school to eventually go to college, earn a degree and take a traditional 9 to 5 job. However, there was always something about living that way that just didn’t quite click for me.
Sure, I did very well in school, and I did go to college, but I was always more interested in carving out my own career path, rather than go the traditional route. Right now, my resume is packed with various short-term crew positions I’ve held on movies. I also pack my resume with various other creative endeavors I pursued like producing a paranormal reality series or filming professional wrestling shows. Given my unique work experiences, my resume looks anything but traditional, and it likely confuses anyone outside of the film industry who sees it.
I naturally do work a regular day job to make ends meet as a high school substitute teacher. However, I don’t work that job full time. Instead, I balance it with my creative endeavors in a way that some may look at as irresponsible. I’m sure there are people who would look at the way I live and how I primarily work for myself as a filmmaker and scoff at how I don’t follow the traditional career path society’s indoctrinated us into believing is the right way to live.
To that end, I don’t care. I know that life is finite, and I want to live with no regrets of the opportunities I passed on to follow my passion. If you’re someone with a dream, a fire burning inside of you to pursue, find a way to make it happen. Don’t worry about whether other people will judge you. The only person whose opinion truly matters is your own.
So, go out, find what you love and do it. You’ll thank yourself later.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is watching my dreams and imagination take shape and come to life in front of my eyes. I think the biggest example that illustrates this point is one of the days on production for In the Hands of Fate.
In 2019, before I made Crossfire, I wanted to practice filmmaking with a couple of my friends by doing a short film that was set in the same universe as the movie I was getting ready to work on. The basic premise was a hit man gets sent to take out a thug, who’s in the middle of attacking a woman. The hit man ultimately feels sorry for her and lets her go. As it would turn out, that short film was also called In the Hands of Fate.
After I finished Crossfire, and I began working on the first draft for the feature film, I decided I wanted to revisit that first short film of In the Hands of Fate and remake it as a scene for the feature. This short, that made me fall in love with filmmaking to begin with, would be the catalyst that sets the rest of the story in motion.
Fast forward to this past May, and it was finally time to shoot that scene for In the Hands of Fate. I even brought back one of the original actors, my friend Brandon Rice, to reprise his role of the thug Gunner for this movie. However, now I had the wonderfully talented Adam Joseph Turner and Sofia Bianchi in the other roles. Plus, I personally was a much more seasoned director, working alongside veteran crew members. So, the level of professionalism on this set was at such a higher standard than when we first shot it five years ago on my cell phone before I even knew how to make a movie.
Regardless, much of the dialogue and how the scene played out remained relatively untouched. So, the nostalgia kicked in for me big time that night, as we reimagined that scene and turned it from an amateur first attempt at shooting anything to one of my personal favorite scenes in the entire feature film.
Seeing that come to life in front of me is more rewarding than any sort of outside recognition. That’s my own self-validation that I’ve grown. Watching my own personal growth as an artist while holding true to my roots that made me want to make movies to begin with is what makes it all worth it.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://samfronsman.weebly.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samfronsmanofficial/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100089475344491
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samuel-f-592359109/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@fronzproductions
- Other: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm14012332/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_0_nm_1_in_0_q_Samuel%2520L%2520fronsman
Image Credits
Tyler Phillips, Brandon Gaughan, Mac Gilbert, Joseph Paul, Charyssa VanBogelen