We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful André Joseph. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with André below.
André, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.
Out of any film project I have ever done, my 2022 short film ‘Dismissal Time’ was my most meaningful. It was inspired by a traumatic race-related bullying incident I endured as a high school freshman, where I was accused of wrongdoing while the administration failed to take accountability. Making the film with actors playing loose versions of the people involved in the real story was a very cathartic experience for me during production. But the emotional impact it had on audiences at film festivals touched me deeply. Everyone’s faced discrimination of some form or another in their youth, often shaping their worldview. I wanted this film to speak to the youth of today going through similar situations like I did and tell them they are not alone. Additionally, it was an important story to tell as a filmmaker to humanize real heroes by emphasizing their values and their flaws.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I grew up in Staten Island, NY, where I was raised by loving, hard-working parents who allowed me to find my path in life through my creativity. I often watched movies like Star Wars and Back to the Future, as well as various cartoons that made me get the toys and reenact what I saw on the screen. That hobby transitioned into writing short stories in 4th grade and evolved into my desire to get a video camera to bring those stories to life. What began as an after-school hobby became something I wanted to learn so I could improve my skills in cinematography and editing. From the time I took a summer course at New York Film Academy to earning my Bachelor’s Degree in Film at Emerson College, I absorbed almost every facet of film production to take further steps in my career. Not only did I pursue narrative features and shorts, but I also found an outlet to produce music videos and promos to make income in addition to my freelance writing job at Collider.com. My goal on any project of mine or a client is to take a project intended for film/video and tell a story in 3 parts, regardless of the running time. The key is setting the tone that speaks to the intended audience, the what and why of the project, and the outcome to reach the goal. That’s how I’ve approached everything I’ve ever done and find the most success with that formula.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
My very first feature film Priceless was the first production I took on after graduating college. Produced on a shoe-string budget with support from family and friends, it was the first time working with a large crew and accomplished actors in the New York scene. It was culture shock making the film because of the lack of safety net that student films provide, often problem-solving on set and managing multiple people working on the production. Despite having a grand premiere with a positive reception from the audience, Priceless struggled to get accepted to film festivals. The reasons why were largely mixed. But it left me jaded for months. Then I started showing it privately to filmmakers I would network with at the festivals I attended and I was surprised to see how much warm praise it got. That was the moment when I realized the breakthroughs will never happen if I get discouraged enough to turn away from my dream. My ambitions have to cut through a lot of noise and push back in order to attain true success. Mistakes will be made naturally. What matters is learning from them and pushing on.
Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
I wish I knew early on how side jobs were beneficial in my work. In the beginning, I only concentrated on being solely a filmmaker with no interest in working a 9 to 5. It was not that simple given my position as an independent filmmaker living in New York City where the chances of making a real living off of one film are incredibly slim. By my 30s, I started expanding into side jobs like school photography, video editing for recording studios, and teaching video at a recreation center. Each of these jobs I found to be most rewarding when the dollar amount was never a factor. I could gain experience that enhanced my filmmaking skills and well as sharing my knowledge with the next generation of directors and writers. The latter part is something I feel the strongest about in approaching my latest project The Last Vendetta. The experiences I had on previous film sets, both good and bad, were valuable because they instilled a confidence I rarely felt. My team and I put together a cohesive production plan that allowed the cast and crew to work safely within the context of a stunt-heavy action film on an independent level. It was also an moment where I realized how seasoned I was to mentor the young people in my crew who were starting their careers outside film school. It was a dream of mine to pass on that encouragement to them in the way that my mentors from NYFA and Emerson had done for me.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.andremjoseph.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ajepyx/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ajepyx
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ajepyx/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaYQLNBhJ1nLNG4cetb3XKw
- Other: Linktree: https://linktr.ee/ajepyx
AJ Epyx Productions Website: ajepyxproductions.com
Image Credits
Headshots courtesy of Mark Doyle Photography
The Last Vendetta set photos courtesy of Your Stage Photography.