Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Dennis Edwards. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Dennis thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

I’ve been writing, directing, editing, and even acting in my own short and feature films since at least 2014, even from a young age I’ve always had an appreciation for film and the art of filmmaking as a whole. I think it all started when my family used to show me various films that also varied in genre, mostly leaning on the horror/thriller side of film and even TV. As I got older and got access to more tools, I started to teach myself to make these small short films which I still make even to this day, 2016 was really when I started to get into the art and by that point, I had my mind set on what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

And that was to make films, nothing else. Also throughout my early years, I always had interests and hobbies that would come and go but something about film and filmmaking as a whole has always stuck with me in some way, In recent years, I’ve had more and more success in my journey, including some of my films winning awards, garnering critical praise, and even getting the chance to watch some of them in packed movie theaters. I still learn more and more every day as I get better and better artistically.

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?

Like I’ve brought up before, I’ve wanted to make and have made films from a very young age. Throughout my early years, I’ve had people try to discourage me in many ways from creating these various films, either way, I made them and still make them and I’ve been incredibly resilient in getting them done despite discouragement and setbacks. I’ve gotten skilled enough to send them to festivals and critics and I’ve gotten very positive feedback on them, I always try to improve and listen to what other people have to say, and with an art form like film, you have to be very careful and also clever enough to solve various problems in the writing stage, on set, or when editing, there are so many things that can go wrong but it is such an amazing feeling when you finally get everything right and you’ve got your own film sitting right in front of you, ready to be released into the world. What sets me apart from a lot of others I see making films is that I’m able to do so much heavy lifting with little to no money, especially since the genres I mostly work with the most are horror or are within that realm of that specific genre, and that genre requires a lot of talent and effects work depending on the subgenre and plot of the film.

I’m very proud of my features and my newer shorts that often play on the film festival circuit and with these newer films, I’ve slowly been finding my artistic flair, especially seeing some of these films on big movie screens in crowded theaters, just seeing what I’m able to do with so little and also just seeing the way the people watching react just encourages me to reach for even higher levels, I primarily make horror/thriller films so to see a room of full-grown adults collectively shudder just shows that I have so much more that I don’t even know about. I’m a young and upcoming filmmaker so to see this kind of reaction so early on means so much to me and the people who help me make these films.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

I don’t think non-creatives understand how hard a filmmaker has to work in order to fulfill their creative visions on any project, especially with the rise of these formulaic films that all have the same plot, story, everything. Film and art in general weren’t meant to be the same thing over and over, like we’re seeing now, many years ago, films were mostly in the artist’s hands and now it’s in the studio’s hands and the films that mostly come out now are films that aren’t artistic, but are meant to make big money instead of being good movies. Now we’re seeing a pushback against this form of film and art and I’m hoping non-creatives will start to see just the intensive effort that we put into our work that’s been majorly disregarded by studios who are only interested in making the same thing over and over again. This is the point where the non-creatives and the creatives will push back and this is something that’s been slowly building for a long time and I’m glad that people are pushing for good films that will be remembered for years to come, not films that will make billions and then be forgotten on the newest streaming service.

Another thing is that non-creatives often don’t appreciate the horror genre which is sad because that kind of film can make you think of topics and themes that you wouldn’t normally be able to execute in any other genre, thankfully this genre has made a massive comeback in recent years and is only getting better, this is a good thing because it’s going to lead non-creatives to seek out this artform which will only increase the demand for better films in the genre.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My mission in filmmaking is to create films that people will pass down and remember for years to come, to create films that will make people ask questions about things, think about topics, or even better. Have discussions/conversations about what I’m saying through my art. Even if these topics aren’t easy to discuss, there’s still a time and a place for them and I often use my films to communicate various things, it’s art. That’s what it’s all about.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/c0ldbl00dstudi0sfilms/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/coldbloodstudiosfilms
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@ColdBloodStudios

Image Credits
Dennis Edwards