We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful John Gomez. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with John below.
John, appreciate you joining us today. Going back to the beginning – how did you come up with the idea in the first place?
Filmmaking is an art form that has captivated me since an early age. When I was four, I remember my father taking me to watch Superman. I’m positive that my young mind couldn’t process everything that film had to offer. However, I knew that whatever I was watching was pure magic.
When I was in my early 20s, I decided to try my hand at acting. It was an exciting time in my life. Even though that career never worked out, I got to walk onto elaborate film sets and watch how these pieces of art were made in wonder and awe.
At a certain point, I decided to give up on acting. I went to graduate school to become a speech pathologist. I figured my creative life was over at that point. However, it had just begun.
I worked at the famous downtown Los Angeles Standard to make ends meet while in graduate school. It was a hotel that was quite popular and, indeed, a theater of the bizarre. At a job like this, one meets many creative souls. One such individual was an owner of an expensive video camera. He told me that he wasn’t using it and would be willing to sell it to me inexpensively. I decided to purchase it, which opened up a whole new world. I had so much fun filming friends, family, and nature. Eventually, I parlayed my passion for filmmaking into event videography.
I spent the next couple of years filming birthdays, bar mitzvahs, weddings, and just about anything else people might want captured. I never went to film school or had any formal training. However, event videography prepares you for the rigors of documentary filmmaking. For example, if you’re at a wedding and people aren’t having a good time, you still need to edit it to make it look like everybody is enjoying themselves. Trust me, this isn’t easy.
After a while, I yearned to do more. While in graduate school, I took a class on stuttering. This class was enlightening to me. We didn’t just learn about the behaviors associated with stuttering. We also learned about the emotional and psychological impact. The effects were far more impactful on people’s lives than I had ever imagined. As I was sitting there in class, the idea struck me that making a documentary about people who stutter might make for a compelling documentary film. The idea for “WHEN I STUTTER” was born…
I did some research, and there had been very few documentaries made on the subject of stuttering. I took a gamble that making a film about stuttering would find an audience, and I was right. WHEN I STUTTER went on to appear in 16 international film festivals, it has won 7 awards. It has been translated into 11 languages and sold to over 100 universities and organizations for entertainment, education, and sensitivity training. Some entities that have purchased the film are TAP Portugal Airlines, Northwestern University, New York University, and Cal Berkeley, to name a few.
I felt that WHEN I STUTTER had a chance to succeed because although stuttering impacts one percent of the population, the themes that impact individuals who stutter are found across humanity. Ideas such as feeling alone and being misunderstood are the province of many human beings, not just people who stutter. Audience members would tell me afterward that they had no idea that stuttering could profoundly impact an individual. They also mentioned that many of the film’s themes were relatable, even though they didn’t stutter themselves. WHEN I STUTTER also has many moments of triumph. Again, these themes are part of the fabric of humanity.
The success of WHEN I STUTTER has paved the way for many other creative opportunities. My production company, Keen Eye Productions, will continue in a humanistic vector. I’m confident that there will always be an audience for content that helps audiences better understand the human condition.
John, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Note to editor: I partially jumped the gun on this question and answered some of these items in the previous question.
Keen Eye Productions, LLC is my production company, and its mission is to create films that help spread awareness and bring us closer together through entertainment, education, and empathy.
I am working on several different projects right now. I just finished an instructional video series for a stuttering specialist out of Atlanta named Tim Mackesey. Tim had a vision for a video series designed to help people who stutter. As a person who stutters, Tim felt that many resources for stuttering were insufficient regarding the elements that he considers vital. Consequently, he recruited me to help him produce a video series that positioned these important ideas in a professional and engaging way. Tim is the perfect example of the type of client that I want to help. He has a big heart, and he’s looking to improve the lives of people who stutter.
I am also helping produce a dramatic feature film that revolves around a young man who stutters. The script’s writer, Cameron Raynes, is from Australia, and he reached out to me because he wanted help bringing his vision to the big screen. The script has won multiple awards and is based on a fantastic novel, “First Person Shooter.” Again, this is a special project, and I want to help Cameron bring his creative vision to life.
In addition to all these great projects from passionate people, I continue using Keen Eye Productions to work on projects close to my heart. Currently, I am working on a film about active listening. I am excited to be in production for this film, as it is an idea that’s been brewing in my head for a long time. I have a feeling that it is going to strike a chord with a wide audience. My friends, Scott Palasik and Dennis Fulgoni (writers from WHEN I STUTTER), are helping me produce the film. It’s nice to have the old team back together for the next creative journey.
My ability to work on all these projects is predicated on the success of WHEN I STUTTER. The international success of that film has put me on the map as a documentary filmmaker and given me credibility in educational and creative circles.
The success of WHEN I STUTTER has also led to several individual awards, honors, and opportunities. I won the Emerging Filmmaker Award from the prestigious Chagrin Documentary Film Festival, The Supporter of People with Fluency Disorders Award from the International Fluency Association, and the Lois V. Douglas Distinguished Alumnus Award from Cal State LA. I have also had the honor of being asked to work on the hit Netflix animated show “Maya And the Three” as a script and acting consultant for Rico, a character who stutters in the series. Lastly, I was offered a teaching job at Cal State LA, which has been one of the most rewarding endeavors of my life.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
Among the most rewarding aspects of being a documentary filmmaker is the privilege of being allowed into the special parts of people’s lives. I have been lucky enough to interview some extraordinary souls who commit themselves to a cause or an idea. If one is feeling jaded or questioning the meaning of life, it can be remedied by meeting individuals dedicated to making the world a better place.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
The old adage “You’ll be judged by the company you keep” is an apt one. I believe that my reputation has been bolstered by working with people who are highly respected. When I have met other individuals of high stature in an artistic or educational community, it has meant a lot to them that I have worked with colleagues that they know and trust. In the vast world of information that we have at our fingertips, I find that word-of-mouth is still a powerful form of transmitting ideas about people- in other words, people talk. If you are a trustworthy person, people will talk about it. Since the opposite is also true, I’m mindful of my company.
Contact Info: