THE BACK ROOM Directed By Greg Ivan Smith

Indie Express: Tell us about your film: 

Greg: It’s the story of two strangers searching for a mysterious renaissance painting who uncover surprising connections to the artwork and each other.

IE: How did you come up with the idea for the film:  

G: The Back Room is a love letter of sorts, dedicated to the two great romances of my life: Florence, Italy, and Michael, my partner of twelve years. 

I met the former in 1990 as a young art student, and, as so many Americans throughout the centuries have done, quickly claimed its ochre walls and abundant art as my own. I embraced some of its best-held secrets, from Santo Spirito’s perfectly blank façade, to Jacopo Pontormo’s heart breaking, unheralded High Renaissance paintings and frescoes. Our affair lasted a full school year, and when we parted ways I was red-eyed and miserable for weeks.

I fell for the latter in 1996 during graduate school at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, CA, and we’ve been together ever since. After years of bragging about my first love, Florence, I finally brought Michael there to see what all the fuss was about in 2005. It was at the moment I introduced him to my favorite Florentine painting, Pontormo’s The Transportation of Christ, that I knew this relationship would last: Michael burst into tears as I had fifteen years before, his breath needing to be caught as mine had all those years ago.

I wrote The Back Room upon our return from Italy. It’s about the power of art to connect disparate people, to touch strangers and scratch an itch within them they didn’t know existed.

IE: How did you assemble your production team?

G: My amazing co-producer, the director Dustin Schell (2003’s Quintessence and 2008’s The Housetaurant  (premiering next month at Rhode Island International Film Festival), brought several key players to me, including the always-amazing filmmaker Todd Verow as DP. In NYC, I have a fantastic pool of incredibly talented and generous filmmaking friends, who lent their talents and time to the project.

IE: How did you find your cast? 

G: As no one else was casting me at the time in films, I wrote the part of ‘Errol’ for myself. All of the other three actors are friends and  - thankfully - accepted the roles upon reading the script. Dan Sturges was perfect for ‘The Guy’; I think he’s really beautiful in the film and steals the show. Tina Johnson (for whom I wrote ‘Mrs. Frisk’) and Quinn Murphy were perfect for the comic parts. All three were amazingly generous with their time and talents.

IE: How long did the film take?  (From conception to final edit):

G: I wrote The Back Room in 2005, we shot in April 2006, and post took 2 years (I did all the editing and post myself, and had to self-teach along the way with each step, which really slowed things down, but I learned so much) - so 3 years total! (That’s horrible to think about! The next one will be faster…)

IE: Tell us a little about your process of directing (writing) this film.

G: With writing the short, I wanted to see if I could pull off two strangers falling in love in ten pages, in real time - to find a connection that would merit that event (it turned out to be 12 pages, but who’s counting?).

As far as directing , if I have one talent as a filmmaker, it is surrounding myself with people who are better than I am. As it was my first time out - and I was in front of the camera in every scene - I quickly realized that both Todd Verow and Dustin Schell (who also served as Assistant Director), would be my second and third pair of eyes, and I immediately trusted them to give notes after shots, to adjust blocking to best serve the piece, etc. They were amazing .

IE: What was the most difficult part of the shoot for you? 

G: The struggle to stay in the scene as an actor while at the same time keeping a part of my brain on the big picture as director was both the biggest challenge and the greatest feeling.

IE: Any particular moments from filming that stand out for you?

G: We shot the back room of The Back Room in my apartment in Sunnyside, Queens, as art-directed seamlessly by my partner Michael Fitzpatrick. Although a lovely spring day outside, the lights and completely enclosed, tiny set provided for an incredibly hot filming experience, literally. After two days of shooting the final kissing sequence from different angles, it was as if actor Dan Sturges and I were making out in a child's Easy-bake Oven! If you watch the raw footage, each time I said cut someone on set yells "Fans!" and on go the whirring machines. By the end of day two, we had gone through a ton of powder, but I still had a bright red face from Dan's sharp beard chafing against my face.

IE: Tell us about the film’s festival experience so far? 

G: I am screening at five festivals this summer, which is incredibly validating after so much work. I have just premiered at Provincetown International Film Festival, which was really intense and great fun (despite some initial projection problems). The film was very well received, with folks coming up on the street to give comments (Ptown the village is so small that you really get to know the patrons during the festival; I made great friends while there.)  I met incredible fellow filmmakers, both the other attendees to big names like Quentin Tarantino (so nice).

IE: What are you most looking forward to at the festival?

G: It is still such a novelty for people outside my own circles to see the film, and for it to be shown on a large screen. It is an indescribable experience, especially after two years sitting essentially alone with it. With PIGLFF particularly, I am looking forward to meeting the staff, who have been unbelievably supportive of the film, and with whom it has been so nice to communicate.

IE: What has been your most interesting Q&A so far?  What was your favorite question?  How was the dialogue afterwards?

G: We only had one Q&A in Ptown, but I enjoyed hearing the different views from each filmmaker about their inspirations for the film. I hope to have a better answer for this following Saturday’s screening at OUTFEST!

IE: What films and filmmakers inspire you?

G: Films by Bertolucci (I Conformisto, the best), Wes Craven (I’ve seen A Nightmare on Elm St. literally 300 times), any Cronenberg (both sick early ones and stylish new ones), early Soderbergh, Tarantino (great writer), Antonioni, Rosemary’s Baby, the editor Walter Murch really inspires me… I know I’m leaving so many out…

IE: What made you decide to become a filmmaker?

G: I came to it late: I have a BFA in fine art (video art, but studied ceramics and painting extensively), and an MFA in acting. I began writing scripts as an outlet when taking care of my dying father, and then met Dustin Schell through a mutual friend as I was considering filmmaking school.  Instead, he and I started working together on scripts and our latest shorts.

 IE: What is next for you?

G:  In mid-August I am shooting an eight-minute, very bleak horror short about cancer returning called Remission (I wanted to do something completely opposite of The Back Room, and I am a huge horror fan).  Also, Dustin and I are finishing up an episodic feature script, which we hope to begin shooting this fall. We’re really excited about it, and it gives us an opportunity to cast from our enormous pool of amazing actor friends.

IE: What is next for the film?

G: I’m hoping for film distribution (it’s just been requested by three different distributors for screening - fingers crossed), some money, fame, Oscars (you know, the usual…).  As I write this I am prepping for the Opening Night at OUTFEST in Los Angeles tonight, which promises to be a great experience (my film is showing on 7/12 at The Directors Guild of America (1100am), which has amazing facilities, as well as on 7/13 at The Fairfax (530pm), which is also a fantastic theatre. Then I fly back east for my screening at Philadelphia International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival on 7/15… In August it plays at Rhode Island International Film Festival and Palms Springs International Shortfest. It has all been very expensive and exciting. I’ve also submitted to about 20 other festivals, both here and internationally, so I’m hoping for a lengthy festival circuit.

IE: If asked to give one piece of advice to a new filmmaker making their first short film… What would it be? 

G: Surround yourself with great artists. Double your initial budget and you may just be correct. Take your time. Stick to your guns. Your film is probably too long, make it shorter. (Sorry, that’s five things…)

IE: What 5 films currently on the festival circuit are you fans of? (This is like an I Tunes celebrity playlist)  

G: I didn’t see enough at Ptown, but Amy Redford’s The Guitar is really lovely, and gorgeously shot. As far as shorts go, Ready? Okay! (the short, I’ll see the feature of the same name this week) and Nourishment are both great, and showed with me in Ptown. I’m excited to see Were the World Mine, which a dear friend loved. I’ll be able to answer this better in a week, as I am determined to see a lot of films at OUTFEST and PIGLFF.

IE: What question would you like to be asked about your film?  And Why?  What is the answer?

G: “What info would you put on the DVD’s director’s commentary that no one would initially guess? “ Everything in the film is said for a reason, is seen for a reason, is heard for a reason: The price of Mrs. Frisk’s romance novels is $15.28, which is the year the painting in question was finished (1528); the opening muzak was written by my friend Joe Dineen, and all 5 tracks of harmony are actually my voice – three in falsetto (a neccesity of the budget); the colors of the clothes that we are wearing in the back room, and the back room’s colors, are all derived directly from the painting itself…etc…

IE: Thanks so much for answering our questions!  Have a great festival!!