FOR THE THIRD EDITION OF OUR CIFF 2021 SERIES, WE CHATTED WITH HERE & AFTER’S DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY BRETT FERSTER! CIFF 2021 TAKES PLACE SEPTEMBER 23RD TO OCTOBER 3RD, AND CONSISTS OF A MIX OF IN-PERSON AND VIRTUAL SCREENINGS AND EVENTS.

CSIF: Tell us about yourself. What do you do in the film industry?

BRETT FERSTER: Mainly, I produce and direct short form work for all sorts of different clients under our boutique studio banner The Light Factory. It’s run by myself and my creative partner there – another fella named Brett. We often have lots of trust from our clients from the get go, so we imbue as much creativity as we can to elevate every project that comes in. We’re pretty lucky.

CSIF: How did you get started in filmmaking? Why did you decide to become a filmmaker?

BF: I suppose it officially started when I abandoned my degree in history/education at the University of Lethbridge. I had one new media class alongside my history classes and I dedicated much much more time to this little found footage movie for that class than I was giving to my history papers, and I officially changed programs mid-year to a BFA in new media. After graduating, I directed a few successful short films in town and that really helped me make in-roads with the community here and really get things going.

CSIF: What movie inspired you to become a filmmaker?

BF: It was around those formative university years that I was just binging on world cinema, classical cinema, and films coming out at the time (like Lost in Translation, Before Sunset, Brick, The Motorcycle Diaries, etc). So all of these were like a rushing avalanche all at once that ignited my enthusiasm to make work of my own.

CSIF: What kinds of stories are you interested in telling?

BF: My dream would be to make films that are slice of life dramas where their historical or social context are just britlising on the edges and quietly informing the story.

CSIF: What is the most important thing you’ve learned in your practice as a filmmaker so far?

BF: I was just saying this to an industry friend the other day, that I don’t expect magic to just happen in production. For me, planning, leg work, talking things out and defining your vision down to minute detail before the camera rolls is paramount. This prep allows me to completely throw the plan away if needed on the day, but I can’t just wing things. Oh heck no.

CSIF: What advice do you have for other filmmakers?

BF: Try things. Push hard to try out an idea. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t, but it’s too easy to play it safe. Even small little things, try something bold with it.

CSIF: What is the most embarassing or funniest thing that has happened to you on set?

BF: I was talent wrangling the Canadian Screen Awards one year in Calgary and I was taking care of Amy Jo Johnson (the pink power ranger if you’re a 90s kid). When she came backstage she kept saying, “I need to rehearse my lines with you”. Very nervous, very excited. I started to try to run her lines with her. She stopped me cold. “What are you doing?” “I thought you wanted to run lines with me,” I said. “Why would I want to do that? Where the heck is HUGH? Go find Hugh, I need to run my lines with Hugh”. Hugh not you, as I had heard it. She had been wanting to rehearse Hugh Dillon, her TV co-star at the time. I was so embarrassed.

CSIF: Tell us about your most recent project.

BF: Stepping away from talking about our company’s recent work, it would be DP’ing Shaun’s upcoming debut feature Here & After. I’ve never been a cinematographer on a longer form piece before. I usually approach my own work as a visualist first, so getting to exclusively focus on that with Shaun’s film was a-total-blast!

CSIF: Any final thoughts/words regarding filmmaking/being a filmmaker in Calgary?

BF: Doesn’t it always feel like Calgary is just about to break through in a permanent way in the larger film industry world? To me that means a stable service production industry alongside a robust independent scene. There are lots of great voices making films in Calgary, and with the service production world booming, it feels like the alchemy may be just right this time.

CSIF: What is a film that you wish you made and why?

BF: Gadzooks. What a question. Something that would probably never be made today I suppose, like, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence.

Favourite movie(s): I do always return to Godfather Part 2, because I glean something new from it every time I watch it. It grows, matures and evolves as I do. What an incredible thing.

Favourite movie snack(s): A nice coffee or cocktail. I have that affliction where I get very annoyed by the sound of people eating, so in a movie theater where people are eating and crinkling their candy bags all around me its too much. So I like to enjoy something that’s mostly silent, for any others in the theatre who suffer the same affliction as I.

Website: lightfactorynow.com (We’re just about to start hiring for a part-time production coordinator – if anyone out there is interested, would love to hear from you~!)