Filmmaker of the Week: Gin Fedotov
For the next instalment of our 2022 Instructor Series, we are highlighting the amazing Gin Fedotov! Gin Fedotov has been acting in Alberta for 10 years. Shortly after COVID disrupted filmmaking in our province, he was ready to step in to keep Alberta rolling.
For the last year and a half, he has been providing COVID compliance and safety on indie sets for feature films, reality shows, events, short films, and music videos. With such a terrible sense of humour, it’s a great relief that he can at least deliver an engaging presentation.
*UPDATE: The COVID Safety for Independent Film Sets course has been cancelled*
CSIF: Tell us about yourself; what do you do in the film industry?
GIN FEDOTOV: I have been acting in independent projects for the last ten years, specializing in playing memorable villains. Half a year into COVID I saw the opportunity to help the filmmaking industry continue rolling by providing on set COVID safety and compliance coordination.
CSIF: How did you get started in filmmaking? Why did you decide to work in the industry?
GF: Friends making a feature film were looking for a person who could be formal and loud, and I was the guy for the job. After participating in a feature film I knew there was no way back, this was not an addiction, it was love at first scene. Fast forward more than sixty projects and ten years later, and I am just as in love with filmmaking as I was when I started.
CSIF: What movie(s) inspired you to work in the film industry?
GF: I grew up in Mexico, take into account the country is very Catholic, to the point that alcohol sales stop on Sundays, and heavy censorship rules influence what plays on the big and small screen. My two best friends and I snuck into an adult cinema to watch Fight Club (as no regular theatres would dare to show the film) and after the first viewing I knew, someday, I would be involved in filmmaking. Perhaps it was the fact that I was 18, perhaps it was the collective experience or the film itself, but whatever filmmaking bug infected me, it has taken permanent hold.
CSIF: What kinds of stories are you interested in telling?
GF: Aside from acting, I write, produce and direct short films (and hopefully features in the not so distant future). If I have my pick of stories to tell, I would choose the ones that are transformational for those involved in the process as much as for those who watch the final product. My objective is simple, to tell a story that will create a before and after experience, something that you would be able to recall in twenty years and say “Yeah, that film, I can remember clearly”.
CSIF: What is the most important thing you’ve learned about working in the film industry thus far?
GF: Flexibility and patience are as important as creativity. Some people can argue that filmmakers are artists. I would like to argue that filmmakers are alchemists, part mad scientists, part hopeful dreamers in pursuit of ever elusive funding. But putting science and magic aside, in order to make a film (of any size) you have to go with the flow, adapt, and be patient with yourself and everyone involved in the filmmaking process.
CSIF: What advice do you have for others looking to work in the film industry?
GF: Manage your resources well. I am not only talking about money and time (and believe me there is a lot of flex and stretch that needs to happen if you want to have a career in filmmaking). Health, energy, and relationships need to be managed as well, and I feel these are key to being able to pull off a 14 hour day over and over and over, while being kind to each other, and being able to hug your family and ask for help if you need it.
CSIF: What is the most embarrassing or funniest thing that has happened to you on set?
GF: While filming a WWII feature film in the Drumheller desert I knew “the peeing” scene was coming. I was playing a soldier that, while being distracted, lost an important prisoner. Prior to blocking the scene I really didn’t think about how we were going to do the scene. The director and DOP did their magic and we were ready to roll. I had my back towards the camera and right before the director started the roll I asked “so how are we doing this?” to which the director tells me to unzip and describes the biological process. I asked for a water bottle to simulate the action but the director said we were going for a continuous take and it would be hard to hide the bottle.
Six takes later I ran out of any liquid reserves I had in my body and we finally got a water bottle for the seventh take. That’s the take that ended up on screen.
CSIF: Tell us about your most recent project.
GF: I had the privilege of working on Ties that Bind as a COVID compliance coordinator, filmed this winter in Calgary, Delbourne, and Edmonton. A period piece set in the depression era in Alberta, dealing with family drama, political intrigue and the connections between people. A project where I learned a lot and had the privilege of working with filmmakers I have been wanting to work with for years.
CSIF: Any final thoughts/words regarding filmmaking?
GF: Filmmaking is a collective art that requires a colossal level of logistics and professionalism. Repeated filmmaking is also a business process that requires art to be monetized and profitable. Put all of that into a blender and you have a loose approximation of making your dreams and your goals into a movie.
CSIF: What is a film that you wish you made and why?
GF: Legends of the Fall. To work with such amazing actors (Hopkins, Quinn, Pitt, Cardinal, Ormond to name a few) would be simply insane. Add to that James Horner as a composer and Lilly Kilvert as a production designer. Working with them would be at the peak of any expectations I would have as a filmmaker. Call it the peak of the collection of artists I would love to work with.
Favourite movie(s): Back to the Future, Jaws, Snatch, Seven. Asking for your favourite movie is like asking who your favourite child is.
Favourite movie snack(s): Popcorn, no butter.
Instagram: @lonely_spy
Website: Gin Fedotov
IMDb: Gin Fedotov