OUR FINAL FILMMAKER OF THE WEEK AS WE WRAP UP OUR FALL 2021 MEMBERS’ SCREENING AND DIRECTORS TALK SERIES IS THE ONE, THE ONLY, TROY GREENWOOD!
TUNE IN TOMORROW (SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 18TH ) AT 7:00PM (MDT), TO WATCH HIS FILM THE BEAR ESSENTIALS, AND INTERVIEW, LIVE FROM THE CSIF OFFICE. YOU CAN WATCH THE EVENT VIA OUR FACEBOOK AND YOUTUBE PAGES. RSVP HERE.

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

TROY GREENWOOD: I do a bit of everything.  I would say my perspective on the industry is largely from the viewpoint of an actor, having worked as one for over 20 years, but I write, direct, produce, act, edit… and –really- whatever is necessary to get a project done.  I have my own production company HHS Productions Inc. and we focus on telling stories that touch the head, heart and soul.  So as much as I’m interested in making entertaining films, I’ve also grown to a point where I want those films to have a meaning or purpose behind them.  With that in mind my more recent projects include a short “The Marrow” about weakness, secrets, and trauma and how more often than not we try to hide those for those closest to us out of fear, when in fact the path to healing is most often through being vulnerable with those you love and trust.  Another upcoming project is a feature western on the dangers of unfettered capitalism, and the penchant for industry to bulldoze the lives of everyday people regardless of creed, status or race.  I’m also a big supporter of community and am a mentor with the CSIF mentorship program and can often be found volunteering time on various projects.     

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

TG: I got started toward the end of junior high school.  Drama became an option in junior high and I quickly got absorbed into that world, landing a lead role in the play “Dracula’s Boarding House” my first year.  Over the summer between grade 8 and 9 I attended a week-long film intensive camp at the Gulf Island Film and Television school on Galiano Island, BC.  It was like a film summer camp.  We all stayed at a large dormitory type housing complex and over the course of the week we were put into groups of about 6-7 and spent the week covering the entire process, collaboratively writing, shooting, editing, and eventually screening the films as our parents arrived at the end of the week to pick us up.  It introduced me to the process, and I quickly got a non-linear editing program when I returned home, and it was off to the races making little short films, and spoofs, and sketches with my friends throughout junior high and high school.

CSIF: What movie(s) inspired you to become a filmmaker?

TG: I don’t know that I could pick one specifically.  I was just always drawn to that experience of being in the theatre and connecting so much with a character, or story, that you came out of the theatre moved or changed in some way.  I can recall coming out of The Matrix and just being so infused with such energy that I wanted to move and to learn kung fu, and I did, actually.  Or films like Gladiator or Braveheart where I connected with a character that chose to live by a moral code, and stuck to that code despite everything being taken away from them.  Movies were just this intangible way of delving into the motivations and circumstances that drive people to be, or become, a certain way.  And understanding delving into the human condition just fascinated me.  So I think that’s a large part of it.  Plus, movie sets themselves, the better ones in my experience, can feel like summer camp with your friends, and that’s just so much fun.   

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

TG: I mentioned it earlier, but stories that touch the head, heart and soul.  And by that, I mean movies that investigate the human condition in some way, moving the audience to contemplate a different perspective, or connect and feel the experiences of a person or people different than them.  Movies that make you questions of investigate your values, what’s right and wrong, and when or if it’s ever possible to do wrong thing for the right reasons or vice versa.  Movies and stories that have the capability of expanding the audience’s understanding and hopefully with that their ability to connect and have empathy for their fellow man.    

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

TG: I’ve always loved film and so I’ve always been interested to learn anything and everything about it.  I write, produce, direct, act, edit.  I’ve worked as a PA, a grip, a script supervisor, a cinematographer, colorist… I just keep pushing myself to learn.  And I think I’ve learned things about acting from writing, and things about writing from acting, and about acting from directing, and so on, and so on.  So I think one of the most important things I’ve learned is to keep learning.  The other hugely important thing I’ve learned is to be kind and considerate, and find people who are the same to work with.  As much as we all dream of making that blockbuster movie, filmmaking is not that final result but the actual process of filmmaking.  And if you don’t like the people you’re working with, if they’re not kind and considerate people, the whole joy and thrill of filmmaking can just disappear.  And with that, it’s a small community, so if you are a dick to people, chances are they’ll start to choose not to work with you.

CSIF: What advice do you have for other filmmakers?

TG: More of the same.  Keep learning and be kind and considerate.  And know that filmmaking is absolutely a team sport.  You’re only ever going to be as good or great as the people you surround yourself with.

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

TG: God, I’m struggling to think of one.  Second breakfast!  Kind of an inside joke.  I can’t even remember how it started really, I think our sound guy was grabbing crafty and did the line from Lord of the Rings in that accent.  And it just became this recurring gag on set.  Every now and again… Breakfast!  And everyone would laugh.

CSIF: Tell us about your most recent project.

TG: My most recent project was “The Marrow”.  We just finished shooting 29 pages in 4 days and it was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had on set.  I managed to put together just this incredible group of people that connected right away, and we managed to find this great balance of fun and hilarity with passion and work ethic.  It really was just this great experience that felt like summer camp with your best friends.  And the dailies I’ve been looking through are just incredible.  Just beyond my greatest expectations.  Truly, one of those times where the people around me lifted my visions to a whole other level.  And it was through putting my trust in them, that the result became so much more than I ever could have achieved on my own.

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

TG: It’s a great community.  Got to give a special shout out to James Reckseidler and all the work he’s been doing on community engagement.  The CSIF just feels like this great home for independent filmmakers and I think his ethos of let’s just work together to make this happen is infectious.  And even beyond CSIF, there’s just so many great people banding together to create these amazing projects.  So let’s all keep building and growing together.

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

TG: I don’t feel a real sense of wishing I’d made a particular movie.  The greatest movies for me are the ones that move me and leave an impact on me.  And so it’s not so much that I’d wish to make that specific movie, it’s that I want to make a movie – my movie, in my voice, that moves the audience in the way those great movies moved me.  Movies like Gladiator, Braveheart, Reign Over Me, Hell or High Water, Tombstone, The Mask of Zorro. 

Favourite movie(s): Oh boy!  There’s something about The Patriot that it’s always up there.  I love a good epic!  Gladiator.  Braveheart.  I could pick a different movie, every day, for different reasons What Dreams May Come but… you know what, right now for this question.  I’m gonna go with Instinct.  Anthony Hopkins and Cuba Gooding Jr.  Haven’t watched it in years, but saw the cover the other day and I just NEED to watch it again.  Just an instinct.  Pun intended.  

Favourite movie snack(s): Nachos!

Website(s): www.troygreenwood.com, www.hhsproductions.com

Instagram(s): @greenwoodtroy, @hhsfilms, @themarrowfilm