Amy Davis
V eteran filmmaker Jon Moritsugu is the visionary behind such underground cult hits as Mod Fuck Explosion and Pig Death Machine. He’s even Grammy-nominated for the “No Future Shock” music video he directed for TV on the Radio. He’s actually a genius, and Santa Fe is lucky to have him. And as if his mere presence weren’t enough, Moritsugu teaches a two-day guerilla filmmaking class at Santa Fe Community College (6401 Richards Ave., 428-1676) on June 18 and 25. Let’s ask him about that, shall we?
What's the basic overview of the class?
It's basically sharing every single mistake I've ever made, which will definitely save people some time and save them some money. It's about DIY empowerment; it's about punk-rock; it's about bringing an idea to life. I've done this class before, and the idea is that either you've started your movie or you've finished it by the time we're done. Most people have the equipment they need and don't even realize it. For example, I had this one guy who couldn't afford a camera, but it turned out he had, like, four broken iPhones with working cameras, and he made an entire movie with them.
What do you think is the biggest obstacle for budding filmmakers?
The balls. And the brains. 99 percent of people don't believe they have the shit to make a movie, and there is so much misinformation out there. That can make you feel totally helpless, but everyone has this unique and twisted voice. Promotion is hard, too; you don't learn self-promotion in film school or in art school, but you can be your own publicist. It's good to learn that even bad press can be good press.
Do you have one big piece of advice for people who want to break into filmmaking?
I'd probably say to just go for it. It all comes down to an idea. The class will cover all that nitty-gritty stuff like how to copyright your ideas and your movies. As much as making movies this way can be punk-rock and DIY, you've got to protect your stuff. I'll also get into things like how to self-distribute and how you make money off of a movie. To even be in show biz, you've got to be demented, but just about everyone I've met in teaching this class before has had a lot of heart and soul. I guess that's more than just one thing, though.
