What's the absolutely necessary ingredient to be a good Filmmaker?

I don't know if there's just one, that would make for a pretty bland film. As a Writer and Director, I'd have to say story. Without story, you're just putting pictures on a wall. Assuming that's a given, I think the skills beyond filmmaking, such as logistics and problem-solving. You could define a film as a series of solutions to random problems.

First and last cinematographic crush?


Brigitte Bardot, the first and the last.

How old you were when you decided you wanted to be a Director?


I still haven't decided. Seriously, I've had a few flirtations with arts. I studied film in college, then dropped out to pursue music, painting, and literature before returning to Cinema. Cinema is the culmination of all these, so maybe I'll stick with Directing for a while.

For you, a Film is...


An experience. When I can look up from my seat and get jolted back into reality.

What do you feel when you're Directing?


Sheer terror! No, seriously, there are so many moving parts that could go wrong that are always in your mind. Further, as an Indie director, I'm working with a… truncated budget, so there is more I'm responsible for than bigger budget productions. So I am ready to snap into problem-solving mode at any moment. Then there's a scene where it clicks and takes you out of the artificial world of the set into a new reality. And that scene becomes very real, and for a moment, you are not on set, but you are in that new reality, and it's a good take, and you know you've captured a moment of beauty. It's like other feelings.

You can go to the Movies with any actor or director that you love. What kind of movie do you choose and with who are you going to watch it?


If you're telling me I can take Brigitte Bardot out to see a Romantic Comedy, I'm not going to say no. But intellectually… Maybe attend a Fassbinder Film Festival with Jean-Luc Godard, then go to a Café in Montparnasse to smoke Gauloises and drink espresso laced with Spanish brandy while discussing existential philosophy. 

Audrey Hepburn used to say, "Nothing is Impossible" what do you think about it?
I

I thought she said, "Nothing is Implausible"? But seriously, Sure… Within reason. I mean… you say that, then someone comes along and makes a comment like, "what about pigs flying" and then ruins the moment. But in the realm of human endeavor, on a long enough timeline, nothing is impossible, including succumbing to entropy. I think more aspirations are defeated from fatigue rather than circumstance. 

Can you live just of your passion?


Yes… I'm a very passionate man.

What's more important, talent or luck?


Hands down talent. Luck would have to be some resolute constant beyond reason. Whereas talent is a resolute constant. 

You must go to a desert island, but you can bring with you just one movie...
I

’m going to cheat and say Fassbinder’s Berlin Alexanderplatz. It's a 15-hour film, so when you get to the end, you've forgotten how it started, so it's like watching an entirely new film every time.

Have you ever accepted a movie to Direct even if you didn't like the project?


That wouldn't happen. I only work on projects I've written. I did walk away from a project because I didn't like the executive producer. It was the first project I ever had in development, and I went with a producer with some major credits. Unfortunately, he also had a terrible reputation in Hollywood, and as a newcomer, I should have done my homework first.

What's the best compliment you have received about your Job?


When Lipstick Traces was nominated for Best Ensemble Cast at the IndieX Film Festival in Los Angeles. 

Are you satisfied about your career?


I'm very happy with what I am doing, and I take moments to step back and enjoy the process. But I think satisfaction breeds stagnation. It's a difficult balance. You want to be content in the moment but always strive for a more complete version of your vision. This gets back to the Hepburn quote, In order to endure, to reach that which has been deemed impossible, we need to take a moment and acknowledge our triumphs along the way.

Do you have a good luck charm?


Not a good luck charm, but I have two items that are constants on my desk. One is a meteor that impacted somewhere in Argentina around 1650, and the other is a piece of the Berlin Wall. The meteor is estimated to be between three to four billion years old, which is beyond comprehension. I keep it to remind me of the grandeur of the universe and how small each of us is in the grand scheme. I keep the fragment of the Berlin Wall as a symbol of what intolerance can breed and how it can be defeated by the will of a people. Nothing is impossible.

Which is the worst moment on set?


Just one? I remember a time when I scouted a location, a bar/restaurant in the Bronx. It looked perfect for two scenes, so I booked the cast, crew, and extra. Unfortunately, when we got there, they had started street work out in front, and I knew any sound we recorded would be useless, and we'd have to dub it later. But it wasn't the end. During the shoot, batteries were dying for no reason, and lights and backup cameras didn't work… It was a fucking mess. But what I didn't do was lose it, or let on to the cast the shit we were in. Because of that, I got some great performances, and after a couple of ADR sessions, the scenes turned out great.

How do you feel when a job you've been part of is ending?


Projects don't end; they evolve. I'm not a parent, but I imagine it's the same feeling a parent would have when they send their child off to college. Childhood has ended, and there is some sadness because you will never have that innocence again. Still, you take solace in knowing your creation is going out to experience the world and, hopefully, fulfill their potential. 

Have you ever lied to get a job?


That wouldn't happen as I only work on projects I conceive. But further to this, to lie is to lose integrity from which one can never recover. If I go broke, I can make more money. If my home burns down, I can find another. But if one loses their integrity, one can never get it back. It's a permanent state. 

If you should win an Oscar your first taught would go to....


My cast and crew they're like family to me.

Where can we find out more about you and your work?

You can find more about Mick and Lipstick Traces on the project's official website at - lipstick-traces.com