Page 59 – NYFA

NYFA FILMMAKING ALUM PAUL DANO TO STAR AS THE RIDDLER IN MATT REEVES’ UPCOMING FILM ‘THE BATMAN’

It’s no secret that one of the most anticipated films of 2021 will be Matt Reeves’ The Batman. The Caped Crusader returns in a new adaption from the Cloverfield and Dawn of The Planet of The Apes director, featuring a star studded cast including: Robert Pattinson (Batman), Zoë Kravitz (Catwoman), Colin Farrell (The Penguin), and NYFA Filmmaking alum Paul Dano in his most anticipated and career-bending role yet as The Riddler.

NYFA Filmmaking alum Paul Dano as The Riddler

While fans of the franchise have already had a peek at Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne/Batman for many months now, the recent DC FanDome event premiered a teaser trailer for the upcoming film giving fans their first glimpse at Catwoman, Commissioner Gordon, The Penguin, and The Riddler.

Fans are already excited for the film, with the trailer revealing the dark and unhinged world of Gotham and villains like Dano’s Riddler having a huge hand in the chaos as Pattinson’s Bruce Wayne tries to find his footing as the masked vigilante.

A note for Batman from Paul Dano’s character The Riddler

At the DC FanDome, director Matt Reeves had this to share about Dano’s portrayal of The Riddler: “Paul Dano plays a version of The Riddler that no one has ever seen before. What he’s doing is, I think, going to blow people’s minds.” Dano’s performance is already being applauded by fans from the trailer alone, with many taking to social media to share their excitement for his upcoming performance, which has similar undertones to the late Heath Ledger’s Joker in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight.

Daniel Day Lewis (Left) and Paul Dano (Right) in ‘There Will Be Blood’

Aside from The Batman, Dano has already had an impressive acting career at 36 years old. Dano won an Independent Spirit Award for Best Debut Performance for L.I.E. and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a cast in a Motion Picture for his role as Dwayne in Little Miss Sunshine; he was also nominated for a BAFTA Film Award for Best Supporting Actor for There Will Be Blood. His other notable credits include Prisoners, Swiss Army Man, The Emperor’s Club, and The Girl Next Door, among many others. He also made his directorial debut with Wildlife in 2018, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Carey Mulligan.

With filming pushed back due to Coronavirus concerns, The Batman is expected to be released in 2022. The film will also feature NYFA Acting for Film Conservatory alum Alfredo Tavares, , who is announced to be playing the role of a forensic expert.

Watch the full teaser trailer for The Batman below:

Please note: NYFA does not represent that these are typical or guaranteed career outcomes. The success of our graduates in any chosen professional pathway depends on multiple factors, and the achievements of NYFA alumni are the result of their hard work, perseverance, talent and circumstances.

New York Film Academy Filmmaking Alum Paul Dano Stars as The Riddler in Matt Reeves’ Upcoming Film ‘The Batman’

The Caped Crusader returns in a new adaption from the Cloverfield and Dawn of The Planet of The Apes director, Matt Reeves. The film will feature a star-studded cast including: Robert Pattinson (Batman), Zoë Kravitz (Catwoman), Colin Farrell (The Penguin), and NYFA Filmmaking alum Paul Dano in his most anticipated and career-bending role yet as The Riddler.

While fans of the franchise have already had a preview of Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne/Batman for many months now, the recent DC FanDome event premiered a teaser trailer for the upcoming film giving fans their first glimpse at Catwoman, Commissioner Gordon, The Penguin, and The Riddler.

Fans are already excited for the film, with the trailer revealing the dark and unhinged world of Gotham and villains like Dano’s Riddler having a huge hand in the chaos as Pattinson’s Bruce Wayne tries to find his footing as the masked vigilante.

When asked about Dano’s character, Reeves had this to share: “Paul Dano plays a version of The Riddler that no one has ever seen before. What he’s doing is, I think, going to blow people’s minds.” Dano’s performance is already being applauded by fans from the trailer alone, with many taking to social media to share their excitement for his upcoming performance, which has similar undertones to the late Heath Ledger’s Joker in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight.

In addition to The Batman, Dano has already had an impressive acting career at 36 years old. Dano won an Independent Spirit Award for Best Debut Performance for L.I.E. and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a cast in a Motion Picture for his role as Dwayne in Little Miss Sunshine; he was also nominated for a BAFTA Film Award for Best Supporting Actor for There Will Be Blood. His other notable credits include Prisoners, Swiss Army Man, The Emperor’s Club, and The Girl Next Door, among many others. He also made his directorial debut with Wildlife in 2018, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Carey Mulligan.

The Batman is expected to be released October 21, 2021 and will also feature NYFA Acting for Film Conservatory alum Alfredo Tavares, who is announced to be playing the role of a forensic expert.

Watch the full teaser trailer for The Batman below:

NYFA Filmmaking Alum Silvia Susanna to Screen Short Film “Normality” at Nòt Film Fest

In a year where the word “normal” seems a distant memory, filmmaker and architect Silvia Susanna examines what the idea of normalcy means in her short film Normality. The short, 3-minute film is set to screen at this year’s Nòt Film Fest.

Silvia Susanna works in the field of Architecture and Design as a project designer, assistant curator, and independent researcher in Italy and abroad. Her practice is focusing primarily on projects that are questioning established assumptions of the built environment. Her work has been part of important architecture and design exhibitions in Venice (La Biennale di Venezia, Architettura 2016), Ljubljana (BIO50, 2014), Vienna (VDW, 2018), Oslo (Triennale, 2019), Basel (DW, 2017) and Milan (Atelier Clerici, 2014).

This year, Susanna took NYFA’s 8-Week Filmmaking Workshop, which resulted in her short film Normality, an examination on the meaning of what it means to feel normal or what is considered normal. The film was shot in 8 hours, a couple of days before the New York lock-down when security measures were gradually transforming daily life.

The film will be screening at this year’s Nòt Film Fest, an independent Italian film festival with an international flair, dedicated to innovation, inclusion, and gender equality. The festival will feature 118 films, from 35 countries, for a total of two thousand minutes of screenings.

The jury is composed of international festival founders (Peter Baxter, Sandra Lipski, Vjosa Berisha, and Fatos Berisha), emerging talents of Italian cinema (NYFA alum Stefano Cipani, Luca Severi, Anna Pennella, and Mauro Russo), and established professionals in the fields of entertainment and communication (Lavinia Guglielman, Mario Fanizzi, Roberto Naccari, and Luca Scarcella).

New York Film Academy congratulates NYFA alum, Silvia Susanna, on her achievement and looks forward to seeing what comes next from the talented alum.

Normality (2020)
Director: Silvia Susanna
Writer: Silvia Susanna
Director of Photography: Silvia Susanna
First Camera Assistant: Simone Montacci
Second Camera Assistant: Gabriele Camilli
Original Music: Giuseppe Canegiallo
Subtitles: Sara Aoun, Katia Abi Gerges, Faye Yue
Special Thanks: Thomas Barnes, Eleonora Amianto

Academy Gold Roundtable with NYFA Students and Alumni

This May, NYFA was excited and very proud to announce that 10 NYFA students and recent graduates had been accepted to be part of The Academy Gold Program, a prestigious educational initiative hosted by The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). The students accepted were Yuanhua (Gwendolyn) Wang, Caterina Piccardo, Veronica Badell, Junke (Coco) Li, Destinee Easley, Gowtham Namasivayam, Rodrigo Gomez, Eunicet Pamela Rubio Rojas, Juan Sanchez and Mayur Patankar.

Out of thousands of applicants, our students were selected within a group of 30 interns for the Production Track, offering summer-long technical workshops designed for those with a career interest in cinematography, production design, costume design and film editing.

NYFA Students and Alumni on an Academy Gold Roundtable Session

“This year has been the first online edition, and although some parts of the program -like visiting museums or studios, or shooting scenes on a soundstage – can’t be the same, the staff has done an amazing job not only in terms of organization and quality of the panels, but also creating a true sense of community between all the participants, now proud to call ourselves the ‘Gold Family’,” says Rodrigo Gómez, a Filmmaking student.

“I can only have words of gratitude,” shares Gómez. “Firstly, to Barbara Weintraub, for inviting the members of the Program to meet us at NYFA, and for helping me so much throughout the selection process. Then, to the Academy Gold staff, for seeing in me the potential and boosting my confidence in the goal of becoming a filmmaker. Next, to the panelists, leaders in every field of the Industry, always kind and approachable, and delivering the best professional advice. Finally, to my Gold fellows: an incredible group of talented, creative, diverse and helpful people. Together we have built the best possible network, supporting and wishing each other’s success.”

For this year’s enhancement program, students were introduced to numerous executives from top studios including Warner Bros., Disney, Marvel and some of the most experienced producers, directors, editors, etc. that one can imagine. They had career prep sessions on networking, resumes, interviews and a mentorship program that will be starting in November.

Additional Testimonies:

Juan Sanchez
“Being part of the Academy Gold Production Track for Cinematography, it opened my horizons to a whole new world. This program not only introduced me to some of the most experienced and skillful industry experts, but also the kind, talented and generous people who were fellow Gold participants. The Academy gave us so many opportunities to learn and grow, including seminars, networking events and q&a sessions. Among the hardships brought upon the world this year, the program leaders were able to give and pull through a one of a kind virtual experience. I felt eternally thankful for the chance to be a part of this program and I hope to be able to someday be a part of the giving end.”

Yuanhua( Gwendolyn) Wang
“I still can’t believe that I become part of the gold. It means a lot to me. In this specific time, the Academy Gold team had so much effort to make sure the program went online. I’m so grateful. Meeting via zoom has it’s down side but I think it’s the first time we can meet people all over the world. That’s so amazing. I am into sound, and it’s amazing that in this program we have those Oscar panelists to share their wisdom. I learned a lot from them. Our eight weeks program has ended now but I’m looking forward to the future communications with all my gold alumni.”

At the end of their 8-Week summer intensive program, the students got to present their short film pitches and/or D&I initiative pitches in virtual presentations to a panel of industry professionals.

Eunicet Pamela
“Working on the project has been amazing! Our idea was always an Inclusion and Diversity Initiative but it evolved from a Gallery Art exhibit to an actual collaboration with The Academy Museum and that happened because after having a virtual tour with Bill Kramer and Amy Homma during the internship we reached back to Amy with our idea and she actually became a mentor of the project, she put us in touched with different departments to make our idea more viable and accurate for the Museum and then encourage us to actually pitch it to the Executives Producers.

Our project is a leverage between The Academy and The Academy Museum to make an extension on the mobile app to highlight legacies of people that have worked in big productions and only a few people know their work. Our objective is that legacies are meant to be known and The Museum really wants to support the idea.

We are currently in actual meetings to make this project a reality and that is what I like the most because it started as an “imaginary” project for the internship but we are definitely going to keep working on it.”

“I was invited to watch our students at the final pitch session,” said Barbara Weintraub, Director of Industry Outreach and Professional Development. “I was impressed with the work and ideas our NYFA student presented”

The relationships and contacts made during the Academy Gold Program are new beginnings as our students go out into the world and pursue their careers,

NEW YORK FILM ACADEMY (NYFA) WELCOMES MANAGER AND PRODUCER RISA SHAPIRO FOR ‘THE Q&A-LIST SERIES’

On Tuesday, August 25, 2020, New York Film Academy (NYFA) had the honor of hosting a live video Q&A with manager and producer Risa Shapiro, where Shapiro shared her career expertise with NYFA students and alumni. Tova Laiter, Director of the NYFA Q&A-List Series, curated and moderated the event.

Risa Shapiro began her career in the entertainment business at The William Morris Agency in New York in 1981. She helped discover and cultivate the careers of such stars as Julia Roberts, Jennifer Connelly, Rosie O’Donnell, David Duchovny, Andie MacDowell and many more. In 1991, Shapiro left William Morris to join the ICM agency, where she continued to thrive as one of the most powerful female agents in the industry. In 2008, she decided to pursue management and production.

Tova Laiter (Left) and Risa Shapiro (Right) for NYFA’s Q&A-List

As a manager, Shapiro continues to represent Cher, Jennifer Connelly, Heather Graham, Steven McQueen, Christian Madsen, and many others. She co-financed Saw (2004), was an executive producer on Burlesque (2011), and produced the television movies Dear Mom, Love Cher (2013) for Lifetime and Love At First Glance (2017) for the Hallmark Channel.

Laiter opened up the discussion by recalling how, when Laiter was working as Co-President at Imagine Entertainment, Shapiro was just introducing the world her new upcoming client, Julia Roberts, who because her brother was already famous, “knew her way around the set and knew what actors were like and I knew she will go places and signed her,” remembered Shapiro.

Laiter then commented how Shapiro has such a keen eye for talent and asked whether she was born with it, or if it was something learned. Shapiro explained that it’s something you develop over time and it’s about loving actors and the movies. From there, she explained, it’s about “finding those roles [for your actor] that you can then show to the next director, and the next director, and the next one to get them (the clients) to that next big role.”

Film poster for ‘Burlesque’ (Produced by Risa Shapiro)

As for the role of a Manager vs Agent, (and she was both) Shapiro explained that, in her role as a Manager, she is charged with being the point person to help guide her client’s career but an agent has most of the information from staff meetings so the ideal is to have both. She then shared a time when she received a producer credit on Burlesque without even pursuing one because, ultimately, the director knew that Shapiro was the reason that Cher [her client] remained there shooting the film and was a huge comfort for the actress.

Shapiro explained that one of the biggest challenges actors are facing now in the business is competition. She shared that, due to the high volume of talent and availability, actors have to “be really great these days,” and reminded NYFA students: “You’re not going to do a great job on your own. You have to stay in class and you have to get a coach.”

(Left to Right) Producer Donald De Line, restaurateur Victor Drai and executive producer Risa Shapiro

A student then asked about how someone would go about finding an agent if they are new in the business and Shapiro had this advice to share:

“Put together a reel you are proud of and just remember: People in the entertainment business have a short attention span, so don’t make it too long. Then, go online and find the names of managers and agents and make sure they are relatively young and send material on yourself to them (your picture, resume, reel, where you went to school, etc).”

Laiter then added “make friends with the assistants of those people,” to which Shapiro agreed, noting that you should always get to know the people around the point person you are trying to reach when finding an agent. Laiter and Shapiro also suggested that actors and others should invest in IMDBPro so they can keep up with who represents who in the industry.

Another student looking for advice from Shapiro asked, if they have other talents other than acting, whether they should begin looking for representation as an actor first, rather than for all the other disciplines.. “Don’t be spread too thin,” Shapiro replied. “Try and get an agent as an actor and then branch out. When you work on a set as an actor, you’re going to meet people that will help you in other areas later on.”

Shapiro closed the conversation by encouraging students to create using the resources they have today. “People in the industry today can make a movie by themselves on their computer. You could write and star in your own movie, but always have something to show people that will make others impressed.” Laiter agreed and added, “use this time in school to do the best short, broadcast segment or project that you can be proud of.”

Actors Amy Smart and Adrian Grenier in ‘Love at First Glance’ (Produced by Risa Shapiro)

Laiter closed the conversation by thanking Shapiro for sharing her time and vast knowledge of the business side of the movie industry.Shapiro expressed her enjoyment of the conversation and wished NYFA’s students the best of luck in their future endeavours.

New York Film Academy would like to thank Manager and Producer Risa Shapiro for sharing her time and expertise with students and alumni looking to explore the business side of the film industry as actors, filmmakers, producers, and more.

To view the full conversation, click here or watch below:

These guests are not faculty and do not teach at NYFA, but they have appeared to share their stories and experience with our students. As guest speakers are scheduled based on their availability, NYFA cannot guarantee whether a guest speaker will visit during a student’s attendance or who that guest speaker may be. This guest speaker forum is not part of any NYFA curriculum and attendance at guest speaker events is purely voluntary. Students should be aware that guest speaker events do not represent a job opportunity nor are they intended to provide industry connections.

New York Film Academy (NYFA) Welcomes Manager and Producer Risa Shapiro for ‘The Q&A-List Series’

Laiter opened up the discussion by recalling how, when Laiter was working as Co-President at Imagine Entertainment, Shapiro was just introducing the world her new upcoming client, Julia Roberts, who because her brother was already famous, “knew her way around the set and knew what actors were like and I knew she will go places and signed her,” remembered Shapiro.

Laiter then commented how Shapiro has such a keen eye for talent and asked whether she was born with it, or if it was something learned. Shapiro explained that it’s something you develop over time and it’s about loving actors and the movies. From there, she explained, it’s about “finding those roles [for your actor] that you can then show to the next director, and the next director, and the next one to get them (the clients) to that next big role.”

Shapiro explained that one of the biggest challenges actors are facing now in the business is competition. She shared that, due to the high volume of talent and availability, actors have to “be really great these days,” and reminded NYFA students: “You’re not going to do a great job on your own. You have to stay in class and you have to get a coach.”

A student then asked about how someone would go about finding an agent if they are new in the business and Shapiro had this advice to share:

“Put together a reel you are proud of and just remember: People in the entertainment business have a short attention span, so don’t make it too long. Then, go online and find the names of managers and agents and make sure they are relatively young and send material on yourself to them (your picture, resume, reel, where you went to school, etc).”

Another student looking for advice from Shapiro asked, if they have other talents other than acting, whether they should begin looking for representation as an actor first, rather than for all the other disciplines.. “Don’t be spread too thin,” Shapiro replied. “Try and get an agent as an actor and then branch out. When you work on a set as an actor, you’re going to meet people that will help you in other areas later on.”

Shapiro closed the conversation by encouraging students to create using the resources they have today. “People in the industry today can make a movie by themselves on their computer. You could write and star in your own movie, but always have something to show people that will make others impressed.” Laiter agreed and added, “use this time in school to do the best short, broadcast segment or project that you can be proud of.”

New York Film Academy would like to thank Manager and Producer Risa Shapiro for sharing her time and expertise with students and alumni looking to explore the business side of the film industry as actors, filmmakers, producers, and more.

NEW YORK FILM ACADEMY NAMED ONE OF THE TOP ALTERNATIVE FILM SCHOOLS BY ‘HOLLYWOOD REPORTER’

The New York Film Academy (NYFA) has been recognized as a top alternative film school by Hollywood Reporter for New York and Los Angeles. This is not the first time NYFA has been recognized by Hollywood Reporter; the film industry news source previously listed NYFA in their Top Film Schools of 2019 and Top American Film Schools lists. NYFA was also recently named a Top Film School by Variety for its fourth consecutive year in a row.

The Hollywood Reporter is known for being a reputable industry resource used by producers, film executives, and rising talent. Their recent announcement also highlighted and gave credit to the school’s ability to quickly adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic and accommodate the needs of the student community at such a critical time across the industry.

For NYFA’s newly offered Online Workshops, students have been raving about the new model, which allows them to continue to dive into their discipline of choice and elevate their craft in a safe environment. “The online workshop is the most inspiring and innovative experience I’ve ever had,” shared a NYFA Online Workshop alum. “The instructors are helpful, charismatic, and have made the online program a major success.”

“We were able to successfully launch NYFA’s Hands-Online Workshops at a time when aspiring artists interested in studying at NYFA must stay home to remain safe and healthy,” says NYFA President Michael Young. “We are now at the point where we are able to offer hybrid courses for our long term and degree programs, where students can continue the intensive, hands-on approach that NYFA is known for, while still being able to safely attend classes online and on campus as well as check out equipment needed to create projects.”

NYFA Filmmaking Alum and Emmy-nominated actress Issa Rae (Photo by Erik Carter)

The August 2020 Hollywood Reporter also featured NYFA Filmmaking alum and Emmy-nominated actress Issa Rae as the issue’s cover star. In the issue, Rae discusses her role as a Black creator and the longevity that her career can have for others to feel inspired and showcase their own stories. To read more about her profile story, click here.

Page 10 of the August 2020 ‘Hollywood Reporter’ issue featuring NYFA alum Phyllis Tam

NYFA saw MFA Filmmaking alum (2020) Phyllis Tam celebrated in the August 2020 issue as a finalist for the Student Academy Awards for her film Fragile Moon. The issue also featured recent NYFA Guest Speaker Beanie Feldstein as part of the newly announced cast for the upcoming Apple TV+ production of Harriet The Spy.

NYFA is regionally accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC), and is an accredited institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD). These accreditations extend to all NYFA campuses in the United States and overseas.

New York Film Academy Named One of The Top Alternative Film Schools by ‘The Hollywood Reporter’

With NYFA’s newly offered Online Workshops, students have been raving about the new model, which allows them to continue to dive into their discipline of choice and elevate their craft in a safe environment. “The online workshop is the most inspiring and innovative experience I’ve ever had,” shared a NYFA Online Workshop alum. “The instructors are helpful, charismatic, and have made the online program a major success.”

NEW YORK FILM ACADEMY DOCUMENTARY & PRODUCING DEPARTMENTS WELCOME DOCUMENTARY & NARRATIVE FILM PRODUCER CHRISTOPHER LEGGETT

This summer, New York Film Academy (NYFA) had the pleasure of hosting a live video Q&A with the talented Producer Christopher Leggett to discuss his current success with multiple films and projects in recent distribution, including Ask Dr. Ruth, Mike Wallace is Here and Honey Boy.

Producer Christopher Leggett, along with Rafael Marmor, is a controlling partner at Delirio Films, a production company with a long list of award-winning films, both documentary and narrative, and several compelling non-fiction television series on platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, The History Channel and NBC, to name a few.

NYFA instructors Sanora Bartels (Top Left) and Roberta Colangelo (Top Right) with Christopher Leggett

The Q&A was conducted by Los Angeles Chairs of the Documentary and Producing Departments, Sanora Bartels and Roberta (Robi) Colangelo, respectively. They were excited to speak with the producer, who has a very active and successful record with both documentary (where he started) and narrative filmmaking; his credits are a testament to the importance of storytelling, regardless of genre.

The discussion focused on how to make the transition from film student to filmmaking professional and the most important aspects of a successful professional career. Leggett was generous with his time and inspiring with his answers.

His advice to students in film school was to work on their tangible skill sets and noted that, for him, that includes editing: “I was a swimmer in college…so I had a little bit of the athlete mentality of just constantly doing the work was really important right out of school.” He went on to say that while you’ll have a lot of uncreative, “grunt work” to perform, “everything is a stepping-stone at that level.”

Leggett (Far right) on a press junket for ‘Ask Dr. Ruth’

Once he mastered the technical level of the work and had something tangible on his resume, he knew he had to move on from the secure job and get himself out into the world networking in order to use his storytelling skills picked up in school. He also acknowledged the importance of internships during school, which allowed him to maintain professional relationships that he would reconnect with after getting some experience under his belt.

He also used his connections in the competitive swim world to differentiate himself as a filmmaker. In other words, he understood that he needed unique access to a world outside of filmmaking in order to tell stories that he was uniquely qualified to tell. This allowed him to pitch an idea to NBC, get hired and move up the rungs of the ladder at NBC Universal where he worked on Against the Tide and began cutting his teeth as a producer.

Of his time at NBC, Leggett reveals that “when you’re in an organization like that, there are a lot of boundaries… your job goes from here to here [hands about six inches apart]…and I think good people are constantly pushing at it to try to get more responsibility.”

This desire for more responsibility caused Leggett to develop his own project, The Short Game. He admitted that he did this while employed by NBC and because golf was not yet an Olympic sport, it did not pose a conflict of interest and he was able to see it through. He called it his “side hustle.”

Leggett (Left) at New York premiere of ‘Mike Wallace is Here’

His practicality and go-getter attitude spills into his philosophy around “luck,” which he believes is presented as an opportunity, but you have to say yes. “I learned early in my career not to be scared that I don’t know what I’m doing. So luck happens when you say yes.”

Talking to him about his producing philosophy led to an interesting discussion around titles versus ego versus the very real job of the producer, Leggett shared: “The Producer’s role I feel is so vast,” he explained. “You are an essential person to have birthed this project into the world.”

With this, he shared how he transitioned from documentary to narrative filmmaking, something many find difficult, but his message was all about the work and he stressed the importance of business relationships built on trust and the ability to speak the same “language.” He eventually created Delirio Films based on relationships and the desire to help filmmakers evolve.

Alma Har’el (Left) with Christopher Leggett at the Tribeca Film Festival

Because Leggett is already pushing the boundaries of budgets on his documentaries, transitioning to traditional scripted narrative filmmaking came naturally. He chose to produce Honey Boy based on a past relationship with Alma Har’el and, again, he stressed the importance of trust and their mutual belief that they were “soldiers of cinema” who get things done.

When asked how he chooses the artists on his team and how he defines which relationships are important to develop, he had this to say:

“I do think that a lot of the directors that I respond to have strong opinions, are collaborative but have strong opinions! I’m not going to push them over. They have their take and I can try to poke holes through their take, and they will come up with solutions, not put up walls.”

Leggett also shared additional advice to grow and develop your skills and become a talented professional:

“I said yes to a lot of things and then I googled later what I said yes to….you learn so much by just being in it. You may not want to be an editor but learn it. You [as a student] have a great curriculum that leads up to a thesis film. Embrace that and try to learn every sphere when you’re doing the thesis film. You’re going to have so many more tangible skills.”

New York Film Academy would like to thank Christopher Leggett for sharing his time and expertise with NYFA students and guests on developing tangible skills and saying “yes” to projects and opportunities to be a great filmmaker and producer.

Watch the full discussion with Christopher Leggett below or click here.