Local filmmaker hones skills
IMPERIAL — Fresh from directing a brief monster movie at Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank, Imperial resident Julius Olivas now turns his lens on the Valley for his next project.
The monster movie resulted from Olivas’ recent participation in a University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts summer program.
The 20-year-old aspiring filmmaker was among 24 participants selected from across the nation and globe to take part in the USC/Warner Brothers Producing and Directing class.
He was also among four in the cohort who were selected to serve as directors for group film projects that were to be critiqued and screened for Warner Bros. Studios executives.
“It was intense and nonstop every day, even on weekends,” Olivas said. “They’re kind of like fellowships. It’s almost harder than the undergrad program and it’s very hard to get into.”
The group’s monster movie project, based on a fellow student’s script, proved a tough sell to the program’s administrators, since casting or filming a monster was not going to happen, Olivas said.
Yet, the group was able to present a viable proposal and get its project greenlit by the program’s administrators, who were also duly impressed during its subsequent screening.
“It was by far the best film in general,” Olivas said, “and best student film group they had seen.”
Besides allowing Olivas to further hone his filmmaking skills, the highly competitive 7 ½-week class provided him the opportunity to network with film studio executives, as well.
“I kind of barged my way through other doors,” he said.
The feedback and guidance that he had received from some of those executives has already proven useful as Olivas embarks on his next film project.
Some of that helpful advice, Olivas said, came from David Wietzner, the head of summer programs at USC and the individual responsible for establishing the USC/Warner Bros. program.
The marketing expert, whose campaigns include “E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial,” the original “Star Wars” and “Alien,” told Olivas that film studios executives are constantly looking for filmmakers who can promote their own work.
A self-taught filmmaker, Olivas’ most recent works as a director include 2017’s fulllength feature “Doce,” about a man and 12-year-old daughter whose previously separate lives unexpectedly collide.
Last year, Olivas directed “Manos Que Nos Hicieron,” a homage to his grandmother’s homemade tortillas and the importance of preserving such family and cultural traditions.
As with “Doce,” Olivas has reunited for his current project with New York-based screenwriter Neal Gumpel and local producer Michael Capeci. It is set to be filmed in the Valley and completed by the end of the month.
The project will revolve around two main characters and will present the Valley in a more nuanced manner, Olivas said.
To do so, Olivas said he intends to stay clear of the usual Hispanic typecast characters and delve more into comedy and drama as opposed to darker thematic content.
“We want to show the Valley in a more enlightening way,” he said.
Gumpel has worked for decades in the movie business, producing 35 screenplays during that time. Bad experiences and failing health had prompted him to take a step back, until Capeci introduced him to Olivas in order to collaborate on the “Doce” project a few years back.
The collaboration appeared to have rejuvenated Gumpel, who has since inked a few deals of his own with major studio executives and is expected to soon relocate to the Los Angeles area in order to be closer to the action.
“He’s got a few projects now ever since we pushed him to start writing again,” Olivas said.
Gumpel has also vowed to continue to collaborate with Olivas on the latter’s projects, helping with scripts and plots.
“We’re kind of bringing his vision to life,” Olivas said.