JOSEPH LONGO
“ON YOUR RADAR” IS A WEEKLY GRAD FILM NEWS SEGMENT THAT FEATURES A STUDENT PICKED AT RANDOM.
JOSEPH IS CURRENTLY A 3RD YEAR STUDENT AT GRAD FILM. WE ASKED HIM A FEW QUESTIONS, AND HERE’S WHAT HE HAD TO SAY:
1. Where do you consider home and what is it like there?
Brooklyn. Well for everyone who lives in NYC you can go check it out yourself. City folk should get out there more, they got no idea what they're missing. And for people who don't know it, it's beautiful, dirty, loud and quiet - in the summer lots of trees, in the winter lots of bacon, egg and cheeses from the corner deli.
2. What is currently inspiring you as a filmmaker?
I'm angry, haha, and that's okay. I used to want to make films that showed "real life". Not so into that anymore. Walk outside and observe people, boom there is real life. Live your life, that's real life. Get off the couch and do something that isn't film, talk about something that isn't film, fall in love with something that isn't film! I'm a little sick and tired of all this sh*t about capturing "real life". I'm living a life, I don't need to sit down and watch 15 minutes or 2 hours of some "verite" fluff. How about electrocute me out of my seat, how about make me sweat, make my heart race, f**k me up. Make me feel like what it reallllly feels like to be alive, what "real life" really is. Not just some images that wash over you for 2 hours. For the people that know me they know the filmmakers, artists, musicians, friends who give me that feeling. So I guess what I get my inspiration from is moving away from what some people are moving towards? I don't know, I'm all over the place.
3. What has been your most rewarding experience at NYU Tisch Grad Film so far?
The same sh*t everyone else says: working with and meeting the people at NYU. I hope that I work with all these people for a long, long time. And then I guess in a close second to that is figuring out that I still don't know who I want to be as a filmmaker. This was terrifying about 6 months ago when I realized this after making my 2nd year film, but now it's kind of freeing. Each of the projects I have going, whether it's writing, directing, acting, producing, are all over the place, and I like that. And if there is no fire under my ass... well then I'm not movin' on forward.
Also, people take themselves wayyy too serious and damn, I'm so happy I don't do that anymore. Be a dork, have fun, enjoy life. Don't smile for the camera ;)