Louisville’s talent has evolved since the 1990s, when digital camcorders became affordable to average consumers. In years past, aspiring filmmakers had to acquire and get trained on expensive and complex equipment. Making a film with professional production was impossible for regular college kids who just loved movies.
“Before, you had to go to graduate school for filmmaking, because cameras cost $250,000 and only a couple of schools had them,” Holland said. “With this whole advent of digital, anybody could make a movie.”
And they did.
Some of those young hobbyists stuck around town and taught themselves to use the equipment and editing programs. Others went to film school and returned. Either way, Holland and other indie film vets see much talent — albeit unmolded — in Louisville. Meanwhile, the Louisville Film Society, formed in 2007, has begun to increase awareness and interest in indie films through regular screenings.
Just take the Louisville 48-Hour Film Project, which had only 26 teams in 2006. Last July, the competition reached its cap — 48 teams, some of which consisted of dozens of actors, writers and crew members, Berman said.
Some 48 Hour participants were casual hobbyists, but others were hardcore aspiring filmmakers, like Mahoney. And still other Louisville filmmakers, like Kevin Flores, didn’t participate.
Flores, 26, directed his first feature film, 2006’s “Before I Say Goodbye,” about an injured veteran returning to normal life in Kentucky after fighting in Afghanistan. The Louisville native had the film shown at a handful of festivals, including Louisville’s Last Call Film Festival and the Delray Beach Film Festival in Florida.
Flores and his brother, David, spent about $5,000 to make “Before I Say Goodbye,” and they’re planning to make a comedy later this year — and like their first film, they’ll make it in Louisville.
