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Filmmaking
101
Screenwriter/producer Kevin Hershberger
didn't go to film school or writing classes to prepare
for his venture into filmmaking. Rather, the 27-year-old
Virginia Military Institute grad watched a lot of movies.
Hershberger says he watched movies all the time to get
ideas on directing and producing. He also watched documentaries
on the making of movies. "You have to do it yourself.
You can't go to film school and expect to know how to
make movies," he says.
Hershberger got his start in the business when he was
a VMI cadet. Showtime Channel was filming the movie
"Assault at West Point" at the institute,
and Hershberger helped coordinate extras on the set.
Working with the film's director helped him understand
the film-making process.
"If you want to break into the business, you have
to write your own stuff," Hershberger says. After
all, he says, you can't call up a major studio and say:
"I'd like to direct. Do you have a script for me?"
You have to prove yourself first. The best way to do
that is to develop your own material from scratch.
Hershberger's strategy paid off. In 1999, he and two
partners started their own production company, LionHeart
FilmWorks. Although Hershberger's written at least 10
scripts, so far he's only made two into films. He has
just finished production on "Wicked Spring,"
a Civil War drama that LionHeart FilmWorks made for
less than $1 million. The young filmmaker is now seeking
a major company to distribute the film. His first feature
film, "The Nest," was broadcast over the Internet.
Private investors funded both movies.
- Leila Marija Ugincius
Return
to Virginia Business - November 2001
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