Today we’d like to introduce you to Robert Rippberger.
Hi Robert, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
The truth is it all started growing up in Colorado, telling campfire stories. I’d make them up on the spot, with the pure intent to scare and terrify. It often worked, sometimes too well—with the biggest friend in the group covering his ears, singing lullabies to himself to drown out my voice in the cabin.
Inevitably, these stories took larger form with the help of a home video camera and by 5th grade, I made my first werewolf movie at 45 minutes. It was something fun to do with friends, a way to learn more about the craft of cinema—whether that was camera techniques, making fake blood, or candy glass. By 16, I made my first feature called “The Hoodwink” and premiered it at the local theater. As a side business, I would make candles and sell them at my parent’s store, and then invest the funds into more gear, lights, and people to help me make more movies. Fortunately at that time, there were many talented artists and actors willing to lend a hand even though I was in high school and looked like I was in middle school.
Through the years, and with a lot of persistence and determination, the scope of my passion expanded, and the depth of my narratives deepened. At UC Berkeley, I studied philosophy, the work of existentialists and further explored the role of art to give meaning, to challenge, and to give direction to our lives.
Documentaries filled my orbit, as I connected mainly with the subject matter than the craft, and suddenly I was in creative circles with Angelina Jolie, the New York Times, and journalists like James Foley and Steven Sotloff who gave their lives in the pursuit of truth. The films I directed and produced were “Thinking Aloud,” “Breaking the Cycle,” “7 Days in Syria,” “Visions for the Future,” “Face of Unity: Nelson Mandela,” “Alive and Kicking,” and “Public Enemy Number One.”
From there, I pivoted back to narrative film and directed, “Strive” with Danny Glover, “Those Who Walk Away” with Booboo Stewart, and the project I’m in post-production on now called, “Renner” starring Frankie Muniz and Violett Beane.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
As they say, the road of a thousand miles begins with a single step. It is never a straight path, there are a myriad of surprises along the way, but with persistence, tenacity, and grit that emerald city emerges on the horizon.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I primarily direct, sometimes produce, and write when I’m inspired.
The films that define me and that set me apart are those that have a positive social impact — whether overtly in their message or subtly in that they bring light or laughter to people’s lives.
In 2019, I founded the SIE Society to identify and collaborate with like-minded filmmakers and artists. We are at nearly 1,000 members and our sole goal is to help folks bring their projects to life and to measure their impact.
Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
As J-Zay says in F.U.T.W., “Don’t be good, be great.”
Mastery takes time. Persistence, persistence, persistence.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.siefilms.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/rrippberger
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/rrippberger
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/rrippberger
- Other: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Rippberger
