Daily Inspiration: Meet Frankie Campisano

There have been times during our ten-year history when Nice Hog! has not put out any new projects in a while, and there’s a real pressure to make something new. Now that we’re older and most of us have landed in Los Angeles, it’s been easier to have a steady pipeline of new projects – and that momentum snowballs from one production to the next, too. They say you’re only as good as your last project, so we try to challenge ourselves with each new release.

This is going to be true for every creative, but it’s also a road paved with rejections. It takes a thick skin to do what we do – you’re going to hear ‘no’ a million times from a million people. But it’s important to be your own biggest advocate and make the kind of art you want to see in the world.

It’s one of those industry cliches that it’s a war of attrition. “If you’re good enough, long enough, the industry will pay attention.” We’re betting big on ourselves, and so far, it’s paying off.

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’m a writer, filmmaker, and comedian. I specialize in dark comedy and horror – two sides of the same coin in terms of sustaining tension and release.

I’m most proud of SECRET MENU BEAUTY PAGEANT, my current calling card piece. It’s my take on an adult swim-style comedy short, drawing influence from the works of Casper Kelly, Alan Resnick, and Chris Sartinsky, among others. I took a lot of my real childhood experience and put it through a fun house mirror, and the result is an iconoclastic experimental comedy/horror short that continues to find success on the festival circuit.

Another project I’m really proud of is BELUGA, a psychedelic thriller feature that I co-wrote with my SECRET MENU collaborator, SG Egan. It’s another experimental genre mashup, this time leaning heavier into horror – it’s like Linklater by way of Lynch. BELUGA is, pun fully intended, something of a white whale project – it might be too avant-garde for industry stalwarts, but we’d love to bring it to the big screen even if we have to do it ourselves.

What sets me apart from others is my creative drive, unmatched work ethic, and collaborative nature. I don’t take myself too seriously, but I take my work seriously, and I never take a day off from being creative. I love making art with my friends, and that’s a great framework for juggling as many projects as I do – because, first and foremost, it’s about having fun.

One of my writing partners jokingly calls me “The Connector” because of my skills at professional networking – but really, it’s about forging genuine connections with like-minded people who share my passion for entertainment. I recognize the privilege I’ve had in getting to where I am today, and I always pay that forward by helping folks with their resumes, job search and interview strategies, reading scripts, and offering feedback, or just sharing my story with those looking to break into the industry.

What does success mean to you?
To me, success is getting up every day and doing the damn thing. When we decided, we were going to take Nice Hog! to the next level, we had an all-hands meeting where we laid out our plans for the future. Part of my pitch to the other members of the group was that if we spend the next decade making projects we love with the people we love, that’s its own reward. It’s not a consolation prize.

If success comes by other metrics, whether that’s breaking into the industry, getting representation, or selling and producing higher-budget projects, that’s all fantastic. But the only fail state is if we give up and go home, we stop writing, performing, and producing.

My goal is to continue growing my career on the business side of the industry while pouring my time and passion into Nice Hog!’s slate of projects. All the while, I’m growing as a writer/director and producer and paying it forward by championing other people’s projects and helping them bring their visions to life, too.