Today we’d like to introduce you to Nick DeRuve.
Hi Nick, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
When I was a kid, I had no idea what a filmmaker was. I was a huge fan of the movies, but I didn’t know much beyond that. Growing up in the 80’s, 90’s, 2000’s, I think we all spent a lot of time at the Blockbusters of our neighborhoods. For me, it was a Video World. I had older siblings and it seems like all they ever wanted to watch were horror films and slashers. I was like seven years old and I’m marathon watching the Nightmare on Elm Street films, and it was truly horrifying. I know exactly when the moment was that I knew I wanted to make films. I was in that age range, like seven or so, and we were watching Friday the 13th (1980). There’s a scene where Kevin Bacon is lying on his bed and he gets stabbed up through his neck from underneath. It was terrifying, but my first thought was, “Someone made that. There’s no way they actually just killed a person, someone created that and made it happen.”
From that point forward, I started really thinking about how films were made. I also learned the power of films at around that same age. My Father had rented the movie My Girl thinking it was probably a cute story with the kid from Home Alone in it. To preface this, my father is a very traditional Italian-American raised in a strong culture. These men were not openly criers to say the least. So we watch My Girl, and at the end I’m shielding my tears from my dad, I didn’t want him to see me crying. But when I looked over at him, I noticed his eyes were watery, and maybe even a tear or two fell. And I thought to myself, wow, films are so much more than entertainment. In high school, my cousin Landen started introducing me to directors and writers, but I still don’t think I thought of it as a profession. I wasn’t a good student and really struggled with reading. I think I assumed I would play sports as long as I could and then work construction or something like that. Fortunately, my high school had an incredible art program, and I was an honors art student. I had a great film teacher and he encouraged me to pursue filmmaking in college.
I went to a hands-on filmmaking program and it’s incredible to look back because in my first few weeks, I was shooting 16mm film and editing on the Steenbeck. That education doesn’t exist much anymore if at all. I had a great professor who was a working Cinematographer and I used to beg him to get me on set. One year I drove down to Florida during my spring break to work as a grip on a film that he was shooting at Universal Studios. They didn’t pay me, they didn’t put me up, but I finally got to see a film set, and I was hooked. I started freelancing in NYC as a grip and lighting technician. I worked for food and subway money a lot at first. Sometimes not even that. Little by little I started getting paid work and I was up and running. It was honestly a really exciting time. I was young, 22, 23, so working 18-hour days with eight-hour turnarounds wasn’t a problem for me. I also didn’t know any better. Looking back, I was definitely being taken advantage of, but I was just happy to be working in the business. When I would finish lighting the scene, I would take an apple box and sit as close to the director and cinematographer as I could and I would soak it in like a sponge. I picked it up very quickly, and I had front-row seats to the show. I laugh thinking back to a few directors who had to ask me to give them a little space. But I couldn’t help it, I wanted to know everything that was going on.
In 2009, I got a gig camera operating a documentary in India. I had been sort of stumbling through life in the years leading up, especially during the writer’s strike of 08, the mortgage crisis, and personal hardships. To tell you the truth, when I went to India, I was a broken man. That experience changed my life, and when I got home I applied to graduate school.
I moved to Los Angeles with a few hundred bucks and wide eyes. Now, there are some filmmakers out there who talk down on film school, but I couldn’t disagree more with that sentiment. The reason film school is great is because there are no stakes. You’re not answering to a studio or a financier. All you have is your ideas and the art. It’s an opportunity to experiment and explore the capabilities of cinema and discover yourself as a filmmaker. Day in and day out, all you’re doing is studying filmmaking and the history of cinema. It’s truly amazing. I had great professors, great classmates, and we made a ton of films together. Our films went to festivals all over the world and we started to establish names for ourselves.
Over the last decade, I have continued to freelance as a Key Grip as my main source of income. There isn’t a better “day job” for me. I love stepping into different roles on set and putting my knowledge and experience to work. I’m a blue-collar guy, and I’m really lucky to have had this profession for so long and get to work with so many talented people. I have learned so much and built a relatively stable career lighting mainly commercials at this point. During that time I have made a couple of feature films that have had success. I’ve directed some commercials and music videos. I’ve written a pile of spec scripts. I just finished my new film ‘Fish in a Barrel’, that will premiere at festivals this summer. And I guess this is a good time to announce that I have signed on to direct a film with Brilliant Screen Studios, produced by Zack Ward and Ace Underhill that is shooting this year. There’s been some wonderful highs, some grave lows, and everything in between. But I’m still here. I’m making films. I’m living my truth.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The road to this point has been merciless if I’m being real about it. I’d hate for a young filmmaker to read this and get the idea that any of it has been easy. Every step of the way is hard for one reason or another. When I was in grad school I made a couple of films that got worldwide exposure and produced some of my classmate’s work that went on to be successful as well. I had written a feature spec script that was really personal and making noise throughout the industry. I got out of school and I was full steam ahead in trying to get this film made. I had a great producing partner in Roger Moran. We had raised development funds and gone through casting in NYC with the great casting director Adrienne Stern. We had some A-List talent attached and it really looked like we were on our way to production.
Even though we had raised development funds, we were very frugal with it. I was living in a foreclosed house with some of the cast at the time. We had all the pieces in place and I really felt we were going to make a great film. To make a long story short, we didn’t get over that funding hump and after thirteen months of dedicating my life to this project, we had to let it go. That was a decade ago and still a hard pill to swallow. I made my way back to LA but had been gone for a year and had to re-establish myself to find work. My best friend at the time was Richard Hench. We had done a few films together while I was in school, and we became really close. He welcomed me into his one-bedroom apartment where I stayed in the living room for the next five years trying to get on my feet. One of those years, we made a feature film called The Runaway. We raised $43,000 to make that film, and during that year it was my full-time job. I didn’t have much time to work on set, but I did when I could. I think I made like ten grand that year. I remember my stomach growling at night. I remember having to really grind just to scrape by. It was brutal, but we made a film. And one we were proud of.
The hardest part is everything you miss out on while you’re lost in the pursuit. You miss your family, weddings, funerals, nieces and nephews being born. I see why they call it La La Land. I’m here essentially playing make believe every day, lost in creations, and ideas, and an obsession I can’t even articulate. But back home, life is happening, and you are missing it all. I think there is a lot of fear that if you were to take time off that you wouldn’t get called for work anymore. Or if you decide to go home for a week, a big job is going to pop up and maybe pay a few months’ rent, but you can’t take it. Sadly, those are truths in this business. The Hollywood I know is full of blue-collar artists with endless amounts of talent who face these issues every day. We can’t even make plans with each other. We’ll make plans for coffee or to go to the movies, and the day before, or the day of even, you get the text that says, I booked a gig and can’t make it.
I feel like as my career goes on, the challenges never go away, they just evolve. The projects may get bigger, you may make more money, but the challenges grow with you. Every day there’s a new mountain to climb.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a filmmaker, artist, and writer of things. As an empath and someone who has experienced his fair share of traumas, I think I specialize in the inner conflicts of characters the most. I love dissecting characters and discovering what it is that breaks them and what builds them up. Whether it’s a poem or a screenplay, I think I am looking for something honest that a variety of people can look at and say, I know exactly what they are going through. I tend to gravitate toward broken characters with hearts of gold. Most of those characters are a reflection of myself, I guess. One experience I had during the world premiere of my film The Runaway at the Orlando Film Festival sort of sums up what I am most proud of. What I like to do during screenings is sit all the way in the back, and I spend most of the time watching the audience.
At that point, I’d already seen the film a million times, so the real education for me is how the audience responds. As the crowd filed in I took notice of an older couple, maybe mid 70’s, finding their seats. There’s a sequence in the film I refer to as the “Jon and Cat fall in love montage”. It’s exactly like it sounds, beautiful shots, loving embrace, sunsets, it’s lovely. I noticed the older couple was sharing the armrest between them but not touching each other. In the middle of the montage, I saw the man very gently reach his index finger back to touch his wife’s hand. She then reached her finger back and nuzzled his, and then they locked fingers and held hands. That was a beautiful moment. Without a word said between them I knew they were both thinking about when they fell in love, and how it felt, and they wanted to acknowledge each other in that moment of nostalgia. And it was because of what the film made them feel. Those are the kind of moments I am most proud of. That’s why I make films really.
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
I think the most important thing if you want to be a filmmaker, is to make films. Don’t talk about making films, or think about making films, start making them right now. Anything you want to do requires practice. Whether you are an athlete or salesmen, you need to practice the craft in order to master it. As a filmmaker, your practice is the creation of your concepts. I can’t tell you how many people say to me, “Hey, I have a great idea for a film.” Then they tell me the idea, and I say, that’s great, write it, film it, make it happen. But rarely do they. Once you start making films, you start learning about the process of filmmaking. Whose job is what, and how the machine operates.
As someone who has worked below the line for over fifteen years, I can’t tell you how many directors I have worked for that have no idea how a film set is run, and they expect professionals to adjust to their poor work habits. The result is a bad movie 100% of the time. Learn the craft, learn the logistical approach, and start executing. Only then can you truly tap into your artistry when the logistical workflow of a film set is second nature. You also have to surround yourself with good people. People who excite you and empower you. People who are thirsty for knowledge and experience. Filmmaking is the most collaborative art form in the world. Who you surround yourself with will have a direct result of what you capture on screen.
Another thing I’ll say is, get a job in the industry. Now. You’re not going to make millions of dollars to direct a film when you are just getting started. You have a long way to go and you’re going to need to support yourself. You can take a day job at a coffee shop, or you could find a job in the business you are trying to be a part of. The business is flexible which will give you time to write and produce films. Some people call it unstable, but I think it’s best to call it flexible in this case. I work on a few commercials a month and I have 60% of the month to write my new script or edit the film I just shot. And while I’m at my day job, I’m learning more and growing more comfortable with production.
Lastly, study the master. Watch as many films as you can. I watch a minimum of one new film a day, sometimes more when work is slow or I am not feeling as creative as usual. Who are your influences? Study their work. Once you’ve seen all of their films, research who their influences are and study their work. There is a rich history of cinema that really only goes back a hundred-twenty years, and the art form is evolving every single day. Study. Study. Study. I will always consider myself a student of cinema, no matter how many films I make or see.
Contact Info:
- Website: ruvoent.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nickderuve/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nick.deruve/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickderuve/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/NickDeRuve
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/mrdirector18?app=desktop
Image Credits
Ashley Eberbach, Chad Shagren, Christine Bartolucci, Mike Perry, Emma Pine
