Meet Alex Hanno

Today we’d like to introduce you to Alex Hanno. 

Hi Alex, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I always knew I wanted to be a writer of some sort. I was lucky in that, no question. However, it wasn’t until I found myself producing some real mid-level short stories in a real mid-level creative writing class at college that I subsequently enrolled in “Introduction to Screenwriting” and realized in a brilliant flash of clarity that screenwriting was the way I was always meant to write. Soon after, I wrote and directed my first short film while studying abroad in Australia – it was horrendous, full disclosure – but the experience was intoxicating. Upon returning to the US, I graduated early and a few days later, I moved to Los Angeles to chase that oh so elusive dream… The first few years were lonely, as they often are for LA transplants. Eventually though, through spit and grit and a slew of Craigslist postings, I found myself producing a short film called “The Chameleon” about a disenchanted actor bound and determined to leave Hollywood for good. You know, write what you know and all that. That’s when it all came together. While casting for the short, I met my future producing partner, actor Luca Malacrino. From the get-go, our creativity just clicked and after shooting wrapped, we immediately went on to film another short, a web series, and then an award-winning pilot about the restaurant industry called, “Served”. Our first feature film followed the year after. “Elephants” – which tracks a fiery young couple as they try to rekindle their relationship after spending three years apart – was released on Amazon Prime and is now fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. The film proved to be a major stepping stone in our careers as filmmakers, as the success and feedback helped propel us on to our next two features, a family dramedy set in the enchanting countryside of Wales, and an end of days thriller set on the eve of the impending apocalypse, which are both in late stages of development as we speak. 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
If an artist ever says it was all smooth sailing, they’re lying. Also, they’re probably a pretty boring artist. Along the way, there were countless moments of self-doubt, rejection, financial struggles, more self-doubt, more rejection… you get the point. But cheesy as it may sound, those moments helped shaped me and my work. They kicked me in the a** and forced me to go out and MAKE something without needing permission from someone else to do so. In doing this, I found my team, my collaborators, and I built an infrastructure that has allowed me to succeed and believe in my work wholeheartedly. Now, when I get a “no” or a “it needs work”, I simply see these as challenges that can be overcome with a bit of creative problem solving, not roadblocks telling me to turn around and go home. 

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a filmmaker, and more specifically a writer/director for the screen. Everything that I create deals with the concept of identity, as I find this to be a universal theme that connects us all through inevitable struggle. We’re always searching for a concrete sense of identity and yet, it remains just out of our reach because we’re ever-changing. Suffice to say, there’s plenty to mine there and what’s more, it doesn’t pigeonhole me when someone asks the unavoidable question, “What do you write, comedy or drama?” The answer is, it’s all both at the same time. My most proud piece of work, the feature film “Elephants” is at once a comedy and a drama of the deepest proportions. Why? Because it’s real. That’s what interests me, authenticity. I’m not saying I don’t love Marvel as much as the next guy – in fact, I probably love it more. But the reality is that everyday life, be it the life of a superhero or the life of a waiter, is filled with a mixture of both humor and heart. My work tries to illuminate that constantly shifting balance, all while framed through character journeys revolving around a search for true meaning and identity because hey, we’re all a bit lost, aren’t we? 

What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
In a lot of ways, the overwhelming industry shift toward “prestige” television and made-for-streaming movies seems like a good thing for creatives. Indeed, it is opening the door for diverse stories at a pace and quantity the world have never seen before which is amazing, especially for consumers who yearn for content that reflects their own lives on screen. However, as the larger streaming services and studios continue to dominant the playing field, controlling who makes what, when and for how much, it’s going to be harder for independent storytellers to distribute their work and rise above the din of whatever’s popular that week on Netflix. Furthermore, as we’re already seeing, rates for actors, writers, and just about every other job in entertainment are dramatically lower on these types of projects, meaning it’s going to be much harder to actually make a living in the world of film, even if there are more opportunities. On top of this, getting funding from a studio or streamer for an idea that isn’t based on “IP” will likely prove impossible in about a year or two (if it isn’t already), unless you’re one of the few powerhouse creative names that can command that sort of return on investment. This is mostly sad for original ideas which will be few and far between as the industry churn on, but to add insult to injury, even adapting an idea is going to prove tough down the road because they’re all getting snapped up by the bigger companies. The result? You’re going to see a lot of filmmakers venture into the realms of podcast, novels, and comics in an effort to create new ideas, just so that they can later adapt them on screen. Double the work, but hey, creativity always finds a way! 

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.alexhanno.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alexanderhanno/
• Imdb: imdb.me/alexanderhanno
• Other: chameleon-effect.com