Rising Stars: Meet Trent Miller of Los Angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to Trent Miller.

Hi Trent, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I’ve always been the most indecisive person in the world. I played seven sports before I eventually landed on Fencing of all things. I’ve wanted just about every career path you could imagine (except for maybe anything medical. Don’t do well with blood). Even right before going to college, I wanted to major in history. Nothing close to film. I wasn’t one of those kids that ran around with their super 8 camera making movies with friends or documenting things in my life. I had always sort of had an interest in film. I co-started a film club in my high school but that was the extent of it.

When I went to college my prime focus was fencing. I went to a division one school at Sacred Heart University. I wanted to start on the team, I wanted to go to NCAAs, I wanted to be an olympian. However my love was only for the titles. I wanted to be an olympian but I didn’t have the passion to train like one. I loved practicing but sometimes the thought of competing would make me want to vomit. I’ve been to hundreds of competitions but I never really loved to compete like most of friends did. By this time I had chosen my major as film. I wanted to combine my love for history with my curiosity of filmmaking to eventually make some riveting historical documentaries. It wasn’t until Covid when I think my perspective really started to change. I was locked inside with very little to do. I had a job editing videos for restaurant’s social media’s in the area but other than that, my days were pretty uneventful. As the same with most of the world. But with nothing to do I turned to movies. My dad works as a school counselor for an elementary school so he was also stationary at the time being. We would watch one, two or a whole marathon of movies everyday. And very rarely were they historical documentaries. I leaned more into the contemporary, he wanted to show me the classics. Eventually I started to pick up on narrative devices. When school started back again I would constantly watch youtube videos explaining diegetic and non diegetic sound, how to break the 180 degree rule to make it work, how to world build, how to build tension, how to use sound and color to tell a story. In 2021 I wrote my first screenplay. I had a mentor, Neil De la Pena, a screenwriter in the industry, absolutely tear my formatting apart until it was finally something cohesive. And a couple months later, I rented out a camera and I shot some of a film. I was the director, gaffer, producer, DP, AD, PD, AC, etc. and I failed. So in 2022, with the help of the grad students at SHU’s graduate film program, I did it the right way. The feeling I got after wrapping that day was one of the best feelings I had ever felt thus far in my life. I knew this is what I wanted to do. So I continued to chase it. While in undergrad, I wanted another safety net to make films. I feel like I had a lot still to learn. I threw everything at the wall and applied to grad school not actually thinking I would get in anywhere. I got rejected from every single school except for one, UCLA. And that’s where I am today. As of right now I have one more year left in a three year program and I am in pre production to shoot my thesis in a little over two months. It’s not without its faults but it may be the best decision I’ve made so far. I’m learning so much, not only about film of course, but about myself. I am making so many long lasting connections here and I am embracing all of it. The highs, the lows, the rejections, the connections. Unlike fencing, I enjoy the learning just as much as I do the applying. It’s a crazy industry but I don’t know where I would be without it…Probably teaching history actually.

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?
I have been privileged enough to come from a loving two parent household where they support me in anything I choose to do. While I don’t have everything on a silver platter, they also have a stable enough income to provide me with the resources to help me get an education as well. Being black and having been in many white majority spaces (elementary school, fencing, college) I have had my fair share of racism and micro aggressions thrown my way. I also have been diagnosed with general anxiety disorder and depression and when not keeping myself busy, I often let those get the better of me. I’m also a Sixers fan. But I remind myself that I’m still here, I’m still trying, I still love being black and please trade Embiid.

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?
First and foremost I am a filmmaker. Writer and Director to be specific. I love fiction filmmaking and when I write, I tend to make things funny. My first film at UCLA dealt with a brother and sister consoling their dying grandma when the brother gets a text reminding him to attack in Clash of Clans. He’s torn between missing this important moment with Gma or more importantly, the possibility of being kicked from his clan. My second had a woman dying in a heat wave, haunt her own apartment to cool it down because she saw that ghosts’ presence make an area cold on a reality tv show. Comedy has always found me through tough times and I like to recycle that into my creative expression. I believe representation matters which is why as a black writer/director, I like to tell black stories and work with black actors and actresses. While there are plenty of great black comedies out there, often our films tend to lean heavily into our shared trauma. Some of those films definitely have a place but film has so many different purposes; to entertain, to inform, to observe. For me, I’d like my films to be an escape. A place where we can ugly laugh and not be judged for it. I also love animation and feel that it is heavily undervalued and not utilized nearly as much as it could be. As I develop my taste more and dip my toe into animation, I have an animated show idea I would one day love to make a reality.

I am most proud of my mind. For the better or for the worst. I have an extremely active imagination that allows me to think and develop new ideas all the time. I’ve often been complimented on my dialogue writing. I have full conversations in my head with myself damn near all the time. When writing a new character, this allows me to tap into their mind and see what they would say at any given time or moment.

How do you think about luck?
I’ve certainly had luck with good health, a vivid imagination, and many loving family and friends that support me along the way. I’m also lucky that I’m living in such an amazing and culturally diverse city where my ideas can be heard and shared not just here, but around the world.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/t_mill.36/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trent-miller-1683441b2/