Interview with Alexander Kaminer

Alexander Kaminer was born in Baku, Azerbaijan and after a national conflict in 1990, his family fled to Israel where he graduated with a Mechanical Engineering degree and soon was dispatched to military service, where he was the IDF‘s (Krav Maga) self-defense instructor. Soon after the demobilization, Alexander‘s fortune, finally took him to Los Angeles. In addition to his stage and film career, Alexander Kaminer is an accomplished voice-over actor and a stuntman.

indieactivity: Why did you get into filmmaking & screenwriting?
Alexander Kaminer : My interest in literature and movies was growing bolder when I took an advice from a friend at the time to improvise a scene for him. When he saw me doing it, he recommended that I become an actor. And that’s how from being an engineer I ended up signing up for a class with Jack Colvin who taught me the “Michael Chekhov Technique”.

indieactivity: How does an indie filmmaker distribute his or her film?
Alexander Kaminer : I believe that the distribution of a film comes when a great film is mas been made. However, there are various avenues to finding distribution companies and each one have their requirements. I’m not yet at that point in my life and career, so I can’t comment any further.

indieactivity: At what stage does an indie filmmaker need to start planning for distribution?
Alexander Kaminer : This ‘timing’ depends on where an independent filmmaker has reached in his/her career. If are you on top, then it will find you. If you’re just starting out, I don’t think you need to worry about yet, but rather concentrate on ONLY making the film.

indieactivity: How does a filmmaker get his film into theatres on an indie budget?
Alexander Kaminer : Did you see El Mariachi by Robert Rodriguez? We all did? I am sure you did too. But, if you haven’t, check it out. It cost him a budget of $7k at the time to make it, and it was so good that distribution found him, and the film eventually made $2M. The first thing he did, was to make a great film, and that attracted distribution. Do you see?

indieactivity: How can filmmakers finance their projects?
Alexander Kaminer : Crowdfunding is quite popular nowadays, but it’s very tricky, if you don’t have a big support group, you might have to generate one to make it succeed. Another alternative to find find funding is to write something that you can film yourself with minimal costs. Remember, “everything starts with a little spark“.

indieactivity: What films have you written?
Alexander Kaminer : I have written many scripts. Some of them were optioned, some bought, unfortunately none have been made yet. “LIFT” is going to be my first feature that I have decided to write and direct myself.

indieactivity: What films have you made?
Alexander Kaminer : LIFT is my first feature film. I have made web series, but I suppose that is a different animal.

indieactivity: What is your concept on collaboration?
Alexander Kaminer : If you can’t work as a team, then you don’t want to make films. If your team isn’t working, you need to find a different one. As blunt as this sounds, there are no friends in filmmaking. You have to separate yourself from being friendly and being professional. People will hate you for that. But you have to make the decision whether you’re going to make a great film or be friendly?

indieactivity: Describe your recent work?
Alexander Kaminer : LIFT is my first big production. I did many films as an actor and paid attention to almost every detail. But from the experience of producing my own web show I can say that there isn’t much difference between a short film or a feature film, except that the scale is magnified, but not the process or the work. And just like in any production, it is very important to have a team that can do multiple/many tasks. It is impossible to do everything yourself. While, I’m in the pre-production stage of LIFT, I can’t really go into talking about post-production and I can only talk about what I know so far.

Pre-production is a very important stage in the filmmaking process, and it all depends on what kind of film you’re making. I don’t think that there’s a cookie cutter pattern to anything. You’d have to be prepared to be very creative, open-minded and humble. You can plan a scene, storyboard it, then you get on location and you see something that could make the scene better and you change your mind. Don’t get caught up in doing this all the time, though. Breaking down the script, locations, characters, scenes and budget are very necessary steps to successful production.

indieactivity: What are your future goals?
Alexander Kaminer : I want to keep making my films. I have created The Kaminer Studios that will produce demographically interesting content, independently.

indieactivity: What does an indie filmmaker need in today’s world?
Alexander Kaminer : Good stories. Exciting stories. New faces. Refreshing characters. I think a lot of filmmakers get stuck in popular genres in order to “break through” and hang out with the “big guys“. I believe independent filmmakers must concentrate on finding good stories, discovering true talent, revolutionizing filmmaking, and inventing new ways to make it happen.

indieactivity: Briefly describe your career?
Alexander Kaminer : I have been acting in many projects, so most of my experience has been in front of the camera. When I turned 40 I realized that I wanted to direct (I’ve been writing since 2001). LIFT is my first project and I’m excited to start working on it this winter.

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