WHAT FILMS INFLUENCED YOUR CAREER?
We asked award-winning filmmakers all around the world what films influenced their careers and to be the filmmaker they are today.
In 2020, COVID-19 took the world by surprise and temporarily put the world on pause. One particular industry that was severely impacted was the movie industry. Now, as we slowly move towards re-opening the global economy, the world awaits the release of post-pandemic movies.
As we wait for the release of these new films, there is no better time than now to take the time to appreciate the history of film and the impact it has had on filmmakers around the world. For this article, we asked three filmmakers around the world, what film has had the most influence on their careers.
SANEESH FEISAL
A Hunter College Graduate, Saneesh Feisal has been producing video content since the age of 19. After graduating Hunter, Saneesh and his long-time friend, Adam Kostandy, started their production company The Golden Cut. The Golden Cut Productions specializes in creating films, music videos, and commercials. A few years into its life, Saneesh and Adam have already produced several projects for multiple clients throughout the tristate area. Utilizing their production company, Saneesh has continued to write and produce his own projects, including a recently released film titled, Dear Parents.
This recent project, having been a successfully crowdfunded project, is a testament to Saneesh’s commitment to contributing more to diversity and representation in film and television. Moving forward in his career, Saneesh is looking to direct more films that can encapsulate his experiences as a 1st generation Indian-American and also tell the stories he feels are necessary in today’s world.
“The film Ikiru by Akira Kurosawa is the film that most impacted my career and really my life. I saw the film during my studies in film school and it came at a time of a lot of uncertainty. In short, it follows the story of a man learning he has a few months to live and ultimately decides to gain some control of his life and live it the way he should have been living it this whole time. The movie deals with coming to grips with reality and how short life is. All of this essentially inspired me to really approach life with the mindset that any day can be your last and what you make your life is entirely up to you. The film reminded me how inspiring movies can be and how essential it is for art to connect with its audience to really make an impact.” - Saneesh Feisal
Giovanni Pugliese
Giovanni is an international award-winning independent filmmaker and a graduate of Cornell University. He has worked as a writer, producer, and director on multiple films and commercials. In 2019, Giovanni wrote and directed the short film War Cellar, an Italian period piece that takes place in Rome during the height of World War II.
In 2020, Giovanni followed up with the international award-winning Tailor Shop, a story about a tailor that relives the memories of an old love as he prepares to retire and sell the shop that he has once called home. Giovanni is a member of the Orders Sons of Italy, an Italian American fraternal organization that helped with the production of Tailor Shop. Giovanni’s work interest revolves around exploring existential, spiritual, and love themes.
The film that had the biggest influence on my life would have to be 8 1/2 by Federico Fellini. To me, it’s one of the most honest films made about filmmaking, life, and the human psyche. Fellini bare’s his soul to us in a way that allows us to understand him. We dive into the mind of one of the greatest filmmakers of all time and he takes us down a journey that at times feels like a great spiritual awakening. If it wasn’t for this film, I don’t think I would have been influenced to make movies. - Giovanni Pugliese
Swati Chugh
Swati Chugh is a multiple award-winning Independent Filmmaker. She has made 14 short films. She has written, produced, directed, and edited these films herself. Her films have won 27 awards and have screened at 80+ Film Festivals in 21 countries - India, USA, UK, Canada, France, Russia, Italy, Bhutan, Venezuela, Germany, China, Romania, Nepal, Austria, Turkey, Singapore, Indonesia, Egypt, Greece, UAE, and Bulgaria.
Swati is from India and has a Master’s degree in Business Administration. She has 14 years of Corporate experience in Marketing, Operations, HR, Strategy, and Innovation. She has been an independent filmmaker for the past 5 years and has worked with cast and crew from 7 countries for films. She did a filmmaking program at Barry John Acting Studio, New Delhi, India. She further went on to study filmmaking at New York Film Academy, Los Angeles Campus, USA. New York Film Academy has also written a blog on her success.
Her films are based on real-life situations, incidents, and people. She likes to pick human stories which have a global appeal. Her film New Heaven, which won several awards, talks about aging and its effect on one’s self-worth. Her film - Chitthiyaan - The Letters is based on the real-life story of a woman in an Indian village in 1971, who didn’t know how to read or write but wanted to communicate with her husband who was in the army and posted at the border. Another film, Digital Age talks about the relationship between a father and daughter, their struggles to connect amidst the generation gap. Currently, all her films are in film festivals and she keeps sharing screening details on her social media pages. She is now working on a short film script and a feature script and plans to make them soon.
“The movie that has had a very strong impact on me is Top Gun, be it the story, plotline, the characters, performances, or the iconic music. It all came together to form a masterpiece. This is one movie that made me fall in love with the magic of films and is instrumental in me being a filmmaker. I even titled one of my movies , The Maverick, after Tom Cruise's character. - Swati Chugh
Stay connected with the filmmakers
Swati Chugh
Twitter - https://twitter.com/director_swati
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/DirectorSwati/
Saneesh Feisal