Some UCLA students go on
vacation over their summer break. Some take summer school, and
others hit the beach. Mark Iverson, a second-year film and
television student, made his third professional-quality film.
Iverson is a filmmaker in
all senses of the word: He wrote, directed, produced, and played a
supporting role in his new film “Blind Landing.”
He has completed and
screened two other film projects in the suburbs of Chicago, where
he grew up, but today will be the first time one of Iverson’s
movies will premiere in Los Angeles.
“As much as I love
DVDs,
there is something about the movie theater experience that is
incomparable,” said Iverson. “Things are bigger, more exciting
and more dramatic.”
Iverson isn’t the only
person excited for the film’s Los Angeles premiere. Steve
Coulter, one of the lead producers of “Blind Landing,” is
eager to observe the student reactions to the film.
“This kind of film is
perfect for a college-aged audience,” Coulter said. “It’s a
story about how everyone expects to grow up and have more mature
relationships in college, even though that isn’t always the
case. Everyone can relate to a story like this.”
Coulter is one of the
founding members of CNGM Pictures, a nonprofit organization of
filmmakers in Chicago, many of whom have worked with Iverson on
their own projects in addition to his.
“Working with Mark is
really neat,” Coulter said. “When he and I work together, we
are able to help each other, but we are aware that we have
different styles”.
Coulter is graduating from
the University of Iowa with a degree in business management this
May, after which he will move to California and hopes to work on
more films with Iverson. Their differing styles ultimately lend
themselves well to gaining experience in the industry.
“(Mark) knows what he
wants, but he lets his actors make their own choices with their
roles. He just likes to make everyone happy,” said Paige Minor,
who went to high school with Iverson and plays the female lead in
“Blind Landing.”
Minor is currently a
production assistant at Disney and intends to major in theater at
Moorpark College and go into a career in acting. But she’s
impressed with what Iverson has already accomplished.
“If I saw his name in
lights, I wouldn’t be at all surprised,” she said.
“Blind Landing” is a
story very close to Iverson’s heart because it is similar to an
experience that he had with his high school girlfriend. He was
inspired to make this film in his senior year of high school,
after he had just finished his first feature-length picture. He
had written about his rocky experiences with his high school
sweetheart for a college admission essay, and realized that the
story had a great format for a short film.
“Doing this film really
helped me deal with what happened,” Iverson said. “Making
movies is such a great way to work out your feelings about the
world.”
Although Iverson is one of
few out-of-state students at UCLA, he welcomes the California
college lifestyle.
“I never wanted to go to
an art school,” said Iverson. “Having a cumulative college
experience is just wonderful.”
In the future, Iverson
hopes to write many more films and continue enjoying the life of a
college student.
“If you want to be a
filmmaker, you have to make movies, even if you have crappy
equipment, horrible actors, and you aren’t really sure how to
write scripts yet,” said Iverson. “If you want to make movies,
how can you not?”
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