Nuh! Productions
It is often said that the film industry is a difficult one to crack, and that few opportunities exist for budding directors, producers, actors, and editors. Upon this realisation, four former Participate FA students -- Angela Pezzano, John Connelly, Dulce de Guzman, and Paul Kleynjan -- decided on a solution to their work shortage woes: they started their own company – Nuh! Productions.
Tired of the lack of opportunities available to budding filmmakers, they decided to create their own opportunities to provide themselves with a steady stream of work, and also grow their passion for film making.
“I was sick of only going to one audition a month as an actor, so I thought if there's no work out there, I'll make it myself,” said Kleynjan. “We all had ideas to bring forward and we thought it was more production to do it together.”
With the skills gained from their training at Participate FA under their belts, the four graduates embarked on their journey to tackle the film industry.
“All the experiences I went through in that course (the good the bad and the ugly) have definitely shown me what to do correctly and especially what not to do during this process,” say Guzman about his experience at Participate FA. “ It has given the courage to trust my instinct and work hard for the vision of the project.”
Nuh! Production currently focuses on short and long features, as well as TV shows and music videos. Although still young, the company has provided its founders with many opportunities already, namely, a number of TV pilots and feature films.
Kleynjan has begun work on his feature film -- The Stonecutter -- which has taken a long process of planning and development. “My idea for The Stonecutter started with two very bad nightmares on two very separate occasions,” said Kleynjan. “I tend to get very vivid nightmares after either having pizza for dinner or late night coffee. Don't ask me why, just be happy that I end up remembering those dreams!”
Pezzano is also working on a TV pilot with Guzman, based on a girl band and their rise to stardom. Using actors who are also fellow graduates from Participate FA, the crew at Nuh! Productions are maximising acting and directing opportunities for themselves, and others alike.
“Participate FA helped us with Nuh! Productions through the networking aspect,” said Pezzano. “It's great for linking together people with similar goals and ideas.”
So the big question is, where to from here?
“Eventually, as the company develops, we'll employ producers to work on their own films which will in turn help our business expand,” said Kleynjan, echoing the the vision of his partners in Nuh! Productions.
“We would like Nuh! Productions to be a self- sufficient, self funding production company creating quality films and TV shows that have meaning as well as pure entertainment,” said Pezzano. We want to impact our viewers, make them think.”
