NYU filmmakers take a slice out of local film fest

The scene is Battery Park at night. Bright lights, celebrities, white tents, red carpets. Focus on the beaming face of a child, the enthusiastic applause of an adult. Zoom out to encompass the sea of 150,000 people sitting on the grass, clapping and cheering. For two NYU filmmakers, that's just the sort of ending they're hoping for.

Of the 16 finalists in this year's Tropfest@Tribeca, two hail from NYU: Gallatin graduate Jonathan Emmerling and current film student Josiah Signor. The festival began in 1993 in Sydney, Australia, where founder John Polson screened his short film to some friends. Now it's the largest short-film festival in the world. In 2006, Tribeca Enterprises teamed up with Tropfest founder John Polson to bring the first-ever Tropfest@Tribeca to New York City. The prize for the festival is $10,000 and a trip for two to Australia.

Emmerling's film, "The Switch," is about Tom, a "romantically challenged man" who meets Wes, "a perfect 10."

"Even though he's 100 percent straight, he has to seriously consider it," Emmerling said.

Signor's film, "Homecoming," centers on a young soldier from Iraq who tries to get in touch with his unresponsive father. The more the son tries, the more put off the father becomes and their struggles and unspoken (literally - there's no dialogue in the film) conflicts lead to a dramatic confrontation.

The 2007 Tropfest Signature Item (Polson's "brainchild" and an element that must be incorporated into each entry) is "slice," and each man used the prompt in an unexpected or subtle way. In "The Switch," the TSI occurs in Wes's passionate speech imploring Tom, if he has "a slice" of homosexuality in him, to consider Wes. In "Homecoming," the word isn't even mentioned - it's simply the print of a tablecloth.

Signor can certainly cite NYU as a source of inspiration for his entry - "Homecoming" is the culmination of his first year's studies. He received an assignment last year to make a film under five minutes with no dialogue, external shots only and natural light. The no-dialogue requirement most intrigued Signor. "It's an exercise in how to tell a story," he said.

When asked what advice they would give current film students, both men had similar responses: It's OK to make mistakes.

"Cast your friends, even if they're bad actors," Emmerling said. "In fact, that's better, because you're going to have to learn to deal with bad actors. Use your education resources, but also go out."

Along with Untucked Films, the production company he co-founded in 2005, Emmerling wants to move forward with more festivals and "official" music videos. "We produce everything on a budget of $14," he said. "We're hoping to meet a band with a budget of $17."

But budget constraints don't hinder Emmerling. In the Web 2.0 world, mass distribution is as simple as clicking a mouse. "Use the Internet! Ten years ago, it cost $5,000 to make a 10-minute movie - now it's $50. Ten years ago, people rejected video - now McDonald's shoots commercials in video because it's cool. YouTube viewers are used to bad quality," Emmerling said.

As for Signor, he's working on his second-year project, a 10-minute film. "It becomes kind of political," he confesses. "Because, whereas with the first project you were assigned crews, now you have to hire a crew and producer, raise money…"

How much money? $10,000 - the exact amount of prize money he could win at the festival. Who said real life wasn't as dramatic as the movies?

Natalie Zutter is a staff writer. E-mail her at film@nyunews.com.