Geoffrey Uloth
October Filmmaker of the Month
A former professional snowboarder with Burton Snowboards, Geoffrey Uloth has degrees in Communication Studies and Liberal Arts. After founding his production company, Evergon Arts, Geoff wrote, directed and produced five award-winning short films as well as two internationally acclaimed TV series and several television spots and music videos. His short films, Wildflowers, The Ecstasy Note, and Moment have garnered over 40 international awards, and sold to major broadcasters such as the CBC, Fox International, Canal+ and Moviola.
In 2014, Geoff was instrumental in developing the hit adventure-reality TV series, Chasing Monsters, which is broadcast in over 100 territories by the Discovery Channel, the National Geographic Channel, Netflix USA, BBC World, Canal Évasion, Spike TV and Channel 5 (UK), and he has since travelled the world filming over 30 episodes.
Geoff is currently producing, directing and appearing on-camera in the new adventure-reality series, Last Of The Giants, for the Discovery Channel and Canal Évasion, and is developing the psychological horror feature Dead Tired (3rd Place – 2013 Slamdance Film Festival Screenplay Competition), the science-fiction thriller Carbon, with the financial backing of SODEC, and a television series based on his short film, Moment.
Filmmaker Interview
Tell us your backstory. How and why did you get into filmmaking?
I grew up in a suburb of Montreal, Canada, and when I was younger I wanted to be a marine biologist specializing in sharks. Unfortunately, all the attack stories in my shark books scared me off of that idea. While growing up, my parents often read books to my brother, sister and I, and movie nights in the city were always a popular event in our house. I slowly fell in love with storytelling, though I didn’t realize it at the time. Our mother had cancer off and on during our childhood, and since our parents couldn’t express negative emotions well, I think us kids turned to storytelling as a way to process our stress. I graduated college with a Liberal Arts degree and took two years off to snowboard, eventually becoming sponsored by Burton snowboards and briefly going pro. When my mother passed away just after my 21st birthday, I decided to study film in Concordia University’s Communication Studies program. In fact, all the Uloth kids eventually became filmmakers. After graduation, I made several short films that did well and wrote a pile of screenplays while working in various positions on film sets to pay the bills. I was a grip on Martin Scorsese’s The Aviator for a summer, which has a lot of fun. In 2013 I wrote the first draft of what would eventually become Moment. While I was rewriting it and trying to get production financing together, I got my first job directing television, co-creating the adventure show Chasing Monsters with the show’s host and producer, Cyril Chauquet. It was a fun (and intense) first TV experience, which brought me full circle when I finally got to hang out with real marine biologists and even swim with sharks during filming. We filmed Moment in October/November of 2017 and finally finished it in 2019. It’s done very well since then, winning over 30 awards, which has been a nice surprise for everyone. After all that hard work, it’s nice to know that the film is connecting emotionally with audiences.
What are the specific qualities that, in your opinion, make a film great?
There are many, but the quality that most resonates with me is compelling, authentic characters that must navigate authentic, and compelling situations. When it comes to plot or concept, 'authentic' doesn't mean 'realistic,' it means believable within the world in which the story exists. I love beautiful photography and exciting editing as much as the next person, but I also need to see human truth at every turn. If characters behave in ways that don't make sense, I'm out. Same goes for story logic and the stakes in the story.
How do you know when your story’s finished, when to walk away?
My stories are never really finished until the film or TV show is edited. Until then, I'm constantly looking for ways to tell a better story. I'm a big believer in putting a lot of work into your scripts, because if they are solid, or even better; fantastic, then you can head into production with confidence that you have a good story on your hands. Trying to save or elevate a mediocre script during the production process is a nightmare, and I avoid doing that as often as possible. The key is putting the work into writing and rewriting. At the end of the day, the final edit of the film is really the final draft of the script.
How many films have you completed? What is your favorite project you have worked on and why?
I have made five short films so far, and been involved with several TV series. Almost all the series I've done so far are nature or docu-reality style shows because those the type of projects that are most available to english-speaking filmmakers in Montreal, Canada. I think that's slowing changing, though. My favorite projects so far have been my super-hero short film, Moment, and a new adventure reality series that I just finished, called Last Of The Giants. I love Moment because it moves me, and it really captures who I am as a creator. It's original, fantastical, a little bit sci-fi, and involves underdog characters fighting against overwhelming odds, which I love. I'm really proud of Last Of The Giants because it is also an original concept, told in an original way, that celebrates animal conservation and responsible stewardship of the natural world. And it just plain kicks ass. Plus, you get to see me vomit off a boat at sea in episode 3, which I consider an important career milestone.
Where do you get your inspiration from?
My inspiration comes from everywhere, and I never know when it's going to hit me. For instance, the idea for Moment came during a late-night conversation over dinner in a restaurant, when a friend told me a true story she had heard about a young woman who was assaulted at a party. The girl at the party had sensed the attack was coming, but became flustered and didn't try to leave until it was too late. We discussed how terrifying that would be, and how most of use react the same way when confronted with unexpected violence. I realized things could be different if we could freeze time in those moments long enough to gather our thoughts about what we should do next. My childhood love of comic books informed the rest. The inspiration for my short film, The Ecstasy Note, also came in a restaurant, during breakfast, when a friend of mine pretended to stab me in the hand with a fork. We decided that would hurt a lot, but then I joked “imagine if you then hit the fork stuck in my hand with a knife and that somehow made a sound that induced ecstasy in everyone else? It would suck for me, but be awesome for everyone else in the restaurant.” He jokingly replied that he would pay for that service. I kept thinking about that, and saw how if could be a metaphor for materialism, consumerism and the resulting pain and exploitation they can cause. So, upon reflection, maybe restaurants are an important part of my creative process. Ha! Also important for me, is daydreaming just before sleep. That's when my mind often makes creative connections that I failed to see before.
What is your favorite aspect of film production?
I used to say it was post-production, because the stress of the shoot is in the past, but my experience editing the most recent series I directed has changed my mind. Ha! It was a gruelling and seemingly never-ending post-production process. But worth it in the end, because we created a very strong show (Last Of The Giants) that I am immensely proud of. If you want to make something of quality, then truthfully, all parts of production are both fun and immensely difficult.
Why did you choose to submit to the Breckenridge Film Festival? What do you look for in a festival where you hope to show your film?
As a snowboarder, I've always known about Breckenridge, and it's been kind of a dream for me to travel there one day. I had heard of the film festival over the years and knew that when I had a film I could submit, that I would. I made Moment and finally had my chance. Boy, am I glad that I did.
In my experience, the difference between a great festival and an average one is the people involved. Do the people running the festival love film and storytelling? If they do, that's a good sign, and I will submit my film to them. Breckenridge is definitely one of those great festivals.
Can you describe the business behind independent filmmaking and how you are trying to get your film seen?
Being an independent filmmaker is definitely a tough road to travel, and all of us doing it have to be resourceful and get out of our comfort zones in order to succeed. Most filmmakers I know are great at expressing their ideas and feelings, but not so great at marketing themselves, and I think I'm no different. Over the years, the way I've managed to get my work seen is to first, make quality work, and then send it to as many festivals and broadcasters as possible. In regards to getting your work seen and heard, Willie Nelson once said in an interview with my film students that he believes that if you build a house of quality in the woods, the world will beat a path to your door. I'm with Willie on that. Make great art and the world will beat a path to your door.
What are the next project or projects you are beginning work on?
I just finished the first season of a new series for the Discovery Channel called Last Of The Giants. Along with our host, executive producer and co-director, Cyril Chauquet, I wrote, co-directed, produced, edited and appeared on camera in the show. It was quite an experience for someone like me who is used to being behind the camera! I'm also writing a feature film about cloning called Carbon, and developing my short film, Moment, into a TV series.
Website (you can find trailers of my work as well as entire short films here): https://geoffreyuloth.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/geoffrey.uloth
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/geoffuloth/?hl=en
https://www.instagram.com/moment_themovie/
Moment trailer: https://vimeo.com/337444403
