Alex Fazeli discusses the craft of Filmmaking
By Vida Ghafari

Alex Fazeli is a 31-year-old filmmaker who graduated from the prestigious Peter Stark producing program of USC’s grad film school. He is currently working some interesting projects involving intriguing political issues, be it a political satire or a dramatic period piece. I recently spoke to him about his exciting filmmaking career.

Vida Ghaffari: Can you speak and read Farsi?

Alex Fazeli: Speak, yes. Read, no.

VG: Tell us about your filmmaking background?

AF: I got my start in film via an untimely sports injury. I had dreamt of a professional tennis career, but a wrist injury at age 18 and subsequent surgery prevented that. So I packed up my car and moved to New York City, to attend the New Actors Workshop. There I studied acting with George Morison and Mike Nichols. It was my voice teacher, Bobby Troka, who told me that I had the qualities of a director, and that I should move to California and pursue a career in film.

I got my Bachelor's Degree in theatre and film at the California Institute of the Arts, the art school founded by Walt Disney. There, I was exposed to theater, experimental, animation and documentary style filmmaking, which have all influenced my sense of story and filmmaking. While in my final year at CalArts, my mentor suggested I apply to the Peter Stark Producing Program at USC for graduate studies, and that's what I did.

This program is a two-year Master of Fine Arts degree program at USC's School of Cinematic Arts. It was founded by the late Art Murphy with substantial contribution from Ray Stark, the prolific producer, and his wife Francis. The program was named after their son, Peter who passed away in 1970. It's currently run by Lawrence Turman (producer of The Graduate, American History X), and co-director Kathy Fogg. Over the years it has graduated a tight knit family of producers, directors, writers, agents and studio executives.

The Stark program was a fantastic training ground in helping me bring all the skills that I had learned over the years as an athlete, actor, director and entrepreneur and apply them to the business of film. It gave me all the tools I needed to combine the art and business elements of filmmaking and to better navigate the industry.

VG: What Where some of your early influences as a filmmaker?

AF: When I was a little kid in Tehran, we had a 35 mm reel of Swiss Family Robinson and I watched it over and over again. What really struck a cord with me was the scene where the Native American character was being killed, and the Robinsons couldn't do anything about it. That scene really affected me and I'm sure influenced the kind of stories I now like to tell and gravitate towards. Spartacus was another film that resonated deeply with me.

Some of the other films that influenced me were the classic Hong Kong Phooey, Grape Ape and Tom and Jerry cartoons, physical comedies like Peter Sellers in the “Pink Panther” series, Mel Brooks' “Young Frankenstein,” and “History of the World,” as well as the work of Laurel and Hardy, Benny Hill and Harold Lloyd.

Later, George Lucas' 'American Graffiti' grabbed my attention, as did movies like 'Blade Runner,' David Cronenberg's 'Scanners,' and 'The Conversation.'

My family loves the movies and I was exposed to such great spectrum of films and television growing up.

VG: Why did you choose to make a film about Iran's political history for 'In the Dark?'

AF: It is about that, but if you strip it down to the human essentials: it's about two things: survival, and family. Those are universal themes. I chose to tell a story that may have gone untold, or had a different twist if someone else told it.

I want to tell stories that would otherwise go untold. They are important: we have to find a way to tell them, otherwise they get lost in the cracks. Someone needs to dig them out and shine light on them. I feel there is a hesitation in Hollywood as it pertains to stories that focus on countries with political strife specifically Iran. Some of that comes from the way the country and its people have been portrayed by news entertainment entities that need to boost ratings, or service the political needs of the times- and then there is the other side of the equation where there might not be enough interest in the subject matter to justify the cost of making films that deal with Iran. But my feeling is if it's a compelling story, it will stand on its own and people will connect with it, no matter where it takes place.

.....	Director Alex Fazeli with Jamie Brown and an aged Maz Jobrani. Photo: Konrad Brattke

There is a new generation of filmmakers in Hollywood that are taking notice of the public's desire for these types of stories, and making films like 'Syriana' and 'Good Night and Good Luck.' In fact, George Clooney has a film in development about the Canadian Embassy's role in saving American hostages during the 1979 Hostage Crisis. That is one story I wanted to tell, but Clooney beat me to it!

My producing partner, Rebecca Brown and I have formed a company called 'Rebel Rouser Entertainment' where we hope to continue to tell commercially viable, socially responsible films that would otherwise go untold.

VG: Have you met Cronus and how did he become the inspiration for “In the Dark?”

AF: Cronus is an amalgamation of several stories and real people…in 1997, Bill Clinton issued an apology for the U.S. role in the 1953 Coup. When that happened, I started researching CIA and its operations in Iran, creation of Savak, and all the other elements that lead to the eventual downfall of the royal family. That was my inspiration for Cronus and his family. I wanted to reflect the struggle for survival. Family is such deep, important part of Persian culture and it's a good way to share our values. That also counters these negative images of Iranian people. The revolution isn't something that everyone wanted. In the film, the family holds the balance between the two sides of the equation: they are stuck in the middle, and that's what I suspect happened to a lot of families.

VG: You have some big names like Maz Jobrani in this film. How was the casting process for this project and how did you get such prominent name actors?

AF: We were extremely fortunate to have Kevin Scott, the Emmy winning casting director of 'The West Wing,' join our team early on and take on the challenge of casting the film. We knew we wanted Iranian actors who spoke fluent Farsi, and it was Kevin who found us great actors to work with.

I've always admired Maz and his dedication and passion for the art of entertainment, and when Kevin asked me if I would consider working with him, I jumped at the opportunity.

Fazeli directs Jobrani and Brown. Photo: Andrew Gallery	...

Kevin assembled a phenomenal cast comprised of veteran actors including Ali Dean, Nina Nayebi, Sheila Vand, Marsh Mokhtari, Peter the Persian, Max Amini, Bobby Naderi, Alfred Adelpour, Kavon Karami and Jamie Brown.

VG: How did you go about getting the period costumes?

AF: Through a recommendation we got in touch with Zale Morris who is a fantastic costume designer. From the get go he had great ideas about costuming and the brought a ton of experience and great understanding of the fashion of the era and its influences in the Near Eastern countries, influenced by European fashions of the time.

VG: Awards/distinctions?

AF: 'In the Dark' won one of three competitive grants known as The Stark Special Project at USC.

It was an ambitious project in that it was a period piece taking place in a foreign country, and a challenge to make on relatively small resources, having to shoot in and around Los Angeles. But with Rebecca's great producing abilities, passion for the story and a phenomenal team that she assembled, we managed to created resources out of rocks and make the film. Rebecca just won an Emmy for another film she produced last year, called 'The Replacement Child'. So now she is the third Emmy winner on 'In the Dark.' The other two are casting director Kevin Scott and John Goodwin (SFX Makeup).

VG: Upcoming projects?

AF: I'm currently working on an Internet-based political satire about the American two-party system. It will go live at the end of March. Our website is currently under construction and can be found at: Inthedarkfilm.com, but please join our open group Facebook page for current news, behind the scenes photos and regular updates. Everyone on our Facebook group will receive an invitation to join us for our launch and premier episode.

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About The Author

...	Author Vida Ghaffari

Born and raised in the DC area, Vida Ghaffari comes from a long line of diplomats, scholars, actors/directors, writers, and poets. Vida's goal is to uphold the family tradition through the arts and the written word. As a print journalist, she has written for the Iran Times International and Namak Magazine as well as many local papers in the DC metropolitan area. She has received research and writing grants from the Woodrow Wilson Center and the National Journalism Center among others.

She currently works as an on-air host and an associate producer for ATV's (Andisheh) "Cinema Now" and "City of Angels" shows. She has a BA in Economics from the University of Maryland, College Park with a minor in Journalism and Theatre. While she was studying at the U of M, she wrote for the Diamondback newspaper that had a student readership of over 40,000, as well as the school's magazine, the Campus Crier. She also worked for WUSA, the CBS affiliate in Washington DC. Vida has also worked as an actress in numerous indie films and has done a lot of voice over work. She recently played an Iraqi wife in an episode of Comedy Central's "Mind of Mencia." She has acted in many plays at established Hollywood venues such as the Zephyr Theatre and Theatre/Theater.

She also has a strong background in comedy as an improviser, stand-up, and sketch comic. She has performed stand-up at the Improv and the Comedy Store. She has done improv and sketch shows at Improv Olympic West, The Second City Los Angeles, and Upright Citizens Brigade Los Angeles. Vida is excited and proud to be working with such a dedicated and talented group as the staff at PersianMirror. She lives in Sherman Oaks, California.