Gerry Orz was born in Brooklyn NY in 2002 and currently resides in Los Angeles, California, with two mothers and an older brother. Gerry is a huge fan of director Steven Spielberg and aspires to become a film director, producer, and writer. “I want to make movies that will have a positive impact to today’s youth and will inspire them to follow my footsteps to a better tomorrow,” he said. He is already off to a great start, having produced several films including a short, Day of Silence, that inspired a new bill in California proclaiming 12/12 Bullying Prevention Day. Gerry received many emails thanking him for making that film. “We heard stories where parents believed that my movie saved their child’s life,” Gerry said. On 12/12 at 12 p.m., Gerry had followers in six states and four countries joining in a moment of silence honoring victims of bullying, harassment and abuse. Currently, Gerry is working with a number of schools and organizations by speaking to the kids in a hope of inspiring them to reach their potential and believe that they are better than anyone who is putting them down. Gerry believes that kids relate better to other kids and movies rather than lectures and brochures. His biggest dream is to be able one day to take his materials to multiple schools across the country. Former victim himself, Gerry didn’t want another child to experience the pain he went through and works hard on trying to influence current situation through multiple avenues. (Source: Website)
We had an opportunity to speak with remarkable young man!
[su_pullquote]Meeting Mr. Freeman was one of the most memorable moments in Gerry’s life. He was very much inspired.[/su_pullquote]You’re an avid filmmaker, as well as an actor. Which do you prefer the most?
I must say, I prefer filmmaking and writing to anything else. I did acting for some of my own projects, but in general, I love creating a story much more than being part of one. When I’m looking at the scene through the lens or the viewer of the camera, I feel like I become one with it and my story truly comes to life. My mothers have a video of me when I was about four or five years old and I’m trying to “direct” a homemade video. I started creating short stories when I was about five or six and directed my first film with a full script and a professional crew when I was eight. I knew immediately that this is what I was meant to do so I haven’t stop ever since. I have produced, written and directed several short films, PSAs, weekly news episodes on my YouTube channel “World According to G” and recently started getting into different types of animation and special effects. I do a lot of self-training and studying, sometimes taking master classes online. There is really no good school or studio where younger kids like me could go to learn to direct, write and produce films. It was always a challenge to get people to take me seriously and not look at me as just another child-actor. Things changed for me when I was accepted to attend classes at YouTube Space in Los Angeles. I was always the youngest in the class but all instructors made me feel so welcome and were patient with me. All adult creators talked to me as equal and never looked down on me – I was one of them, I was finally feeling like I belong. So, YouTube studious became my home away from home where I have access to the latest equipment and really cool knowledgeable instructors. I would never be able to grow my channel to where it is today it wasn’t for support of mothers and my brother, all the resources of YouTube space studious and flexibility and support of my school – Connections Academy.
In your bio, you mentioned how want to make movies that will have a positive impact on today’s youth. Tell us more.
I am a strong believer that films can do much more than just entertain. Movies of all types have an ability to captivate viewers by showing them a world they have never experienced. I also believe that today’s kids are the ones who will shape our future world. If we raise kids to be envious and ignorant, they will act that way when they grow up. I feel it is my duty as a creator to try to impact viewers, especially younger audience, in every film I make. The Equation of Life is a perfect example of this. Instead of making another documentary that is exploiting bullying stories without offering a solution or advice, I made a film showing all angles of a specific story that was based on my own experiences as well as others. I felt it was important to portray the story not only from the prospective of the victim but also to dig deeper into the root cause of the issue and show the background story of the Bully – which never comes to light during anti-bullying discussions – as well as the bystander that may be left with enormous guilt for the rest of their life This approach gives viewers much more insight on how many people are truly affected by bullying and what is really the cause of all of it. My film also offers an alternative ending where one small event could have turned this whole situation around…if only…
Let’s talk The Equation of Life. Why did you choose this title?
When I was writing the script for the film, I realized that the plot was very much like a math problem. Multiple variables that somehow give you an end result that may turn out to be either positive or negative. If a child is being tormented as a kid, they may grow up and bully others. Those they bully may in turn unleash their anger on others, and the vicious cycle repeats again and again. This path of hate is apparent in all aspects of life, which led the creation of the title: The Equation of Life.
According to IMDB, The Equation of Life is a story about the emotional abuse of a boy named Nathan. “
The Equation of Life tells the story of a young boy Adam, excited friendly and loving kid starting at a new school in a new city. An older kid, Nathan, starts bullying him for having gay parents, for his looks, origin, cultural and ethnic connections. Nathan threatens his family and turns upside down Adam’s entire world. As time goes on, it not only affects Adam, but his entire family as well. The Equation of Life also looks at the bully, and dives into what might have been the cause of this boy to become so hateful. I have a theory – no one is born to kill, to hate, to prosecute others. Nathan as a young kid, is as cheerful and precious as Adam, but his mother neglects and emotionally abuses him. This then causes him to grow up angry, and jealous of Adam, who unlike him, continues to be loved and positive.
[su_youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJy0kKEv944″]
You work with a number of schools and organizations, to speak with about anti-bullying. Tell us more.
I believe strongly that the best way to impact bullying is to educate kids starting at a very young age on what bullying is. When I was first bullied in 3rd grade, I didn’t know what it was, why it was happening, or what to do. For a while I thought it was my fault and I was doing something wrong. I had no idea what to do, who to talk to and was ashamed to tell my parents. Once I educated myself on the subject, I started asking a question why don’t schools start to teach how to deal with bullying early on. Doing it in middle and high schools is almost too late – we are all shaped as characters by then, we are starting to become those people we will grow up to be. I also found schools assembly where kids are being lectured and giving countless brochures, absolutely useless and boring. Not to mention waste of paper. Ask organizers to take a look at the nearby trash container – it will be full of those “useful materials” that was given to them just 30 minutes earlier. The motto of my nonprofit “Kids Resource” is to teach kids through visual education how to solve the most current issues. A visual story is much more captivating, and kids will remember a story much longer than some printed tri-fold even if it’s colorful. That’s why I offered The Equation of Life to schools, and went to schools and gave speeches on what to do if you’re bullied, and how to deal with it. Educators often don’t give kids enough credit a believe that they should not see the truth but world around us is not full of sunshine and butterflies – we need to be able to deal with reality so why not start early and be prepared to deal with any situation that comes our way?
How do you choose which stories to tell? Do you use real-world events for inspiration?
I try to tell stories I find unique, and entertaining. I describe events that were inspired by real world situations. For example, I just completed my first novel that is planned to be released June of 2017 called Lucky or Not – Here I come. The book is about a man who had terrible and fantastic things happen to him throughout his life. The concept was inspired by many stories I heard about of people who survived in some absolutely unbelievable situations and could come up on top to uplift others. I also try to look for stories that could educate people. Like I mentioned, I feel movies have a much larger purpose in the world to inspire and to educate, even if that may not be their main purpose.
You also star in your productions. Tell us about the challenges of switching hats.
In most of my projects, I don’t use other actors, so I may do my own narration or acting as well as directing. That does bring only one benefit – I know the character best since I created it, and understand deeply all the aspects of the story. It does bring up several challenges, mostly while filming. I usually have someone help me with the camera, or simply use stationary shots. This could limit my range of available angles since I have to keep the camera still, and since I am not behind the camera, I have to wait for the scene to be over every time to see if it is good. This causes much longer filming times. That was one of the reasons why I started looking more into the animation side of things – it allows me to be creative with limited “on the budget” resources I have at this point. I dream of course of big sets and directing feature films but I do agree with Werner Herzog that one doesn’t have to have a huge crew and millions of dollars to make a good quality cinema. It helps but it’s not a deciding factor. We have a lot of examples where movies with huge budgets and mega stars flopped at the box office. If you believe something and can see it – it will happen. I feel every of my story with my heart and see them so vividly that I sometimes talk about my made believe characters as if they were real.
How has social media helped you spread the word about your films?
Social media is probably one of the most helpful things for beginning filmmakers like me. It is much easier to share a film and promote it on Facebook, or Twitter, then look for expansive distribution or arrange contracts with movie theaters. My videos played in multiple festivals and I won a few awards. Many times, I made fantastic connections with people in the profession during these events or on social media. The most amazing thing is that most of them are willing to help and answer questions which helps me a lot on my projects. The better and more confident I get with my skills, the better experience I can offer to my viewers and grow my audience. I also made some awesome connections thought Children’s Media coalition Kids First! – I have been working with them for the last 4 years, have done over 200 movie reviews and met some amazing people. This experience really helped me become a better story teller and a writer as well as taught ability to conduct good quality interviews and to be able to handle myself professionally in various situations.
Are there any projects you’re working on that you can share?
At the moment, the biggest project I am working on is a new novel called, Lucky or Not – Here I come which tells the story of John Wilson who has no talents or aspirations. He is certain that he will never live up to his parents’ expectations. He’s forever stuck in the shadows of his quarterback older brother and his multi-talented younger sister. However, just as he comes to accept his dull existence, a series of both extraordinary and devastating events changes John’s life forever. John goes on a journey that turns out to be anything but ordinary as he embraces his own destiny in this adventurous and inspirational story of love, loss, and loyalty. As it turns out, anything is possible. The book is set to release in June of 2017. A promotional trailer for the book was produced by me and my production company Flying Eagle productions and was probably my biggest production to date due to complexity of what I was trying to accomplish and size of the cast. Trailer was just released and is now available on my channel, World According to G. Once again, I must say big thank you to my mentors and production coordinators at YouTube space LA for providing me with necessary equipment and excellent location free of charge.
I’m also working on a series of short films – trying to publish a new one every month ranging from live action, to animation, and virtual reality. My dream is to attend USC school of Cinematic arts and I hope to have an impressive portfolio by the time I can apply.
Another project that is very important to me I a special video for the USC Shoah Foundation competition. I’m Jewish and spend a lot of time learning about the history of Holocaust. My favorite film of all times is Schindler’s List – I saw it first when I was very young and it made a huge impact on me. Not only because the topic is so relatable to my family heritage but also because of hos stunningly it was done. Only genius like Steven Spielberg could direct a black and white film that would leave such a long-lasting impression on people.
Could you share some inspiring words with aspiring filmmakers?
My biggest note to aspiring filmmakers is to not worry about having the best of the best. Great films aren’t those that have hundreds of extras, expansive sets, top quality equipment, or Oscar-Award winning actors (even though it helps). A good movie is made with a passion. Shortest film ever to win the Oscars was under 2 minutes long! Don’t treat this as a business and don’t expect that you will make a short film and it immediately will make you rich. I myself do some side editing jobs for my fellow young actors when they need reels and pictures taken. It’s good quality and still on the budget for them but helps me save up for items that I need to enhance my craft. True, one may produce content faster if you just do it mechanically, but it most likely will not resonate with the audience. Your viewers can tell when emotions and story you are telling are fake and forced. Movie-making is a form of art and must be treated as such. Let it come to you, listen to it. let it evolve and then every scene, every camera shot, ever line of dialogue has a potential to be its own beautiful masterpiece.
Connect with Gerry:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Gerryorz
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gerry.orz/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gerry.orz
Web: https://www.gerryorz.com/
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4536299/?ref_=tt_ov_dr
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCj9Nw3PbY-J8iFYYVsB1gGQ
About Author
