THE WRITER / DIRECTORS DISCUSS THE MAKING OF MILES AHEAD    While still in high school, friends and avid film buffs Dylan Trivette and Matt Zboyovski derived a plan to hold a 36-hour film marathon over their Christmas holiday of 1994.  The purpose of the marathon was to view films that neither Trivette nor Zboyovski had seen before, and to find movie titles that primarily didn’t reside in the ‘new release’ section of the video store.  After a few weeks of research through film history books and advice from other film enthusiasts, Trivette and Zboyovski compiled a library of films ranging from Jean Resnais, to Bergman, to Fellini and Kieslowski, just to name a few.  “We wanted to break the cycle of watching comfort movies, to watch something that pushed the limits of what we knew about film,” says Trivette.  Shortly after the marathon, Trivette and Zboyovski began to delve deeper into studying the filmmakers that had suddenly inspired them.  What began as a desire to experience films from other eras, countries and styles, quickly became an ongoing inspiration for the aspiring filmmakers’ own work. MATT: Dylan and I have been entranced by the magic and strength of photography for some time, especially when applied to the art of filmmaking.  This made it easy to find the films and filmmakers who would ultimately inspire us to pursue filmmaking as a way of life.  The films of masters such as Fellini, Bergman and Scorsese would teach us how to use the camera to further a story, and the delicate touches of greats like Truffaut, Polanski and Bogdonavich would teach us the meaning of character.  When Miles Ahead got underway we were determined to apply the techniques that we had been students of, which would ultimately mean going against the grain of what American filmmaking has become today. DYLAN: When we first sat down to write the character of Miles Williams’ it was our intention to tell a story that would revolve around one person, never leaving his side. An intense study of not only that character, but through his outlook on the world around him. We drew inspiration from similar stories such as The Catcher in the Rye, On the Road, Wild Strawberries and The Graduate. Stories that have a defining voice and where everything other than the subject at hand is secondary.   THE SCRIPT MATT: Our intention all along had been to write a screenplay as minimalist as possible so it would leave open plenty of room to craft shots and construct ideas using the camera as a character.  When Miles Ahead came in at 50 pages there was a lot of concern about it’s length, but we both knew it was, in all actuality, just right. DYLAN: In terms of script length we knew it would be a difficult sell. How were we going to tell the story with a 50-page script, and when only twenty to twenty-five of those pages were dialogue?  First, we went back to scripts that we knew were shorter in length, the majority of Ingmar Bergman’s scripts, David Cronenberg’s Crash, as well as Hiroshima Mon Amour, where they are relatively short scripts, but visually long enough to sustain feature-length. In addition, we went out months before shooting and did video scenes with friends. We played out some of the moves and with our ideas and timing of shots, and we found that the movie would indeed be a feature. STRUCTURE AND CHARACTERS MATT: For this particular film the ideas about characters was very abstract.  In other words, we were constantly looking beyond the role of the actors in the film and integrating the locations and camera as a player in every scene.  We strived to translate internal moods through how and where a scene was taking place.  This task made blocking and pacing key factors in making the film’s performances play out in tune with the movement and structure of the story’s scenes. DYLAN: One of things we focused on accomplishing was the portrayal of Miles’s inner conflicts.  A large portion of the credit is due to Ben Allison’s restrained performance, but its consistency comes from the collaboration between Matt and I on the direction of all the filmmaking elements.  As you view the film you realize the majority of conflicts aren’t concrete, yet you feel yourself begin to understand the struggle that binds Miles.  By the end of the journey it was our hope that the audience would feel fulfilled even though the main characters future is uncertain. VISUAL STYLE MATT: The absolute most important characteristic of Miles Ahead for Dylan and I was the look of the film.  Working from a relatively straightforward script, it was imperative that we be as creative as possible to layer the film with as many subtle hints that, in the end, would amount to a whole feeling of consciousness about what the character of Miles was experiencing. We wanted to use the camera and the incredible scope frame to fashion shots that would, in one way or another, summarize the through line of each scene or of the character.   We would even think a shot or a sequence of shots through simply to contain its own ideas and have an individual rhythm that will hopefully have a type of subliminal effect on the audience.  Most of this ideology comes from our influence of European filmmakers and the great American filmmakers of the 60’s and 70’s. Throughout our shot list Dylan and I called for multiple dolly shots, booms, Steadicam and handheld camera work.  To guide the shots we had an arsenal of lenses to choose from to best capture the exact frame we had in mind.  Of the 5 lenses we were using (35mm, 50mm, 85mm, 100mm, 500mm Macro) the majority of shots tended to feel best with the 85mm or 100mm.  Close-ups were especially significant (considering the small amount of traditional coverage) and the 85mm Scope lens made by Joe Dunton just nailed the virtue of the characters.  DYLAN: From the beginning of the writing process we approached Miles Ahead with the  intent of putting as much emphasis on telling the story with the camera’s lens as we did with the dialogue.  Once a scene was realized on paper we would go back and visually reconstruct the scene to include a cinematic progression from scene to scene.  Similar to how a composer creates musical themes for individual characters, we ambitiously tries to create specific visual themes for each character that would progress their story line or play into their relationship with Miles. As soon as long time collaborator Kenneth Wilson came onboard a lot of discussions were spent around the logistics of achieving our vision within our budget.  Cinematically, we focused on the two different looks of the film.  The first part being before Taylor’s death (the Summer), and the second, naturally, after (the Fall).  Ultimately, we went with two distinct color and lighting themes for each part and in turn focused on the camera movements within each scene to organically bridge the two parts together.  Logistically, we originally didn’t think it would be feasible to shoot 35mm Anamorphic in our budget, but because we were dedicated to shooting in a format that would give the audience a visual experience and based on Kenny’s prior work we were able to convince the rental houses to give us an enormous break.  DIRECTING DYLAN: In terms of directing the actors, we didn’t rehearse, not to say we didn’t talk about the characters with the actors, we just didn’t go through lines.  With as little dialogue as we had we tried to achieve realism with the characters.  It made it a little difficult on our shooting ratio, considering it’s small size. The challenge for the scenes was in the choreography, knowing that all the elements would have to be right when pulling off three and four minute shots. There was little room for error, still we only rehearsed the camera with basic blocking.   MATT: Directing this film was a terrific way for us to really hone our skills.  You have to communicate the most elementary procedures to convince others you have an understanding of the creative, business and technical processes of filmmaking.  By having a cast and crew that spanned the spectrum from novice to professional, the constant tug-of-war between teaching and learning helped us stay sharp on all fronts.  Our directing style works so well together because Dylan and I both have the same film history and influences, but as we grew as individuals our interests in the specifics branched out in different directions.  I found myself drawn more towards the performance and acting aspects, while Dylan leaned towards camera direction and technical training.  When we start to throw ideas around we constantly find ourselves keeping each other in check with what works best for the film, based on where the emphasis needs to be put (either on character or camera or both), in order to achieve the most out of the scene.    LOCATIONS DYLAN: Early in the process we understood that with our limited financial resources we would have to construct a story that could utilize locations that we knew we could get for little or no money. Fortunately for us, we lived in a place surrounded by natural beauty. Shooting mostly outdoors, on mountaintops and in fields gave us the freedom to work with the camera and actors without looming fees and awkward shooting times.  For our interiors we wrote scenes based around locations that we knew already existed.  This enabled us to focus on the details of a location in ways that could not only help tell the story, but give the film authenticity. MATT:  Shooting on location in Asheville was extremely important to us.  We had integrated the city into the film from the beginning of the screenplay.  We knew we could show Asheville in a way it’s never been shown before, and portray the town as honest, timeless and real as possible.  However, in order for us to complete the task at hand, we had to have the cooperation we needed from local residents, area businesses, and the ever-changing mountain environment.   IN CLOSING… DYLAN: We consciously chose to make the film more subtle, to encourage more interpretations of the characters and setting. To let the film breath and give way for multiple meanings and outcomes. From the initial concept to the finished film it’s been a goal to try and detach the filmmakers as much as possible from the film in hopes of giving the audience enough space to draw their own conclusions, and to allow them to connect with the story and characters on their own terms. MATT: Dylan and I have always been able to relate to the coming-of-age sensibilities, with our own lives paralleling the cliché of being from a small town with big dreams.  The whole idea of making this film was very much about us getting back to our roots.  We had to re-discover what truly inspired us, what really made us spend our childhood loving to watch and study films, and why we were so determined to do it on out own.  In the end our answer became Miles Ahead.