Lighthouse International Film Festival

Lighthouse International Film Festival was an incredible experience and is hands down one of my favorite film festivals. I had the opportunity to meet and learn from Guy Nattiv, Oscar winning director of Skin, and numerous other talented filmmakers and industry people. Some friends and fellow Filmshop members screened at LIFF and it was fun seeing so many familiar faces. My family also enjoyed attending the festival and my 8 month old daughter ate lobster for the first time, thanks to Charlotte and the rest of the crew at the hospitality house. I highly recommend the festival and will definitely be coming back. Thanks to the entire team at Lighthouse Intl FF for such a memorable and wonderful experience!

Q&A with Guy Nattiv, writer/director of the opening feature film, Skin, and some cast members

I met Guy Nattiv and attended his filmmaking masterclass. Guy won the Oscar this year for best live action short film for his short, Skin.

My 8 month old daughter Leuca enjoying the view and lobster at the filmmaker hospitality house

Q&A following the screening of my short film, Settling Up. Photo by Clayton Dean Smith

Lisa and I in front of the Long Beach Island Historical Museum

Congrats to all of my fellow Filmshop members that screened at LIFF!

Settling Up Film Premiere Sunday June 9th

My narrative short film Settling Up will premiere Sunday, June 9th, at 1:30 pm at Long Beach Island Historical Museum (129 Engleside Avenue, Beach Haven, NJ 08008, USA) in competition at Lighthouse International Film Festival, one of MovieMaker’s “Coolest 25 Film Festivals in the World”. Settling Up will also screen alongside Filmshop short films If the Shoe Fits by Cinder Chou and Self(Ish) by Dani Tennenbaum. Oscar winner Guy Nattiv will open the festival with his narrative feature film, Skin, and Sundance documentary American Factory will close the festival.

Check out the full program here and schedule here. We are so excited to screen at LIFF and hope to see you there!

Favorite Patient Film Wrapped

We just wrapped the latest narrative short film I directed starring Barbara Miluski and Isabelle Pierre. We were fortunate to have Jackson Eagan as the director of photography, and this was very much a Filmshop collaboration. Hats off to our talented and hard working cast and crew. Below are some behind the scenes photos by Monica Kapoor and we look forward to sharing our film soon. Stay tuned…

Settling Up Film Festival Premiere at Lighthouse International Film Festival

I’m excited to announce my latest short film, Settling Up, will have its film festival premiere at Lighthouse International Film Festival, one of MovieMaker’s “Coolest 25 Film Festivals in the World.” The festival will take place June 6-9 on Long Beach Island and stay tuned for screening info. Thanks to our cast and crew for all of your hard work and we hope to see you there!

Directed by Reuben Hernandez
Written by Brady Evan Walker
Produced by Reuben Hernandez, Maryann Alspaugh, and Brady Evan Walker
Production Sound Mixer and Sound Design by Ash Knowlton / Silver Sound
Edited and colored by Patrice D. Bowman
Made in collaboration with the Filmshop collective

WAVE. PARTICLE. DUPLEX. BY STUDIO SWINE

A/D/O by MINI + Studio SWINE: WAVE. PARTICLE. DUPLEX. Teaser

I was a DP for these short videos directed by Adam Sjöberg showcasing the making of WAVE. PARTICLE. DUPLEX. by Studio SWINE at A/D/O by MINI. It was challenging lighting the red and yellow rooms, while maintaining the integrity of the exhibit.

”From August 2018 through January 2019, acclaimed designers Alexander Groves + Azusa Murakami -- aka Studio SWINE -- participated in a design residency at A/D/O by MINI. This film by director, Adam Sjöberg, documents their research and exploration that culminated in a site-specific exhibition of their works entitled Wave. Particle. Duplex. at A/D/O in Brooklyn, NY.”

Read more about the making of WAVE. PARTICLE. DUPLEX. here and here.

Directed by Adam Sjöberg
Cinematography by Adam Sjöberg and Reuben Hernandez
Gaffer John Hudak
G&E Swing Milton De La Cruz
Produced by Loose Luggage Media

A/D/O by MINI + Studio SWINE: The Making of Wave. Particle. Duplex.

Fatherhood

MoMA PS1

New Studio Cart

Who needs a studio cart when you have a baby stroller

Maddie Online Premiere

I’m excited to announce my short film Maddie premieres online today on Film Shortage! Huge thanks to our cast and crew that worked so hard to bring this project to life, and to all of you that supported our film. Please consider sharing, leaving a comment, and/or liking on Vimeo. After watching the film, you can read my director’s statement to learn more about the inspiration and backstory. I recommend watching the film with good sound if possible.

There once was a time when I thought making this film would be impossible. I learned so much through the process and that ultimately anything is possible with the right team, hard work, and dedication. To my talented cast and crew, it was an honor working with you and making this film together.

Thanks for watching.

All My Best,
Reuben

Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in

The view of North Williamsburg from the 30th floor

NYC Summer 2018

NYC Summer 2018

Filmshop Presents Unfinished Business

This past spring season I was accepted as a member of the Filmshop collective, a supportive community of filmmakers that regularly collaborate, workshop, and provide constructive feedback on works in progress on a weekly basis. Filmshop members actively support each other to help bring each other’s projects to life. Filmmaking can sometimes feel isolating, so joining a likeminded community of creatives has been one of the best things for my professional growth. It has forced me to do more and work on passion projects more regularly. Each week we share a creative goal and try to hold each other accountable on a consistent basis. This has been one of my most productive seasons as a filmmaker, and being part of the Filmshop community is one of the best ways to get a film completed. There are a tremendous amount of resources available through Filmshop.

This upcoming Saturday, July 21st at 7 pm, is Filmshop's yearly showcase of short films at Rough Trade NYC in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The latest film that I directed will screen this Saturday along with other Filmshop films on the big screen. Our film was written by Brady Evan Walker, and edited and colored by Patrice D. Bowman, so it is truly a collaborative Filmshop effort. Our lead, Jonathan Randell Silver, played the lead in a Sundance short film this year and it was a joy to work with him along with the rest of our cast and crew. Some behind the scenes photos are below. We look forward to sharing our new film with you on the big screen! Tickets can be purchased in advance here, and use code "Filmshop" for 20% off.

If you or anyone you know is interested in becoming a Filmshop member, we are hosting an open house for prospective members tonight from 7 - 9 pm (Monday 7/16) at the Made in NY Media Center by IFP (30 John Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201) in Dumbo. Applications for the 2018 fall season are due next Monday, 7/23 and can be found here.

In other news, I am also in the middle of developing an exciting and immersive virtual reality project that I have workshopped at Filmshop. My team and I are currently applying for grants and will hopefully have some news to share soon. More on that later...

BTS photo by Nikolai Basarich

BTS photo by Nikolai Basarich

BTS photo by Lars Fuchs

BTS photo by Lars Fuchs

2018 NBC Upfront

It's been a bit hectic lately with various projects in the pipeline (more about that in the next post) and I actually just flew back from Aspen tonight. Above is a video my team and I filmed, edited, and produced of the 2018 NBC Upfront, and a funny video of me accidentally photobombing the red carpet (video up top). It's a blast interacting with the NBC talent on the red carpet. Executive produced by Jeff Smith and HudsonGray.

NYC Seascape

Today was nearly 100 degrees in NYC so we hit the beach. Here's a foggy seascape from our ferry ride over to Rockaway beach. It got quite lively today during the Colombia and England round of 16 World Cup match.

New Work

Some fun projects are in the pipeline this year. And the view is not too bad from here

Studio 504 Warming Party

Tonight is our Studio 504 warming party at 67 West St. in Brooklyn, NY! Come out, celebrate, and have a drink with Reuben Hernandez Studios, Sky Pie Studio, Black Magic Studio, and Matthew Kroening

Maddie Wins Best Williamsburg Short Award

Maddie wins the Best Williamsburg Short Award

The audience at the 11/16 screening of Maddie at the Wythe Hotel Cinema

Neil LaBute and Gia Crovatin both won awards for their short film, Good Luck (in Farsi)

Maddie won the Best Williamsburg Short Award at the 8th Annual Williamsburg Independent Film Festival in Brooklyn, NY last week. This was a total shock and completely unexpected.

I want to thank my talented cast and crew for your tremendous hard work and dedication. Without you, this film never would have been possible. It has been quite a journey ever since we started production back in the summer of 2016. I'm so honored and grateful to share this award with you.

Overall I was really impressed with WillFilm. The programming was strong and the organizers did a wonderful job of making us feel welcome. It was also great to meet Neil LaBute, who won the Best Screenplay Award for his short film, Good Luck (in Farsi). I would highly recommend this film festival and look forward to coming back.

Maddie Premieres in Brooklyn Tonight

Maddie premieres tonight in Brooklyn, in competition at the Williamsburg Independent Film Festival, where it all began for this project. Come out and support our talented cast and crew and share a drink with us. We hope to see you there!

Much Love,
Reuben

Thursday, 11/16, at 9:15 PM
Williamsburg Independent Film Festival
Wythe Hotel Cinema
80 Wythe Ave. at N. 11th Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY 11249
Tickets are $15 and can be purchased here: https://willfilmtickets.brownpapertickets.com/

Maddie Screens at NewFilmmakers New York

BTS Photo by Jen Trahan

Maddie will screen at NewFilmmakers New York in the East Village next week:

Wednesday, 11/15, at 6 PM
Anthology Film Archives
32 2nd Ave, New York, NY 10003
Tickets are $7 (purchase at the box office) and include all screenings that night

Maddie trailer: 
https://reubenhernandez.com/maddie-trailer

Thanks for all your support and we hope to see you there.

New Studio Location

Our view. Photo by Daniel Castro

Reuben Hernandez Studios has moved into a new shared studio with our friends at Sky Pie Studio. We are located at 67 West St., just off of the East River in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. We love visitors so please stop by and say hi if you're in the neighborhood. We're in suite 504, on the same floor as The Greenpoint Loft, Ruby Bird Studio, and Colony Studios.

Storm King Art Center

Storm King Art Center, a picturesque 500 acre outdoor sculpture park, is one of my favorites places to visit and is only a short drive north of NYC. I highly recommend stopping by The Shops at Jones Farm for some goodies either before or after!