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!

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

Maddie LA Premiere

I'm so excited for the LA premiere of my film Maddie next week at the Marina del Rey Film Festival. A lot of blood, sweat, and tears went into this film and many of you know that this is a very important, personal story that is near and dear to my heart. Please come out and support our talented cast and crew. We look forward to sharing it on the big screen out west and hope to see you there.

Trailer: https://reubenhernandez.com/maddie-trailer
Tix: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sixth-annual-marina-del-rey-film-festival-tickets-37866102532

AMC Classic Marina Marketplace
Wednesday, Oct 4th at 6:00 PM
Q&A afterwards by yours truly

BTS photos by Jen Trahan and Andrew Klein

2016 A Year in Review

2016 A Year in Review

As I write this, it’s hard to believe that I’m approaching my six year anniversary of living in NYC.

2016 was an interesting year, to say the least. A lot of people can’t wait for it to be over. I learned a thing or two and some memorable experiences include:

Antarctica premiered in NYC earlier this year and screened at a handful of film festivals.

Beauty, Balance, and Grace premiered in Paris, France.

I had the opportunity to film Bono this year for a PSA for the Red Nose Day campaign. Spike Jonze randomly showed up and then thanked me for allowing him to help out. It was surreal. Bono and his crew were so gracious and kind and it was truly a pleasure to work with them. I’ve looked up to Bono for many years so it was such an honor to meet him.

This year I wrote and directed my first narrative short film, Maddie, that will premiere next year. I’m so thankful for my talented cast and crew that worked so hard on this project and gave so much. Writing is a new creative process for me, and I’ve learned that I can do it even out of necessity. It was an empowering experience to own a project completely from start to finish, and to learn firsthand that anything is possible. So many elements of this film seemed impossible and daunting at first, but we somehow pulled it off. People helped out from near and far and I’m truly grateful for all the support. We look forward to sharing Maddie on the big screen in 2017 so stay tuned for upcoming screenings.

I spent two months abroad in Europe this summer, working on post production for Maddie and recovering. Production on Maddie gave me a serious ass kicking so it was a much needed breath of fresh air to spend the summer away from NYC. 

One of my major takeaways from 2016 is that if you have a creative vision/idea that you believe in, then you just need to go for it and figure it out along the way. Some people thought that making Maddie would not be possible, but deep down I believed in my vision and was absolutely determined to see it through. I also learned a hell of a lot along the way, which will be invaluable.

See you next year.

All My Best,
Reuben


 

My film Maddie is finally complete and has been submitted to Sundance & SXSW! It has been quite the journey… Huge thanks to my talented cast and crew and everyone that helped along the way. I can’t wait to share it with you on the big screen. Much love✌

Photo caption: Working on the final sound mix with our sound designer, Isilay