THE GUEST BEDROOM, 8min,. USA
Directed by Rob Campoy
Concerned his boyfriend is about to leave him, Jeremy devises a sinister plot to take matters into his own hands.

Get to know the filmmaker:

1. What motivated you to make this film?

I wrote this film years ago to shoot something with the actor in the film, Jordan Burbank, who is one of my closest friends. We were trying to display the perfectly manicured life of a man whose primary obsession, his control, is taken away from him in the form of a failing relationship, and what he would do to retain that control. After years of working on other things, we thought we'd come back to that script to try and do it and it ended up being a very rewarding experience to go out with some friends to shoot this.

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film?

The idea was years prior, but once we decided to shoot it, it took a few months to preplan and align everyone's schedule for the four day shoot and then to go out to Palm Springs for principle photography and the editing took a little while, as well. It was such a fun project to work on, I didn't want to stop and send it in to festivals!

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?

Malicious Romance

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?

As boring as it sounds, the compression that most people will be watching it with online. The whole point of his character is that he's a perfectionist and a control freak, so we went to great lengths to have a crisp and precise image for this film.

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video?

Nearly brought to tears! To have the genuine reaction of total strangers like that is so nice to see and really means a lot to me! Just that people would take the time to give their thoughts about it is really special.

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?

Probably in the embryonic stage, but I remember seeing a few movies that changed my life when I was 8. From then on, I have been hooked to every single aspect of this thing!

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?

This is near impossible to say, as I have spent much of my time rewatching movies. Some at the top of the list that come to mind are Network, Stalker, The Shining, All The Presidents Men, Rashomon, Paris, Texas, Treasure of Sierra Madre, Citizen Kane... this is becoming a favorites list... but all have pretty incredible rewatch value, amongst innumerable others.

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking career?

I think the feedback video is such a rare and important insight into people's opinions on a film and I wish more festivals would implement that.

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your experiences been working on the festival platform site?

Really great to have almost everything in one place. This whole process can be complicated enough when you're doing it all yourself without a team of producers. It's great to have something that makes it much more streamlined.

10. What is your favorite meal?

Entirely dependent on the day/mood. Pizza is pretty good, though.

11. What is next for you? A new film?

Yes! Working on a much bigger short that will likely be done in the next few months!