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Nick Green

B.A. 2005

From: Nick Green [mailto:rainfaze@gmail.com]
Sent: Tuesday, November 21, 2006 5:44 PM
To: Benjamin Lawton
Subject: info and app

Hi Ben,

Life pre and post graduation was quite interesting. When I started my career at Purdue I was a Psychology student on a Pre-Veterinary track, but I ended in Film Studies. It's always funny to think how that transition came about. Though my interests were in film, acting, writing, and television; I decided on the hard science track because it's what many of my friends/ peers did and also it meant I would have a steady income. But as I progressed through Purdue, I gravitated toward film and the humanities. I'm very fortunate that I did so. After working on an independent feature in Ohio, I knew I would pursue film as a career. I officially changed my major to film studies, during the second semester of my Junior year. Following my CODO (Change of Degree Objective) , I worked on as many film/ video initiatives as I could. I took an internship with Third Floor Productions for the 2004 CMA fanfare. The internship led to a job with that same company as a cameraman. I worked on the burgeoning student broadcasts and briefly served as a reviewer for an independent film show. I attempted to produce a documentary on first time voters for the 2004 presidential election. The failure of this project was a great learning experience in understanding the scope and scale of a project.

I worked on as many film/ video initiatives as I could. I took an internship with Third Floor Productions for the 2004 CMA fanfare. The internship led to a job with that same company as a cameraman. I worked on the burgeoning student broadcasts and briefly served as a reviewer for an independent film show. I attempted to produce a documentary on first time voters for the 2004 presidential election. The failure of this project was a great learning experience in understanding the scope and scale of a project.

After my gradation in August 2005, I intended to move home to Toledo, Ohio until I found a job on the coast. I had a few bites, but nothing too substantial. I admittedly grew a bit disillusioned about my career in film/ T.V. After four months of applying and sending resumes, I had only received three positive call backs. After a riot exploded in my neighborhood, I knew it was time to make opportunities and not just wait for them. I promised myself I would move to advance my career early the next year. On January 2nd I moved to Chicago with no little idea of how I would make things work. I stayed with family and took a job at Dunkin' Doughnuts to make ends meet until something better came along. I also continued to hand out reels and résumés to quite a few people around Chicago, but met with little success initially. During this time I made use of some contacts and did some extra work for a few shorts. I thought back to my experience working in independent film and pursued it as an avenue. I was fortunate to run into a few good directors. I was hired on as an assistant camera for a film called Lockout, as it was the only position I had previous experience with in independent features. By the end of the film I had furthered my experience in cinematography, but also gained experience as an assistant director and with production. After the film the seeds I had sowed earlier were beginning to show fruit. I received a job offer from EA Games Chicago as a game tester with a chance to move into production. I was also presented with an opportunity to work as an associate producer at WYCC, Wise TV PBS-20. I took the latter. I've been working with the station since July and have done quite a bit for them since then. Also since July I've worked on another feature length film ( El Dia De Los Muertos) and on a comedy showcase called Laughing on the Lakefront. From all of these projects I continue to build contacts and resources that will help me toward my ultimate goal or producing my own work. Currently I'm applying to graduate school for a masters in directing. I'm doing this to keep a promise to myself, but I feel comfortable in saying this for a very good reason. Whether or not I get in, I still won't stop pushing for the things I want. I know I will direct my own films, write scripts, and dabble in the other mediums that interest me because I know I can. I'm very thankful for what I learned a Purdue. The first few lessons that come to mind are:

1) Defend whatever you say to the best of your ability, because what you say and believe carries much weight. (Whether right or wrong)

2)  Acknowledge when you're wrong and learn from it. (Trial and error is tough, but it shows perseverance.) 

3) Best thing you can learn at any point is how much there is left for you to learn. 

4)  If you must struggle, struggle with something you love.

Looking back from where I am now, I know I'm very fortunate and thank the many people along the way who challenged me. Professor Lawton, Professor Hart, Professor White, Dr. Jennifer William, Dr. Zinaida A. Breschinsky, Bill P. Callison, and Andrew Vitatoe have all had a hand in guiding me where I am now and for that I'm quite grateful.