Film Courage: We interviewed a gentleman who said a lot of Hollywood work is like temp
work, you are kind of swinging from one temp job to another and that it’s never where
you are really landing in one spot?
On the flip side you can say there are a lot of people who have corporate jobs where they
were just given a severance package and pushed out the door.
So nothing is really guaranteed?
Andy Rydzewski, Cinematographer: Absolutely, yes.
It’s true.
I think the nature of most film work or at least the film work that I do there just isn’t
stability and there won’t be.
I remember years ago, this probably would have been 20 years ago I saw an interview
with Kevin Bacon and he is married to Kyra Sedgwick and it was then and Kevin Bacon who
has been around since I was a kid and he said that after every project when it goes quiet
he gets very nervous and he’s like “Oh no, am I ever going to work again?”
I remember that sticking out to me like wait - Kevin Bacon is worried about getting work?
And now that I’ve been in the industry for a little while - Oh right, you have no idea
if you will be, even if you’re on top of the world two years from now maybe no one
remembers your name or you shoot a project that bombs or whatever it is, it’s such
a competitive world and I don’t think it’s a good industry to base your life on if you
want to build a healthy family and I hate saying that because it’s an industry that
I love so dearly.
But having a relationship when you’re going 80 hours a week and you come home and you’re…I
don’t know…you have to have a special partnership to make that work.
I think it’s very stressful on all your relationships (romantic, friend, all of that).
I think that mostly I like to put that out there.
It doesn’t - nothing is good or bad it just is and that’s like a fact of our industry
and I think it’s important for people to realize that because I think there are a lot
of romantic ideas going in but the reality of it - and especially now - I don’t know,
will movie theaters open back up period?
I’m sure they’re going to open up in some capacity but our world is changing.
And streaming is now huge.
I mean there are more TV shows being made than ever in the history Hollywood but there
are no more residuals (almost entirely gone) and that’s how a lot of writers and directors
and actors maintain a career is that you were getting residuals from old projects but they
don’t have residuals on any of the streaming services.
So the future of our industry is very uncertain.
But the flip-side is if you just look at the art of making and between YouTube and all
these shows on Netflix and Hulu and Amazon and all of these, there is more work and creation
being done than ever before it’s just the money is the trick but money is always the
trick I suppose.
Film Courage: When you look at your IMDB and your body of work, I’m surprise to hear
you question that but I think this is healthy questioning though, just being realistic.
Andy: I think that not taking it for granted and never assuming that the future is going
to be what the present is because it probably won’t be and you know I’ve only shot one
project that anyone has ever heard of and I think I’ve shot 10 seasons of TV and one
was a hit to some capacity at least for its size [PEN15 on Hulu].
Nobody has ever heard of the features I’ve shot.
You never know what is going to go in what direction and so for me it’s really important
that I love the work (the craft) which I do because you have no control over the other
elements that of it and so I try to when I can pay attention to who am I working with.
The people make a real difference just in terms of quality of life day to day.
But you never know what’s going to work or what’s not going to work or what anybody
will find.
I shot (I don’t remember now) four or five series for go90 which was a Verizon streaming
service which doesn’t exist anymore so even the full streaming service (the channel) just
ceased to exist let alone those shows.
But I love the work and I’m proud of the work we did on a lot of those shows.
I hope they find themselves a home because some of them are really good shows but again
I have no control over that so learning to let go helps because you just control what
you can which is on set (on the day) you do as good a job as you can, be pleasant to work
with, enjoy it because that’s still your life day to day there.
It’s weird, it’s very strange, it’s depressing when I think about the realities
of the industry, I tend to get pretty discouraged because I would like to put some roots down,
buy a house on day or whatever that might look like and I don’t know when or if or
how that will go?
But for now I still love the work.
Like I get excited, I just read a script this week or a feature film that may or may not
happen in the New Year and it’s like Oh Yeah!
How would I shoot this shot?
What’s the look of this?
I still get really excited about that so I let that lead me but I’m in my 40’s…
Film Courage: Oh, you are?
I did not know that.
I thought you were much younger.
You’ve been sleeping well!
Andy: Yes, I’ve been sleep well.
It’s a pandemic.
Film Courage: Okay, well I’ll give you that…I’m sure there are other folks out there who are
in a similar boat they are looking for work, they’re ready for work but it’s not there
or whatever the case may be.
How do you keep yourself in check?
You’ve said you have a meditation practice.
Andy: Yes, so I know myself well enough at this point and I’m still learning.
I haven’t figured out all of my quirks but I know that if I don’t go for walks I will
start to go crazy.
Going to the movie theater has always been a big thing for me.
I always feel very at peace in a movie theater but that is not an option these days.
I have not gotten myself out to nature enough but I know that a few days of camping will
usually reset me but how I eat and making sure there is some exercise in my life and
I almost take it like medicine, it has nothing to day with “Oh, today is a good day to
exercise” or “I feel like exercising,” no - no - no - I have to because I will lose
my mind otherwise and so a part of it is really just being able to have the discipline I guess
which for me feels strange to say because I don’t think of myself as a disciplined
person but for anything regarding filmmaking I’ve always been able to convince myself
to do something for the greater good.
So keeping myself healthy for my own life maybe doesn’t work but to keep myself healthy
so that I’m a better filmmaker, so that hour 13 I’m still energetic that’s some
how always been a way that I’ve been able to keep myself happy and healthy to some degree
and I’ve always struggled with anxiety and so I have these little things that I know
I need to do or I could lose a handle and who knows just go crazy.
Film Courage: Here’s Johnny!
Andy: Here’s Johnny, exactly.
Film Courage: I make light of it but we’re all there in some way because this is uncharted
territory and we thought we’d seen the worst with The Great Recession and this has been
a very trying year in so many ways.
Andy: For sure and I will say gratitude - that’s something I’m really trying to practice
is just being thankful for.
I mean the fact that I shot a show that found an audience and that people like, I am so
grateful for that after years of just grinding and it felt like I was banging my head against
the wall and then Oh!
People like this!
That’s great and it feels good but it’s also like that’s already gone and so just
to be grateful that something like that - grateful for my health.
Anything that you can be grateful for I think it goes a long way.
I think it’s easy to spiral in a global pandemic, in a country that is pretty divided
and a lot of anger and frustration, I think - you know it’s dangerous, you don’t want
to ignore anything but it’s finding the things that bring you some sort of peace and
even joy I think is so important to remember why do you want to live this life?
Why?
Oh yeah, right.
Like hugging, I remember hugging.
Hugging is pretty good.
I’m assuming we’ll do that one day so yes, trying to be grateful for as much as
you and when I moved into my new house I bought myself a really nice TV and I was like Oh
this is really expensive.
I don’t know if I should but I did knowing that I had a show coming and I was like Okay
I can rationalize the cost but now in the pandemic I love that I have this huge TV and
I’m watching all manner of things and it’s a nice little treat and I can’t go to a
movie theater but I have a nice set-up at home which I didn’t have forever so you
now I am thankful for that.
Gratitude I think is a good, good tool.
Hard to exercise but yeah…
Film Courage: What’s your favorite thing to watch on this new TV now?
Andy: You know what, I am all over the place but I love watching a movie from the 70’s
or 80’s where it has this like beautiful film grain and I love watching the grain because
the TV is really nice and the blacks go really black so if you watch somebody like Gordon
Willis a legendary cinematographer his work - he really leaned into - people called him
‘The Prince of Darkness,’ and you watch these images that are really dark but they
have this grain dancing through it - film grain - I have such like a romantic, nostalgic
reaction to it so it makes me really happy to watch films with a ton of grain - dirt.
It’s funny, I have this clean TV and my favorite things are the dirty images, I love
those.
Film Courage: That’s awesome.
I love sometimes watching 80’s or 90’s talk shows.
I loved Phil Donahue, Jenny Jones, there is just something very romantic about it.
It’s so nostalgic, Phil Donahue and the hair styles.
Andy: Totally, nostalgia is a superpower.
Question For The Viewers: Is your view of the film industry realistic or romantic?