We recently connected with Andrew Bateman and have shared our conversation below.

Andrew, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

As a university professor, I have the good fortune to be somewhat selective about the projects I work on, so in general every project I work on now is truly meaningful to me. In terms, of social impact, the documentary work I have done on workers’ rights and oral histories of former braceros, is probably the most meaningful.

Andrew, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I originally got into film production when I was in my last year of undergraduate studies. A friend, and fellow Political Science major, suggested we travel to Seattle, Washington to document the World Trade Organization protests that were to take place. We put a team together, raised some funds from our college, and off we went. At the time, we didn’t really know what we were doing, but we had energy and inspiration, and created a fairly nice feature length documentary. After that, I focused on documentaries centered on social justice issues, including working with the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty to help address the way workers’ compensation didn’t cover farm labor, and most recently, I helped to film Aggie E. Bazaz’s new documentary, Como Vivimos (How We Live), which just screened at SXSW EDU, and focuses on the Artesi II Migrant Family Housing Center which is home to 100 Mexican-American families whose careers are dedicated to tending California’s economic engine: agriculture. Yet, due to an antiquated set of policies, families must uproot their lives every December, move out of their apartments, remove their children from school, and travel 2,000 miles back to Mexico for at least three months. Despite U.S. citizenship and decades of contributions, this annual forced migration obstructs families’ ability to participate fully as citizens.

Since I started teaching fictional film production at the University of Colorado Denver a few years ago, I have turned my focus to fiction filmmaking. I love films that don’t take themselves too seriously and enjoy being films. For my first fiction short, Loose Change: A Memoir of Childhood, which did decent on the festival circuit, I decided to cast a 30 something year old, to play the part of my lead, who was only 12 in the script. It brings a certain dreamlike quality to the story, which is what I love about cinema. Currently, I am in post-production on another short film called Go Down, Diller, which is based on a short story of the same name, and written by Dr. Eric Howerton. It’s a surreal tale of a single father whose anxiety about his teenage daughter manifests in a bear that talks and works at a fast-food restaurant. I am hoping to have that on the festival circuit this summer or early fall of 2024

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I was the unfortunate victim of the American myth of the rugged individual. This really influenced my early film work, where I thought I could and should do everything. But over the years, and with support of some friends and key collaborators, I discovered the key to making films, at least for me, is to surround myself with talented, good-natured people, who are willing to work hard. This makes the filmmaking process so much easier, and results in qualitatively better films.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

When I was younger, prior to attending graduate school, my focus was on being “time rich” as opposed to “money rich”. This allowed me to pursue my interests, which turned out to be filmmaking. Now, after attending graduate schools, and working professionally, I feel blessed every day to be surrounded by creative people where, for the most part, all we talk about is film. It really is a dream. So, to answer the question more directly, the best part of being an artist is to have time to focus on art and be surrounded by other artists. I would be remiss not to mention that I wrote my master’s thesis on the musician/philosopher Sun Ra who had a concept of the “angel race”. For Sun Ra any person who expresses their self through creative acts of beauty, which in turn creates vibrations that help to put the world in tune, is an angel, a part of the Angel Race. So, being an artist surrounded by people who are creating beauty really is soul food and nourishing for me, and truly the best part.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.pabloagua.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/balthazarkrasnow/?hl=en
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/andrewmbateman
• Other: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlsxTKhOPnA