“I do think YouTube is an excellent outlet.”

Ethan Kogan and Jessica Silvetti are two filmmakers from Los Angeles, California, U.S.A. In this interview they talk about Light and Shadow Pictures, a production house that aims at bringing high quality, thought-provoking content to the web.

Jessica Silvetti and Ethan Kogan

How did Light and Shadow Pictures come into being?

Jessica: We started developing projects first, as actors. We wanted to be more creative. So, the first project we got off the ground was our film, Problem Of Evil. Right after shooting that film is when we decided to create Light and Shadow Pictures as a production company.

Ethan: And from going through that entire process of shooting our first film, which was conceived as a short but ended up being realized and distributed as a full length feature film, we taught ourselves the ins and outs all the way from pre-production through post and into distribution. We used that momentum to start and develop other projects from web series, short films, television pilots and other features. Thus, Light and Shadow was born.

How was your first feature film, Problem Of Evil (2014) received?

Ethan: Problem of Evil received critical acclaim from numerous film critics, most notably The London Film Review and Film Threat. It has been released on numerous VOD platforms including Amazon Prime, VHX and coming soon to Comcast’s Xfinity. The film still has legs and we’re still exploring new options.

Jessica: Ultimately, the film has been a success for us.

It seems to me that, these days, YouTube might be a better solution for art house filmmakers like you. Please comment.

Ethan: I do think YouTube is an excellent outlet/solution for today’s art house filmmakers. It definitely provides a space for experimentation, independent thinking and creation. A way to reach viewers that may not be as accessible in the traditional sense. And it’s a way to get your vision out there. It’s definitely a viable platform for an indie filmmaker and it’s only going to grow.

Jessica: If there is a formula out there for YouTube and the indie filmmaker, we’re all still trying to figure out what that is. But it’s definitely a creative space that filmmakers should explore.

What are your plans for your YouTube channel?

Jessica: Growing an audience, notoriety for Light and Shadow, and getting our projects out there.

Ethan: Using it as a platform for multiple series ideas, experimenting with new ideas, and growing our presence in the digital world. And most of all showing an audience what we as filmmakers and creators are capable of doing.

What is your approach to storytelling for today’s internet viewers?

Ethan: I think the idea is to create high-quality content that is valuable to your average viewer in ways that make it relatable, shareable and identifiable. Ultimately we’d like to expose the casual internet viewer to a different type of art form in a space that is predominately populated by video blogging and quick, comedic sketches. Not to say that we’re above comedy. We definitely have some crazy comedy series in the works.

Jessica: We want to find a way, within YouTube, to take the quality of our content to the next level.

What is the purpose of In Absentia, the anthology web series?

Ethan: In Absentia is our flagship web series. We want to explore the idea of having it as an on-going series that we can produce regularly and thereby spread our presence within the YouTube community with good, high-quality, dramatic short form content.

Jessica: It’s a way for us to set the bar high for our production company, using it as a springboard to producing better content.

What films will you be releasing this year? 

Jessica: We just had our short film, Happy For Nothing, come off of its premiere at the Carmel International Film Festival. It’s the journey of one woman emerging from the depths of her dark living room, led by a self-help guru and informercial king. It’s still making its way on the festival circuit, but we hope to release it later this year.

Ethan: And then, Poor Man’s Mermaid which is about a man’s prayers being answered as he recounts the stories his father told him of the mythical woman of the ocean. It has just been locked and being submitted to multiple international film festivals which we’re waiting to hear back from this year. We should be releasing both of those films on our YouTube Channel by the end of 2015. We also have multiple projects in development. A television pilot and a feature film still in the script stages. Plus another feature with a finished script that we are looking for another company to collaborate with and to help with financing.

A Glimpse of Light and Shadow: