We recently connected with Augustin Huffman and have shared our conversation below.
Augustin, so excited to have you with us today. So much we can chat about, but one of the questions we are most interested in is how you have managed to keep your creativity alive.
It’s boring to say, but I think it comes from inspiration I get in movies, music, and art. I love when I see or hear something that challenges me and gets me to think about the creative endeavor in different ways. Much of my creativity is also stimulated just by collaborating with others. Looking at different ways to approach problems and utilize that for certain effects in filmmaking is very satisfying and fun!
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I am a cinematographer currently based in New York City, and I’ve been a freelance filmmaker here for four years now. I’ve co-written and shot an action/satire feature film, Blind Cop 2, as well as shot short films, music videos and commercials. I’m currently early in prep on a couple other feature films and narrative short film projects.
My favorite part about what I do is collaborating with others to bring a vision to life. Especially if I am involved in the writing process, it is very satisfying to go from initial premise to a finished piece. Understanding the amount of work and process that goes into filmmaking allows me to appreciate the journey and spend that time working with others to make it the best it can be.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
As much as I love cinematography, the most important part of narrative filmmaking, to me, is the script. If the script isn’t interesting, it’s tough to make a great film. Not impossible of course, but tough. I think one of my areas of knowledge has just been knowing what I like out of a story. If I’m interested in the script, in the story, then I want to make sure the shooting of the thing lives up to that.
Technical knowledge is a huge part of filmmaking and judging how long it will take to pull off a certain shot or sequence is key for preparing a film shoot. I like to think I’m a pretty good judge for estimating how long something will take to pull off. While shooting, the most valuable resource is time and having a good gameplan for what a day of shooting will look like saves a lot of time.
Lastly, I think one of my most impactful skills is the ability to work quickly and calmly under pressure. Freaking out and getting frantic doesn’t help anyone and certainly can impair clear judgement. It’s important to understand what is at stake, but losing one’s cool does little to help in the grand scheme of things.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
Collaboration is the core of why I really love filmmaking. The whole becoming greater than the sum of its parts. And every collaboration is different, but to me, that’s what makes it exciting. I love connecting with all sorts of people because I always learn a new way to look at the world. I like to think that is what I offer as well.
For those interested in checking out my work, check out my site (augustinhuffman.com).
Contact Info:
- Website: https://augustinhuffman.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/augustinhuffman/
Image Credits
Julien Barlan
Alec Bonk
Jarod Wang
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