Meet EDWARD GUSTS | Movie Maker and Mercenary Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with EDWARD GUSTS and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi EDWARD, what role has risk played in your life or career?
This is interesting question to consider right now. Early on in my career as an actor I would take ANYTHING. My approach was to do every role available and see what stuck. If I lost money or a job over a role so be it.

There were some advantages to this approach, simply due to the sheer volume of work I did. But it exacerbated a preexisting problem with people pleasing and boundaries.

But interestingly, I am not sure if my artistic risks were as great at the time because I was always trying to please everyone else.

In those days I took personal risks more than artistic ones.

Now?

The risks are different.

I have been in a packed theater with an audience that loathed my film. Twice.

My films are raw. They are low budget.

And if you think an audience won’t compare the production values of your indie film with a 100 million dollar blockbuster, you are sorely mistaken.

Every time you make a piece of art, you are making the choice to put something true you created in front of strangers and giving them permission, even encouragement to judge it.

But the only alternative is to keep it locked inside and let it die in you.

Sorry if this sounds a bit dramatic, but I Just completed a film, and am feeling a bit angsty.

But in all honesty, this is what I do. And I would not be myself if I acted differently.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
I have just completed the final edit on my feature film Self Harm.

This film is the Flagship / Test Subject for The Magpie Film Company and our methodology.

With current technology, quality films can be made for a tenth of the cost that they used to. I have a dogmatic belief that if your story is good and your actors are skilled, a good film can be made with a skeleton crew and limited budget.

Now that it is finished, I’m taking a week off, having an After Action Report of what worked and what didn’t; and getting started on the next one.

I am learning every day, but if I could share anything; it is that you don’t need to wait for a windfall, or a Hollywood studio to discover you in order to make your art.

Make a film with your friends and an Iphone. Paint at your kitchen table. Just make your art.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I would probably take them to Gingergrass in Silverlake for Pho, drive to south Venice beach and then spend the rest of the time out in Nature.

I live in Pasadena, so we have the LA Arboretum, The National Forest, and the Huntington Gardens all a short drive away.

Lunch at the Arboretum while a Peacock tries to steal my grilled cheese is my idea of a good time.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I have to go with my Wife and My Daughter.

Who I am as an artist is mainly because of the experiences I have had along the way.

I dropped out of a Cal State & studied at South Coast Rep. I worked in Mexico for 6 months on a film. I studied at The London Academy of Music & Dramatic art, taught fencing at Swordplay, and I am on my 3rd production company.

Every thing I am as an artist has come from these experiences. And I don’t know if I would have been free to do all that without the support of my wife, and now our daughter.

My success comes from the bedrock of support that my family has given me, even when I have crashed and burned.

Website: www.magpiefilmco.com

Instagram: @Magpiefilmco

Image Credits: Geratd Griesbaum and Susan Kelejian