Meet John David Juodis | Director, Writer and Producer

We had the good fortune of connecting with John David Juodis and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi John David, what’s the end goal, career-wise?
I want to work on films I’m excited about as consistently as possible. These films could be in any budget range and I’d be happy just as long as I can keep myself, a cast and crew believing that we are there to do good work. If I can keep sufficient creative control as we find funding for future projects, I plan to put together a catalog of films together that I can look back on and be proud of.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Things Greater Than Us is my first feature and it’s a sci-fi drama with horror elements. These genres are common for first-time filmmakers but ours is unique in how character and actor driven it is for this kind of movie. Working with actors to build the characters I’d be excited to see as an audience member is by far the most interesting part of making a movie to me. This film is in large part inspired by great dialogue driven movies like 12 Angry Men and The Man from Earth and we believe we have many scenes that will be enthralling to any audience that enjoys those kinds of films.

We are also proud of how we handled the sci-fi elements of the film which are designed like a classic Twilight Zone episode where there are few locations and not many large scale effects but it is still able to use performances, sound design and simple effects to feel like there are massive stakes.

It was not an easy process. The decision I made to jump into making the movie was a fairly chaotic one. I didn’t work my way up the ladder and wait for a studio to give me the stamp of approval and anoint me an official director. I put up most of my life savings and borrowed some money from family and jumped into it fully aware that it would be a painful crash course, which might be the best way to learn, especially in something lower-stakes like the arts.

Which brings us to the strongest lesson I would have for anyone trying to do something similar to what we did: give yourself the time to figure things out. The advantage our production had was that we had a script that could be shot in seven to ten days but we intentionally gave ourselves three weeks to figure things out. Most scenes we shot at least twice because we made so many changes behind and in front of the cameras. and everybody on set responded really well to the chance to always be doing something better.

As far as what I want the world to think of our brand and story, I just want people to always be excited for what we do next.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I moved to Sandy Springs late last year but I have been so absorbed by this film project that I haven’t properly explored the whole Atlanta area yet. However, I am surrounded by great restaurants, my favorite probably being breakfast from Fellow’s Cafe up in Roswell. Bread is often overrated but they have some of the best bread I’ve ever had, especially on their breakfast sandwiches. I am also a big fan of the Dunwoody Perimeter Mall area, where you can’t throw a rock without hitting a good restaurant.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I am no doubt in the position I am now because of my family and one particular friend. My family worked hard and put me in a position where if I failed in the arts I would survive in life. My friend Dustin also got me an amazing job that allowed me the chance to travel a lot while on a flexible schedule. This gave me a lot of time to consider other projects. I am taking a risk trying to go into film full-time now, but I’ve had too many stable people behind me to ever feel like I’m risking it all.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/floodedbasementfilms/

Image Credits
Diego Vargas