Zelienople native writes, directs, scores 1st film
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When he was growing up in Zelienople, Nathan Brewer performed in Bible-based musicals written by his father and staged at Camp Lutherlyn in Prospect.
When Brewer noticed the stage at his father’s Lutheran church was not being used, he begged his father to let him direct one of the musicals. Shortly afterward, Brewer started a group called “Christian Youth Production,” which had amassed more than 150 members from the greater Pittsburgh area by the time he graduated from high school.
Today Brewer, 39, lives in New York City and — in addition to working as a musical theater professor at New York University and a teacher at the New York Film Academy — is the founder and artistic director of Recreational Arts, a performing arts education organization with programs in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. He also is a conservatory teacher at Rider University’s Westminster Choir College in Princeton, N.J.
In addition to directing stage productions, he recently completed his first short film, “No Loss Here,” which focuses on a family’s struggle with a mother’s dementia.
Brewer recently spoke with the Trib about the film.
Q: What was the inspiration for “No Loss Here”? (also, is this your first film as a director?)
A: My producer, Torrance Shepherd, who is from Cranberry, suggested that we make a film together, and asked me if there was a story that I wanted to tell. I immediately remembered a story that I had heard over 10 years prior on a podcast called Rumble Strip. It was a story that hit home on a personal level, and I never stopped thinking about it. This is my first time writing a script, and independently making a film. I have also directed three short movie musicals for the New York Film Academy.
Q: The film deals with emotional vulnerability centered around the phrase “I love you,” which you mention is something your family sometimes had a tough time expressing. How did that family dynamic play into the dynamics between characters in “No Loss Here”?
A: My family loves each other deeply, as do the characters in this film. It just so happens that those three words were not easily articulated within both families. Other family dynamics do not specifically relate, although I used a family prayer and my maternal grandmother’s name for one of the characters.
Q: You also wrote the music for the film — how did that challenge compare with directing, and at what point in the filmmaking process did you write the music?
A: When I started writing the script, I wanted to find a device to represent what made the boy different from the other kids. I made him a piano player, because I was a piano player. I then thought that the piano could serve as a musical score, and as a metaphor for the mother’s dementia — a tune that she once hated becomes her favorite song “after the forgetting.” I did not necessarily intend on writing the score, but it just seemed easier than finding another composer to do it! Incidentally, the young actor who plays the role of Teddy also happens to be a piano student of mine, so we worked on the songs in his lessons and recorded it in NYC prior to the film shoot.
Q: What was the biggest hurdle in creating this film?
A: I was very nervous to approach Erica Heilman, who had produced the original podcast on which this film is based. I wanted to honor the incredible work that Erica had produced, and to use the actual words spoken by the original subjects. I was afraid that Erica would ask for money (that she deserved, but we didn’t have), or that she would not give us her blessing to make the film. Her response was quite the opposite — she loved the script, and gave us the green light immediately. I had the pleasure of watching the film with her via Zoom last week, and it was a very emotional experience for both of us.
Q: What did you enjoy the most about the process?
A: The entire process has been a joyful “family” experience. Every dollar raised came from friends that I know and love. Two of my best friends not only provided the home in which we shot the film, but they helped decorate the set and even cooked the food for 25 people each day. It was a creative and collaborative vibe the entire time, and I think that our audience will experience that energy.
Q: Where can people see the film?
A: We simply have only just begun to submit the films to festivals, and some festivals have rules about public release or screenings prior to festival premieres. Once the film has a few premieres, we will be able to share it on our website, NoLossHere.com, and you can follow us on Instagram for notifications regarding how to view, @nolosshere.