Look out Hollywood

From Middletown to Hoboken to Tribeca and beyond!

Independent filmmaker Phil Botti, a Hoboken resident for the past 15 years, recently had his comedic short film “Loose Change” selected for the Tribeca Film Festival, one of the most influential and prestigious festivals in the world. The film was one of eight films chosen from over 3000 submissions to be part of “Open 24 Hours”, a showcase of short films based on NY experiences.

Film festivals are extremely important outlets for indie-filmmakers to showcase their work, gain audiences, and seek investors. The significance of this achievement is definitely not lost on Phil. “If you had asked me five years ago if I thought this would happen, at that point I never would’ve believed it. But the fact that it has really motivates and inspires me to do more. It makes me ask myself, ‘What else is possible now?’’’

Growing up in Middletown, N.J., Phil became interested in film at an early age. “I was always writing stories, and making my own little movies in the backyard with my parent’s old movie camera.” Seeing his interest and potential, his mom enrolled him in acting classes in New York. He auditioned for commercials and small parts through grammar school, but his interest began to wane. “By that time, I was tired of the process, the back and forth to auditions. All I wanted to do at fourteen was hang out with my friends.”

Although Phil acted in some plays during high school, his love of writing and storytelling never left him. “I had an English teacher in high school who told me I was a terrible writer and to just forget it, that nothing would ever come of it." Ignoring those words, and keeping true to his aspirations, Phil graduated and began his journey to become a filmmaker.

After a year attending community college to improve his grades, Phil was accepted to NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, a place he considers the greatest learning experience an inspiring filmmaker can have. “Everyone there is so talented and so competitive; you learn very quickly how difficult it is to be successful in the film industry. You’re not just competing against other students to get your films made, but against the teachers too. It’s not just about talent, but also money, politics and connections.”

After graduation and a year of writing, waiting tables and not making any significant connections, Phil returned home to Middletown feeling a bit defeated. He then heard about an independent film gaining notoriety that was shot entirely in Hi8, better known to you and me as the home video camera. This was significant as it meant that acceptance of Hi8 in filmmaking could make the process more cost-effective and viable to struggling artists. With not even twenty dollars to his name, Phil saw an ad for The Wiz and their 33-day return policy – ding! The light bulb went off. Phil “bought” the camera, put together a loose script, and over the course of a month in the summer of 1995, filmed his family, friends and their antics – the “original” Jersey Shore long before the MTV reality series. (He then returned the camera!)

As this was happening, Phil landed a production job at Atlantic Records. He would work all week and then sneak back to editing rooms at Atlantic on the weekends and edit his film. The result was “Middletown –The Movie”. He submitted it to the New York Underground Film Festival, and a month later he received a message on his answering machine from someone mimicking his mother’s voice in the film. That call came from none other than Todd Phillips, famed writer/director of smash hits Old School and The Hangover, telling Phil his piece had been accepted. The next thing he knew, “Middletown” was being shown in front of 500 people, all laughing hysterically, and went on to win the 1996 Overall Choice Award.

As the film quickly gained notoriety, MTV came calling, pitching the idea of turning Middletown into a show, but he turned it down. “I was really looking to do more scripted type of work, and honestly I didn’t want to exploit my friends and family in that way.” With that being said, his next film, “Bust A Move”, a short comedy about a guy trying to move out of his parents house, became another underground hit, and featured Dan Folger, star of such films as Taking Woodstock and Take Me Home Tonight, in his first starring role.

However, after six films and a feature-length film project that fell through, Phil was left $50,000 in debt and again feeling somewhat frustrated with the film industry. From 2004-2008, he focused on his job at Atlantic, making music videos, filming concerts and working on special projects with the Atlantic artists. It was then that he regained inspiration with the pop boy-band, The Click Five, and created “The Click Five: The Band Behind the Band”, a Spinal Tap-inspired mocumentary series about the drama and infighting as the band tried to find a new lead singer. The creative process and success of the webisodes re-inspired Phil to start writing his own scripts again.

His latest film, “Loose Change”, a bittersweet, somewhat dark comedy about a tenant’s struggle with his senile old landlady, is based on Phil’s own former experience living here on Garden Street. The film has gotten 5-star reviews from critics and lots of laughs from the audiences at the screenings. “Story-telling, relating my own experiences and finding a commonality that audiences can connect with is what I love about filmmaking. If you want to have your work resonate with your audience then you need to find that connection. You can’t just create things for selfish reasons.”

Phil moved to Hoboken in the late 1990’s because of its proximity to NYC and the cheaper rent. He loves living in Hoboken with his beautiful wife Gina and could see himself staying here. “I think it’s much different than it was when I first moved here. More and more people are staying and raising families here rather than moving out to the suburbs. It would be nice to have place down the shore to escape to, though.” His favorite place in Hoboken (besides his couch) is the 14th Street Pier. “It’s where I saw the World Trade Center fall. That’s not a great memory obviously but it makes it have a lot of sentimentality for me.” On his days off, you may see him avoiding potholes and dodging the strollers on his way to either Vito’s or Fiore’s.  “Both those places make great sandwiches, but Vito’s takes credit and Fiore’s is only cash, so some days that’s the deciding factor!”

So what’s next for Phil Botti? Sky’s the limit. “Having your work selected for Tribeca is a real honor. But it’s not just about the recognition, but also the connections that you may not have made otherwise. I know I’ll be working with some of the talented people I’ve met here.” With a feature film in the works, and more scripts being written, Phil has his eye on the Big Picture – literately.

Visit www.loosechangemovie.com to learn more, or view "Loose Change" online via the Tribeca online screening room.

For more about the Tribeca Film Festival, visit www.tribecafilm.com.