Picture Perfect

By Erin Randolph / DES MOINES CITYVIEW / December 2004

Besides, though it may not be an easy thing to do, Iowa filmmakers can generate their own buzz without even leaving the state. Scott Beck and his filmmaking partner Bryan Woods, who together started a film company called Bluebox Limited, have recently brought the national spotlight to Iowa by becoming finalists in two national student filmmaking competitions.

Most recently, the pair became one of three finalists in MTVU’s Best Film on Campus competition before ultimately losing out to another filmmaker. However, “Shades,” a short about a young man who comes to terms with a troubled relationship, was screened by such Hollywood bigwigs as directors Joel Schumacher (“Phone Booth,” “Batman & Robin”) and Gus Van Sant (“Good Will Hunting”), which is priceless in and of itself. Prior to that, the two were among the 50 finalists in the Project Greenlight competition, started by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon to find budding screenwriters and directors, for their three-minute short film “Amber.”

“We never expect too much out of these contests, and then somehow we end up getting more than that,” says Beck, a 20-year-old student at the University of Iowa. “It’s just a good way to approach these contests, it seems. It helps knowing that we’re making films that people receive and that people will actually appreciate, but we still understand that we have to work hard. It seems like it’s going to be a long, hard road regardless of the successes we’ve had lately. But we definitely enjoy having these boosts of confidence along the way.”

From the time Beck and Woods started taking their roles as filmmakers seriously in 2001, they had goals and have been pushing themselves to reach them. Now they’re at a point where they’re able to market themselves a bit better, though they know they still have room to grow, Beck says. The two are working on writing their next screenplay, and their goal is to take it to the next level through a bigger budget and a bigger, regional casting call.

“We’re setting pretty lofty goals for ourselves,” Beck says. “We’re at the point that, even though we’re 20, we’re looking for ways to put ourselves ahead of our last feature. We just really, really want to reach a bigger audience. Not just in Iowa, but outside of Iowa.”

Bluebox Limited’s Beck applied to film school at UCLA in Los Angeles, but says it was more just to see if he could get in. If he gets accepted, he’ll have to think hard about it, but he’s content staying in Iowa.

“It’s a great community to make films. Actually, all over Iowa is due to the resources,” Beck says. “As far as film production, there’s not much of it going on in Iowa. I think that’s what really attracts people to [get involved in] the film productions that do take place here. It’s a place where we’ve grown up and it’s a place we enjoy bringing this type of entertainment to. We sort of see this as an opportunity to expand Iowa’s film industry by staying here and producing works here.”