Today we’d like to introduce you to Israel Marquez.
Israel, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
In 1997 I started acting and landed a few gigs here and there. A commercial here a small role there. But it wasn’t till I was on set of Walker Texas Ranger when one of the camera guys took the time to explain to me how the camera works and what a DP really does. At that moment I knew what it was that I wanted to do. I wanted to be a film maker. I remember quitting the shoot and running about a mile back to my car. I was excited to get started. I went home and bought some books about film making and watched some videos on the very new YouTube. I remember flipping through the videos on YouTube and coming across a video by a film maker named Robert Rodriguez. He explained how easy it is to make a film and offered many tips. Next day I bought a cheap camera and some hacked editing software and started practicing. It was a very long and expensive journey but it wasn’t until 2010 that I shot my first short film. A short film called Haley’s Angel. There was no script and no dialogue. Just an idea I had. An idea I believed in and the story was a silent film but musically driven. Months later I entered my first film festival and managed to take home two awards for that film. You can say I was very excited. But I realized I could do better so I went back into student mode and didn’t shoot a film for another two years. Finally I had enough confidence to start another project called Soul of Embers. And for the next few years continued to shoot several films and scenes and entering more and more film festivals and awards. I have won over 60 awards for my films and still going strong. I love writing, directing, shooting and editing all of my own films. People always ask me why I like to do everything and I always tell them, if you learn to do everything yourself you don’t have to wait and depend on others. You can move at the speed of thought. And plus its fun. I am currently touring my documentary Paz, Amor, y Musica through many film festivals. We are scheduled all over the U.S through mid-next year. My documentary follows a man by the name Alex Ruiz and how he went from digging ditches in the rain to becoming the lead singer to a band named Chingon belonging to one of Hollywood’s top movie directors Robert Rodriguez. Paz, Amor, y Musica will be screening July 21st at the Fort Worth Indie Film Showcase and is nominated for two awards. I decided to shoot this documentary back in 2014 because I wanted to be challenged and wanted to see if I could do it. I am always looking to do new and different things. I will be shooting my first narrative full feature film later this year. I am really excited about this one. I am anxious to see where this journey takes me. I have really worked on sharpening my cinematography skills for this film. Learning lenses and quadrants etc.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It has been a very tough road. I made a lot of mistakes. I always tell my crew I have made all the mistakes so that you don’t have to. Now one of the biggest mistakes I made were having the wrong people around me. It’s easy to get caught up with the wrong people but you have to get past that and keep moving forward. Again that’s why it’s important for me to learn all aspect of film making so that you don’t have to depend on anyone. Step back and evaluate everyone in your circle and determine what their worth is. That’s how I do it.
Please tell us about Zen Productions.
I created Zen Productions and here recently opened up my own private studio called Zen Studios. I specialize in making films with meaning. Films that people can take something out of and go home and think about. For example, I was screening my film Rose at a festival in Oklahoma. After the screening I stepped outside for a moment and noticed an older woman crying. I asked her what was wrong. She got up and gave me a hug and said thank you for the film. She proceeded to tell me about a daughter she lost to cancer and how my film inspired and reminded her of her daughter. This is the sole basis of Zen Productions and Zen Studios. This is what I am about.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
If I had the chance to start over I would not. I learned valuable lessons. I wouldn’t change a thing.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4135449/?ref_=nv_sr_1
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zenproductionsiz/
- Other: https://www.facebook.com/ruizmarquezfilms/
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