On the latest episode of the Morse Code Podcast I speak with Emmy-nominated filmmaker Derek Dienner on his wild journey producing the independently-funded feature film —  “Brave the Dark” starring Jared Harris (Mad Men, Chernobyl) — surviving cancer in his 30s, and staying motivated in a highly unpredictable industry.

Derek and I met at Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. He’d recently finished his first feature film and was in the process of finding a distribution partner to help him release it. Randa and I were there for a similar reason, but on the TV side, with Morse Code.

In an industry of ravenous self-seekers, I was struck by Derek’s unusual combination of earnest sincerity and restless determination. He was looking for a solution to his own problem, yes, but he was also interested in mine. Actually interested. 

In a way, we were driven by a similar need — to tell a story as close to our actual lives as possible. In my case it’s the world of the indie-folksinger. In his, it was Stan Deen, a widely-loved teacher and philanthropist from Derek’s neck of the woods, Lancaster, Pennsylvania. 

Like the protagonist from, Stand and Deliver, Deen had an extraordinary impact on generations of young people in the area. It was from this well of love and regard that a script was born, led by Deen’s adopted son, Nathan. Derek got involved, and raised an crazy amount of money by reaching out to people in the Lancaster area, setting up meetings over coffee, getting the backers one cup at a time.

People don’t really understand how long it takes to make a movie. It’s years of your life — toiling through constant uncertainty, navigating the seeming-impossible challenges that appear from nowhere. A lot of folks never finish. Understandable why. It’s just really hard.

We talk about the passion that fueled his process, and the belief that sustained him.

Honestly I didn’t know how this episode would go because it was my first with a producer-type. But the time passed faster than I wished and our conversation left me bursting with vim and vigor. It had something to do with Derek’s open-hearted enthusiasm, combined with the refreshing transparency of a passionate filmmaker very much on the front lines of indie filmmaking. 

I believe!

Find Derek: Website: https://makefilms.cc/about/derek-dienner/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/derekdienner/

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