IRON HORSE CINEMA - DON'T STOP BELIEVING

Some time ago I was lucky enough to be given a fan film to put on my site care of Iron Horse Cinema. Today they're back, and this time, care of co-producer, Mike Sgroi, they're willing to sit down and tell me about their fan based movie company. Mike, it's now over to you, pal...





1) What are your team's origins, Mike?   Our formation initially began after meeting through a Craiglist ad. Our co-producer, Jeff Moffitt, had put out a Craigslist ad seeking an editor for a TV pilot idea, and Sy Cody White answered the call. Jeff and Sy ended up collaborating on a short film idea known as "The Watchers". I was an actor in that film and stayed in touch with the guys. From that day forward, we have continued creating films and working with talented people, and Iron Horse Cinema was born.

2) What inspired the formation of ‘Iron Horse Cinema’, and why give your production house this name?   As mentioned, Iron Horse Cinema evolved organically from project to project. We've worked with great actors and crew members who have contributed in so many ways. The team has always been a rag-tag bunch meeting up on weekends to shoot different films.

In the past year, we have started turning things up a notch and have grown our fan base. We have added co-producer Sean Kling to the mix, who has brought a strong business sense to the team. Our goal has always been to produce at the highest quality in an effort to become professional filmmakers. We have also made sure everyone checks their egos at the door and feels welcome to contribute on set. Basically, we make sure we are having fun while working.

The name "Iron Horse Cinema" came about as the team grew in size. Originally, we were Two Man Crew Productions. With the additions of more crew members, we tossed around some new name ideas. Iron Horse Cinema was chosen because the "iron horse" was always a symbol of strength, ingenuity, and determination. 

3) Can you briefly tell us about some of you’re previous projects?   The team's first film was 'The Watchers'. It was an original story about a man who keeps seeing people watching him wherever he goes. This was a thriller / noir project filmed around New York City and Hoboken, New Jersey. 

The team then decided to focus more on fan film projects based on video games and pop culture. Our first big break was our trilogy series based on the video game, 'The Last of Us'. We have also shot an Uncharted fan film,  a Five Nights at Freddy's fan film, and won the 2015 Filmmaker Select Star Wars Fan Film Award for our Star Wars film, The Lesser Evil. We were extremely honored by this award because our film was chosen by Kathleen Kennedy herself during this year's Star Wars Celebration.

4) What song would you say best represents your film work and why?   Wow! That's a great question! Maybe "Don't Stop Believing" by Journey? LOL! Or maybe "Crazy" by Gnarls Barkley. When you want to break into showbiz you have to never give up and maybe be a little crazy to believe it can happen.

5) If you could get a celebrity – either living or dead – to promote your wares, who would you choose, and why would you want to choose this particular person?   Another great question. I think if we could ever link up with Kevin Smith, that would be huge. Most of the team is based in New Jersey, so he would be somebody we would love to get the seal of approval from. He is such an icon for indie filmmakers and a New Jersey native himself, so a thumbs up from him would mean a lot to us. Also, somebody like Mark Hamil or Harrison Ford or even George Lucas would be incredible since we are all major Star Wars fans. Respect from the industry's pros would go a long way with us. It means we are doing something right and respecting the craft of film.

6) During your time in this field, what is the one thing that has kept you in good stead?   The determination to live our dreams keeps us going. We're all a group of dreamers and creators with passion. After each success, large or small, we've gained more confidence and believe we can make this happen. We haven't become jaded and are always excited to see how the finished product turns out. At the end of the day, we are still humble fans of film.

7) Do you have any other projects lined up?    With the release of the Star Wars newsreel, we are hoping to gain subscribers and contributors to record another Star Wars fan film for next years Celebration in London. We also have some other fan film projects in pre-production right now, but don't want to give away any secrets. Just check into our YouTube page every month to see something new!

8) If ‘Iron Horse’ had a motto, what would it be?   As Stan Lee already uses "Excelsior!", I would say our motto is 'Passion, pride, and perseverance'.

And on that p-p-perfect note, dear reader, I'd like to thank Mike for telling us about Iron Horse Cinema, before directing you towards their facebook, twitter, and youtube pages.