An Interview with Filmmaker David Kowarsky

"Photograph: a picture painted by the sun without instruction in art," said author Ambrose Bierce. Who better to understand what he meant than filmmakers? Whether or not you've made a film, if you happen to be blessed with creative genes, it is likely you can relate to Bierce's words.

Now, if you will, step back into the real world. There is an artist out there who has begun to grasp Bierce's concept, and he is very much real. His name is David Kowarsky, a. k. a. Khyros, an actor/writer/director making a name for himself in the sometimes harsh arena of cinema. From a young age, Kowarsky had a passion for the art of storytelling; now, as an adult, he is gradually bringing that to life.

Kowarsky currently works as an independent freelancer. One of his regular clients is TV Worldwide, the web-based global TV network in charge of webcasting the 59th Annual Tech and Engineering Emmy Awards. Additionally, he is subcontracting with Youngworth Public Relations, a forerunner in the field of Internet brand management. Yet, it is probably safe to say, very few in this field start at the top; Kowarsky is no exception.

Meddling In Media

After hearing such credentials, one may wonder where this filmmaker began his foray. "I made my first 'film' using [the Microsoft program] 3D Movie Maker. I was inspired by the work of childhood friends using Fine Artist...that's a slideshow and graphic design program. One of our slideshows was almost on the level of animation. Eventually, I got my hands on a copy."

3D Movie Maker, for the uninitiated, "is a program created by Microsoft's 'Microsoft Kids' in 1995," according to Wikipedia. The program allowed kids to create short animated movies using sound effects, movements, visual effects, songs, and speech. Some kids' films even reached a level of notoriety when uploaded to the Web, and a small community grew up around them.

"I remember playing around with it," Kowarsky reminisces. "Virus was my first complete movie; it was a dramatization of what happens when your body is infected." He also recalls a movie made with the help of several friends, in which each of them would make a music video, then e-mail the results to the next person in sequence. Among the songs were Marilyn Manson's "Sweet Dreams," and the theme from Mission: Impossible. Eventually, a complete movie was made, the final result resembling some combination of MTV and Marcel Duchamp. "Those were the earliest projects I did," he concludes.

Further Exploits

A later inspiration came in the form of an autographed screenplay of an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, a longtime favorite of Kowarsky's. "My father got it for me at a convention...watching the episode and reading the screenplay along with it...gave me a different picture of how media was put together."

The first formal education in media Kowarsky recalls is at the day camp Horizon in 1993, taught on the grounds of NYIT. "We took 'film courses' [there]...what stuck with me most prominently was the actual work in the TV studio; [it] has served me very well lately." The productions ranged from mock-talk shows to music videos. "Recently [in the media], there has been a lot of emphasis on live broadcasting; some technology has replicated the multi-camera ability of a news truck."

A number of young people, particularly high school and college students, aspire to be filmmakers. Of course, as with other art forms, not everyone strikes oil. "Film and TV involve different skills; when doing a film, if something doesn't look right, you do it again...[e.g.] you move cameras, lights, etc. In TV, [you use] multiple cameras at once, cutting between them. Horizon's equipment was industry standard; that was my earliest experience."

Freedom of Speech

At Half Hollow Hills High School in NY, Kowarsky involved himself with the Speech and Debate Team, which he says helped immensely in building his confidence and, of course, his public speaking ability.

As an offshoot of this experience, he produced a rap video with friend and fellow teammate Matt Leporati. The video, entitled "Speech and Debate/SDMF," features Kowarsky and Leporati rapping about their experiences with the team, using the monikers DJ Decay and Emcee Squared, respectively. Among the humorous highlights of the video are various students at the high school lip-synching the song's chorus.

In 2001, Kowarsky began working with CosmoCom, an innovator in the field of telecommunications (specifically between businesses and clients.) His father, Steve Kowarsky, is the executive vice president; family relations aside, David was chosen for his skill and experience in the field. During his stint with the company, he produced and edited a number of videos used to promote CosmoCom and to explain their benefits to potential clients. The segments are of such professional quality that one might never guess they were put together by a young college student. "[My father] knew my work...he knew that I wasn't just some kid with a camera. I took courses at Oxford in 1999, and the New York Film Academy in 2000; I felt much more confident afterwards."

"The Oxford program was taught by people with professional experience in film; someone from the National Film Board of Canada, and an instructor in camerawork and editing...[so] it was not primarily academic. The instruction was very much professional; it was people who do this!"

Tell Me About This...Animation

In addition to comedic music videos like "SDMF," Kowarsky has also "directed" and pieced together several anime music videos (AMVs). Generally, such videos combine clips from one or more anime series set to music in almost any genre you can think of. A few of the more popular examples are "Tainted Donuts," a comedic crossover between the series Trigun and Cowboy Bebop; and "Elvis vs. Anime," a brilliant parody of the JXL remix of The King's "A Little Less Conversation."

In Kowarsky's work, both of his best known pieces draw from Trigun, a personal favorite of his. His first, entitled Wolfwood's Loss, centers around the character Nicholas D. Wolfwood, a priest/marksman with a concealed past. For the music, Kowarsky settled on REM's "Losing My Religion," fitting for such a character. The video is highly dramatic, and captures many of the series' themes effectively. While it unfortunately did not win any awards in the anime convention circuit, it remains a fine piece of work.

A second video, made in a more humorous light, combines The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time with the opening theme of Trigun ("H.T.") Entitled "TriFORCE," it features Link and Zelda closely mimicking the actions of main character Vash the Stampede and his supporting cast in the opening sequence. Kowarsky's friend Christopher LaBianca assisted in the videomaking process by playing the N64 game as the former digitized it. The final result? See for yourself here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-h6onKzLUGo

Kowarsky's most recent project in the music video genre is "This Is Your House," a play on a sequence called "This Is Your Life" from Fight Club. Kowarsky's version is, as you may or may not have guessed, centered around House, M.D.

Among Academia

David Kowarsky attended and graduated from Harvard. He was accepted early action in 2001, and "was elated following in my father's footsteps. I did consider NYU Tisch [School of the Arts], but after Harvard, I didn't feel compelled to finish any other applications."

Naturally, had there been a film department at Harvard, Kowarsky imagined himself enrolled in the major; ultimately, however, he decided that wasn't the exact kind of training he was seeking. "I was [looking elsewhere in education]...I know how to hold a camera already!"

"At that point, I had already done more than most first year film students. I fell into the Folklore and Mythology Department; if I could understand what made these stories so powerful, that would add tremendously to my abilities as a storyteller."

Once he had settled on the Folklore concentration, Kowarsky focused on storytelling analysis and paradigms for study that "enabled me to write twenty-five pages on a children's book that contained only fourteen lines of text." The book in question is Book Shaped Like a Pig, from which Kowarsky produced a brilliant academic analysis. For the curious, the entire paper is available at http://www.khyros.com; it received a rave review from his advisor, William Mills Todd III, Harry Levin Tuchman Professor of Literature, and Professor of Comparative Literature.

Todd describes it thusly:

"Your paper is at once wonderfully funny and splendidly insightful.... It is rigorous in its demonstrations of how text and reader imagine meanings, accurate in its use of narratological paradigms, and learned in its range of reference. Your deft and elegant writing carefully preserves the balance between humor and hermeneutic wisdom... In 32 years of teaching, I cannot remember a more enjoyable termpaper. May I have a copy?"

Of the experience in his major, Kowarsky elaborates, "The truth of the matter is...many books sold to writers interested in film draw from older stories. A book called The Writer's Journey uses a structure from The Hero's Journey, by Joseph Campbell. [He was basically asking] 'How do you break down your story?' It did a really good job of taking the bullshit out of Campbell."

And Now...

After completing his degree, it took time for Kowarsky to figure out what exactly to do. His big break came when he found an opportunity to edit The Youngbloods Jam In Harlem, directed by Carol Newhaus and Jonathan Sanders. "I had over 100 hours [of footage] to cut down to a half-hour documentary piece," he explains. "I prepared a rough cut and, by and large, ended up changing the structure."

Kowarsky also interned for Pulver.com, which he eventually turned into his first full time job. "I helped them set up their video studio...with their newborn video website. Back in 2006, after YouTube had blown up, everything was starting to come into place; it was just getting to the point where people were starting to watch video online."

Now, in his current work, he is gaining valuable experience and helping to put companies on the Web that previously operated without it. "It's a growing space...last year was the year when every company could have video on their websites. [It's known as] 'broadband penetration.' 2008 is the year by the end of which every company will need to use video in order to be seen as a modern and serious company."

For all those who want to break into the fields of video, screenwriting, and Internet marketing, you've just heard advice from a man who knows his stuff. For a closer look, visit Khyros Multimedia on the Web. Khyros is waiting to hear from you.