Every Day is Day 1
Hrvoje Bazina | 9/28/2023
Hrvoje Bazina, a former WFS student turned educator, shares his story of navigating the tumultuous path towards becoming a professional filmmaker.
Ten years ago to the day I'm writing this, my life turned completely upside down. At the time I had just turned 14 years old. I was obsessed with mountain biking and was convinced that this is the direction I would take in life. So, when my mom walked into my room asking me if I wanted to spend the last week of my summer break at some new filmmaking workshop that had just started in my town in Bosnia-Herzegovina, I wasn't too thrilled. My immediate thought was how many different bike trails I could hit during that week instead.
However, my mom was convinced it would be good for me. After all, I've been running around with a camera in my hands since I was 5 years old taking photos and ‘directing’ my own little films with my parents' mini-DV camera. I always enjoyed making short films—it was fun to goof around with my friends and a camera—but I never saw it as a viable career path.
Fast-forward two weeks, and here comes this young film educator: Lucy Eagleson from San Diego. There was a lot of hype around her. After all, she had just graduated from one of the most prestigious film schools in the world and she was coming from California. So, in our eyes, here’s someone from Hollywood—someone who's making movies for a living—rolling into our little town in Bosnia-Herzegovina to teach a filmmaking workshop for two weeks. Like any teenager, I thought I already knew everything. In my mind I was thinking, “I've already made some short films before. I know how to use a camera. How much more can there really be to it? What on earth is she gonna teach me that I don't know already?”
As it turns out, a lot. On Day 1, I was immediately humbled when Lucy started talking about three-act story structure, character backstories, visual storytelling, and so on. Things I had never heard of before. I was not only fascinated, but legitimately mind blown by how much more there was to making movies than I ever realized. The first day we analyzed some short films, commercials, and music videos. I could not believe how meticulously thought out every single thing we watched was. Each camera angle moved the story forward, the actors carefully planned their performances, and every element of production design painted the frame. Everything we saw was so intentionally designed and it was all driven by the story. I was blown away. The way I knew how to make movies was to get together with a couple friends, agree on a theme, roll the camera and let them figure out what to do in front of it along the way. By the end of Day 1, I was already seeing things differently.
On Day 2, we were already on set. I wanted to be behind the camera, but as it goes in the industry, you can't have your dream job from day one. So, I was put in charge of the slate as a Camera Assistant. However, I did get to operate the camera on a few Point of View (POV) shots by slapping a GoPro on my forehead. This was the day I truly fell in love with filmmaking. Watching the team direct the camera, direct the actors, and everything else with so much intention was just something I hadn’t seen before. There were still moments when I was skeptical; like when we were shooting the same scene in two different locations making it look like one or when we were using a body double for our lead actor since he couldn’t play the violin. I wasn't sure how all of that would actually work out on screen.
Which brings us to Day 3: post-production. Everything I was skeptical about the day before just flew out of the window. I got to see ‘movie magic’ be used in real time during the editing process and learned why it's called ‘the industry of make believe’. It really opened my mind to the amount of possibilities and creative liberties you are able to take as a filmmaker while telling your story.
After this experience, I was hooked! It wasn't so much a love for movies that got me, it was a fascination with the process of creating them. I became so obsessed that, over the next 7-8 months, I spent a minimum of 3 hours every single day (and I mean every single day) watching YouTube tutorials and reading up on all the different techniques and processes of filmmaking. I didn’t have a camera to try all of these new techniques so I saved all of my Confirmation money to buy a camera. I eventually bought a Canon 70D and announced to all of my family and friends that I would officially pursue becoming a filmmaker!
To my surprise, I received no support. Absolutely none. It was no wonder that they believed it was impossible. I was living in a small town—in a country that most of the world probably can't even point to on a map—with no sight of a film industry anywhere near me. Especially when I started talking about how I want to move to the US and build my career there. Everyone was convinced that I was just off the rails. It was a crazy dream that seemed impossible to achieve, but I wasn't going to let this stop me.
I started working as a volunteer photojournalist for a local news site just to keep practicing taking photos. I still got my friends together to make short films, but with a little more structure and intent than before. I would send out these shorts to any festivals that would have them. It didn't matter how many films I created and where they were shown—my family and friends still weren’t convinced that this would get me anywhere. They didn't believe that this camera, which I had spent all of my money on, would actually be able to make me any money back. So, I turned to filming weddings. I was making $25 a day working 18 hour days as a 2nd shooter. At the time, I wasn't too concerned about the paycheck. What mattered to me was that I managed to prove to everyone, especially myself, that this was viable as a career. Plus, it felt cool to be making your own money as a 15-year-old.
The next year when Lucy returned to run the workshop, she brought one of her friends from film school: Tyler Gunderson. Tyler was introduced to us as a post-production wizard, and that he was. He also brought a RED camera—an industry standard camera used on some of the most prominent productions in the world. Plus, it was the camera used by one of my favorite YouTube creators, Devinsupertramp. I loved watching all of his videos, but especially his Behind the Scenes videos where he would often talk about using RED cameras with his team.
So, when Tyler walked in with this camera, I was beyond excited! All I wanted to do was use the RED any chance I could and feel like I was on the same level as Devin and other filmmakers. However, I was put in the role of the camera assistant again for that second year of the workshop. However, I did get to operate a couple of the shots on the RED in the end and it felt magical! It might sound funny as today I just use these cameras as a tool. At the time though, it gave me a whole different level of confidence when I held a RED in my hands. It’s a type of confidence and security that I still feel today whenever I shoot on RED. From that time on, I knew that all I wanted to do was work with cameras.
As I continued to work and go to school, the thing I looked forward to the most every year was the workshop. Each year it kept getting bigger and everything was becoming more complex, more challenging. When the workshop returned the following year, I had my sights set on being the Director of Photography (DP) and I got the role! I was put to DP alongside Justine Chen—one of the students who came to the workshop from Outside the Lens in San Diego. I had to not only learn how to collaborate, but how to collaborate in English—my third language. I loved every second of it! I didn't have to worry about writing the script, about managing actors, or any of that. All I had to focus on was telling the story visually using a camera and lights. The workshop that year showed me that I was a visual storyteller and led me to pursue cinematography as a career path.
After four years of the workshop, my parents realized I was not going to back down from filmmaking. With reluctant acceptance, they let me go to film school. I had just turned 18 and I was off to study film in a new place all on my own in Zagreb, Croatia. In my first year at film school, I almost had to retake a whole semester because I was asked if I'd want to be the Director of Photography for an indie feature film—to which, naturally, I said yes. It was a grueling 45 day shoot, but it taught me a lot, and it also taught me how much more I had to learn. Several years later, the movie ended up getting distribution and it was the most watched Croatian film of 2020.
After wrapping production on the feature, I decided I was going to step away from cinematography for a bit and learn more about lighting on some bigger sets. I started reaching out to rental houses and anyone who had anything to do with lighting in the local industry. Eventually, one rental house came back to me and offered me to start working as an electrician on some commercials. I remember the feeling of excitement the first day I stepped on set, seeing all these big lights and expensive equipment that I could have only dreamed of before but now got to use. To some, this seemed like the moment I had ‘made it’. I was finally on professional sets—getting paid for what I loved to do. But, I knew this was only the beginning.
From there, I ended up getting promoted to working as a Gaffer and then eventually made the jump to being a DP. Today, I have worked on close to 100 different projects in various positions—everything from feature films, to short films, to commercials, to music videos and more. I have also gotten to travel all over the US and Europe. I’ve worked with so many incredible brands, artists, and technicians from all over the world—many of whom I've looked up to for the longest time. I even got to meet Mr. Supertramp himself this year.
Most importantly, I still get to go back to the workshop every year, but now as a mentor and educator; giving back to the community where I come from. I get to inspire and support new kids as they pursue a career in this crazy industry of ours and use my personal journey as an example that they can do it too.
After hearing my story, some might say I’ve made it. Having become a professional in the film industry that I always wanted to be—getting paid for doing something I love. At 24, I am living the life that 14-year-old me could have only dreamed of. However, I realize that I still have so much to learn and so much more to achieve. Until the day comes where I am living and working in the US full time, and until the day when I finally win that Oscar, I won’t be satisfied. But, even when that day comes and I am finally holding that golden statue in my hands, I will still probably feel like that kid on Day 1 of the workshop which has given me more than just a career—it gave me a purpose and a passion for the rest of my life.
To learn more about Hrvoje and his body of work, visit his personal website at hrvojebazina.com.
