Jon Miller 1996 ‘Eyes’ Filmmaking

4/25/2013

Equipped with creative inspiration from his Hamden Hall teachers, Jon Miller 1996 has found his way into feature filmmaking. Jon was the director of photography on the newly released Gimme the Loot—a movie he describes as “an urban adventure about friendship” that takes place in New York City.

At the invitation of Michael Smith, Jon’s Hamden Hall theater teacher and director, Jon addressed an Upper School assembly April 24—showing the film’s trailer and sharing his professional journey. That journey, he quipped, began after he panned a theater production in a school publication.

Click above for more on Jon and his flair for film work.

“Mr. Smith challenged me ‘to put my money where my mouth is.’ ” recalled Jon. “He challenged me to audition for a play and see what acting is all about.”

Jon “acted” on the demand and got parts in school productions. Off the Hamden Hall stage, Jon placed first in a regional Shakespeare competition, winning a slot to represent the New Haven area at the national contest at Lincoln Center in New York City.

“Mr. Smith was my mentor,” recalled Jon. “Through his direction and teaching, he taught me how to make a character real—to connect with yourself and the audience.”

Complementing Mr. Smith’s influence was the imaginative writing inspiration of English teacher Bill Hunter. Both teachers return the praise—recalling Jon’s “intelligence and creativity—a talented actor and fine scholar.”

After Hamden Hall, Jon graduated from Haverford College in Philadelphia with a degree in comparative literature (although Mr. Hunter spilled the beans—Jon was also accepted at Stanford). While studying abroad in Italy, Jon got his first taste of photography.

From college, Jon moved to Boston, then Los Angeles, working as an unpaid intern reading scripts, that led to low-paying assistant jobs behind the scenes, that led to better paying jobs as a camera’s assistant, that ultimately led to his director of photography post with Gimme the Loot.

“It’s been hard, challenging, fun and full of variety,” said Jon of his career. “You have to be on your toes all the time, and you never know what you’ll do next.”

Jon is proud of his work on Gimme the Loot. The film got a “great reception” at the Sundance Film Festival as well as Cannes. It earned kudos in a review in the New York Times and enjoyed a recent opening at the Criterion in New Haven.

“As the director of photography, it was my job to help the film’s director make the movie feel real—to figure out the best way to tell the story,” said Jon. “I had to shoot footage that was alive—that transmitted life.”

Next on Jon’s creative platter is a Russian film that he shot in New York—convenient as Jon and his wife, Andra, and their children, Caleb, 3, and an 11-month-old Clementine, make New York City their home.

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Jon Miller 1996 ‘Eyes’ Filmmaking