Interview with Guernslye Honorés
Don’t be afraid to fail. This was my biggest hurdle to conquer. Mistakes sometimes can drop my psyche into a deep well hole, even today. But I learned through the years to tamp down the fear and insecurity that misfires can create. We are none of us perfect. And we’re all perfectly fallible. So, to my fellow potential filmmakers, I give you this: You will make mistakes. You will make decisions that will end up not anywhere as good as you thought. But this is exactly the process that will drive you to improve. I’m living proof of it.
As a part of our series called “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I First Became A Filmmaker”, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Gene Pope.
Gene Pope embarked on his first career in 1970 fresh out of college, diving into the world of music as a recording engineer at Brunswick Records in Chicago alongside notable engineer Bruce Swedien. His tenure there saw him collaborating with renowned artists like The Chi-Liters, Tyrone Davis, and Quincy Jones. Seeking to broaden his creative scope, Gene transitioned to television production in New York in 1974, working at Doyle Dane Bernbach Advertising. He swiftly rose to oversee bi-coastal production for esteemed clients such as American Airlines and Atari, earning acclaim for his expertise in special effects on multimillion-dollar projects. Transitioning to the realm of directing, Gene amassed a string of accolades over nine years, including over 30 Gold Awards at U.S. film festivals. His crowning achievement came in 1985 when he clinched the Grand Award for Best Director at the New York International Film Festival for his groundbreaking short film “The Mad Ave Wizard.” Undeterred by geopolitical barriers, Gene journeyed to Russia in 1986 to craft a documentary on the Moscow Circus during the communist era, promoting their inaugural U.S. tour. In the 1990s, Gene returned to his musical roots, founding the globally renowned record label PopeMusic Inc., lauded by the “New York Times” for its revolutionary digital recordings. Gene’s diverse background spurred a return to filmmaking and acting, prompting him to enroll in the Maggie Flannigan Studios’ Acting Conservatory Program in NYC. Since graduating in 2013, he has helmed numerous short and feature films, including “King of Knives” in 2020 and the upcoming “Queen of Knives,” where he wears multiple hats as a production company owner, lead actor, producer, and post supervisor.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us a bit of the ‘backstory’ of how you grew up?
I was an only child for a lot of my life. My mother had to move away when I was about two. She had a disease doctors knew very little about back then: Anorexia Nervosa. There was no cure. So, it was up to my very busy father (who tended not to give out compliments) and a part-time nanny to raise me. This was both a burden and a blessing. On the burden side, I was very shy. I tended to sit in the back row of my class of 35 in public school in NYC, sometimes in tears. I was petrified of girls (I had no role model).
The blessing was that, in my solitude, I learned to perceive adults and their emotions very closely. I could tell what they were truly feeling “behind their words.” That helped me immensely when casting and directing later in life. Eventually, my small family moved to New Jersey, where 1) I could sleep without sirens waking me up all night, and 2) I was enrolled in a private boys’ school with smaller class sizes. I flourished in the extra teaching time afforded me, and I quickly rose up in my class standings, especially in math and science, receiving the Advanced Physics Award in my junior year. So yes, I am a diehard techie as well, which is great for filmmaking. I also had a very strong work ethic at an early age during the summers, which was invaluable as I grew up.
Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?
In high school, which was boys-only, there was a girls-only school near our campus. The drama departments had a two-way “loaner” agreement for their plays. I was cast in a production of “The Importance of Being Earnest.” The director, bless her soul, cast me completely against type as Algernon, a womanizing playboy. I suddenly learned that I could “experiment” being someone completely unlike myself and feel safe. In fact, the reason she cast me was, in her words, “Because you will grow into the part.” One night, my father came to a show. (I wouldn’t let him tell me when he might be in the audience).
After the curtain call, I went out, and there he was, standing in the hallway with this huge smile on his face. When I got close enough, he said: “Well, it doesn’t get any better than that!” My jaw hit the floor.
And although my desire to make money did override my becoming an actor and creator at that time, his words deeply affected me later in life.
Can you share the funniest or most interesting story that occurred to you in the course of your filmmaking career?
Two quick stories: When I became a bi-coastal commercial and documentary director in the 1980s, I was casting an ad campaign for Benadryl in Los Angeles. One young man stood out so well in the casting session, and he was wonderful on set. Really an ace of a guy. I never gave it a second thought, until many years later, I got an email from the Account Executive on that account, which read: “You do realize that you were directing Bryan Cranston, right?” And I wrote back: “Guess I can pick ’em, eh?”
Second story: While shooting another commercial in Los Angeles, I and some friends were having lunch at a trendy new restaurant, where I was holding a table by myself. Suddenly, someone taps me on the shoulder. I look up right into the eyes of a circa 1980s Jamie Lee Curtis, asking if she could borrow one of our chairs. Even with all my experience, I was totally gob-smacked for a moment. Then I kind of gulped and said: “I’m so sorry (nervous laughter) the seats are taken.” So yeah, I guess I can still be taken by surprise that way.
Who are some of the most interesting people you have interacted with? What was that like? Do you have any stories?
As I was moving up the ladder to become a full-time TV producer for the legendary ad agency Doyle, Dane, Bernbach (or DDB as it was called in the 1970s, when Bill Bernbach still ran the place), I became his projectionist for important pitch meetings with very large clients (because I never, ever screwed up the screening). He would be pitching about what makes great advertising, and numerous times, I swear he would direct his comments directly at me, as if to say, “You… listen up and learn!” It was, without a doubt, the most valuable ad hoc class I have ever attended. I learned a lot from a major legend.
Also, at DDB, there was a senior creative director named Mike Mangano, whom I would supervise playback for in our screening rooms. He always had his big cigar in hand. He was immensely talented.
And DDB had just landed the first motion picture TV trailer commercial ever to be created by a large agency. It was for 20th Century Fox. It was a film by George Lucas… called “Star Wars.” I was, and still am, a mad fanboy for Sci-Fi. So, imagine my excitement when I actually saw parts of a rough cut of the movie where none of the special effects were inserted yet. The ships zooming through space were instead stock footage of old jet fighters. The Wookiee vocalizations weren’t finished yet. The music wasn’t done. The shots inside the space fighters showed the pilots against a green screen background and two crew grips shaking the “cockpit.” It was amazing to see. So, a couple of weeks later, Mike asked me to screen his team’s first cut of the first commercial. When it was done, he turned around and asked me what I thought of it, likely because I was a younger demographic. I was actually dumb enough to be honest, saying something like “I think it’s OK, maybe a little confusing.” To which Mike calmly said, “So, you think you could do better?” And I was, once again, dumb enough to say, “Sure.” And he said, “OK, then show me.” So, I went off to our very simple videotape editing system and re-ordered the scenes. I showed it to him, and he liked most of the changes. And that’s how the commercial was finished. And as I became a full-fledged producer, I ended up being assigned to several other trailer projects from major studios after that.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
I decided to quit college after two years. I had started hanging out at a recording studio to watch and learn about audio engineering. Turns out, my mentor became rather famous, Bruce Swedien, who went on to partner with Quincy Jones as producer to record and mix some of the most iconic songs for Michael Jackson. But when I was in Chicago, he ran a studio for Brunswick Records, a major R&B label. I asked if I could stay and watch, and his response was, “Yes, but you have to not talk… at all… no questions… just watch.” Once again, ‘ol dumbhead managed to have no self-control and started to ask him a technical question at the mixing board, and he just put a finger over his mouth and looked at me. I got the message, pronto. Long story short, once I quit college, he gave me a job as an apprentice engineer at Brunswick. I was paid $3.00 an hour. He literally threw me into the deep end, which I loved. After only two weeks of intense learning, he made me do my first setup and recording for a client alone. I was gobsmacked. I had nightmares the night before my first session. The next day, the session was perfect. Within another month, I was offered the “graveyard shift” to do all my own sessions. Let’s just say that between my then-wife being a schoolteacher getting up early, and me dragging my butt in around 4 or 5 am in the morning, we didn’t see much of each other during the work week. But boy, did I learn from one of the most iconic engineers of all time. And it’s also why I love R&B recording sessions. There is always so much energy going on — on both sides of the glass. Honestly, I could fill a book with stories of the discipline I nurtured by learning from the best out there.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
My favorite LLQ is as follows: “There is no no!” You can see it on my FB page. I’ve used it for decades now. I am not one of those who instantly turns tail or closes down just because one (or many people) insists that something can’t be done. That’s how I was trained early on, and I’ve never forgotten the lesson. Anyone can say, “No, sorry, I can’t do that.” Which is usually followed by me: “Well, let’s ask around.” Filmmaking is an enormous group project. Everyone is working their butt off to get the best results, and that should always be acknowledged. I loved everyone on our films. They’re all storytellers in my book.
What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now?
I am fully engulfed in the distribution of “Queen of Knives.” A tour is being created to major cities in the U.S. to do select Q&A screenings in theaters. We have some interesting ideas on how to get more exposure for Indy Films in theaters. Marketing has changed so much in the past four years with the previous feature. I also feel that, with all my prior experience as a director, it is finally time for me to direct again. I don’t claim to be Bradley Cooper, a leading part who can also direct. Each task takes an enormous amount of time and lack of sleep. So, someone else can play the lead, thank you very much. Some ideas are already on the table. But I have to take care of “Queen of Knives” first and foremost. “Watch this space,” as they say.
Which aspect of your work makes you most proud? Can you explain or give a story?
Great question. Here’s my take. With “Queen of Knives,” I started this journey with the intent of bringing back a style of movie that has not been around much anymore. I’m thinking about directors like Robert Altman. He was definitely part of a genre I very much enjoyed, namely, leading an audience in one direction, and then there’s a surprise, sometimes a really huge one. I love it when viewers can identify personally with the plot, the characters, the dialogue, all of it. Movie genres tend to go in cycles. You’ve had Westerns. You’ve had Sci-Fi (that really exploded with “Star Wars” because of the way the story is told). Horror has been a big deal these last few years. Comic book heroes also had a dominant cycle. But in my heart, I’ve felt that the genre that “Queen of Knives” (and the prequel “King of Knives”) brings back is mixing drama and humor with dynamic, sharp, and unpredictable dialogue. Lindsay Joy, our writer, creates an incredibly unique dialogue, with bite, and humor, and no-nonsense reality. These movies are all about the spoken word and the infinite potential it has to offer the audience a smile, or a tear. But in the end, it has to be a movie that says, “I want to share this with my friends,” which is exactly the comments we’re hearing with “Queen of Knives.”
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why.
1) Don’t believe everything you read. While very young, I felt that whatever I read was the truth. I was naïve. Some smarter, older people pointed it out, and I listened carefully. There are lots of books about filmmaking, and they can certainly be a base of potential knowledge. But until you actually make a film, there is no anticipating exactly what kind of journey it will be for you. I shot a short film years ago that we all were excited about. We had some great actors, a good director… and when we edited it together, it stunk like a skunk. I never released it, but we all learned so much from it. So, my advice is to prepare fully for your first shoot and be realistic about what the results may or may not be. Most importantly, if you fall, get up and try again. It’s the only way.
2) Beware of those who insist on calling themselves “experts.” I’ve always found that the smartest people do not have to hide behind a label like “expert” or “world-renowned _____” (fill in the blank). A lot of the smartest people are also secure enough in their skills to be patient and have few reasons to prove it to others. Their work speaks for itself. Listen closely when they speak to you. Be respectful, and they’ll continue to teach you. And if they have a bad day, watch them carefully as they pick themselves up and push forward regardless.
3) Understand that “Rome wasn’t built in a day.” I was so impatient to build something great that I tended to run headlong into walls, figuratively wiping the blood off my face. When I look back, I was one impatient SOB in the day. I would change jobs every two years because I hated getting bored. When I finally got my DGA card and joined a bi-coastal production company, I realized that finally, I was with others of my ilk; perfectionists who worked hard on every project. It was a great experience. Everyone was brilliant because they had to be. We thought in the same eccentric way. I had a great time those years. Nowadays, because of all my earlier moving around, my “job title” has gone unchanged for decades. I like this pace much better.
4) If you believe in something strongly, then follow your instincts, not others. When this was said to me, I realized I had to drastically change the way I judged myself, which I tended to do too often. The strength of my convictions came from my instincts improving over time. Yes, I spoke to my peers (and above) to polish those instincts. But there’s a complex process in making a feature that requires one to constantly use your accumulated “Spidey Sense” to make the right decisions. Let’s take “Queen of Knives,” … going from a script to a final print. The one result I could not truly measure while the script was being written was how the audience would take to certain lines, jokes, or plot paths. It was absolutely instincts gleaned over a long time that created my “best guess.” For “Queen of Knives,” we had to land it so there were no distractions from the story while maintaining the entertainment level. At the very first screening for cast and crew, my heart was literally in my throat. And when certain lines went by, and people chuckled loudly, I could finally breathe again. In my humble opinion, no one in the movie business, no matter how big the budget, or who is cast or crew, can claim that they always know exactly how their finished films will play to an audience.
5) Don’t be afraid to fail. This was my biggest hurdle to conquer. Mistakes sometimes can drop my psyche into a deep well hole, even today. But I learned through the years to tamp down the fear and insecurity that misfires can create. We are none of us perfect. And we’re all perfectly fallible. So, to my fellow potential filmmakers, I give you this: You will make mistakes. You will make decisions that will end up not anywhere as good as you thought. But this is exactly the process that will drive you to improve. I’m living proof of it.
When you create a film, which stakeholders have the greatest impact on the artistic and cinematic choices you make? Is it the viewers, the critics, the financiers, or your own personal artistic vision? Can you share a story with us or give an example about what you mean?
I do not use financiers, thank God. Great way to have too many cooks in the kitchen. I believe thoroughly in the “auteur” label. Now that you know a lot about my history, you can see that almost everything I’ve ever done in my life has contributed to a knowledge base that allows me to earn the credit of “Created by.” When Lindsay Joy sends me new versions of a script, I will literally project it inside my head as I read it. I’m imagining how it will “play.” My father had a gift of having a great feel for what makes a good news story, what the readers will enjoy, and why they’ll enjoy it. “Know thy audience.” But in the end, it is, in fact, a personal vision based on life experiences that I personally know a lot about on a deeply personal level.
You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
It’s funny. I don’t look at myself quite that way. My films are not designed to be “influencers.” They are more like “mirrors” that, for entertainment reasons, reflect elements of our lives. As far as doing good for the most amount of people, my father and grandfather were very generous donors to many causes, especially education. I have continued in that role. But what I do privately does not necessarily apply to my movies. And I might suggest that the term “entertainment” can do good because people will always have a desire to be entertained. That’s the “movement” to follow, watch, observe, and process. If it produces a smile, then I’m happy.
We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might see this. 🙂
I have always had another saying as a creator, and that is — I always want to surround myself with those who know their craft ten times better than I do. If I’m not learning, I’m stagnant. Therefore, I would love to have breakfast or lunch with any successful director to compare shooting and story realities today and what works best with audiences. I just never want to stop learning. It’s how we grow.
How can our readers further follow you online?
“Queen of Knives”:
Movie website: queenofknivesthefilm.com
Instagram: @queenofknivesthefilm
IMDB: Queen of Knives
Personal:
Instagram: @gppope
Facebook: Gene Pope
Webpage: genepope.com
IMDB: Gene Pope
This was very meaningful, thank you so much! We wish you continued success!
About the interviewer: Guernslye Honoré, affectionately known as “Gee-Gee”, is an amalgamation of creativity, vision, and endless enthusiasm. She has elegantly twined the worlds of writing, acting, and digital marketing into an inspiring tapestry of achievement. As the creative genius at the heart of Esma Marketing & Publishing, she leads her team to unprecedented heights with her comprehensive understanding of the industry and her innate flair for innovation. Her boundless passion and sense of purpose radiate from every endeavor she undertakes, turning ideas into reality and creating a realm of infinite possibilities. A true dynamo, Gee-Gee’s name has become synonymous with inspirational leadership and the art of creating success.
Gene Pope Of Pope 3 Enterprises: 5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I First Became A Filmmaker was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.