Rik Cordero

How did you get into directing?
As a kid I was drawn to science fiction and fantasy films, and sometimes I’d steal my dad’s Minolta VHS camcorder to shoot horror movies with my friends. As I grew older I became more involved with music, especially DJ’ing. That led to other interests like graphic design and I eventually graduated college with a BFA in computer graphics. For about four years I was doing grunt work as a motion graphic and Flash designer and during that time I started meeting other artists who came from film schools and it inspired me deeply. After shooting my first no budget feature, I got the bug and became addicted ever since.

What is your most recent project?
I just wrapped a feature titled Starla about a young mother who loses her daughter to a botched surgery and takes revenge on the pediatric surgeon responsible. As a father, the fear of losing a child is a constant enemy, especially in the hands of someone who is supposed to save lives. I wanted to tap into those fears and feelings of revenge and challenge myself to create a character that you can sympathize with even if she has the capability to do horrifying things.

What is the best part of being a director?
My job first and foremost is to create the environment where my talent and technicians can thrive and work to the best of their ability. But the high comes from the moments of synergy where everyone in the room discovers magic at exactly the same time. It’s something you can’t always predict or throw money at so I do my best to ensure those moments happen more often than not.

Have you a mentor and if so, who is that person (or persons)
and what has been the lesson learned from that mentoring which resonates most with you?
Chris Robinson was the first director who really inspired me to trust my instincts and go with my gut. I think he sensed that my passion was capturing the raw human condition and he gave me great advice on how to hone that love into something unique for the commercial ad world.

Contact

http://www.robotfilm.com/