Today we’d like to introduce you to Joseph Lopez.
Hi Joseph, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Greetings! My name is Joseph Lopez and I’m a DIY director and produce my own short films with my wife Kailey.
Since I was a little kid, I had big dreams of playing in a rock band with my friends and even had the opportunity to live that dream for a bit after high school. I decided to put that dream on hold to enter into college to pursue digital arts. After I graduated college, I became heavily involved with photography and Photoshop and started my own print /photography business for a year or so. In 2020, my life changed when I lost someone close to me due to COVID-19, like many others, as it threw my life into a chaotic spiral. I gave up on playing music and pursuing my photography business to find myself.
Being a filmmaker was never a dream of mine like many other directors I’ve watched and met. My journey to be a filmmaker started in late 2021 in my new apartment in Caldwell, Texas. I spent a long time running away from my problems through many travels and found unhealthy ways to cope with my loss; however, with much trial and error in life, I found some sort of purpose in writing…. I don’t remember what possessed me to begin writing, but I know I’ve always been a storyteller with music, digital arts, and photography so that probably has some contribution to it.
I was heavily influenced by a documentary on Netflix titled “Myths and Monsters,” which had an episode talking about Joseph Cambell’s “The Hero’s Journey” that became the basis of writing my first horror screenplay. At the time, I thought it was the best thing ever, and I became really invested in this story. I remember buying a marker board and creating a “Crazy Wall” with all the details about this story. I showed my friends and family my story and they began to think I had something going for myself.
During the writing of this screenplay, I met my wife, Kailey, who was my biggest supporter of this idea. Even though I had some people interested in this story, most thought I was stupid and unrealistic. Kailey and two of my best friends pushed me to pursue this goal of mine.
I realized that I had no experience whatsoever, nor did I have the equipment and software to create this idea, so I decided to step out of my comfort zone and find the experience. We bought a brand new 4K DSLR camera and invested in video editing software for a really crappy computer. I wrote short story called “The Man and the Whispers” and then put out a casting call on a group through Facebook. Our very good friend Taylor Morgan responded, and we eventually met up to talk about the story and other opportunities. We learned a great deal from Taylor as she suggested we create small mini shorts to get our feet wet. Taking her advice, I wrote a short screenplay titled “Till Death” with Taylor starring as the main character Jade. We formed a great partnership through our short film with Taylor and learn more than we ever thought we would together. I directed and edited “Till Death” with my wife Kailey working as my audio engineer. After “Till Death’s completion, we still needed a name to go by before releasing the short. We chose Dire Wolf Films rather than my name.
“The Man and the Whispers” turned into “Faceless,” which became a feature-length script. We decided to attempt to produce a DIY feature film ourselves so we can retain complete control over all things related to production. We received a great amount of support from our friends, family, and community. With Taylor cast as the main character, we reached out to the community once more to fill the rest of the cast. We began filming in March of 2023; however, due to unforeseen circumstances, “Faceless” was a project that we realized, after a long-drawn-out process, could not be done without the help of a producer. I remember being very frustrated with the decision to cancel this film, but through this amazing cast, we gained new friends, new connections, and even more experience.
During “Faceless,” I met Sarah Kingsbury, who was interested in acting. I wrote a short titled “Chloe” with Sarah starring as the main character. I realized through this short that my cinematography and directing skills, along with Kailey’s audio engineering, had drastically improved. We spent a total of $50 on “Chloe” and raised $300 to submit to film festivals. We won internationally and nationally at a few film festivals that included awards such as, Best Thriller, Best Horror, Best Low Budget Short, and Best Scream Queen.
After “Chloe”, I decided to take another look at my first screenplay, “The Hunted”. After rereading the screenplay I’ve been working so hard for, I realized that this story was actually…not that great. It was immature, poorly organized, and, overall, poorly written. I spent months rewriting “The Hunted” and creating the best horror story I possibly could come up with. With the screenplay now totally revised, me and my wife faced the challenge of creating it.
We are blessed to have found Kendall Gray, who is a producer out of Nashville, Tennessee, and who also owns Kendall Gray Productions. Kendall gave us so much information on what we needed to do to bring this project together. It was like the curtain that concealed all the answers to our questions was finally lifted up. Now we have entered the very early stages of “The Hunted.” We have received unimaginable support from our friends, family, and community for this film.
Currently, we are in production of a new short film titled “Graveyard Shift” with new upcoming actress Chloe Taylor. At the end of May 2024, we are going to begin production on three new short films titled “Unit 260”, “The Traveler”, and “They’re us”. We have the honor and privilege of working with Taylor Morgan once again along with new upcoming actresses Natalia Bomersbach from Poland and Alexandra Cocales from Houston, Texas.
Our goal is to help contribute to the rise of the film industry in Texas and represent what a film set should be.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Being a filmmaker has had more challenges than I would have ever imagined. When you’re a DIY filmmaker, you have to wear many hats, come up with the solutions to your own problems, and sometimes fail at certain goals that you have planned so hard for. But as with anything in life, you need to fail in order to learn and to grow. The biggest challenge of being a filmmaker is managing our jobs and other day-to-day challenges outside of filmmaking. Currently, we have the strongest group of actors that we’ve ever had before and have been blessed to call this group our friends.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Dire Wolf Films represents trust, friendship, and family. In this industry, we’ve heard of and witnessed directors only seeing the actor or crew member as a body or a thing verses a coworker, companion, or friend. We want to change that. We want to be a business that creates films and give the respect and dignity the cast and crew deserves. Every actor or crew member I work with I take the time to get to know and understand who they are, where they’re from, and what they want to become.
We’re proud that we have gained the respect of actors who are wanting to create films with us. Our long-term goal is to contribute to the rise of the film industry in Texas and to be known as a reliable and credible film company for actors to work for.
Like many other filmmakers, the dream is to be able to live off our creations and do what we love full-time.
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
Taylor Morgan opened the door for us. She gave us an opportunity when others would not and helped us grow together. Without her help, Dire Wolf Films would not be what it is today. I would not be the director I am today without Taylors’ guidance within the film industry. We’re very proud and honored to have met Taylor and all of the moments and memories we’ve shared in our friendship with her.
I say “We” or “We’ve” a lot in this interview. My wife Kailey was my first and biggest supported. We began dating during my start of becoming a filmmaker and she has supported me in every way possible. I would not even have come close to who I am today without her. There have been many times where filmmaking has seemed impossible, however, where I began to lose hope, she encouraged me to keep pushing.
My best friends Ethan and Amber have supported me in everything I’ve ever done. Every single time I’ve started a new project, they have donated their time and funds to our cause to support our every need.
Lastly, our community, friends, family, and local businesses have supported us through our endeavors.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/official__dire_wolf_films/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100088552374719
- Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/@direwolffilms
