Ground Breaker - Mahesh Pailoor

Mahesh Pailoor is an award winning filmmaker based in Los Angeles, CA. His films have screened at film festivals all over the world and have won awards including the SKYY Vodka Short Film Awards and have screened on the Sundance Channel. A graduate of New York University's Tech School of the Arts, Mahesh went on to continue his studies as a directing fellow at the American Film Institue, earning a MAsters of Fine Arts degree in 2006. He has worked for such companies as Fox 2000 Pictures, Merchant Ivory Films, and the Shooting Gallery. Mahesh is currently developing feature projects as well as television shows. His two thesis films from AFI, "Caroline Crossing," and "Still Life," are currently making their way around the film festival circuit.

Ground Breaker Film - Still Life

Ian Presse is a freelance photojournalist. For the past fifteen years he has been sent on assignment to some of the world's most dangerous flashpoints in order to capture the story. Bosnia, Angola, Rwanda, and now Iraq. He is the eye for those who cannot see for themselves...

But the job has taken a toll on his mental state as well as on his family. With an upcoming retrospective of his work, Ian must reconcile the success he has had on the job with the ghosts from his past that continue to haunt his present.

Still Life is the story of one man's search for redemption admidst the moral battefield of war photography.

Ground Breaker Questionnaire

How did you hear about HATCH?

I heard about HATCH through my cinematographer and then I did a little research on www.withoutabox.com.

Why did you submit your film to HATCH?

I really think that nurturing new talent in the arts is an important mission, and as the objective of the festival, I felt it was something that I wanted to have the opportunity of being a part of.

If you are aware of our mentorship program, howdo you feel about it?

I think that mentorship is an invaluable part of artistic growth. We learn from, and are inspired by, those who have gone before us. I am extremely excited to have this opportunity and am very much looking forward to it.

What was your inspiration in making the film?

I have always been interested in photojournalism and, in particular, conflict photography. The images that some photographers have documented, have changed the course of public opinion and in turn world events. But I am very much interested in how these important photographs affect the photographer, the person behind the lens. What do they go through in order to take the photograph? And how do they view the context in which the photograph is used, whether news media, magazine, or art? I am also interested in the viewers response and responsibility to viewing the photograph. Can we just be observors?

Who is your mentor?

My mentor on 'Still Life' was Gill Dennis (writer, 'Walk the Line'). He really shepherded the project and oversaw the entire production.

Why did you choose to pursue film?

For me, film has always been a means of communication. I like the use of the visual language and the ways in which story can put into context our emotions and feelings.