Joe Raffa of APS Films: 5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I First Became A Filmmaker

The hardest part isn’t getting started. The hardest part is putting your heart and soul into something, failing, and having to find the courage to start all over again. At twenty years old, I wrote and directed my first feature film. And while I was proud of the final product, it didn’t achieve what I thought it would and I considered it a failure. For years I self-sabotaged myself, thinking the next thing I do had to be great. It took me a while to realize that most writers and directors aren’t wunderkinder. Your development is a process. You’ll have to try and fail many times before you find, what we define as “success.” And it never happens overnight.

I had the pleasure of interviewing award-winning filmmaker and screenwriter Joe Raffa. He is catapulting himself into the entertainment industry, quickly becoming known for character-driven storytelling that explores the dark corners of the human psyche.

This year, Raffa will debut his latest feature, “Downeast.” Set in the underbelly of Maine, the film follows Emma Maddox (Dylan Silver) as she returns to her hometown years following the mysterious death of her brother. As she reconnects with his best friend Tommy (Greg Finley), Emma begins to uncover the web of lies the town has been keeping and must ultimately decide if she will fall victim to the town’s unsettling ways. Written and directed by Raffa, the film combines crime, revenge, and the hope for a new life. The film also stars Judson Mills (“Walker, Texas Ranger”), Kirk Fox (“Forgetting Sarah Marshall”), and Gareth Williams (“Dawson’s Creek”). “Downeast” will premiere at the Garden State Film Festival in March 2021.

Other filmmaking credits for Raffa include the thriller “Dark Harbor,” which stars Joel McHale (“Community”) and premiered at the 2019 Catalina Film Festival. The film has gone on to win dozens of awards including, Best Feature at the Black Hills Film Fest and Best Thriller at the Garden State Film Festival, to name a few. The 2019 documentary feature Raffa wrote and produced, “Alice is Still Dead,” offers an intimate and unflinching look into the story of a murdered loved one from the family’s perspective. On the television front, Raffa created the anthology digital series, “Spades,” which originally premiered on Amazon Prime and is currently available on YouTube.

Born in Philadelphia and raised in New Jersey to Italian parents, Raffa discovered his passion for storytelling at a young age. His family, which continues to own and operate a small Italian ice business, served as Raffa’s introduction on how to successfully lead others and run a business, a skill which he later applied to film sets. Raffa eventually enrolled at Temple University for film, dropping out after the first semester to make his debut film, “You’ll Know My Name.” The 2011 drama, which was written by, directed, edited, and stars Raffa, ultimately served as his crash course in filmmaking. Today, Raffa serves as a writer for APS Films, an independent production company based in Los Angeles, CA, where he turns story ideas into box-office ready screenplays.

When he isn’t on set or writing, Raffa spends quality time with his son, Joseph James. He currently resides in the Los Angeles area.

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?

Thanks for having me!

I was born in South Philadelphia to an Italian-American family and was raised in South Jersey. My father owned and operated a small business with his sister and four cousins, selling frozen desserts we call “water ice.” My great grandfather, an immigrant from Southern Italy, had started the business during the great depression and over eight decades it became an important staple for the city of Philadelphia. I spent a lot of my summer days there. “POP’S” was my introduction to how a business runs, what it takes to lead people, and how to work together to create a product. But above all, it taught me the importance of family, and not just the family you’re born into. Much of what I learned I later implemented on film sets.

Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?

I was seven when my family bought our first computer. I remember my dad showing me how to use Word. I always liked telling stories, so he encouraged me to type them on the computer. The first time I saved one of my documents onto a floppy disk, my life changed. I had this little floppy disk organizer where I would store them all. I was able to hold this entire world of ideas in this little box. My dad had to keep buying more floppy disks because I couldn’t stop writing.

Can you share the funniest or most interesting story that occurred to you in the course of your filmmaking career?

We were shooting the feature film “Dark Harbor.” Due to many factors, we were forced to shoot the climax of the film on days two, three, and four. But at the beginning of day two, it was apparent that we had to re-write the entire ending! Before cameras rolled, I spent the next several hours re-writing what we would shoot over the next three days. And on day three, our antagonist (who I never met before in person) arrived with no warning that his entire arc had been rewritten. Luckily for us, Sterling Hurst was amazingly talented at running with things on the fly and thoroughly enjoyed the direction we decided to go. The cast and crew handled the situation like the professionals they are. And after day four wrapped, we felt like we could accomplish anything.

Who are some of the most interesting people you have interacted with? What was that like? Do you have any stories?

One of the many beauties of this industry is the giant personalities we meet. While I’ve worked alongside some accomplished people with legendary resumes, the most interesting person I’ve ever met is David J. Bonner. I met David while casting my first feature film in 2009, and nine months later I was the best man at his wedding. He’s the most brilliant person I’ve ever met, and since meeting him eleven years ago, I’ve always relied on him for notes, thoughts, ideas, and advice. He currently resides in Pennsylvania and is happily married with two children and a million dogs. But if he wanted to, he could run a major studio and not break a sweat. I find that fascinating.

Another is Mike Lemon, founder of Mike Lemon Casting. When I was still living in Philadelphia, I interned for his office and brought him my first screenplay. Because he helped cast projects like, “The Sixth Sense,” “Twelve Monkeys,” “Philadelphia,” among many others, I figured he may have some advice for me. Instead, he offered to cast the film entirely. When I told him I didn’t have the money to afford his services, he said he’d cast the film for free. Aside from his generosity, he’s also the most loving person you will ever meet. Mike Lemon has touched so many lives in the Philly community and I was lucky to be one of them.

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?

After my first few projects didn’t lead to the opportunities I thought they would, I was discouraged. I spent my time as a hired gun, editing and acting in productions, but I was afraid to put myself out there again as a writer/director. After years of working for others, I finally decided to write another feature. My good friend Angel Anthony Marrero read it and, without me asking, invested some start-up financing to help get it off the ground. While we were never able to fully finance the film, we used the money to create a digital series called “SPADES.” That was the first time I worked with Edwin Stevens of APS Films. Ed came on and helped produce more episodes of the series and ultimately hired me as a writer for his production company. I wouldn’t be on the trajectory I am today without Angel Anthony Marrero and Edwin Stevens.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

“Luck is when opportunity meets hard work.” This business is streaky and small successes come in waves. I felt like I was treading water for years, but I always put the work in. I made sure I was devoting time to improving myself and my writing. When I did get an opportunity, not only was I ready, but I realized that the opportunity was years in the making. One little thing led to another, which led to another, which led to another. And when I stepped back and took a look, I realized the hard work I put in five years ago led to today’s success.

I am very interested in diversity in the entertainment industry. Can you share three reasons with our readers about why you think it’s important to have diversity represented in film and television? How can that potentially affect our culture?

Film needs to represent all of humanity, and for too long minorities have been underrepresented and misrepresented. Film is at its strongest when it’s a shared experience. For that to work, we need individuals from all walks of life telling stories that come from their DNA, their personal history. We’ll never grow as a society if we don’t allow those voices to be heard. Film is also an escape. I was born privileged. I can’t imagine what it must have been like as a child to go to the movies or watch television and not see characters on screen that I can relate to or aspire to be. We all need heroes, but more importantly, we all need to know that we can become heroes. We’ve made a lot of progress in the past few years, but we still have a long way to go.

What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now?

I can’t wait for everyone to see “Downeast.” It’s a story that focuses on characters who feel trapped, which is something a lot of us can relate to right now. It’s the second feature film I wrote and directed for APS Films, led by Edwin Stevens. In the past few years, Ed has produced five feature films. Among them is a documentary I helped write and produce, “Alice is Still Dead.” I had the honor of traveling the entire U.S. with Ed as we interviewed people who had known his sister before she was tragically murdered. The film is an intimate and unflinching exploration of grief. I think it can be an important part of the healing process for a lot of individuals.

Which aspect of your work makes you most proud? Can you explain or give a story?

Whenever I approach a project, I like to ask a question we’re normally afraid to ask ourselves. I want to investigate our most intimate and darkest flaws. But I want to have fun doing it! I want to make films with people I consider family. And while I think art is extremely important, I like to remind people that we’re not saving the manatees. We’re not performing open-heart surgery. At the end of the day, we’re playing dress-up. So, there’s absolutely no excuse to lose your temper or treat people with disrespect. I’m proud of how my film sets are run. And I always strive to lead with vision and dignity.

Ok super. Here is the main question of our interview. What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or example for each.

1 — The hardest part isn’t getting started. The hardest part is putting your heart and soul into something, failing, and having to find the courage to start all over again. At twenty years old, I wrote and directed my first feature film. And while I was proud of the final product, it didn’t achieve what I thought it would and I considered it a failure. For years I self-sabotaged myself, thinking the next thing I do had to be great. It took me a while to realize that most writers and directors aren’t wunderkinder. Your development is a process. You’ll have to try and fail many times before you find, what we define as “success.” And it never happens overnight.

2 — Treat every project like it’s your last. Filmmakers get caught in this trap where we say things like, “When I have a bigger budget…” or “When I can get an A-list cast…” But there’s no guarantee you’ll get a chance to make another film. It’s imperative you live in the moment, put everything you have into the opportunity you’re given, and don’t look ahead to the next one. Your work will benefit.

3 — Focus on the process, not the results. Making a film is hard. Making a good film almost seems like a small miracle because there are so many variables to consider. As humans, we’re result-oriented. I think it’s important to prioritize the process of making a film. Build a solid filmmaking family. Create a positive work culture. Learn from your mistakes. The results will come.

4 — It’s who you know, but you probably already know them. Oftentimes, people think they need to meet someone in a position of power that can help them get to the next level in their career. But I find it’s the peers you grow with that ultimately lift each other up. Your friend who’s an assistant right now may be a development executive in ten years. Your other friend who can’t seem to get any of his scripts sold might be the creator of a network TV show in 2035. Build relationships with the people who are in the same boat as you. You’ll survive this voyage together.

5 — Enjoy the journey, because if you really want to be in this business it’s probably going to take a long time to get to where you want to be. I used to go on IMDb all the time and compare my career trajectory to the people I admired. I used to think, “Oh man, they were only 25 when they did this. I’m almost 30!” Your life will be filled with anxiety if you’re only trying to achieve success as fast as possible. Don’t let the pursuit of your career define you. Find happiness outside of the industry.

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. :-)

Recently, my girlfriend and I have been devoting time to couples’ therapy. I think one of the tools we’ve learned could be applied to many debates and dialogues that are ongoing in the world right now. Whenever we’re in the middle of an “unfortunate discussion” we ask the other person to repeat back what they interpreted. I think a lot of us just stopped listening to each other. We already have a rebuttal in place or think we know what the other person is going to say. Repeating back what you think you heard can go a long way to bridging the understanding between two groups of people who are at odds. Normalizing that practice would be huge right now.

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. :-)

Jon Favreau. I’m an admirer of his work dating back to “Swingers,” and I think “Made” is one of the funniest films of all time, but he also had a profound effect on my life beyond film. Before moving from South Jersey to Los Angeles, I became a father, which was the best thing to ever happen to me. When my son was six months old, I made the move, determined to make it in the industry, provide for my family, and set an example for my son — if you want something bad enough, do whatever it takes. My goal was to set myself up in Los Angeles, and when the time was right, my son and his mother would follow. Well, that’s easier said than done. It wasn’t until I saw Jon’s movie, “Chef,” that I said, “Okay, enough is enough. It’ll never be the perfect time to take that risk and transplant our family.” Without the experience of sitting in a theater, alone, and watching “Chef’s” story unfold, I don’t know when I would have taken that leap. A few years later, now living in LA, I took my son to see “The Jungle Book,” another one of Jon’s films. It was one of the best movie-going experiences we ever had. I’d love to buy Jon lunch and say, “Thank you.”

How can our readers further follow you online?

I’m most active on Instagram. Feel free to follow me @JoeRaffa (if you don’t mind being inundated with pictures of my kid and our dog ☺)

Thank you so much for these amazing insights. This was so inspiring, and we wish you continued success!

About The Interviewer: Growing up in Canada, Edward Sylvan was an unlikely candidate to make a mark on the high-powered film industry based in Hollywood. But as CEO of Sycamore Entertainment Group Inc, (SEGI) Sylvan is among a select group of less than ten Black executives who have founded, own and control a publicly traded company. Now, deeply involved in the movie business, he is providing opportunities for people of color.

In 2020, he was appointed president of the Monaco International Film Festival, and was encouraged to take the festival in a new digital direction.

Raised in Toronto, he attended York University where he studied Economics and Political Science, then went to work in finance on Bay Street, (the city’s equivalent of Wall Street). After years of handling equities trading, film tax credits, options trading and mergers and acquisitions for the film, mining and technology industries, in 2008 he decided to reorient his career fully towards the entertainment business.

With the aim of helping Los Angeles filmmakers of color who were struggling to understand how to raise capital, Sylvan wanted to provide them with ways to finance their creative endeavors.