How to Grow a Moustache Feature Interview with Filmmaker Ryan Steven Green
In celebration of our new Facial Fur & Wet Shaving Cinema Page we thought it would be fitting to interview Filmmaker Ryan Steven Green, the man who gave us one of our all time favorite short films Between the Upper Lip and Nasal Passageway! BULNP is already a few years old but rich in the facial fur department and a highly acclaimed film in the whisker world. We thought we would pick Ryan’s brain on moustaches as well as his latest full-length documentary, Circle the Wagen, which we expect to be huge! We are thrilled to be able to deliver some insight from the other side of the camera, meet Ryan Steven Green.
How to Grow a Moustache Feature Interview with Filmmaker Ryan Steven Green
HTGAM: Welcome to How to Grow a Moustache Ryan! Please, for our readers who may have missed your documentary, give us a little break down of who you are and what you’re about.
Ryan: I’m a native Angeleno. I’ve been making films since I was fourteen. I went to USC for film school at which point I started to specialize in non-fiction filmmaking. My first documentary was about the so-called “blueflame” – as in lighting farts on fire. This was during my time at film school and the film won the praise of students and teachers alike. In fact, my professor (he a working DP) said it was the best student work he’d ever seen. Other films since then have focused on diverse subjects such as snails, coffee, modern homesteaders, Norse gods, and, of course, moustaches.
My latest film – my first feature-length film – just premiered in Albuquerque June 9th. It’s an exploration of the subculture of vintage VW diehards across the US via a road trip down Route 66 in an ailing ‘72 bus. It sold out it’s world premiere and earned the Dennis Hopper “Guerrilla Award.” Twenty one vintage VW buses lining Route 66 outside the theater.
HTGAM: Between the Upper Lip and the Nasal Passageway is pretty epic for a documentary that runs a little over 10 minutes long, yet it really feels like a full-length feature. How is this bending of time form of storytelling done?
Ryan: Honestly, I’m not exactly sure! But I get the same feeling from it myself. The closest I can probably get us to an answer is the fact that it was shot over a long time (I think over two years, in total), in different locations, with different people. Such factors usually do give a film a more expansive feeling than the run time would indicate. Probably the fact that we have young and old, male and female also adds to the effect.
HTGAM: Where did the idea come from to do a documentary on the moustache? Might this have been sparked in front of a mirror?
Ryan: Another good question. It was not sparked in front of a mirror, as I had already had my moustache for a year or so before I began work on the film. The truth is that when I started out on this film, I had no idea where I would go with it. I just remember hearing all these little anecdotes about the moustache around the same time (probably because by that time I was wearing my moustache) and thinking I should record them. My thought was that I’d do a series of “webisodes” on the moustache, release one each week for as long as I could sustain it. So I did just that, and that was the initial form of the project. Actually the first thing I shot was the piece with my grandma talking about rubbing salt on your upper lip; that old wives’ tale was something she had been telling me since teen-hood. Problem was that after months of time (I released eight in the series I called “I, Moustache”) they were not getting any views at all. This was upsetting mostly because I thought the idea, the footage, and the anecdotes were so beautiful they deserved more attention. That’s when I started thinking about how I might combine all the footage into one cohesive film. Again – this was NOT part of the plan when I started out, i.e. there was no underlying plan or structure for such a film, nor even an idea there would be single film at all. I went through three or four different edits of the film before I finally landed on the current version (10:21) that we know as Between the Upper Lip and Nasal Passageway. That it came together so cohesively still blows my mind today.
HTGAM: BULNP is now 4 years old, which means it was a little ahead of the crumb catcher curve. Are you considering doing a new full-length documentary dealing with the stache? There’s no doubt that you would find many more mustachioed subjects to interview. (If this happens, we want in!)
Ryan: Ha ha. No plans. The moustache is getting more than its fair share of attention these days. You are right in saying the film was ahead of the curve though. I know because it’s the first and only time I’ve ever been in that position! There was no moustache section at Urban Outfitters back in ’09! My current project – another feature documentary – will be far more entertaining (although, lovers of the ‘stache will probably be big fans of this new one as well).
HTGAM: As a moustache owner/operator & documentary film maker do you find your stache to be a disarming “prop” during the interviews; relating it to a time before you wore a stache?
Ryan: Actually during interviews – in fact during my filmmaking in general – it’s never really mentioned. The funny thing about interviewing is that you quickly enter a very unique and intimate zone with your interviewee. All the initial reactions you had to the way they look or how their voice sounds just sort of fade away – and vice versa. It’s part of why I love the documentary process so much, is that everyone is on a level playing field: simply human. It’s a magically humbling and a beautiful thing.
HTGAM: The short was received rather well; you even took home some awards. Did you foresee this? What does BULNP mean to you, what is it all about?
Ryan: I did take home awards, which was a total surprise – in part because of the subject of the film itself, in part because I had never won any award for my filmmaking prior to this film. As a subject, BtULaNP is just cute. No more. However, as a film, and particularly as one of my films, I am very fond of it. It’s partly because of the process of making it – the fact that I had no plan, no structure in mind, and yet it came out so well – and it’s partly because it incorporates so many things that I love about documentary filmmaking – it’s about PEOPLE; these are people’s stories. Very humanizing, positive, uplifting, honest, warm – these are all attributes I always want to define my films. Plus it’s just the right length. Ten minutes is just long enough for a conversation on the moustache. In my mind it doesn’t really merit more than that. Humans do, but not the moustache.
HTGAM: A lot of men in the film are speaking Spanish, where were those interviews done? Is it safe to assume you were conducting them and speak Spanish?
Ryan: I do speak Spanish, but not as well as my assistant who was with me the day of those interviews. They were conducted at and around Union Station and Olvera Street in Los Angeles.
HTGAM: Your film is definitely one in a few within the facial fur community that sparked a rekindled interest in the mo. Where do you see this going? Do you see the stache as just another trend, and if so, do you think it’s reached its peak?
Ryan: Oh, it’s past its peak, my friend. In the hippest areas it’s not enough to simply wear a moustache anymore. It’s gotta be a piece of art on your face. I’ve seen the wildest formations that would make Dali blush. Silverlake, even South Pasadena. No, the ‘stache has most definitely jumped the shark.
How to Grow a Moustache Feature Interview with Filmmaker Ryan Steven Green
How long have you worn a moustache for?
Ryan: Going on seven years now. I used to have a handlebar, but now just keep it, as Elmo says in the film, “Trimmed and thin.” Just a simple brush these days. No plan to shave it. Ever. I’m going to be one of those dads.
HTGAM: What are some of your favorite waxes?
Ryan: You know, even in the days I was wearing the handlebar, I’ve always hated waxing it. It’s like hairspray on your face, it just doesn’t feel right. I like things to be natural, so with my moustache it’s always been the same.
HTGAM: What are you currently up to and what should we be looking out for, when it comes to your work, in the future?
Ryan: Right now you should be looking out for the VW doc, Circle the Wagen. We’ve got big plans for this thing, and so far there is every indication that it will be available all over the US in the next year – film festivals, VW dealerships!, and what is shaping up to be quite a nice theatrical release.
I’m currently filming my next feature doc as well but am being pretty tight-lipped about it. I will say that it is sports-themed which, alone, is a pretty big departure from my typical work. Looking toward a completion date of early Summer ’14.
HTGAM: Can you offer up any advice for the first time growers on how to grow and maintain a wicked cookie duster?
Ryan: People always say things like, “Man! I wish I could grow a moustache like that!” What I always tell them is, “You can!” I had tried throughout college to grow a moustache with no success. I had the hair to do it, but what I was missing was time. I thought three-four weeks should be enough to grow a sick moustache (Moustache March? Movember?). No way! Try three-four MONTHS. They say good things take time. The moustache is no different. Then once you have it, get ready to be trimming that thing every day or two. It’s a surprising amount of upkeep.
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Thank you again Ryan for taking time out from your busy schedule to chat with us. We as well as our readers wish you lots of luck with your new film!
To find out more about Ryan Steven Green find him at rynostevie.com ,Twitter @rynostevie or @circlethewagen
also check out the official Circle The Wagen Site circlethewagen.com
ABOUT DOUGLAS SMYTHE
Founding member and contributing writer for “How to Grow a Moustache”, an innovative cutting edge blog dedicated to all things facial fur & wet shaving. His mission: Create facial awareness and use his super powers [read:moustache] for good. Contact Douglas: whiskers@howtogrowamoustache.com
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About Douglas Smythe
