If you haven’t already heard of it, “Pitch the 406” is a contest put on by The Montana Film Office that’s “all about helping movie makers make movies about Montana.” 2011 was the inaugural year for the contest, and a small group of talented young filmmakers based in Bozeman and operating under the banner of “Sanshead Studios” won by a unanimous vote. The Sanshead team pitched Magpie, a film with a focus upon the cultural challenges being faced by families living in Eastern Montana as they cope with the dramatic effects of the Bakken Oil boom. As winners of the contest, the team received $20,000 in the form of production assistance from Studio 406. They also got to travel to the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah where they were recognized for their accomplishment and given the opportunity to network with industry insiders.

I recently caught up with the Sanshead crew at Montana Ale Works to share some beer and discuss their exciting film projects. All were present, and the entire team was eager to share their process, philosophy, hopes, and vision.
The members of Sanshead Studios are as follows:  writer/director/producer, Matthew Smaglik; producer, Steven Hilton; producer and business officer, Alisha Dyk; and media-relations specialist and producer Michael Gaughan. In writing up the interview, I did my best to connect the responses given to the appropriate member of the studio.

JL:  Let’s talk immediately about Magpie, your 2nd feature film. At this moment, where are you in the production process?

SH:  (Steven) We just completed a scouting trip to Eastern Montana to determine our shooting locations and we hope to begin filming this summer. (Matthew) The production process will go well into next year, however. We will need to take a look at what we come up with this summer, have a screening and get feedback, then go back out next summer and see if we can make the revisions we’re after to complete production.

JL:  Where will you be shooting, exactly?

SH: (Michael) Plentywood (for rural ranch life), Sidney (oil boom town) and Bozeman (for mostly inside shots since we have more connections here).

JL:  Cooper, your first feature film, is screening at The Gallatin Valley Cinema (Hollywood Theatres in the Gallatin Valley Mall) on May 3rd? Tell me about that. What are your hopes and expectations for that screening?

SH:  (Steven) The response has been really exciting! Once we posted our announcement of the screening on our Facebook page, we sold out within just a few days, and now we’re trying to see if we can get a second showing later that evening. We will continue to update any progress we make on arranging a second screening.

JL:  Let’s change gears for a few minutes. Where are you all from exactly, and how did you come together to form Sanshead?

SH:  (Matthew):  I’m from Wisconsin originally, and have been attending MSU for the last few years. (Steven):  I’m from Dillon, MT. (Alisha): I grew up here in the Gallatin Valley. (Michael): I’m from Oregon, and I’ve lived here in Bozeman now for eight years. Matt and Steven met in the film department at MSU, and Alisha and I came on board to assist in the production of Cooper. After shooting Cooper, Matthew and Steven asked Alisha and me if we’d like to join Sanshead Studios. We readily agreed.

JL:  You guys have “day jobs” right? Is finding time to make your films difficult? How do you do it?

SH:  (Steven) We don’t sleep much! Coffee is a good thing. So is Red Bull. (All nod, laugh, and agree.

JL:  How about youth?

SH: (Steven) Yeah, that’s good, too.

JL: “Embrace story. Find Truth.” What do you mean by that? Is this part of your philosophy at Sanshead?

SH:  (Matthew) A good story reveals a truth of some kind, and as filmmakers, this is something we’d like to do. (Steven) Also, you don’t need a lot of money to tell a good story. I think this is one reason, as independent filmmakers, we gravitate toward the story. The story is where the substance of a film comes from. Without a good story, you don’t have much.

JL:  In the way of other films and filmmakers, who/what have been your influences?

SH: (Steven) Other independent filmmakers. What’s inspiring is to discover quality independent films that were produced under circumstances similar to our own:  low budget productions with limited resources. These films inspire because they show it can be done.

JL:  I’d like the opportunity to experience more indie films but I’ve had a hard time finding them. How can I discover more independent films?

SH:  (Steven) Indiewire (www.indiewire.com) is an awesome website for discovering indie film. (Alisha) Also, you can look to film festivals. Bozeman has two and then there’s the university. (Michael) But much of the time it’s all about word-of-mouth. You so often just stumble across a good independent film.

JL:  The focus of your films is Montana. These are films, in other words, that capture Montana issues, Montana stories. Are the themes universal, however? Can we apply what we learn from these films to more than just Montana?

SH:  (Matthew) I like to think so. The story we’re pursuing in Magpie can really occur only in Montana, but that does not mean that its themes are not universal. It’s a film about coping with a shifting culture and there’s something universal in that.

JL:  Magpie won the “Pitch the 406” contest put on by the Montana Film Office. Why do you think your film was chosen? What other kinds of films were in the competition?

SH: (Steven) The film was chosen because it involves a story that can only occur in Montana. It is unique to the place and circumstances. Other contestants pitched ideas that weren’t really Montana driven or at least unique to the state. They were stories that could happen anywhere. I think this direct connection to Montana is has a lot to do with the success of the pitch.

JL:  What about the fact that so many popular films that prominently feature Montana, A River Runs Through It comes to mind, focus strictly upon the western, mountainous part of the state. In the case of Magpie, the setting and the focal point is Eastern Montana. Do you think that influenced judges?

SH:  (Steven) Yes. Given the context of films shot in Montana, a film focusing upon the eastern part of the state is original.

JL: You shot your first film, Cooper, in Dillon. You’re now getting ready to shoot Magpie in select locations around the eastern part of the state. It is my impression that filmmakers shooting in rural Montana towns may be treated with some degree of suspicion and that you may be seen by locals as being “Hollywood types.” Have you ever encountered this reaction? As filmmakers traveling around the state, how have you been treated?

SH: (Steven) Working in Montana has been great! Once people realize we’re not “big time,” that we’re, in fact, students and young independent filmmakers from Montana trying to shoot a film on a shoestring budget, the doors open up wide. We’ve had land owners grant us several days of access for shooting on their property. We’ve been able to use horses and related equipment at no charge. We’ve even had lodging provided for us. (Matthew interjects) There was this one time in Dillon, however, when we were set-up outside a bar with a mic and boom and someone yelled out “Hey Hollywood! Go back to California!” Which we actually took as a compliment, thinking we must have looked pretty professional to get that kind of reaction.

JL: “There is more oil under North Dakota and Eastern Montana than Saudi Arabia.” That’s a staggering fact. Is your film as much about oil and energy as it is family and ranch culture? Is this a film that takes a position on oil and energy production? Is there an environmental theme going on in Magpie?

SH: The film is really all about cultural change and trying to get at the truth about the kind of cultural transition small rural towns in Eastern Montana are going through as a result of the Bakken Oil Boom. Culture is really what’s at the heart of the film.
JL: What about actors and other talent, team building—what are you looking for?

SH: (Steven) We’re looking for anyone who can help. Films involve so many different kinds of talents: acting, writing, filming, equipment, locations, promoting, business skills and financial management. There’s just so much that goes into making a film and we’re interested in talking with anyone who thinks they may have something to offer us. In the way of Magpie, we are very much into team-building right now.

JL: What are your highest hopes for Magpie?

SH: (Steven) To get exposure for the film. Also, to get picked up by a larger production studio with the potential to distribute. (Alisha) It’s about distribution and having the film seen by more people, to have the story out there where people can experience it.

JL: To get an audience then?

SH: (collectively) Yes, to get an audience.

JL: What do you see as the film’s biggest obstacles?

SH: (Steven) I hate to say this, but money. Fundraising is so important to the production process. (Matthew):  That’s true, but it’s important to point out that we’re completely committed to producing Magpie and we’re going to do it no matter what. No matter what resources we have available. (Steven) Effective fundraising just allows us to film it the way we’d ideally like to. (Matthew) Yes.

JL: While we’re on the subject of money, could you tell me about “Kickstarter”? It’s a fundraising website is that right? Could you explain how the site works exactly and what you hope to achieve through this approach?

SH: (Steven) Kickstarter is an amazingly useful website for anyone with an artistic project which needs funding to complete. You can set up a fundraising goal for your project and arrange for awards to be given to contributors to the project, things like t-shirts, DVDs, signed movie posters, V.I.P visits to the set. Things like that. Kickstarter allows for people with a wide variety of financial resources interested in our film to make affordable contributions. (www.kickstarter.com)

JL: If someone wants to support your production of Magpie, what should they do?

SH: (Alisha) The preferred and best approach is to contact us directly at our e-mail address (sansheadstudios@gmail.com) or on Facebook, where we have a page for Sanshead Studios. Kickstarter is also an option, of course. (Steven) People can also consider making an investment in the film. I know investing in films is risky, but I firmly believe in the potential of Magpie and would encourage anyone interested in investing in a film to seriously consider our project. Anyone interested in making a sizeable contribution should contact us directly. We’d love to talk to them.

JL: I recognize that you’re currently immersed in the screening of Cooper and in the production of your second feature film, Magpie, but have you given any consideration to future projects for Sanshead? What other stories are worth telling about in Montana?

SH: (Steven) Montana is rich with stories. There is so much potential here. (Matthew) In my work as an educator in the extension office at MSU, I’ve been struck by what I’ve experienced on Indian reservations around the state. That could be something we look to pursue in the future.

JL: Best of luck to you guys. I’ll be there for the screening of Cooper on May 3rd.

SH: Thanks!