Writer, director debuts 'Robot'

Kristy Nicolich / photo editor Greg Pak, writer and director of "Robot Stories," spoke at Grafton-Stovall Theatre.

Winning over 25 awards, the writer-director of "Robot Stories," an independent film, spoke at Grafton-Stovall Theatre Wednesday night about film production.

Greg Pak introduced his film before it was shown. "Robot Stories" is a collection of four short films that show how humans interact with robots.

"These are small stories because that is the way they should be," Pak said. "Films should be as short as they can be so that they are more enjoyable [for the audience]."

Pak, who studied political science at Yale University and was a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University, said his schooling "allowed me to think differently. I was more tuned in to the world and how it works." Pak also studied film production in the graduate program at New York University.

"Robot Stories" was invested in by Pak's family and friends, and he said he relies on word-of-mouth to advertise his film because he doesn't have the money to advertise.

Pak was born in Texas and is half American, half Korean. He currently resides in New York.

"I wrote 'Robot Stories' knowing that I would have a small budget, so I focused on the emotional experience," Pak said. "If we (the movie crew) had more money, we could have added small touches, but I am very happy with the emotional arch of the movie.

"Audiences will forgive you for not using lots of special effects if the story is emotional and they love the characters. These are great stories, no matter what the age (time period the story is told)," Pak added.

After the movie, Pak answered questions from the audience. He discussed why so many Asian-Americans acted in the movie.

"When I was writing these stories, I thought of the characters as you saw them," Pak said. He said he gave roles to people who wouldn't get them otherwise, but who had great acting skill.

"Hollywood is colorblind in that the only color they see is green," Pak said. "A feature film makes money based on the actors.

"This is one small step in showing that films with Asian-American stars will make it," he added.

"If I had gone to Hollywood with the movie, they would have tried to change it, but my investors had no problem with the actors," Pak said. "These stories are universal, and I had faith in that."

Senior Blu Nordgren attended the event to hear Pak speak about film production.

"I am really into independent movies anyway, and when I heard that the director was coming, I got really excited," Nordgren said. "I am a big fan of movies that consist of several short stories."

Nordgren also expressed that she was happy the University Program Board brought an Asian-American film to Grafton-Stovall Theatre. "I know, as a woman [school of media arts and design] major, that it is hard to get out there," she said. "This gives me hope, and now I am more positive."

Freshman Jeremy Paredes, UPB director of media and public relations, said he was very excited to have Pak come to JMU, and hoped that the audience would make the most out of his visit.

At the end of the night, Pak offered advice to future film makers. "Nothing is perfect; get feedback for all your work and spend more time writing and editing," he said. "Just keep doing it."

Pak also runs a Web site, www.filmhelp.com, where he offers advice based on his experience to anybody interested in making films.