Faces of Three Village: Filmmaker Cody Blue Snider

Patch had the chance to chat one-on-one with Cody Blue Snider before the New York premiere of his award-winning short film All That Remains. Snider, a 2008 graduate of Ward Melville High School and former member of the Ward Melville Players, launched his career at the age of 19 when he shot All That Remains and worked as an assistant to writer/director Adam Green on the movie Frozen. Now 21, he lives with his family in East Setauket as he continues to work on new projects.

Patch: What are some of your influences in the world of film?
CBS: I definitely grew up on 90s movies. I love all movies. I love Cinderella Man, Apollo 13, Fight Club, Braveheart, Royal Tenenbaums, Lord of the Rings, Forrest Gump. I’m a big Academy Award winning fan. ... A lot of filmmakers, they like to make art movies and people say it’s selling out to do entertaining films, but I strongly believe ... art and entertainment should not be segregated, that they’re one and the same. It is the largest and most prolific medium of art, people would say, but it’s for entertainment as well.

Patch: Has having a famous dad been a boon or inhibiting for you?
CBS: When I was younger of course, I didn’t want people to know. I didn’t want anything because of my dad, I wanted to earn it all myself. … I want people to look at me as my own person. All that stuff, all the cliché hang-ups that you think someone with a celebrity parent would have. ... I ended up not caring as much. I respect who my dad is and I’m honored. I got over that and I totally don’t care anymore and my dad is like one of my best friends. … It’s become total friendship and a business relationship, but I did used to consider it burdensome. … It’s grown into this mutual respect. My dad has this respect for me and I have no idea know why, but he wants to produce my stuff. I’m making my next movie with him.

Patch: Speaking of ‘next movie,’ what’s coming up next for you?
CBS: This is pretty much finishing its circuit. I have a short that I’m in pre-production on right now that I will also be filming in the Three Village area. I’m just looking for an elementary school to let me shoot in it. It’s very different from this, it’s a dark comedy. I’m also doing music videos with my dad producing for record labels.

Patch: What advice do you have for aspiring filmmakers and screenwriters?
CBS: I talk on a lot of panels at film festivals. I did one called “Film school vs. Filmmaking.” I’d say that filmmaking and film school are synonymous. Film school gives you relationships … and also gives you equipment and access to facilities that you wouldn’t normally have. So I’d say go to school and just make movies. Go to a school that’s going to let you make movies. For anyone who wants to be a filmmaker, I’d say it’s all about storytelling. Learn how to tell a good story… it doesn’t have to be anything else. If you can tell a good story, that’s all you need, and anything else comes secondary.

Patch: Last question. What do you like or not like about living in Three Village?
CBS: I love Three Village. I love it here. I can see myself moving to Los Angeles in the next couple of years but if I have a family I would want to come back here. I love Three Village. I will probably continue to make movies here as well. My subconscious, when I start writing stories, everything is happening in Three Village. I loved growing up here. I love the town, I love everything about it. I really don’t have any down sides. … Because I didn’t have money to do anything [for the movie], I didn’t have money for permit fees, I had to just drive around ringing people’s doorbells and leaving fliers in people’s mailboxes saying “Can I come shoot at your house?” I had so many people saying come shoot at my house in Three Village. It was a community effort. That’s why this film festival was something I wanted to do over Tribeca and the Hamptons. I wanted it to premiere to the town that helped make this movie.