Life & Work with Mark Brown

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mark Brown.

Hi Mark, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Following almost 25 years in political communications, I decided to chase my dreams after the 2018 election cycle and shifted my focus to screenwriting and acting. As anyone that knows me will tell you, I dive into things head first, and my career in film and tv production has been a whirlwind so far.

I have been extremely lucky in that I have been allowed to study with some amazing teachers at Nashville Acting Studio (Caroline Locorriere and Lindsey Shope) and the Sundance Collab, where I completed workshops in film and tv writing.

Following the advice of filmmaker Mira Nair, I try to tell only those stories that only I can tell, and my scripts shine a light on some of the people and stories in the American South that we don’t typically see on screen. To this point, my work has been recognized by The Academy Nicholl Fellowship, the Austin Film Festival, ScreenCraft, LaunchPad, and WeScreenplay.

Earlier this year, I founded Electric Sheep Productions and produced three short films over the summer, and I have recently joined the board of NECAT, Nashville’s public access tv network.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
Every journey is unique, but no road into film and tv production is easy. To be frank, the barriers to entry are steep and the default answer is always no. Whether you’re an actor, a writer, a producer, or a camera operator, your days will be primarily filled with rejection, but a single yes will make all of the no’s worth it, and, honestly, the work is a joy.

How many people get to spend their lives playing make-believe? You just have to keep your expectations realistic and your nose to the grindstone. One literary manager recently told me that a writer “only controls two things: The quality of the work and how often the work gets put out in the marketplace.”

Make sure you control those. Another literary manager advised, “Hustle every day to find a way to get material to me.” Always grind, always. The saying is “Talent finds a way” – but only if talent puts itself out there over and over and over.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
More-experienced writers say, “A script is never finished. It’s just ready.” I have several projects at various stages in the process, but I have two that I am currently marketing actively. The first is a female-forward film noir feature entitled “Feeling Gravity’s Pull.” An idealistic U.S. Army attorney is assigned to represent the redneck defendant in a racially-charged murder trial.

In my pitch, I call it critical race theory in action. “Redneck Army,” which I wrote with a partner, tells the story of West Virginia coal miners in 1920 fighting to unionize. It’s forgotten history that led to the largest armed insurrection in United States history outside of the Civil War, a conflict that involved every man, woman, and child in Southwest West Virginia. It’s a one-hour streaming service drama. We’ve written the first season.

Film/tv is the most collaborative art form there is. No one makes a movie or a tv show alone. The script really just begins the conversation. I’m so lucky in that I’m surrounded by hugely talented people. Lise, my wife, tells me that my superpower is that I get excited about projects and that gets others excited about them. I spend a lot of time building my tribe because any film/tv project is only as good as the people that create it.

I’ve acted in several short films for others, and Electric Sheep Productions did three shorts over the summer: “Don’t Really Matter,” a female-driven homage to “Reservoir Dogs”; “When You Say It,” two college professors navigate a crucial night in their on-again-off-again long-term relationship; and “Wake Up,” a young woman begins her day.

To view these films, visit my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVpZuEpCLTUP-kmuy-wQe5w.

Do you have any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
Not surprising at all, but my favorite memory is a five- or six-year-old Mark hiding away and writing episodes of “Star Trek” and issues of his favorite comic books, primarily “G.I. Combat,” “Sgt. Rock,” and “Spiderman.” I spent hours scribbling away in spiral notebooks or on any loose-leaf paper that I could find.

Convinced that everyone would make fun of me if my stories were found, I hid them, but, not being the most-cunning young guy, I hid them under the towels in the closet of the bathroom I shared with my siblings. One morning, my stories were gone. I spent the day terrified, convinced that my older sister or brother would out me at any second.

Early that evening, just before dinner, my older sister found me sitting all hang-dog on the living room couch. She dropped my stories beside me, said “Those are pretty good” and walked away. My first critique.

Contact Info:

• Email: markabrown1965@gmail.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/markbrown_nashville
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Gilgamark/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/Gilgamark
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVpZuEpCLTUP-kmuy-wQe5w

Image Credits
Tull Foto, Miss Ernie, and Frank Organ