Editors’ note: This story was updated on Feb. 3 to provide the correct name of the Nonprofit Film Collective.
Nich Perez helps students discover the stories they want to tell through film by teaching video production classes and exposing the campus community to the art of filmmaking.
“I’m here to introduce students to what the cinematic arts mean and what the film and television industry is like,” said Perez, the DeLaney Filmmaker-in-Residence at Washington and Lee’s department of journalism and mass communications. “One of the reasons I took this job was because I could understand that this is not a film school, but it is still a place where I’d find students that are gung-ho about the craft.”
Originally from the Philippines, he studied film at University of Southern California and learned how to create documentaries at New York University. Perez has been a lover of films his entire life.
“Growing up, I watched Star Wars. That really changed the way I saw things because I thought if George Lucas could do it, I could. But after going to film school and meeting him for the first time, I realized I didn’t want to be that kind of filmmaker. I wanted to find my own type of creative voice and tell the stories that I wanted to tell,” said Perez.
When he is not working with students, Perez creates media for nonprofits. He has been to numerous countries to support and share stories for those not always represented in film. He also is the director and founder of the Nonprofit Film Collective, a grassroots group.
“As a filmmaker, I always say to my students that I don’t have an Oscar, but I’ve fed thousands of people and put a sustainable water supply under villages because of the media work I’ve done,” said Perez.
Perez’s most recent work, “letters to eleanore,” is a documentary about the difference between having a disability in a poor country versus a rich country. For this project, Perez collaborated with introductory film students from multiple colleges. The documentary has been presented at film festivals across the United States and was screened at W&L on Jan. 30 in Stackhouse Theater.
“I just got back from showing [letters to eleanore] in Europe, and it won the best documentary at a film festival in New Jersey. You might not really see a great feat of cinematography, but remember that these are students who barely had the chance to play around with the camera and here they are making a feature-length documentary,” said Perez.
Perez encourages all students to consider filmmaking even if they don’t have any experience. He is open to collaborating with any students interested in filmmaking.
“Any students who are thinking about telling their story and using a camera but don’t know how to or just have the inkling to film despite the pressure of finishing their degree, you have the opportunity to do that here at the university. There are so many ways for us to find a creative voice.”