Studios flock down South to produce films in Louisiana, but University professor Zack Godshall will venture from his southern roots to premiere his new feature film at the Sundance Film Festival.
Godshall, University screenwriter-in-residence, wrote and produced “Lord Byron” with fellow Lafayette native Ross Brupbacher. The film will premiere at Sundance in Park City, Utah, which begins Jan. 20.
The film has many unique characters, but at its heart is Byron, a middle-aged romantic played by Paul Batiste, a Church Point native.
Godshall described “Lord Byron” as a “quirky tragicomedy.”
Godshall, an LSU and University of California-Los Angeles
alumnus, made the film on a micro-budget of only $1,000 with a three-person crew and all southern Louisiana actors.
“‘Lord Byron’ proves that you can make a film with minimal mean, people and money as long you put in the work and collaborative effort with creative people,” Godshall said.
The film’s acceptance in Sundance marks Godshall’s second premiere at the acclaimed film festival.
His first film, “Low and Behold,” was featured at the 2007 festival and won awards around the country, including best film at the New Orleans Film Festival.
Godshall described Sundance as a “professional and creative turning point” in his career.
“To be invited to premiere the film at the most prestigious film festival in the country is nothing short of astonishing,” Godshall said in a news release. “While we had no budget to speak of, we had the fortune of working with some of the most creative people we’ve ever met. And that is a testament to this region and its culture.”
Mari Kornhauser, associate professor of screenwriting and writer for season two of HBO’s “Treme,” said Godshall is the real deal and described him as an “original voice.”
“Premiering at Sundance a second time gives LSU an
international reputation,” Kornhauser said. “As a regional filmmaker, he is a great spokesperson for Louisiana.”
Britton Estep, creative writing graduate student, called her professor a “bright star” at the University.
“I know he credits [associate] screenwriting professor Rick Blackwood as being a great influence as well as many other LSU professors he studied with,” Estep said. “Getting two films into Sundance in four years is remarkable. LSU should be very proud.”
Blackwood, along with Godshall and Kornhauser, completes the trio of screenwriting professors within the film and media arts program in the English Department. Godshall took Blackwood’s screenwriting class while attending the University and described it as a turning point in his career.
“Blackwood made filmmaking seem like a possibility rather than an abstract idea,” Godshall said.
Estep said Godshall’s tenacity and resourcefulness are seen in the way “Lord Byron,” a micro-budget movie, presents itself as a big-budget film.
“[The film’s] beauty is a testament to Godshall’s relationships with friends and loved ones who shared in the experience of making the movie,” Estep said. “Community spirit shines through the film.”
 
–
Contact Jeanne Lyons at [email protected]