MMM: The “Abandoned Pursuits” montage is terrific.

Hurlburt: I have to give credit to my wife, Angie. After I wrote the story, I told her that I needed to raise the stakes. She suggested showing a collection of failed hobbies. She’s a lot smarter than me, so I listened to her and it was exactly what I needed.

Hurlburt: A few reasons. First, it lends itself to the silent movie style. Second, I wanted to give the film a nostalgic feel, especially the dilapidated miniature golf course. The black and white imagery really made that mini golf course feel like the town in The Last Picture Show (I love that movie). Finally, while the colors that the iPhone camera produces are gorgeous, once I did the black and white version and saw the fog burning off the course on the tee shot scene, there was just no going back. It was too beautiful to pass up.

MMM: Can you talk about your use of  close-ups?

Hurlburt: I use them to add detail. In the opening scene, I cut to the shot of the phone to introduce the caller but also to draw the viewer into that scene a little deeper, especially since we were just meeting the characters. The tee shot was added to build up the drama of him taking his first swing with his new clubs, but also to get out of that wide and put the viewer in the main character’s shoes. To be honest, I was a little surprised by how great the close up of the hand putting the tee into the ground turned out. I used an Olloclip lens  which enhanced the look of that shot.

MMM: Who was your  director of photography?

Hurlburt: I did all of the camerawork myself. I enjoy shooting and constructing my frames. There’s so much story that you can tell with a single shot. I love the challenge of finding the perfect location, adding production design, and staging a scene. I picture every scene playing out in my head first and then I try to execute that vision when I shoot.

MMM: Why did you choose to work with a smartphone?

Hurlburt: When I read about the Original iPhone Film Festival, I thought it was the perfect excuse to film  this short on my iPhone 5 and 6. It turned out to be a great choice. On location, my iPhone didn’t draw a lot of attention. Of course, I filmed this in Western New York (shout out to Hinsdale!), so it wasn’t like there were hundreds of people watching. But more important, I’m carrying an HD camera around in my pocket all day. There’s no excuse to not make films every day. I love having a tool that allows me to film anything anytime I have an idea.

MMM: Are there limitations shooting with smartphones?

Hurlburt: The main issues are no manual focus and no optical zoom. But the limitations of the little camera make me more creative.  It’s exhilarating when you produce an amazing shot with a smartphone.

MMM: While managing props isn’t considered a glamorous part of filmmaking, things play a significant role in your movie.

Hurlburt:  My wife and I have about 5 boxes labeled “costumes” in our basement. There’s no good reason for two adults to have that many costume boxes, but whenever we consider getting rid of something we say, “What if we need this for a project?” and it goes in one of the boxes. I love production design, so managing props is fun for me. Sometimes, I probably spend too much time worrying about how a chair or lamp looks in the background of my shot, but I can’t help myself.  I want to create a world where someone would say, “I’d like to visit that place.” For “Hobby Horse”, the fishing pole was borrowed from my father; the guitar was mine; and the POGS were also mine from when I was a kid. I’m just realizing that I probably sound like a hoarder. I promise that I’m not. 🙂

MMM: Besides the OlloClip, do  you have any gear recommendations?

Hurlburt: The Glif is a great tool for attaching the phone to the tripod. The tripod that I used during the shoot was crappy, and I’ve since upgraded to a Manfrotto MT055XPro3, which I love. I paired it with the Manfrotto Pro Video Head

MMM: Your musical cues are delightful, for example at the miniature golf course.

Hurlburt: Although I usually have a good idea where I’ll put music, I don’t think about it until I’ve done a rough cut .On all my productions I work with the same insanely talented musician Lou DiPietro. I can show him a scene and tell him, “I was thinking something like this,” and he’ll come back a day later with the perfect music. Obviously, music affects pacing, so after Lou gives me a track, I drop it in and adjust the scene accordingly. If the pacing doesn’t work, I might ask Lou to cut the song to a specific length or to single out a specific part. But mostly, Lou and I are on the same wavelength. I’m really lucky to have such a talented friend who can produce exactly what I need to take my films to the next level.

MMM:A lot of the fun of your movie comes from the performances. Did you do a lot of auditioning to put together your cast? Hurlburt: No auditioning. As I mentioned earlier, my wife Angie, played my wife. I played the main character, which was challenging because I was also doing the camera work.  My father, Rob, played the golfer who gets hit in the head with my stray tee shot. And my sister, Emily, played the miniature golf course attendant. Emily also executed a couple of panning shots for me at the miniature golf course.

MMM: Was there a reason you cast yourself and your family?
Hurlburt: It was necessity. I had zero budget and a limited amount of time to film. My wife and I had a four-month old son, so we shot in chunks. Having access to my actors when I was available to film was key. Because they were amateurs,  I helped prepare them mentally by giving them motivation for their character. We blocked out the scene and did a short rehearsal. I made sure that the actors understood that “Hobby Horse” relies heavily on reaction to tell the story. I think they did a phenomenal job.

MMM: Anything else?
Hurlburt:  My music pal Louis has a new album coming out very soon called “Reconciler” that will undoubtedly be incredible. You can check out his music here.