The college experience is something that everyone on the IU campus can relate to. Bradley Kohlmeier, a student with a big interest in film is creating a movie that embodies some of these relatable aspects of campus life.
Bradley Kohlmeier, a senior majoring in media, is in the process of creating a comedic film for independent study. He is the director, editor and head producer of the short film, titled “Stan the Man.” The film involves a group of freshmen trying to fit in on their college campus.
“It’s their freshman year, and they move in, they all meet each other,” Kohlmeier said. “Essentially, they all get laughed at by their RA for being virgins. They feel the need that they need to lose that in order to start fitting in, so they go on an adventure to try and lose that.”
Kohlmeier’s inspirations for the film include relatable stories and college experiences. He said that “Stan the Man” has the same raunchy humor as the film “Superbad.” However, the film is not just something to laugh at. He mentioned that the pressure of students at universities to lose their virginity is very real.
The idea for “Stan the Man” was created two years ago when Kohlmeier was a sophomore, but creating a full feature film as more than he expected.
“About two years ago, I wrote a feature film, and I originally tried to get that made here,” Kohlmeier said. “Turns out, it was going to cost about $50,000 to make, and I was trying to make it for $1,000, so that’s how ambitious I was.”
Instead of creating a full-length film, Kohlmeier decided to create a short film regarding the first 15 minutes of his full film. With the first 15 minutes of the film shot, he could then go pitch his film to investors to try and get funding for the full-length version. He received help from IU feature film and narrative filmmaking professor Craig Erpelding on polishing the script and making the short film into reality.
“I ended up partnering with a teacher here who got, I believe, a master’s screenwriting at UCLA,” Kohlmeier said. “So, he was able to guide me along and get the script where it should be and helping me figure out the budget for it. He basically guided me to realizing that it’s not going to be doable to make that.”
Currently, Kohlmeier is in the process of shooting “Stan the Man” with his cast and crew. He said he plans to finish the short film by the last week of this semester. His goal is to give himself and others involved in the film real-world experience outside of the classroom. After Kohlmeier graduates, he wants to show the film to investors in Los Angeles and try to raise enough money to create the full film.
“I want people to invest in these characters and want to see this adventure that they’re going to go on,” Kohlmeier said.
