Gunn Senior's Film Career Takes Off

A Gunn High School senior stands behind a black tripod, hunched down to get a better angle through the viewfinder of his black Canon 7D. He’s comfortable in this position. He spends a lot of time there.

Connor Ellmann’s film career started as a hobby: filming friends skateboarding around Palo Alto. Now, things have become serious. In addition to making full-length skateboarding reels, Ellmann has moved on to music videos and commercials and is currently in the process of filming his first full-length feature film.

"I’ve made everything from music videos with hip-hop artists and commercials for fitness centers to virtual tours of vacation homes,” Ellmann said.

Ellmann’s most recent claim to fame came when a music video he shot of Florida based band Radical Face’s song “Mountains” aired on the Carson Daly Show on NBC.

This video was the first time any of Ellmann’s videos had been shown on national TV. Usually, he just posts the videos on YouTube, Vimeo or Facebook.

“I mostly post videos on Facebook for fun,” Ellmann said. “I like to show all my friends the [videos] that I put together to get my videos seen.”

Enzo Marc, a classmate of Ellmann’s, plays a starring role in his upcoming full length film, “Walking Andre.”

“[Ellmann] knows what he’s doing,” Marc said. “I’ve watched him move up from just making [skateboarding] videos to the professional stuff he’s doing now.

The film, focused on “the journey of a struggling artist, finding his true passion,” according to the trailer, is currently being filmed. No official release date has been set.

Much of the film is scripted, although Ellmann also relies on improvisational acting to make the emotion more realistic.

“I film a lot of improvisational acting but there is still a lot of directing needed,” Ellmann said. “I mostly work with the same actors so it’s relatively easy for them to understand the performance I’m looking for.”

In addition to personal projects, Ellmann also lends his film skills to local businesses. 

“I currently make a few [advertising] videos a month for a gym called SBM Fitness Center,” Ellmann said. “I also just finished my first virtual house tour.”

As Ellmann watches his number of clients grow, he also sets his eyes on the future. He is currently applying to film programs at schools in the Bay Area and Los Angeles.

“I can’t even imagine how much more business there will be in the film industry for me once I have a degree in the field,” Ellmann said.