Despite the cancellation of his two hit web series, Grey continues to rebuild his career with two production companies and a project with Justin Bieber. (Photo courtesy of Grey)
By: Jacob Elyachar
A couple of months ago, I introduced you to Grey, a rising filmmaker that produced two hot webseries: How Far We’ll Go and The Lady in Pink, which were gaining lots of attention from thousands of YouTube viewers.
Unfortunately, these two shows were cancelled due to several reasons beyond his control. These events led him to a rebuilding process that marks a new chapter in his growing career.
In an exclusive interview, Grey opened up about that rebuilding process, the lessons that he learned over the past couple months and his collaboration with pop star Justin Bieber.
Jacob Elyachar: How have things changed for you since the last time we talked?
Grey: It feels like I have been on a roller coaster. I have been going up and down. It went downhill after our conversation. Once, I actually sat down and looked at everything and saw what was going on, it was not a negative thing at all. Everything was falling apart because I was not paying any attention. When you are making films or music, you need to keep a watchful eye other than just a creative eye. Both series Lady in Pink and How Far We’ll Go had bad things happen to them, which led to them being cancelled and some relationships were severed and some weren’t, but things are looking up now.
While “How Far We’ll Go” was a successful webseries, several behind-the-scenes problems led it to be canceled. (Photo courtesy of Grey)
JE: You faced a lot of obstacles before you got to this point. One major obstacle was the cancellation of “How Far We’ll Go.” Did you know of any problems going on with the show that led to its downfall?
G: I can confirm that there were some problems going on with the show. It was a hush-hush situation. The problems started at the very beginning of Season One of How Far We’ll Go. While I was getting the show copyrighted and trademarked, the WGA (Writer Guild of America) told me that there is a writer in New York, who claimed that I took his idea. I stated: “Let me talk to him and hear his idea.” They told me that it was three artists shoved in a European house because they are in Europe and all three of them are models. There was nothing personal that goes on and it is a reality show.
When I was told that the show was being canceled, I tried to fight for it. I tried my best. I told Viacom that I did not want to be in a lawsuit and the WGA told me that they would stick by me because you are our client, but this guy is really pushing it. The guy actually won but I was given reassurance that in three to four months that I could restart the series. It is something that I am thinking about but even though the series was awesome, I thought it did have its run.
JE: Although, you lost “How Far We’ll Go,” you still had one series still standing which was “The Lady in Pink.” Did you find the same problems with this series that you did with “How Far We’ll Go”?
G: I received some warnings from various people about certain cast members on that show. I did not see any of those problems arise until a couple of months after the first season of The Lady in Pink. I did not do anything because we were not comfortable enough when that certain cast member was there to say anything but everything changed.
This person was so greedy and so hungry for the fame. When I started my career, I told myself: “Fame will come when it comes.” But that should not be your number one goal. If it is, you should not be on TV, because nobody wants to see a narcissistic person. I saw some problems and I tried to fix them but as one thing starts, another one ends and sadly that show did not end up staying for various reasons. It was not just a relationship issue; there was a crap load of things.
JE: What are some of the lessons that you learned from all of this?
G: (sighs) I have learned quite a lot and I also grew a lot from this experience. One thing that I learned is to do not trust everyone. I am definitely that type of person where I am always happy and my friends call me “hippy.” I think that is kind of a good or bad thing for me, because I do not trust everybody, but I trust a lot of people who appear happy and that was a hard lesson for me to learn for both series. Just because someone wants to help you out, it does not mean that you should give them all of the private information that you have. Another lesson I learned was to protect yourself and have a backbone. As a writer, director, producer, editor and actor, I have to protect my work.
I do not want to be construed as an (expletive), but people think I carry myself like an (expletive) and I own everybody. That is SO not true. Humility is the first thing in my mind that I practice every single day and I basically learned to not trust every single person to do your job and when it comes to business: have no emotion. It is a hard lesson to learn. I cared way too much and when you are doing business, it is business.
JE: I understand that you wanted to make an announcement regarding your transition from web to film. Is that correct?
G: That is correct. It’s funny because YouTube originally told me that I could not keep my channel, GraySkyProductions1, up because there were some suspicious activities that were going on. I was not aware of the activities that people who had my account information were doing. They (YouTube) stated that I had a week to take my videos down and then, they gave me a call and said: “You do not have to remove all of your videos, just don’t do it again.” I don’t know what happened, YouTube would not tell me but something bad happened to the channel. I will still keep the channel but will not be updating as much as I used to but it is going to have a huge makeover.
In addition to the channel’s makeover, I recently branched out Gray Sky Productions to some film and television production studios. Gray Sky Productions is going to be focusing on television pilots and Sundance productions, which is our main goal this year. I just finished a pilot that we gave CW and NBC a couple of days ago. I also started a new production company with my best friend, Ari, called Red Revolver Productions. We will be focusing on the online webseries.
Grey recently launched Red Revolver Productions with his best friend, Ari. (Photo property of Bob Delgadillo photography & courtesy of Grey)
JE: Have you thought about how you are going to handle two production companies?
G: I have thought about it. It is an extremely daunting task especially for someone my age and the amount of work that I put myself into. If I doubt myself, I am not going to be able to do it, so I am not going to doubt myself because I have been able to handle more than one thing at the exact same time. With two different production companies, one is smaller than the other because it has been around for a little longer and I know I can handle this challenge. I have done it before and I will do it again.
JE: Recently, You had the opportunity to work with Justin Bieber on a project. Are you allowed to talk about it?
G: I can say that we worked on a music video together and I was an Assistant Director for the project. We basically shot a new song that has not come out yet and will not be released for a while. I cannot give any details away but it is definitely something exciting that will make fans view him differently. It is a mix of his old stuff and new material.
When I first met Justin, I honestly told him that I did not like him. He asked: “Is it the fame?” and I told him: “No. I just don’t like you.” I have certain vibes when it comes to people. I really misjudged him because when I worked with him, he was such a kid, adorable and very energetic.
He is a kid growing up and there is so much (expletive) happening to him and he has a strong head on his shoulders. All he needs are good role models and I try to be one for him and we have become really good friends.
JE: What are your thoughts regarding Justin’s recent battle with several members of the entertainment press? Do you think they have been too hard on him?
G: Definitely. They are making accusations. I hate accusations. He knows and I know that going into the business that people are going to try to destroy you and that’s what they are doing right now. It is not just the press, his exes and enemies want to ride off his fame train and it is so sad because he realizes it and there is nothing he can really do. He is not going to quit and he is not going to throw in the towel.
JE: Do you have any dream collaborators?
G: There are a few people that I do have on my list. For music, I would definitely love to collaborate with Lana Del Ray. There is something about her. She is so subtle and so reserved, but she has this seductive side that is so interesting. Florence + the Machine is another group on my wish list. Florence Welch’s voice is so beyond amazing and she has a certain message within every song. Another artist would be Nick Jonas. He is a big one for me right now. There is something about him compared to all of the other Jonas Brothers and he has something raw, which is awesome. When it comes to film, I would love to collaborate with Tim Burton. He has always been on my list and Hugh Jackman. Hugh is a different story and I have had a crush on him for a long time. But I want to work with him because he has such a range as an actor.
JE: What is your advice for entrepreneurs who are currently struggling to rebuild themselves?
G: I would definitely sympathize with them. There are a lot of emotions going on in this whole thing. You have no idea what is going to happen next and you have no idea who is going to attack. You have lost something that you have worked on for a longtime and I would just tell them to have faith. Calm down. Everything is fine and for every negative situation, there is a positive side of thinking. You are not dead, you are breathing and you have a car. You can pick yourself back up and rebuild. If you rebuild by yourself, it will strengthen your confidence and teaches you character and humiliation. I would also give them a little sock in the arm and say: “Suck it up! It’s life.” It can be (expletive) but in every situation, there is a lesson to be learned.
To watch some of Grey’s videos, head to his YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/GraySkyProductions1
You can also connect with Grey on social media through his Facebook fan page.
