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Randall Ehrmann
Randall Ehrmann, a 2006 NBR Student Grant awardee, recalls a childhood moving from state to state as his father climbed the Bristol-Meyers Squibb corporate ladder. His high school years were spent growing up in New Jersey. It was during this period of his life that he discovered he was a class clown, with a gift for telling stories and making people laugh.
After graduating from high school, Randall was unsure how to turn his class antics into a career. So he took a year off to soul-search and figure out what to do with the rest of his life. It was during his hiatus that he had an epiphany--he was meant to be an actor. The very next day he enrolled at Mercer Community College and started taking drama classes. His goal was to learn the craft of acting and parlay that into getting accepted at a prestigious drama school.
A teacher at MCC, Terrence Shermann, noticed Randall’s natural acting ability and got him an audition with an agent. He was soon offered work on a soap opera. He continued to attend auditions in New York and did more soap work, small roles in independent films, as well as Off-Broadway and Off-off Broadway plays. In retrospect, Randall admits that he was not a fully trained actor and therefore never landed that “big gig.” But fate had something different in store for him.
Randall struggled with the realization that maybe he was not an actor. It was during this period that he started observing what the director was doing on set. He became fascinated with lighting and how the camera worked. He then tried his hand at writing and really fell in love with creating stories. This time his epiphany landed him at Brooklyn College, studying film and theatre.
In 2006 he received a BA in film and a BFA in acting from Brooklyn College. That same year he was awarded an NBR grant for his film Homecoming. “The validation of winning such a prestigious award from such an amazing organization did a lot for my self-confidence. It is something that I brag about at every chance.”
The money that he received from the NBR allowed him to finish his next film, the very funny I’m No Stud, which won the Audience Choice Award at the 2007 Brooklyn College Film Festival. It also was a part of the Palm Springs Film Festival’s “Sex in Cinema.” “Palm Springs is a festival where there are fantastic films and filmmakers along with industry, buyers, and press. It’s the real deal! So I was a little nervous. But the music comes on and the first frame
rolls . . . the first giggle happens, then the second and the third. The audience responded to the film. There was laughter. It’s an absolutely amazing experience. It just reaffirms why I want to do this.” I’m No Stud continues to screen at some of the most prestigious festivals in the country.
Randall has also made a name for himself as a top-notch First Assistant Director and Production Manager. Before he graduated from Brooklyn College, he was hired as a First AD on the feature film, Spring in Her Step, directed by Michael Bergmann. The line producer on the film, a professional AD for 20 years, met Randall and thought he had potential. So she hired him and mentored him through the production process. “It was great for me right out of the gate to be next to a director, and to have his ear and to have him turn to me and ask what I think.” Randall has since worked as a First AD and Production Manager on feature films, commercials, and music videos. He most recently was the Production Manager on Vlad Yudin's Last Day of Summer starring DJ Qualls, Nikki Reed and William Sadler.
Randall no longer pursues an acting career and refers to himself as a recovering actor. For him it is all about filmmaking and telling stories. And for this former high school class clown, it seems appropriate that he wants to write, produce, and direct comedies like his heroes, Billy Wilder, Howard Hawkes, and James L. Brooks.
He also appreciates the benefits of being an NBR member and attending Q&As. “I have been able to meet some amazing NBR members and filmmakers. And also attending the NBR Awards Gala is a real treat. These are affirming things for me as a filmmaker. I can see them do it, I know I can do it too!”
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