Photo courtesy of Brian Possy

Josh Ensink (07) is not ashamed to admit it, his introduction to film making was completely accidental. He shared his story while driving home from a long day as the Travel Coordinator for The Gun, a feature film currently shooting in Grand Rapids. The film stars Curtis “5o Cent” Jackson and Val Kilmer.

A friend of his had landed a summer gig making videos for Young Life in Florida. As Josh recalls, he hitched a ride. Within days of shooting and editing, Josh knew he wanted to make films for the rest of his life.

“That was my passion,” he said, “I love the idea of telling stories and making people think of something they never thought of before, or seeing things from a different perspective.”

Josh went to Compass in 2006-07 and excelled. Following graduation, he immediately landed an internship on the Rich Christiano film The Secrets of Jonathan Sperry. Set in 1970, and filmed in Rochester, New York, the film tells the story of an old man named who mentor three boys to follow the Lord.

With one feature film under his belt, Josh had his foot in the proverbial door. He made great connections and was ready to get to work on other films. Little did he know that his passion for film was just beginning to be tested.

“It was a slow start after that,” Josh recalled. It was nearly a full year before the Michigan Film Incentives passed. Of the three films shot in Michigan that year, only Rich Brauer’s Frozen Stupid shot anywhere near West Michigan. Josh utilized his time by developing his writing and on-set skills.

“I tried to stay busy and do as much as I could. I worked on writing my short films and worked on student films.”

Finally in September of 2008 The Chaos Experiment starring Val Kilmer and Armand Assante arrived in Grand Rapids. Josh applied for an Office PA job. He wound up as an intern, working long hours for no pay. Many would have turned down the gig. And why not? With the average American two paychecks away from going broke, who can afford to work for give up one month, working 80 hours a week, for no pay?

Josh.

“If you really want it, you’ll figure something out.” He said.

For Josh, almost every project is worth working on. Each one gives him more knowledge, more experience, and more connections.

“Every project you learn something different, something new, something better…that knowledge is worth more than the dollars.”

On The Chaos Experiment, he worked 12-hour days, and regularly made 4 AM/200 Mile equipment runs to Chicago. Again, this was his second internship, and he did it all for free. And it finally paid off.

Josh’s commitment to the production, his sacrifice and dependability, led one of his department heads to hire him on for commercial work in Seattle, Washington.

Following the successful shoot, Josh returned home only to hop in a car with his filmmaker friends and drive down to Texas.  A short film by friends from previous shows was in production there.

“The producer actually told us not to come,” Josh laughed, “but we went down anyway and worked for free. We actually spent money to work on that film.”

In the end, it was well worth it. Josh earned a 2nd Assistant Director credit, and Still Born, as the film is called, was nominated for several awards at the 2009 168 Hour Film Festival, including Best Film, Best Director, and Best Screenplay. It won for Best Actor and Best Actress.

When Josh returned to Grand Rapids, he landed a PA position The Genesis Code. Between shoot dates, he took off for Kentucky and his first show, Unrequited, as a Production Office Coordinator (POC). A huge responsibility on any production, the POC is responsible coordinating all groups, crew, and personnel on a show. They deal with the people and the filing of papers. They must be able to think clearly at all times and multi-task up the ying-yang.

Following Unrequited, Josh PA’d on Gray Skies, an independent film a small independent film in Mt. Pleasant, Michgan and then shipped off to North Carolina for the feature The Trial where he landed another position as a POC.

When asked if he was on track for a career in the production office, Josh’s response was quick, “I’m trying to soak up as much as I can. I eventually want to produce. I’m learning now how to do it the ‘right’ way.”

In total, Josh interned for free on three features before he started getting paid for his work. As of today, he’s found more paid work on films than at any other time in his life. He attributes his success to one factor, and one factor alone:”Sacrifice.”

“You have to be willing to do whatever it takes. Work for free. Lose sleep. Be the go-to guy.”

As Josh continues to move from show to show and gig to gig, the physical and emotional cost of sacrifice, being a filmmaker and following one’s passion, seldom wanes. Still, he has no plans of growing weary.

“Honestly, I like going home at night knowing I did my best.”