Luke Helmer Takes His Filmmaking Talents in a Unique Direction
Writer / Melissa Gibson
Photography Provided
Luke Helmer has always loved the art of storytelling.
Before YouTube and TikTok were even a thing, Helmer was making videos with his LEGOs in his youth, joining friends in World War II films in the garage, and eventually creating counseling instructional videos for his father’s work at a counseling center.
“I was the one asking the teacher if I could make a movie instead of doing the book report,” Helmer says. “After watching ‘Star Wars’ for the first time, my mind was blown. This is something I can do?”
After graduating from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in the early 2000s, Helmer began making movies and working to find his niche in the film industry.
Fairly early on, he experienced some success and interest.
“In 2014 I made a movie, ‘Terrible Love,’” he says. “It won some significant film festivals and it was one of three finalists for a San Francisco Film Society grant. The other two were selected for the grant and one was picked up by Spike Lee, and the other was directed by Ryan Coogler. We were so close.”
Helmer says failure is a necessary part of the life of any artist. We all hear a lot of “no’s” and have to get knocked down in order to learn how to pick ourselves up again.
He was able to find the silver lining in his disappointment, and his story wasn’t over.
“I look at that moment as a person of faith,” he says. “I’ve done this for so many years and I thought God wanted me to do this, and I just came to the conclusion that God says he is good and this must be happening for a good reason.”
Not only did Helmer choose a life in Hendricks County with his wife and four children instead of the Hollywood lifestyle, but he’s also touching others in a new venture – Film Is Forever.
The legacy film company interviews the elderly to capture their life stories – a gift to their families and the community.
“Both my grandfather and grandmother are in their mid-80s,” Helmer says. “I decided to sit down and interview them with my nice cameras and make a documentary of their life. I was amazed by the experience. It was so neat to hear their stories and know what they have been through.”
He can’t find anyone else in the state who makes legacy videos, but knew others would be impacted by a documentary of their own loved one.
Dave Beck had the opportunity to hire Helmer to interview his father, Floyd Beck, when he was in his early 90s.
Once Helmer began working with him to create the film, it turned out to be so much more than Beck imagined.
“Dad was a WWII veteran and flew 50 missions over Europe,” Beck says. “What started out as my plan to create a 15-minute video turned out to be an hour-long film.”
Helmer put Beck in touch with a gentleman who specialized in World War II history, providing him with specific questions to ask his father, and as it turns out, it was worth it.
“Dad never brought up the war but didn’t mind telling you what he knew either,” Beck says. “If I hadn’t reached out to the man Luke suggested, it would not have been near the quality it is. It was like telling a story. Luke asked me to get pictures over to him and the film starts with where my father’s parents were born, his siblings and growing up, through getting married, the war and having his own children.”
Beck’s father passed away three years ago at 98 years old, and now, children and grandchildren have a special way to remember him.
“It’s a way to honor my dad and pass his story on to the younger generations,” Beck says. “I’ve seen it encourage others with similar stories too. When strangers see it, it drums up memories for their family. For the grandkids to see and listen to his stories, it’s priceless.”
For the Film Is Forever founder, he’s found a special way to create the portrait of a person.
“What happens is a lot bigger than a video,” Helmer says. “It’s how they fidget in their chair, their laugh, their cry. People are blown away when they see it and it’s really an emotional experience.”
In a world where video capturing on iPhones and filming every mundane experience is the norm, the films that Helmer creates are set apart.
He uses cutting-edge equipment with the same cameras used to film “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning,” Hollywood-quality microphones, and other top-notch equipment.
Customers receive a digital download in 4K when the project is completed.
“This won’t look like your VHS tapes in 20 years,” Helmer says. “It will look good forever, and the difference between recording on your iPhone and this is that it’s not a movie yet. Recordings are great to have and when it comes to loved ones, it’s better than nothing, but I’m looking at what it feels like to be with your grandparents again. Who are they as people?”
The magic, Helmer says, is in the editing room.
He’s able to cut out any distracting or unnecessary portions of the film, music fills the background, and photos pull the stories and information together.
When the credits start rolling, it’s a genealogy list of all those who appear on the loved one’s family tree.
“My goal is to make your loved one’s story so interesting and engaging that a stranger could watch it and enjoy it,” Helmer says.
In fact, Helmer’s wife serves as his quality control.
If she can watch a film featuring a complete stranger and be touched, he knows he’s on the right track.
He’s sat down with those who have a love for poetry and can recite it by memory, play an instrument, bake and so much more, with the goal of capturing the tiny details of the individual.
“It’s really humbling – a great honor,” he says. “I think family is the foundation of civilization and we’re losing track of that. It helps put every day into perspective and you’re connected to this huge thing. It makes you feel small in a good way. We can make it through because these people made it through.”
Helmer does two different types of videos, including one for an individual and another for a couple. The couples are interviewed separately and then together.
The individual films are approximately 45 minutes long, while the films featuring couples are much longer.
It’s been a long road with many successes and failures, but Helmer has found the niche that works for him and touches others in the process.
“The work I’m doing now is so good in terms of the world,” Helmer says. “Making movies about people’s parents, grandparents and great-grandparents, it feels genuinely profound. When we lose a loved one, having something like this is important. In a way, you get to be with that person again and I take that very seriously.”
For pricing and more information, visit film-is-forever.com.
