Upon the Railroad Earth
Director: Edgardo Gonzalez
Narrative Short
Drama, Experimental Narrative, Period Piece |
USA |
15 min
Max finds himself stuck working through the everyday drudgery of rail yard life. His partner has passed away and he is all alone in the world. Dreaming of better things for his life, and recalling how his partner pushed him to pursue those dreams, he finally decides it’s time to train hop to a new life.
This is the second act of someone’s life Upon the Railroad Earth.
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Director’s bio:
Filmmaking is my form of expression. If I was good at painting, I guess that’s what I’d be doing, (the same could be said for music). I grew up in Trenton, N.J., to a lower middle class family and was raised by my mother and grandmother in a modest home. Luckily, I made my way to college and graduated from film school at the University of New Mexico. Since I was in the third grade, I knew I wanted to make films, and now – twenty years later – I do.
As of Fall 2024, I have completed three short films. Two of these films made their way onto the festival circuit; my UNM thesis film, “From the Shadows of Desert Rocks,” and my college silent short film, “The Plight and Desertion of Arthur Leigh Hazelwood”. I have currently wrapped production on this short film, “Upon the Railroad Earth,” and to my surprise, managed to clear the music rights for festival submissions! I am also pleased to say that Kodak_Shootfilm, the official Instagram page for Kodak Motion Pictures, posted stills and clips from, “Upon the Railroad Earth,” on June 2nd, 2025.
Aside from my productions, I have worked professionally as a freelance cinematographer. I have shot 16mm motion picture B-roll, and 35mm / 120mm BTS for acclaimed documentarian Ken Burns’s upcoming series, “The American Revolution,” (to be released in 2025). While on this project, I had the pleasure of working closely with acclaimed Emmy-award winning cinematographer Buddy Squires – I believe this experience greatly enhanced the quality of my work. I have also worked as a PA, and occasional second AC on this series as well.
Lastly, I am also a freelance screenwriter – recently, I wrote a script for my friend Mohammad, “Mango,” Shaikh’s story idea which ended up being one of the 10 chosen winners for the Kodak x Anora film contest, sponsored by Kodak, Neon Productions, Arriflex, and Sean Baker, (it’s pretty cool to know Sean Baker liked your script – cooler when you found out from the president of Kodak Motion Picture). This short debuted at the 40th Santa Barbara Int’l Film Festival in February 2025 and was curated by Sean. Mango helped in the creation of the title card, color correction, and producer duties of “Upon the Railroad Earth”.
I hope to continue my filmmaking journey, and I am proud to share my work which I feel may be part of the next generation of independent filmmakers, or something along those lines.