Although many of his earliest childhood memories included directing and editing short films, Garrett Patten only returned to his first love – filmmaking – around 10 years ago. After spending much of his career in the business world, Patten is now proving to be a major force in the independent film industry with his upcoming thriller “Self Custody,” which he directed and starred in.
“As a kid, I was always making films,” he said. “I started with a Sony camcorder and an early Adobe editing board on my computer, which could barely store a few minutes of footage… But even then, I was hookedI loved the process of bringing an idea to life on screen.”
While attending USC, he stayed close to this lifestyle as many of his friends were in film. He was even offered a position with a major production company after graduation but decided to go down the business route, where he stayed until he made a major career change and ended up back where it all began. He took a deliberate path, starting with producing, then, after working with and learning from several different directors, took on directing himself.
While in the process of directing, Patten immerses himself in every detail needed to ensure the film will be finalized in its truest form. “Each project becomes an obsession for me,” he shared. “I visualize every scene months before principal photography and won’t stop filming until I know I’ve captured every look, line, and transition needed to make the story come alive.” He began studying Ivana Chubbuck’s acting method to become a better director, but ended up falling in love with the craft of acting as well.
Patten’s devotion for learning and executing every aspect of filmmaking has allowed him to become well rounded in any job he takes on for a film. In the case of his newest project, he took on two different jobs: director and actor.
The idea for “Self Custody,” a thriller in which Patten’s character attempts to gain back millions of dollars of cryptocurrency he previously lost, came from real life stories of people losing vast amounts of money held in Bitcoin. As the screenplay came to fruition, the idea (and eventually the title) also became a metaphor which, as Patten describes, is “how holding onto control too tightly can end up costing you everything.”
While prepping for his acting role in the film, he “spent months living in the character’s world,” he said. “To get into that headspace, I drew from moments in my own life times of desperation, fear, and uncertainty and used those as anchors to ground the performance. It’s a process of letting go of yourself and allowing the character to take over.”
Just as every other project he’s worked on, this film was planned out in his head before they had even started shooting. “As a director, I knew exactly what I wanted to capture in every shot and every scene and that all comes down to the pre-work,” he stated.
As “Self Custody” was his first time both acting and directing on a film set, he had double the preparation and on-set work. He admitted that “the most challenging part of this project was balancing both acting and directing. It’s difficult to objectively judge your own performance while also keeping an eye on the broader vision.” Despite this, he consistently stayed dedicated to the project with extensive rehearsals. “I recorded many of them and studied every detail so I could trust the process once we started shooting,” he said.
In such a large industry where the smaller players might get lost in the giant wave of production, Patten stands out, making sure to praise his cast and crew. “We had an incredible crew who gave everything they had to this project, working long hours with absolute dedication,” he said. “From a production standpoint, it was the other cast members who brought the role to life. Odette, Adrian, and Michael were all so talented and authentic that you often forget you’re even making a movie.”
Even through a Texas ice storm that shut down production, his relentless respect for the cast and crew, his keen sense of how he wanted to play his character, and his overall vision for the direction proves that he’s gaining momentum to thrive as an actor and director, and he’s doing it fast.
His role in “Self Custody” has opened up his perspective on the lengths he can go as an actor that he never thought possible. “At first, a role like this can feel overwhelming,” he revealed. “But I’ve learned to lean into that discomfort. I actually look forward to challenging roles now — the ones that push me to explore new levels of myself.”
In terms of future directing and producing roles, he has a few projects currently in development, and he’s thrilled to continue his work. “I feel incredibly blessed to be doing something I truly love. The goal is to keep creating meaningful, cinematic stories that challenge me and hopefully move audiences in some way. I can’t wait to bring these next projects to life.”
By spending the last 10 years getting back to his childhood filmmaking roots, it’s clear that Patten’s deep adoration for directing, producing, and acting including the rewarding moments, nearly impossible hurdles, and everything in between makes him the one to watch in the independent film space.