-Who is Timothy Bradley Reinhold?
How does one define oneself, the essence of their being, in something so mundane and prone to misinterpretation as human symbols?
You see, all language is constructed of symbols. Each letter, each word, each phrase or sentence, each paragraph, chapter, book, series, collection, saga, or epic is composed of root symbols.
“The Tao that can be spoken is not the eternal Tao.”
– Opening to the Tao Te Ching (I Ching)
Human society, as a whole, tends to use these symbols tribally, much to my dismay. The beauty of poetry, of cinema, of art is the ability to reach beyond these tribal differentiations by utilizing metaphor, analogy, symbolism, parable, as well as a vast number of other techniques such as visual or auditory symbolism, which, if employed correctly, hold the power to go beyond the surface illusions of the symbols used to generate them and become that “unspeakable Tao” within the essence of those who view the artist(s)’ craft. To become something greater than the sum of its parts, a Truth in the very marrow of our souls, and in doing so, become the embodiment if our very existence; we are, at the core, at the root consciousness level, beings of light and energy – stardust in mortal form – and we, too, are greater than the sum of any individuated aspect of our totality.
We are the Philodopher’s Stone, each of us capable of alchemizing and transmuting energy, negative or positive, with the very fabric of our beings.
-Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?
I have always loved media and storytelling. At less than six months old, I remember watching The Andy Griffith Show and Mr. Ed through the bars on my crib.
However, the real “click” moment for me was at four, at my parents house in the den, sitting on a beige carpet in gentle light in 1985, watching the living room TV display my first Live Action film.
The film?
Just The Empire Strukes Back.
That viewing radically altered the DNA of my conscious self from that point fowards on my journey.
The music: I had never heard anything close! I had been listening to Rafi and others like him my whole existence, when suddenly WHAM! Here comes John Williams like a musical Zeus of ages past striking beyond the tribal symbols and into the very essence of my being. I became a musician, a self taught composer at first, then later the principal cellist of many orchestras, and played professionally in a string quartet, all before turning 18 years old. I met my high school sweetheart through orchestra, the Carolina Youth Symphony to be exact, where i served as principal cellist for several years consecutively.
Yet, that is only a fraction of the experience.
I became the AV expert in my AFJROTC Corps in high school, while simultaneously serving a number of other leadership roles, culminating in my role as Recruitment Officer for the whole Corps, the third ranking member overall as a Major, due to the fact I only was in that Corps for three years. We earned the prestigious Presidebt’s Award for excellence all three years i was a member there.
These opened up fantastic opportunities for me.
I attended the South Carolina Junior Governor’s School for the Arts, studying everything from sculpture to mosaics to various painters, movements, styles, music, and a lot more.
I was invited to, and participated in, war games in Washington D.C. at the National Youth Leadership Conference on Defense and Intelligence, where i was elected President of my Scenario/War Game unanimously, and we collectively decided to work as a harmonic organism: every voice heard, valued, listened to, and incorporated into the tactics and strategies for our group to overcome the various obstacles presented during the scenario.
Finally, the gift that kept giving: a fierce passion for strategy games. I played every collectable card game I could get my hands on for over 20 years, and did so professionally. My favorite was Star Wars CCG by Decipher. I was ranked, back in the early 2000s, above a 2300 ELO, with a world ranking between top 12 in the world and inside the top 8, for years consistently. The friendships I garnered there are still some of my closest, even after being in the community solidly from 1995 through 2025.
All these things derived from that seemingly innocuous viewing of a film in 1985. And all different forms of the same thing: narrative story telling.
-Tell us about your project “The Harmony Saga, MOVEMENT I – DISCIPLE:
ACT I OF THE HARMONY SAGA”.
Both projects are near and dear to my heart. The Harmony Saga started in a very curious way.
I was invited to write a brief snippet of script, something I had never been taught or knew anything about, as a way to earn a spot in UCF’s BFA program in 2023. I had to submit the work during the first week of December in 2022.
I wrote the opening pages, to establish the mythical world, and the crux/climax of The Legend Of Ascalon, as my way to earn my spot in the program. This is the final film of the Saga now.
Upon filling out the information for the program, the submit button simply did not work, no matter what I tried, until i swapped from the Screenwriter Program and instead selected the Narrative Production track: Directing/Screenwriting. I had no desire there, as I had never directed anything, and the acceptance was extremely narrow; yet, somehow I was deemed “qualified” for reasons that still elude me.
The Legend Of Acalon is the final film, of six feature-length films contained within the manuscript that is The Harmony Saga. Every individual film has received selection status, or higher, indepebdant of the totality, yet collectively as a cohesive vision have garnered more than 25 awards and selections across every continent we have submitted on.
MOVEMENT I – DISCIPLE: EPISODE I OF THE HARMONY SAGA is a re-envisioning of the opening of the first film of the Saga, using state of the art AI generation and animation. The first Act was completed in early December after less than 7 22 hour days of production, and has been making the festival circuit, independently garnering in its limited run thus far over 15 awards and selections in its own right already, with more juries yet to announce their verdicts. Based on this critical success, I completed Act II in 14 hours for $60.00, then merged them into a cohesive whole alongside a prelude/prologue, which is an epic symphonia setting the tone for liquid laser lightning ballet of light dancing in geometric shapes fluidly, followed by a non-arabic Azaan (spiritual call to become One with the Infinite) layered with a poem and another orchestral piece composed by Analia Lentini, the brilliant Argentinian composer.
-Which Director inspires you the most?
Oh man! There are so so many! The history of cinema is so vast, with so many unique and beautiful voices of all colors, creeds, genders, nationalities, movements and eras that picking one seems impossible!
However, to provide some assistance, there are four key headliners, from recent film hostory, as touchstones for me artistically. And one other, from a distant era of cinema, and i will focus on her last.
First: George Lucas. His work, craft, and creativity were foundational for me personally. His vision, philosophy, and ethos resonate deeply.
Second: Scorsese. Taxi Driver is one of my all time favorites, and I adapted the voice over monologue to many of my own works.
Third: Nolan. The Philosopher-King of cinema himself. I love every film this man has ever made. Every one discusses, philosophically and in differentiated ways, temporal realities, distortions, and their effects on human cognition. His period pieces (Dunkirk, Oppenheimer) do so through their editing. Hats off.
Fourth: Garreth Edwards. This director is a true visionary, a magic myth weaver of light and sound and narrative. His creations, whether refueling a saga as he did with Rogue One, or founding his own as with The Creator, were seminal artistic pieces foundational to who I am as a creative. His stance on the potential of AI and harmony of co-existence is a narrative fiction describing a Truth of our current society that many are only now finally waking up to, or even starting to. Visionary is an understatement. For my film theory class at UCF, in which I got an A+, I roasted some of the most prominent film critics in the industry (Roger) for their incoherent vehemence towards a piece of art that’s only sin was telling the Truth. Yes, there are plot holes at times. Yes, some sequences had errors. Considering Cameron’s Teminator 2 alternated in just one scene between day and night inexplicably yet was hailed in the industry as genre defining, I really hope critics will cut Mr. Edwards some slack. I doubt many of them have made a film besides a home video, let alone an $80M feature length original with a cutting Truth the world is only now beginning to acknowledge. Its very easy for the armchair critics who fundamentally do not practice the craft themselves to wrigh in obscenely. For Pete’s sake, Edwards is bleeding his soul out on a silver screen to try to illuminate Truth. You may not get it, and that’s fine. You don’t have to attempt to implode an honest artist’s career in the process. Period.
Finally (and I’m sorry, truly, for the length) we come to a founder of cinema: my artistic north star and hero: Maya Dernen.
Maya Dernen was an American experimental filmmaker, an avant-garde original. Her Meshes Of The Afternoon helped open the minds of audiences to the possibilities of true, pure artistry in film. It changed perceptions for a great many things in film, including editing. Maya was also a choreographer of dance, a celebrated poet, and so much more than these brief words can ever hope to convey. She was the Renaissance Woman at the fore of avant-garde, and avant-garde, by definition, is at the fore, philosophically, of the entire medium. As an award-winning avant-garde cinematiste myself, I hold a shrine for her and her art in every aspect of every film I have ever composed. Maya, you are not forgotten. Let those with eyes see, let those with ears hear, let those with minds investigate, and let those with hearts remember. Your trials and hardships changed the course of cinema for the better. Thank you.
-What do you dislike about the world and what would you change?
Oh man!
Hierarchy. Commidification of the Soul. The silencing of Truth so that the megalonaniacs can murder innocents in the streets and call it justice. Materialism. Monetization. The collective sale of soul for tge Lie. Take your pick. World hunger. War. Dominance. The Patriarchy. The self-aggrandizement of false prophets. The false idolatry of ego. The lists go on…
-How do you imagine cinema in 100 years?
Honestly: no clue. And to be fair, I love that. Means I’ve got to do my part and continuously reinvent myself and my craft. Predictability is a recipe for boredom, and in my humble opinion, that is, in a nutshell, the very problem we collectively face with 99% of current media. Seriously? The Lion King 5 gets funding but not cutting edge artists? Have not been to a theater at all since binging Oppenheimer. Cannot wait to see the new Odyssey by Nolan. Mr Nolan, thank you for being a true voice cutting through the noise. Cinema desperately needs you and your message and your philosophy for a long time yet.
-What is your impression of WILD FILMMAKER?
Honestly? Based on my interactions, they seem very chill and friendly. Really appreciate the outreach and solidarity and getting my voice out of the Florida Bubble so everyone has an opportunity to at least weigh my ideas, philosophy, and the ethos behind my vision at face value. That’s a very kind and noble thing for someone in my shoes. Sincerely, thank you!
