Meet Tommy Kozup of Milan

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tommy Kozup

Hi Tommy, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I am Tommy Kozup, a local freelance audio/video producer. I helped start Hollywood Farmstead with Joe Harvey and Justin Sluis. We are just a few guys that have a passion for audio/video production and media creation. The three of us are local independent media producers. It started because Joe had an empty barn on his property that he wasn’t using. So we decided to turn the barn into a multimedia production studio with a goal of making the biggest green screen cyc wall in Michigan one day. Well we actually ended up finishing the building process of it within one year. We started this project with basically no money. One day we each had $50 to throw at some boards so we went to Home Depot and got the first 9 sheets of plywood. We put them up and we were so excited we went back to Home Depot and got some more. It kept growing from there. Soon people wanted to shoot their music videos on the wall. We found a few artists such as Louie Lee, Kaleido, Alan Turner, Redd and many others that wanted to shoot music videos, so that helped us expand the wall also. Before we knew it we built one of Michigan’s biggest green screen cyc walls.

Hollywood Farmstead is located on 33 acres of beautiful scenic landscapes with a river running throughout the property. We’ve hosted many film projects at the facility such as the 48 Hour Film Project, documentaries and commercials. Having the production studio with 81 ft of cyc wall and the 33 acres of possible film locations, we think that we can provide a vast resource for independent filmmakers and content producers in Michigan.

Hollywood Farmstead is on a mission to provide independent Filmmakers and Producers a place to create that is accessible and affordable for everyone. We want to build and grow a creative community network that passes knowledge and inspires creators to push the limits of their talents. With teamwork anything is possible.

Our goal is to provide clients and contributors with audio, video, film and photography production services. Such as A/V production studio, video Cyc wall, special effects composition and outdoor film locations. We want to build a community and network of production professionals and to offer them an affordable space to create. A membership based audio and video production facility.

Vision:
Hollywood Farmstead is more than a studio—it’s a creative sanctuary for
independent filmmakers, students, studios, and corporations alike. Our vision is to
cultivate a dynamic environment where creativity flourishes without limits. We foster
collaboration between individuals and organizations across all levels of experience
and expertise to create the best end result for every project that walks through our
doors.
We strive to set a new standard for innovation in the film industry by blending
state-of-the-art facilities with a deep respect for sustainable practices, ensuring that
every production leaves a positive impact on both the creative world and the
environment. At the core of our vision lies a commitment to professionalism, where
artistry and ambition are met with the tools and expertise needed to bring any
project to life.
Our goal is not only to support creativity but to create a thriving ecosystem where
filmmakers and creators feel empowered, valued, and inspired to push boundaries.
Hollywood Farmstead is a place where stories come to life, ideas turn into reality.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It has not been a smooth road building the cyc all because none of us are very good carpenters. We made a lot of mistakes along the way from using the wrong building materials to figuring out how to bend the wood to curve the walls and corners. There was a lot of trial and error we went through before we figured it all out. The wall is so big, it took over 100 lbs. of drywall mud to smooth out all of the edges and seems. Our arms were hurting all of the time from sanding all of that drywall mud. As they say, no pain no gain. Lol But it was all worth it because we are so proud of what we built. Everyone that sees it, I think gets excited about it too.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Throughout last year during the building process we were fortunate to work on many video projects ranging from music videos, documentaries and film projects. We won an award for best drama for the 48 Hour Film Project in 2024. We also won a 2024 Michigan Music Video award for the first music video we ever shot at the farm. It was for Louie Lee’s “Burning Lucy” music video. https://youtu.be/MxE6UidbIbU?si=epIeaN4BihukjLVc It was so much fun to work on except that it was very cold that day. We shot the video in January.

We specialize in green screen video production, location film production, set design and construction, lighting rigs, hair and makeup, photography, audio production, post production, video editing and education.

I guess we are mostly known for being really goofy, making funny videos and just having fun creating media.

We are most proud of being able to create an amazing space for creators to test the boundaries of their talents. Because we were able to build the studio, with very little money and no debt. We are able to offer the studio for prices way below market rate. This will help creators get a leg up on producing their creations.

What sets us apart from others in the industry is that we aren’t the best businessmen, we are artists and creators. We built it because of our love of art and creation. We really just want a place for creative people to have a facility that is accessible and affordable so they can practice their craft, hone their skills and create amazing things.
We are also unique because of our 81 ft 2 corner 180 degree cyc wall located on 33 acres of beautiful scenic landscapes that is ideal for outdoor film production. As far as we know no other production facility in Michigan offers that.

So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
We hope that Hollywood Farmstead will become a success and to sustain Me, Joe and Justin so we can run the studio full time. We hope people will see our vision of what the facility has the ability to become.

Pricing:

• Student Discount Rate $50 an hr.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.hollywoodfarmstead.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/DCpqbqpPGNe/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100088568753770&sk=photos_by
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@hollywoodfarmstead
• Other: https://www.facebook.com/reel/1079915063443537