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Your new movie Attack
of the Morningside Monster
- in a few words, what is it about?
In a nutshell, the film is about a series of murders that start
occurring in a small town in New Jersey. The town's police chief and
his officers are forced to search for the killer. Everyone is a
suspect. And the killer wears a very unusual mask, a little
different from the typical masked killers you've seen before. How did the
project fall together in the first place, and to what extent could you
identify with the film's horror theme? Jayson Palmer
(screenwriter) and I have worked on several smaller projects together,
including an authorized short film adaptation of Stephen King's short
story Survivor Type. We wanted to do something bigger.
Jayson pitched me a story he had been working on in various forms for a
long time (20 years, I think). I really liked some of the key
aspects and we worked together on building the full length film from his
initial concepts. What can you tell
us about your screenwriter Jason Palmer, and what was your collaboration
with him like? Jayson and I have worked together for
several years, so we have a pretty solid collaborative relationship.
For the writing process, we went through a bunch of drafts on
Attack
of the Morningside Monster, and he would write a draft and then I
would read and make notes and slowly we worked our way to the shooting
draft. In that respect, it is similar to a traditional writer/director relationship. However, Jayson is also a
producer on
all our films, so I regularly sought his opinion (and that of our other producer, Michael H. Harper) during the shoot and post-production to make
sure I delivered the best film possible. He was heavily involved all
the way through production.
What can you tell us about your
directorial approach to your subject at hand? I wanted to
make a film in the masked killer genre that dug a little deeper. The
movie still contains the core genre component of a guy in mask stalking
his prey, but we also dig into motivations and relationships among the
people of this town. By the end of the movie, I think you know the
town pretty well, or at least the main players, and you understand why
everyone made the decisions that they made leading into the climax.
I have called it a dramatic horror film, and I think that's a pretty
appropriate way to classify it. Attack
of the Morningside Monster
does get quite visceral at times - so what can you tell us about that
aspect of your movie, and was there ever any line you refused to cross
(for other than budgetary reasons)? I never looked at the
gore of the film in terms of lines to cross. I just wanted to serve the
story properly. If anything, I tried to make sure we balanced the
gore as carefully as possible. In many of the scenes, it's limited
and specifically cut so that you think you see more than you do. The
one scene, however, that I think you are referring to, is definitely the
most visceral and graphic, and I really wanted to go for it in that one.
The action that occurs in that scene (without being too spoilery) is
necessary and important to the storyline, and I wanted to visualize the
graphic nature of the killer's choices. And I wanted to make sure
that fans that love the blood and guts got their payoff - it is a horror
film after all.
Nicholas Brendon |
Attack
of the Morningside Monster
stars
Buffy the Vampire Slayer-star
Nicholas Brendon, who also co-produced the
film - so how did he come on board, and what was your collaboration like? Nicholas
came on board in a fairly typical manner - initially through discussions
with his manager. He appreciated the mystery elements of the script,
particularly some of the red herrings, and he brought an incredible level
of professionalism to his onscreen work. He was only with the
production for a short time, but he helped elevate our little indie
production a great deal.
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Tiffany Shepis |
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Robert Pralgo |
Attack
of the Morningside Monster
also stars indie horror icon Tiffany Shepis [Tiffany
Shepis interview - click here] - so what was it like working with
her, and what made her perfect for her role? Tiffany Shepis
came to us as a recommendation from a producer friend who knew her.
I am so glad that he recommended her. She is an extremely talented
actress who brings a metric ton of indie horror experience to any
production. She is also a furious ball of energy both on screen and
in real life. Scenes just seem to come alive whenever she is in
frame. What can
you tell us about the rest of your cast, and why exactly these people?
The very real short answer is: Because they were the right actors
for the roles.
The longer answer: We always knew that we were going to approach
Rob Pralgo to play Sheriff Haulk. He's an Atlanta native who has
worked in the industry for a very long time and is such a powerful,
charismatic actor. I knew he was going to anchor the film with a
strong presence. Rob knew and recommended Cat Taber (Mandy), and
as soon as she read the script and gave her thoughts, I knew she was
going to work out perfectly. In fact, the epilogue of the film was
heavily influenced by some of her notes. Rob and Michael knew
Amber Chaney (Abby), and we were fortunate to be able to bring her on
board in a role that's very difficult to get right - the nuance she
brought was unbelievable. It took us a while to find an
actor to play Clyde. We were beginning to worry, but Mike Stanley
had met our producer Michael at a film festival, and he sent in an
incredible video audition, and then we had our guy. Everyone else
we met and cast through a fairly traditional casting process, with the
exception of Jens Rasmussen (Professor Ragsdale) who we had worked with
on Survivor Type.
Do
talk about the shoot as such for a bit, and the on-set atmosphere? Indie
films are always a bit rushed, there's never enough time or money. I
always try and make sure things are at least fun, I prefer a set with a
little bit of good humor. Attack
of the Morningside Monster was a split shoot, and the
first section was long and tiring, and I am so proud of my cast and crew
for the way they handled all of the long days and obstacles with such
grace. The second half was a little less stressful and more laid
back, we had a little bit more room to breathe, and I think those shoots
days went a little smoother just because we were functioning better as a
team.
A
few words about audience and critical reception of Attack
of the Morningside Monster
so far? It has been extremely fascinating to watch the
critical reception of the film as it has rolled out these last couple of
months. The film is very character-driven, and we spend a lot of
time getting to know these people before any heavy action starts
(the searchmytrash.com
review makes note of this!). I like to remind people that the
original Halloween played the same way, an initial kill and then Michael
Myers didn't kill anyone else until 40+ minutes into the movie. Some
people love that style, and really get what we were going for, which pays
off powerfully in the conclusion. Some people are turned off by it - they
want more action up front. My producers and I aren't straddling any lines,
we knew exactly what kind of film we were making from the beginning.
In the end, I made the film that I wanted to make and I am grateful to the
people who appreciate it. Any future projects you'd like to share? We
are actively developing multiple follow-up projects. I'm not sure
what is going to shoot next, yet, but we have a couple of action-oriented
projects, a psychological thriller, a more traditional murder mystery, and
potentially a low-budget thoughtful sci-fi in the vein of Primer.
Lots of genre stuff, I really love to play in those worlds. What
got you into filmmaking in the first place, and did you receive any formal
training on the subject? I am, like so many filmmakers of
my generation, self-taught and inspired by the Kevin Smith/Robert
Rodriguez indies from the 90's. I just made a bunch of films, over a
dozen shorts. Many of them were not very good, but it's all part of
the learning process. I have nothing against film school, I think it
can be extremely beneficial to a young filmmaker, but it wasn't my path. What can you tell us about your
filmwork prior to Attack
of the Morningside Monster?
As I mentioned above,
Jayson and I adapted Stephen King's short story Survivor Type with
permission from Mr. King. Before I met Jayson, I did a lot of things
with smaller film competitions and generally made one or two quick shorts
a year. Survivor Type was pretty much the moment where I decided to
buckle down and take the work more seriously. How would you
describe yourself as a director? I would describe myself as
a technical director who wants to be a better actor's director.
Particularly early on in my filmmaking career, I gravitated toward the
cinematic components: camera and lens and FX and shot choices to tell
story. More recently, I have tried to focus on making sure my actors
have what they need from me to deliver the best performance possible.
I am working hard on figuring out the best way to guide actors through
their process, and I still have a bit to learn in that regard.
However, I feel like one of my strengths is casting - I spent a lot of time
(again, with the input of Jayson and Michael) to make sure that we got the
right actor in every role. We've gotten some really strong reviews
on the acting in Attack
of the Morningside Monster, and I credit that
entirely to the talent of the people we brought on board. Filmmakers who inspire
you? Kevin Smith and Robert Rodriguez were the instigators.
Joss Whedon, Quentin Tarantino, Kathryn Bigelow, David Twohy, Richard
Kelly, Spielberg, of course, been watching all of them for years.
More recently, Jen and Sylvia Soska [Soska
Twins interview - click here] and Nicholas Winding Refn have made
strong impressions on me. TV people, too, creators like Amy
Sherman-Palladino and David Kelly. I just recently binged Sons of
Anarchy and I think Kurt Sutter broke my brain. And those people are
just off the top of my head. So many inspiring filmmakers are out
there making things every day. Your favourite movies?
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Such
a difficult question - I love so many. I really like movies that use
genre or story to sort of smuggle powerful thematic ideas into a fun film. That's my favorite type of movie. I always come back to Dogma
as a great example of using comedy to handle complex subject matter.
The Town is a great action/heist movie that is really about geographical
identity. Jen and Sylvia Soska have made a couple of really strong
films that wrap feminist themes in the context of traditional gore and
slasher films. Genre films that work on multiple levels always hit
me the hardest. Some other random ones I love: The Social
Network, American Mary, Serenity, Shawshank Redemption, Die Hard, Star
Wars. ... and of
course, films you really deplore?
I'm not sure I deplore
too many films. If I don't like it, I can usually just walk away and
let it roll off. There are some exceptions: I actively disliked Man
of Steel, and Cop Out just made me sad. It's rough when one of your
heroes makes a bad movie. Your/your movie's
website, Facebook, whatever else?
Website: http://www.themorningsidemonster.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/themorningsidemonster
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MrningsideMnstr
or @MrningsideMnstr
Anything else you are
dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask? Not
really, these were some great questions. Thanks
for the interview! Thank you for putting it together!
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