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Your upcoming movie Devil's Night - in a few words, what is
it about?
Devil's Night tells the story of 5 frat boys who get involved in
Devil's Night accident that leaves a stranger dying in the woods. A year
later a masked killer shows up at their annual Devil's Night party seeking
revenge for the devestating prank. How did the project get off the ground in the
first place? The
film was first conceived in 2006 under the title Left for Dead. I had come
up with a low budget homage film that paid respects to the classic slasher
films of the 70's and 80's. I was then approached by Adam Dirani (executive
producer) who was looking to make a low budget horror film. He
loved the script and next thing I knew we were off and running. Devil's Night seems to be at least
to some degree be inspired by old school slasher movies. A genre
especially dear to you, and some of your genre favourites?
It
is definitely inspired by those films. Specifically Halloween,
Friday the 13th, Night
of the Creeps, Black
Christmas, and The
Texas Chainsaw Massacre! All of these homages can be easily spotted by any true horror
fan... We also kill an unlucky 13 people in the film:) No
slasher film without gore of course - so what can you tell us about the
gore effects in your film ... and how important are gore and violence to the
overall tone of Devil's Night to begin with? We
used old school practical FX because that is how they did it with the
films we have all grown to love! The FX and masks were created by the fine
gentleman at The Butcher Shop, Carlos Henriques and Ryan Louagie. The gore
and violence was important, but we had a very small budget so we did the
best we could with the money we had and we are very happy with how things
turned out! How
would you describe your directorial approach to your subject at hand? I
looked at it as "THE LITTLE, BIG MOVIE" I knew we had limited
budget, so we had to be as creative as possible and for the record we
didn't even have a real lighting kit! SO my approach was to make it look
as good as we could by using nice wide lenses and cool locations. For the
most part I am happy with it, but would have loved to have a real director
of photography to help create the look I was going for, but in the world
of independent film all you can do is make it work and I believe WE did
that.
Steve Byers |
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Shawn Roberts |
What
can you tell us about your cast, and what made exactly them perfect for
their roles?
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Danielle Harris |
The
only person we had in mind from the beginning was Danielle Harris. We have always
been a huge fan of hers and really wanted to have her in our film. Steve
Byers and Shawn Roberts were discovered through the audition process.
Everyone was really cool to work with and I hope one day we can all do it
again... on a much larger scale of coarse;) What can you tell us about the actual shoot
and the on-set atmosphere? To
be honest, it was very stressful and difficult because we were always
scaling back. I realized quickly that this movie was not going to be the
script and that made it difficult, constantly changing things and yet
trying to keep with the story and things we already shot. I was also very
limited in terms of my coverage, because there was never enough time or
people to help get everything I needed. But these are the things that
happen on small productions. You just have to embrace these difficult
situations and make it work, that is how good filmmakers become great! The $64-question of course:
When and where will the film be released onto the general public? The
film comes out October 30, 2012... Devil's Night! That is Canada's release
date, we are still waiting on America and the rest of the world. So if
there are any distributors looking for a fan slasher film to distribute -
hit me up! Let's
go back to the beginnings of your career: What got you into filmmaking to
begin with, and did you receive any formal education on the subject?
I've
always wanted to make films since I was a very young boy - in fact it's
all I've ever really known. I started taking it very serious when I was 19
when I started shooting music videos for friends of mine that were
starting to make a mark in the music industry. By the time I was 22 I had
written my first feature and was given $100,000 to make it. That was
essentially my film school and the beginning of my career. I have never
turned back and to this day continue with the same determination and
tenacity. Telling stories and making movies means the world to me and I
can honestly say I'm finally surrounded by the best people I know to help
fulfill and make all of our dreams come true!
What
can you tell us about your filmwork prior to Devil's Night? I
can tell you it's very independent... ha ha ha! I have always made a shoot
work with what I had so as proud as I am of all my stuff, I am much
happier shooting things with a budget. My next film will cost about 6
million so that will be a great experience to finally paint with all the
colours if you catch my meaning:) Any
future projects you'd like to share? YES,
we are currently venturing into the world of LIVE theatre productions as
we create and produce George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead Live! I
have also completed my next script which will be shot in the winter of
2014. It is called the Mummers and we are presently talking with a major A
list actor to star! We will be sure to keep you posted :) How would you
describe yourself as a director? I
would describe myself as a passionate realist. I am always looking to make
it look and feel as real as possible. I can't stand films that make no
sense and don't suspend disbelief. I just can't relate to them. I like to
think with my work you can relate to at least some elements, specifically
the characters in the story. If you can't relate to the characters it's
very hard to make an audience care about your film. Filmmakers who inspire
you? I
would not be the person I am today without these amazing individuals... IN
NO ORDER :) George A. Romero, John Carpenter, Stanley Kubrick, Steven
Spielberg, Tim Burton and of course George Lucas. Your favourite movies?
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My
top 5... again in no order, I just watch them all the time! Halloween,
Creepshow, Night
of the Living Dead, Fright Night, and Empire Strikes Back! ... and of
course, films you really deplore? I
would like to avoid this question, but between you and I Battleship could
be the worst movie ever made... however there are a lot of others in
contention for that spot:) Your/your movie's
website, Facebook, whatever else?
www.nictophobiafilms.com
www.nightofthelivingdeadlive.com
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2300122/
Anything else you are
dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask? Nope,
all good! Thanks
for the interview! Thank
you Michael!
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