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Your new movie Dreaming
of the Unholy - in a few words what's it about?
It's mainly about the eternal battle between Good and Evil and the survival
instinct in all creatures.
What were your sources of inspiration when writing Dreaming
of the Unholy?
I wanted to make a movie that would involve both sex and horror, although I
know that audiences can't be scared anymore; all aspects of horror have
already been screened. So, after having read a lot of books about various
demons, I ended up in writing a peculiar love story about an Incubus demon.
Also, I must admit that films like Raimi's Evil Dead or Donner's
The Omen have influenced me a lot, not because of the gory or scary scenes
but because of the fact that they have no happy endings. I hate happy endings!
Some scenes in Dreaming
of the Unholy derive straight from my personal
experiences, like the scenes at the nursing home, for example. My late
mother had the same health problems and unfortunately I had to put her in a nursing home.
Dreaming
of the Unholy's lead character Antonis isn't exactly a nice man -
so how difficult and maybe also how much fun was it to write a character
like him as the driving force of your film?
Antonis isn't exactly a man but an Incubus in flesh and blood which wants to save
its soul and die peacefully when its time comes. It is a dormant demon
which “wakes up” when its life gets theatened. This is actually based
on the life of Saint Antony. He once met a Centaur in the desert in Egypt
on his way to meet Elias the Hermit. The Centaur implied to Saint Antony
that it was speaking on behalf of Incubi and other entities as well and
that all those mortal creatures were praising Jesus and wanted to repent.
So, to answer your question, writing such a character was a piece of cake,
because it's about a sex demon in human form which will do anything to
survive.
Do talk about Dreaming of
the Unholy's approach to horror! As
I mentioned before, I know that it's not easy to make audiences get
scared. At least not on my budget! I only wanted to upset viewers, and I
think this goal was accomplished through the disturbing murder scenes.
Antonis is a really ruthless guy who takes the lives of truly innocent
people, people with whom the viewers can definitely sympathise. A few words
about your overall directorial approach to your story at hand? I
haven't studied film directing so I'm afraid I can't answer this one. All
I know is that when I write a script I have already pictured it in my
mind. What can you tell us about Dreaming
of the Unholy's key cast, and why exactly these people?
It's a low budget movie. Most of the cast crew were simply friends. Only
Theodora Kostakou (Evangelia, Maria's mother) and Yannis Zafiropoulos
(Alexandros, the doctor) had already played in theater or other movies and TV series.
I asked a few other actresses to play but took “no” for an answer. You
see, such projects are not attractive to most actresses here in Greece.
This particular production was even less attractive especially because of
the sex scenes and the B-movie profile of it.
But,
thank God, even the friends who played really did the job well. I thank
all the cast for that. Especially Athanasia Karavia (Maria) who accepted
to play the role. You know, we started shooting the film with no actress
for the role of Maria. That was risky, but Athanasia showed up and saved my
life eventually. She had played a small role in my previous feature film,
Soul Looting, so she knew that I would respect her.
Do talk about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere!
It took us about 10 months to complete the shootings. Lots of fun, of course,
but I had a lot of stress because I was actually the one who organised
everything. One-man-crew. It was just me and the actors in most cases. Oh,
and my camera. The $64-question of course, where can Dreaming
of the Unholy be seen? On
YouTube: https://youtu.be/D44ejRogEkM Also,
catch the trailer at https://youtu.be/9FX_uCwlqyc Anything you can tell us
about audience and critical reception of Dreaming
of the Unholy?
It's too soon yet, I think. I don't really know. There will be both lovers and
haters, that's for sure. You were the first to write a few words about
this movie and I thank you very much because these words were good!
It's been quite a while since we last
spoke, about your debut feature film Soul
Looting - so what have you been up to between that one and Dreaming
of the Unholy? Nothing at all. You see, filmmaking is just a hobby, I am not a real director.
I'm not a real producer, either! It was my friend Dimitris Theodoropoulos
(Antonis/Incubus) who convinced me to make a new movie. I was staying
away from a new project because I knew that it wouldn't be for free. But
anyway, I did it again. Any future projects you'd like to share?
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If I ever get convinced again, it will be a short film. Feature films cost a
lot. If I ever win the Lotto, I will let you know! Unless a producer is
willing to spend some money on my crazy ideas... but such things don't
happen in Greece. Your/your movie's website, social media, whatever else?
Nothing at all. If somebody would like to ask me anything, they can simply send
an email to choleragv@hotmail.com Anything else you're dying to mention and I have
merely forgotten to ask?
An advice to young filmmakers and actors, especially to those from Greece: Don't
expect to make a living out of filmmaking or acting. But follow your heart, anyway!
Thanks for the interview! You're welcome, Michael! Thank you too!
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