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Your new movie Dead Walkers: Rise of the 4th Reich
- in a
few words, what is it about, and what can you tell us about your character
in it?
Dead Walkers: Rise of the 4th Reich
is a Nazi spy thriller with a horrific twist, set at the end of World War 2.
Scientists and the military elite escaped across borders and found
themselves in new worlds. But there was another division… a forgotten
group… a Top Secret group of men and women formed in the womb of the Nazi
occult. Now, decades after the war, their work is nearing completion, and
they are about to unleash their new horror, the 4th Reich, onto
the world. The character I play,
is one of the Nazis. How did you first get hooked up with the project,
and what were your first thoughts when hearing the title "Dead Walkers: Rise of the 4th Reich"? I
was having a look around some casting websites, when I spotted an
advertisement asking for cast members for a new feature film. I loved the
name Dead Walkers: Rise of the 4th Reich, and was
immediately intrigued to find out more about it. I sent off an application
(not really even expecting to get a reply), and amazingly, I got a reply
within 24 hours, inviting me to come along.
From what
I've read, your time in the Royal Navy came in pretty handy not only
portraying your character but also behind the scenes. Care to elaborate?
Certainly. When I
arrived on set, Philip Gardiner (the director) [Philip
Gardiner interview - click here], desperately needed to
shoot a scene that showed all of the actors marching together.
Unfortunately, nobody had had any military training at all, so I
immediately offered my services to train them all up to a convincing
standard that would look good on camera. I taught them all the basics,
and had them all up to relatively decent standard, when 2 more actors
turned up who also had had military training, and between the 3 of us, we
managed to get all of the actors up to such a good standard in 2 hours,
that would have taken literally months to teach them all in a proper
military environment.
You
also helped choreographing the fight and torture scenes in Dead Walkers: Rise of the 4th Reich, right? So what can you tell us about those?
There was a huge fight
scene in a large room, and Phil wanted everybody to split up into separate
groups and to come up with totally different, and original scenarios to
make the scene totally fascinating and shocking. I won’t tell you how
the scene actually played out - you will have to watch the movie yourself
for all to be revealed. There were a few problems filming some of the
torture scenes, and my input was taken onboard and used to complete those
scenes too.
What
can you tell us about Dead Walkers: Rise of the 4th Reich's
director Philip Gardiner [Philip
Gardiner interview - click here], and what was your collaboration
like? Let me tell you,
Philip Gardiner is one of the most professional, dedicated, and creative
people I have ever met. The guy is an absolute genius. He knows his art
inside and out, and I trust his judgement implicitly. One thing I really
like about him is that he is a genuinely nice guy; he always listens to
what you have to say; he is always there to give you guidance, support,
and the benefit of his considerable experience; and he never comes across
as the big ‘I am’. He is always approachable, and a very good friend.
From what I heard, at least parts of Dead Walkers: Rise of the 4th Reich
were shot in an unheated warehouse during the coldest days
of the year - so what can you tell us about the shoot as such and the
on-set atmosphere?
My God, it was cold!!! It was shot in the depths of winter in a disused, derelict warehouse
that had no heat, electricity, gas, or running water. You can just imagine
what the ‘toilet situation’ was like, having no water!! The cold bit
through us all like a knife, and made filming practically impossible. Our
noses, ears, fingers and toes were all bright red, and then turned blue
with cold… but the visible breath did make for atmospheric film scenes.
Despite all of this, the atmosphere amongst the actors was just
incredible. In true British fashion, we all pulled together and kept each
other warm with laughter, stories, jokes, and by all of us repeatedly
singing a daft song we’d made up between us, about a family of sharks,
of all things!!
If there ever was a Dead Walkers II: Let's Raise the 5th Reich in
a Freezer, would you be on board?
Like
a shot. What people need to understand, is that our group of actors is
like a very closed-knit family. We are all from the same talent agency
www.awesometalentagency.com
and we have all worked together many times before on many different
projects, therefore we all know and trust each other implicitly. That kind
of bond is incredibly rare in this business, and in fact, is practically
unheard of. So yes, if Phil asked me to do a Dead Walkers 2, I would
definitely be on board, without a moment’s hesitation.
You're also in Philip Gardiner's upcoming documentary Exorcism
of Evil, right? So what can you tell us about that one and your
involvement in it? Exorcism of Evil
is a documentary for American television. It is based on actual,
documented cases of real-life possessions, and the processes involved in
exorcising those demons from the possessed individuals involved. I play
one of the priests/exorcists. Your Dead Walkers: Rise of the 4th Reich-co-star Kay Vardy's [Kay
Vardy interview - click here] Endgray Manor - you also have
to talk about that one and your character in it!
Exorcism of Evil |
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Endgray Manor |
Endgray
Manor is a film written, produced by, and starring Kay Vardy. She very
kindly offered me a role in it, and I certainly was not going to turn it
down. As I said in a previous question, we are all friends, and will do
anything to help each other out; plus, it is fabulously written and has a
great script, so that is why I agreed to do it. Endgray Manor is a
very dark and mysterious film about the sinister goings-on in an
‘all-girls’ borstal-type institution. In the film, I play the part of
a teacher at the Manor. Any
other future projects you'd like to talk about?
I have a few other projects in
the pipeline too. I have been cast as a lead role in the forthcoming
horror/shocker movie Succubi. That begins filming within the next
few weeks, and a superb international cast has been assembled for that
one.
I have also been cast
as a lead role in a forthcoming supernatural Logan Blackwood movie;
and I have also been cast in the new movie Dusty the Demon Hunter,
by the best-selling author D Michelle Gent [Michelle
Gent interview - click here]. What got
you into acting in the first place, and what can you tell us about your
training as an actor? I first got
interested in acting when I was at school, because they used to run
‘after hours’ classes that I used to attend regularly. I was bitten by
the acting bug, and joined a proper drama school/academy to gain
sufficient knowledge and experience to secure better and more challenging
roles for myself.
As far as I know, you have started
out as a stage actor - so what can you tell us about your experience in
the theatre, and how does performing on stage compare to acting in front
of a camera?
I
did a few stage plays as part of my time at drama school, but I have also
appeared in Pantomime in Jack and the Beanstalk and Cinderella. I have also appeared on stage in a play called
Crossing The Line where I played the part of Neptune.
Stage is dramatically
different from acting in front of a camera. On stage, you’ve got to get
it right first time, every time, simply because it’s live. You can cover
up a few mistakes… but if you make too many, it quickly descends into
chaos; whereas on camera, if you make a mistake… hey, no problem, you
just do it again !! What can you tell us about your film and TV
experiences prior to Dead Walkers: Rise of the 4th Reich? I have appeared on
several TV shows in the past for the BBC, SkyBSB,
Yorkshire Television,
and Central Television. I have also filmed a pilot TV episode, also for
Central Television. Dead Walkers: Rise of the 4th Reich
was my
first movie role, and since then, roles have been coming thick and fast.
How
would you describe yourself as an actor, and what do you draw upon to
bring your characters to life? I would describe
myself as an actor who strives for perfection. I want to look at the end
result and feel proud that everything went according to plan. To bring my
characters to life, I draw upon my real-life experiences, and really throw
myself into the role with a passion. I also study actors such as Jack
Nicholson, Morgan Freeman, and Tom Hanks etc, to understand how they
portray their roles, and then try to work their influence and experience
into my roles. Actors (and indeed
actresses) who inspire you? Oh
sorry, I think I’ve just named a few in my previous answer!! The
actresses who inspire me are Dame Maggie Smith, Dame Helen Mirren, and
Dame Judi Dench. All fabulous, talented actresses.
Your favourite movies,
and of course, films you really deplore?
My favourite film of all time
is The Shining with Jack Nicholson, closely followed by
Paint
Your Wagon with Lee Marvin and Clint Eastwood.
There really isn’t a
film that I don’t like. Every film has a market somewhere !! Your website,
Facebook, whatever else?
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You can find me at www.awesometalentagency.com
You can also find me on
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/martin.calcroft?ref=tn_tnmn
My actors page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Martin-Calcroft-Actor/338400492949409?ref=hl
You can also search for me on www.imdb.com/name/nm5579501
You can also ‘google’ me. Anything else you are dying to
mention and I have merely forgotten to ask?
If you do decide to go onto my
actors’ page, if you could ‘like’ and ‘share’ it please, I would
really appreciate it.
Thank you people!!
My actors page:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Martin-Calcroft-Actor/338400492949409?ref=hl
Thanks for
the interview!
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