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Your movie Prosper - in
a few words, what is it about?
Prosper
is the true story of the last surviving witch of the Salem Witch Trials
and her need to kill young people to revive her spirit while promising
hopes of immense prosperity to her unsuspecting victims.
What can you tell us about Prosper's
take on witchcraft, and did you do any research on the subject? And is the
movie based on any "real" mythology or made up out of thin air?
The
reason I like to use the term “true story” is that the movie is based
on an element of truth. Sarah Good was considered one of the most powerful
witches on trial during the witch trials. It is well documented that she
had a child but the fact is she had two; it is the baby who is left out of
the pages of the history books.
As
the story goes Sarah’s slave, Tabitua, rescued the baby before the
village people had a chance to kill her. She took her back to the slave
quarters where she raised the baby as her own. In my research, I found
that the baby was said to be possessed by an evil spirit. Or in any
documents, I could source about the child every reference said that she
was always shadowed by a kind of “dark spirit”. In certain
plantations, she became known as a bokor, or voodoo sorcerer. Of
course, as a filmmaker, I took creative liberties to embellish the story
and bring it to life.
(Other)
sources of inspiration when writing Prosper?
The
irony about
Prosper
is that it was originally conceived during a
meditation session. I meditate often for clarity in life’s situations,
to get the creative juices going, and just overall to keep my sanity in
this crazy world. But one day, during this particular type of meditation
that was new to me I went deep into my mind and had this insanely unique
experience! Hours
later when I came to myself, with the help of my wife and sister, I
realized it wasn’t just my typical meditation, this was something
altogether different. I had experienced this thing that I couldn’t quite
describe. As a writer, I thought the best thing to do was to write it
down. It
was then I quickly realized I had experienced a movie. It wasn’t
complete by any means but the core and essence of the movie were there. It
inspired the research which then brought all the missing pieces together
into what many have labeled a masterpiece.
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While
I am proud of the work, I’m not sure I’d call it a “masterpiece”;
instead, what I would say is it’s a movie I am extremely proud to have
brought to life simply because of all the many challenges we had in
getting it made, and even leading to finding a house that was actually
haunted to become a central character in the story.
What
can you tell us about your movie's approach to horror, and is horror a
genre at all dear to you? You
know, I am very fond of the genre but honestly, up until
Prosper, I would
have never called myself a horror film director. I guess it’s because I
hold guys like Kubrick, King, and Hitchcock in such high esteem that I
could never imagine putting myself on their level. With that, I wanted to
make sure I did the genre justice and not just make another slasher movie
which is a dime a dozen these days. I wanted it to feel authentic and I
wanted the story to bleed through the screen. If you watched the movie and
felt creeped out, as so many people have told me they have, I did my job! A few words about your overall
directorial approach to your story at hand? My
approach is to get the team to buy into the overall concept. I want
everyone to feel valued, appreciated, and heard, which can be difficult
when some folks are louder than others just by nature. But film is such a
collaborative process that I think it just works best when everyone
participates on some level.
Do talk
about Prosper's key
cast, and why exactly these people?
We
did a cattle call in an effort to source the right people. Then after a
series of additional casting one-on-ones we found the cast. It’s an
ensemble piece, so understanding that it was important for me to have the
right mix, and the right chemistry among the actors. And
frankly, it didn’t end after the original casting. I fired a third of
the cast as the rehearsals went on and the actor’s commitment to the
work either shined through or it didn’t. It may be seen as me being
tough or something like that but it made the days flow once we got into
production.
I
think once the actors understood I was no nonsense it sort of put
people’s egos in check and served to reduce the drama on set that can
tank low-budget productions.
You're also credited
as tarantula-wrangler on Prosper
- you just have to elaborate on that a bit! Ha!
I had an impromptu idea to add a tarantula to the basement scene. So my
line producer rushed off to purchase one at the pet store. When she
returned and we set up for the scene it was only then I realized that we
didn’t have anyone to actually wrangle the spider. I said screw it,
swallowed my pride, and handled the little guy myself. After that scene,
he affectionately became known as “Harry”, lol! What can you
tell us about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere?
The
shoot was intense. For one, we were trying to shoot 131
pages in fifteen days. Given that a normal shoot is 5-7 pages per day, we
were trying to do the impossible. And maybe that’s true but one thing we
had going for us was that I am very thorough, very organized, and
incredibly efficient. I’m also good at hiring the right people to
delegate responsibilities.
If
you weren’t living up to the job you signed on for, you were terminated
and I moved on quickly. That’s the kind of accountability that provides
for the efficiency to get such a monumental undertaking done. I don’t
make it personal. My expectations are established upfront, they’re
discussed, and we are either in agreement or we aren’t.
Anything
you can tell us about audience and critical reception of Prosper?
So
Prosper
had two premieres and an international grand premiere. With the
first premiere, I was determined to bring the movie to my hometown, a
little rural community in the heart of Kentucky called Campbellsville. My
reasoning was that I knew how impactful releasing my movie would be,
especially for the kids there. I
recalled the many nights writing stories and dreaming of the big screen
and bringing my movie back to this little town and doing it in a big way
was not only a dream come true for me but I knew it would be inspiring for
all of those other children, students, and college kids in the town and
surrounding counties who also had a dream.
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So
I got with the local movie theater agreed to play the movie for a night
and then went to the local newspaper, the local radio station, the local
university, and local churches and created an awesome marketing campaign
to get the word out. The one-night premiere turned into a sold-out weekend
which kicked it all off. A
couple of weeks later we did the same thing in Atlanta, where I live, and
had yet another nearly sold-out event with more than 200 people attending
the premier to much praise and fanfare!
But
the biggest and the best thing, in my humble opinion, is that I met a
distributor at the American Film Market who agreed to take Prosper
to the
Cannes Film Festival & Market. In 2015 Prosper
premiered to an
international market of buyers who gave the movie a stellar critique which
has landed me more opportunities.
Any
future projects you'd like to share? Right
now I am working on a slate of kids' shows. One is based on my
daughter’s podcast called All Things Madison, you can find it on any
podcast platform. The show is a live-action variety show for ‘tweens and
families. Another is an animation based on a kids’ book series I wrote a
few years ago called The Fantastical Adventures of Sleepy Steve. And
lastly, I am working to get my podcast The Expert Process Podcast onto the
Sirius radio platform in their new video format. That’s in addition to a
couple of documentaries I have been brought on to produce. What got you into
filmmaking in the first place, and did you receive any formal education on
the subject?
I
have always had a love for stories, creating worlds, creating characters,
and entertaining people. I met a filmmaker in my last year in college who
really put the thought into my mind that I could make a movie. When I
moved to Atlanta in 1998 I met another filmmaker who agreed to help me
produce my first film. When the effort fell apart he brought me onto a
couple of his other productions and expanded my understanding of what
happens behind the scenes. That led to me attending a local college’s
inaugural film program which led to my first short film that won several
local, regional, and national competitions. Pretty much, the rest is
history.
What can you tell us about your filmwork
prior to Prosper?
My
path has been different than most I would say, namely because I have
paired my sales experience with my filmmaking career to open doors for me
that wouldn’t be available to other people. I learned early on to shop
and market myself, my talents, and my abilities. So for example, after my
very first short film, I leveraged the awards that I received as best
director, best short film, or even audience choice awards to get paid
short-term opportunities, these days they’d be called gigs I think.
Right
out of the gate I was hired to direct and produce a series of spec
commercials for a major Asian beer company looking to test the waters on
bringing their beer into the US. It was easy work and paid me over $10k in
total for the job.
Next
up was a project for the American Heart Association. Then there was an
anti-smoking campaign, and so on and so on. Each opportunity led to the
next but they were what we would consider today as short-form content. I
was eventually asked to help a friend produce his first feature which
ultimately fell apart but the lesson was as valuable as the experience in
my book. I learned a lot about what not to do when it came to my own
project.
How
would you describe yourself as a director?
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I
would describe myself as a risk-taker, a visionary, and a storyteller with
a passion for creating meaningful content. Filmmakers
who inspire you? There
are lots of filmmakers who inspire me, one is Robert Rodriguez mainly
because of his hustle. He’s known to wear many hats when making his
movies and he’s done a great job at crisscrossing genres. But more
recently I would say is writer/director Jordan Peele. Peele is inspiring
because he actively looks to push boundaries and place people of color in
roles and positions we don’t typically see them. For that, I feel we are
kindred spirits and I plan to work with him one day. Notice, I said plan,
right? Well, it’s because I see it like it’s already happened, you
just happen to be the first place I announced it. Let’s see how this
interview ages. Your favourite movies?
My
favorite movies are Car Wash, Shaft,
Sleepless in Seattle, The
Shining,
The Notebook, Rosewood, Rat Race, Meet the Fockers, and many more. ...
and of course, films you really deplore? Too
many to count. Your/your
movie's website, social media, whatever else? To
check us out just go to Facebook.com/ProsperTheMovie. And you can learn
more about me at TheExpertProcess.com and
DeronteSmith.com. Anything
else you're dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask? I
have a passion for helping filmmakers so feel free to reach out! Thanks
for the interview!
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