Hot Picks

- Ready for My Close Up 2019

- Talk of the Dead 2016

- Script of the Dead 2024

- The Bell Affair 2023

- Easter Bloody Easter 2024

- Velma 2022

- Everwinter Night 2023

- Main Character Energy 2023

- Stupid Games 2024

- Bittertooth 2023

- 4 Minutes of Terror: Night Slasher 2024

- Apart 2024

- The Abandoned 2006

- Becky 2024

- The Evil Fairy Queen 2024

- The Black Guelph 2022

- Followers 2024

- Silence of the Prey 2024

- Battle for the Western Front 2024

- Beware the Boogeyman 2024

- Subject 101 2022

- Driftwood 2023

- The Legend of Lake Hollow 2024

- Black Mass 2023

- Skinwalkers: American Werewolves 2 2023

- The Manifestation 2024

- Spirit Riser 2024

- Garden of Souls 2019

- It's a Wonderful Slice 2024

- Caleb & Sarah 2024

- The Thousand Steps 2020

- The Desiring 2021

- When a Stranger Knocks 2024

- Quint-essentially Irish 2024

- Son of Gacy 2024

- Saltville 2024

- The True Story of the Christ's Return 2024

- Whenever I'm Alone with You 2023

- Jurassic Triangle 2024

- Midnight Peepshow 2022

- Offworld: Alien Planet 2024

- The Swiss Conspiracy 1976

- Sex-Positive 2024

- Here for Blood 2022

- All Over Again 2024

- The Color Yellow 2023

- Des Töchterleins Leid 2024

- I Am a Channel 2024

- The Hermits 2023

- Murdaritaville 2024

- Inheritance 2024

- The Devil's Partner 1960

- Pareidolia 2023

- First Impressions Can Kill 2017

- A Killer Conversation 2014

- Star Crash 1979

- Strangler of the Swamp 1946

An Interview with Emma Dark, Director of Purgatoric

by Mike Haberfelner

November 2018

Emma Dark on (re)Search my Trash

 

Quick Links

Abbott & Costello

The Addams Family

Alice in Wonderland

Arsène Lupin

Batman

Bigfoot

Black Emanuelle

Bomba the Jungle Boy

Bowery Boys

Bulldog Drummond

Captain America

Charlie Chan

Cinderella

Deerslayer

Dick Tracy

Dr. Mabuse

Dr. Orloff

Doctor Who

Dracula

Edgar Wallace made in Germany

Elizabeth Bathory

Emmanuelle

Fantomas

Flash Gordon

Frankenstein

Frankie & Annette Beach Party movies

Freddy Krueger

Fu Manchu

Fuzzy

Gamera

Godzilla

Hercules

El Hombre Lobo

Incredible Hulk

Jack the Ripper

James Bond

Jekyll and Hyde

Jerry Cotton

Jungle Jim

Justine

Kekko Kamen

King Kong

Laurel and Hardy

Lemmy Caution

Lobo

Lone Wolf and Cub

Lupin III

Maciste

Marx Brothers

Miss Marple

Mr. Moto

Mister Wong

Mothra

The Munsters

Nick Carter

OSS 117

Phantom of the Opera

Philip Marlowe

Philo Vance

Quatermass

Robin Hood

The Saint

Santa Claus

El Santo

Schoolgirl Report

The Shadow

Sherlock Holmes

Spider-Man

Star Trek

Sukeban Deka

Superman

Tarzan

Three Mesquiteers

Three Musketeers

Three Stooges

Three Supermen

Winnetou

Wizard of Oz

Wolf Man

Wonder Woman

Yojimbo

Zatoichi

Zorro

Your new movie Purgatoric - in a few words, what is it about?

 

Purgatoric is an experimental art film. Shot digitally I affected it in post production to give it a Super 8mm look and feel. The film explores themes of death, sadness, uncertainty, and ultimately hope. It stars cult film and arts icon Billy Chainsaw, with music by London based band The Core.

 

Other than with your previous films, you went the non-narrative, experimental road with Purgatoric - what caused that decision?

 

I did, and you have to remember that this isn't one of my festival films, it's intended as a straight to web art piece. That's something I'm keen to avoid confusion on. It doesn't mean it's any less valid, but there is a significant difference in my approach and the entire life cycle of the film. If I'm making a festival film, or something commercial it's probably not going to be an experimental art film, but art films are something I enjoy and wanted to explore the story's themes using this approach.

 

Especially since Purgatoric is rather abstract - is it in any way based on personal experiences?

 

Well I think you could say that any artist can and will put their personal experiences into their work to give it a solid foundation. I'd actually had this idea floating around in my head for 2.5 years, but I guess 2018 generally being a year of ups and downs did feed into the end result.

 

(Other) sources of inspiration when dreaming up Purgatoric?

 

A few people have said some of the shots remind them of Kubrick (big thanks to those who have paid a massive compliment like that). While this might be by chance based on the architecture of the location there's probably something to be said for my love of retro imagery. So no exact influences, maybe just more of a stylistic approach and some rather helpful brutalist architecture.

 

You use some pretty impressive locations in Purgatoric - so did you write the film with these locations already in mind, and what was it like filming there?

 

Not exactly. From way back to the conception of the idea I had always envisioned filming on a particular popular beach on the south coast of England. I however did not film on that beach, and the location is a secret location suggested by the actor Billy Chainsaw.

 

Purgatoric has a Super 8-vibe to it, which I understand you only added in post-production - so what caused that decision?

 

Actually that wasn't intentional, but as I unluckily managed to gain a couple of spots somehow on my camera's sensor on the train down with no sensor cleaning kit to hand I had to improvise. That meant degrading the footage as gracefully as possible, hence 'Super Fake mm' was born, and as you can see I added light leaks, a faux hair on the lens and various other things to help achieve this effect.

 

What can you tell us about your overall directorial approach to your story at hand?

 

This was slightly different to the meticulous planning of my festival short films. I wanted to go in with a basic storyboard and then improvise shots and actions on the day, and I shot this myself, because why not! For example I would say "act distraught" to Billy and see what interpretation I would get from him before drilling down into a more detailed directorial instruction. Often I didn't have to, Billy understood the story and the emotions I wanted portrayed and I preferred his improvisations to something more contrived looking that I may have achieved by pressing further.

 

Purgatoric stars Billy Chainsaw as the only actor in front of the camera - so what can you tell us about him, your collaboration with him, and why did you choose him in the first place?

 

Billy is a cult legend on the film and music scene having spent many years as a highly revered journalist and PR manager for Siouxsie and the Banshees, and he's a good friend of mine. I chose Billy because he asked to be in something and I could see he would be able to bring emotion to the table. I actually remember talking about casting Billy in something the first time I met him. He's got a great look and has featured in a few films, but it was really the emotion that made him perfect for this role, and the end result is something we achieved together.

 

What can you tell us about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere?

 

It was hot! I got sunburnt, which makes a change from being freezing cold and getting a chest infection! Billy almost got his foot drenched in sea water, the BTS photographer managed to get his shoes wet I think. Apart from that it was a very relaxed and informal shoot.

 

The $64-question of course, where can your movie be seen?

 

Straight to web on Vimeo and YouTube here:

https://vimeo.com/300878196

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SD4hqknzyTk

 

Anything you can tell us about audience and critical reception of Purgatoric yet?

 

It seems to have gone down well. It's always hard to tell, and like I've mentioned it's not to be confused with one of my festival films. However myself, Billy, The Core (Pete, Mick), and poster artist Joe K Worrall put a lot of time, effort and passion into the film and I think that comes across and makes the piece noteworthy.

 

Any future projects you'd like to share?

 

Feeling lucky?
Want to
search
any of my partnershops yourself
for more, better results?
(commissions earned)

The links below
will take you
just there!!!

Find Emma Dark
at the amazons ...

USA  amazon.com

Great Britain (a.k.a. the United Kingdom)  amazon.co.uk

Germany (East AND West)  amazon.de

Looking for imports?
Find Emma Dark here ...

Thailand  eThaiCD.com
Your shop for all things Thai

Salient Minus Ten is still doing the festival circuit, you can catch the trailer here https://vimeo.com/231845267, and follow it on Facebook here https://www.facebook.com/SalientMinusTen. Apart from that I have some feature ideas, and more ideas for creative pieces. As always I am waiting in anticipation of being approached for paid work after garnering various levels of interest from Hollywood and UK production companies this year.

 

Your/your movie's website, Facebook, whatever else?

 

http://www.emmadark.com

https://vimeo.com/300878196

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SD4hqknzyTk

 

Thanks for the interview!

 

© by Mike Haberfelner


Legal note: (re)Search my Trash cannot
and shall not be held responsible for
content of sites from a third party.




Thanks for watching !!!



 

 

In times of uncertainty of a possible zombie outbreak, a woman has to decide between two men - only one of them's one of the undead.

 

There's No Such Thing as Zombies
starring
Luana Ribeira, Rudy Barrow and Rami Hilmi
special appearances by
Debra Lamb and Lynn Lowry

 

directed by
Eddie Bammeke

written by
Michael Haberfelner

produced by
Michael Haberfelner, Luana Ribeira and Eddie Bammeke

 

now streaming at

Amazon

Amazon UK

Vimeo

 

 

 

Robots and rats,
demons and potholes,
cuddly toys and
shopping mall Santas,
love and death and everything in between,
Tales to Chill
Your Bones to

is all of that.

 

Tales to Chill
Your Bones to
-
a collection of short stories and mini-plays
ranging from the horrific to the darkly humourous,
from the post-apocalyptic
to the weirdly romantic,
tales that will give you a chill and maybe a chuckle, all thought up by
the twisted mind of
screenwriter and film reviewer
Michael Haberfelner.

 

Tales to Chill
Your Bones to

the new anthology by
Michael Haberfelner

 

Out now from
Amazon!!!