Your new movie Battle
Apocalypse - in a few words, what is it about?
Battle Apocalypse
is a post-apocalyptic horror film, set decades after a
bio-terrorist attack unleashed a virus upon the world, transforming much
of humanity into vicious creatures and laying waste to civilization. The
remnants and survivors have staggered about for years, as the infected
slowly starve and die off.
Our story follows Josh and Penelope, two such survivors who have banded
together in the hope of rescuing others and hopefully rebuilding
civilization. When they encounter Abira, the lone survivor of another
group, they must face new and terrifying challenges if they are to
survive.
Synopsis aside, though, Battle Apocalypse
is about rebirth.
It’s about what the world might look like decades after the apocalypse,
and asks whether or not humans living in it might be better or worse for
it!
How
did the project come into being in the first place? Screenwriter
Ben Kurstin, who I had worked with in other capacities before – he as a
gaffer, me as a director of photography – has actually written several
really spectacular and uniquely dark scripts, many of which I had read
previously. One script in particular was this untitled zombie-esque
film that he wrote on a whim – he would say it was “for a girl” –
after driving by the old abandoned mall in Harvey, IL where they shot the
famous car chase from The Blues Brothers. He saw it and thought the
notion of telling a story set long after the apocalypse had already
happened would not only be a great setting for a film but one that could
be achieved on a micro-budget. He approached me and we talked about
the prospect of Glass City Films producing the project, and agreed that I
would direct it and he would shoot it; which would enable him to get a
feature film under his belt as a cinematographer (having shot a few short
films prior) and would enable us to finally produce a horror film!
|
With
zombie movies being pretty much a dime a dozen, what do you think makes
Battle
Apocalypse stick out of the crowd? They really are
a dime a dozen these days, aren’t they?! It’s easy to blame The
Walking Dead for the proliferation because of its success, but really
it’s a budgetary thing too; all you need is makeup and a lot of extras
willing to walk slowly on camera! I think, rather often, you get
some lazy filmmaking on account of the easy popularity of the genre, and a
lot of people don’t get into the subtext of what the zombies might
represent or how characters might reasonably act in that kind of
exaggerated situation. But on our end, what intrigued us about the script
had nothing to do with the zombie genre at all, but the fact that it’s
really a well-told love story, with strong and complex characters.
There was also a unique twist in that the film takes place so far after
the apocalypse and the infection has already happened, so it allowed us to
really create our own universe. In Battle Apocalypse,
humanity’s already lost, at least in what we’d consider civilization,
and compared to films like Dawn of the Dead or
28 Days Later
that actively show the breakdown of society, this shows us the remnants of
that world in the distant future. There’s something really
unsettling about that. Is the zombie
genre a genre at all dear to you, and some of your favourite zombie
movies?
Personally, I’m a huge fan of the genre. The obvious candidates
for my favorite zombie films would be the original Night of the Living
Dead (that ending still gets me) and Dawn of the Dead, but
I’m a surprising cheerleader for the Zack Snyder version of Dawn of
the Dead as well. 28 Days Later
was a big turning point for the genre,
with the whole infection thing as opposed to the undead. And Shaun
of the Dead is just terrific.
For me, I’ve always loved how zombies become this sort of
metaphorical stand-in for whatever issue we’re dealing with as a
culture, and Romero’s the champion of finding meaning in that, whether
it’s racism or consumerism or what have you. In Battle Apocalypse,
I latched onto the idea of a world ravaged by disease and a species
fearful of its own extinction, something we’re obviously dealing with
now with various viruses and ecological disasters. That sounds
totally pretentious, I know! And I wouldn’t say we were actively
thinking about how to exploit those things at every turn. But the
subtext is there, and I think it adds a gravitas that lesser zombie films
lack.
What can you tell us about Battle
Apocalypse's writer Ben Kurstin, what was your collaboration like,
and how did you first meet, even?
Like I said before, Ben and I had worked together for years before Battle Apocalypse; we first met on a film called
Nowheresville, a
no-budget feature that I shot for writer-director Jonathan Talbert.
We developed a pretty good rapport and shared a lot of the same visual
interests and ideas, growing as artists in film together in Chicago.
So us getting to work together in a new capacity – as a director/DP team
– was really exciting for us! And as a writer, Ben was
spectacular, particularly during the early phases of re-writing the
script; the film had a different, much bleaker ending originally (if
that’s even possible), and he did an incredible thing with finding ways
for every little moment and clue to have a payoff in its own way.
Our relationship during the production of Battle Apocalypse
was
really awesome, but also a bit complex and difficult at times. Being
a cinematographer myself, I can recall a dozen times or more that I’d
step behind the camera or start playing around with lighting and Ben would
basically have to slap me on the wrist and make sure I was letting him do
his job! And conversely, I can’t imagine how hard it must have
been for Ben to watch us play around with his script and even alter lines
over the course of the rehearsal process or filming on set, or watch us
have to block or set up shots differently than he might have pictured in
his mind while writing. But there’s nobody else who could have
shot this film with the incredible eye Ben has for composition, light, and
shadow, and sometimes finding ways to light scenes with a single fixture
and flashlights. Everything he brought visually had intention and
purpose, and we had so many lengthy and productive discussions during the
shot-listing stage – general themes, specific moments, film references.
This movie really has his stamp all over it, in the best way.
Cole Simon, Sara Gorsky |
|
Cole Simon, Tanya Thai McBride |
What can you tell us
about your cast, and why exactly these people?
Ben wrote much of the script with Cole Simon and Sara Gorsky in mind as
Josh and Penelope. We had worked with them before in many
capacities; Cole has actually directed a pair of features for Glass City Films
(the award-winning films Glass City and Separation Anxiety)
and had done tremendous theatre work in Chicago before Battle Apocalypse; Sara had done a couple of short films with us and had also
worked with Cole on a few theatrical productions as well. And
because of that experience, we knew both of them not only had the talent
but also the drive to work towards these characters; both of them lost a
ton of weight leading up to the production – to better fit into a world
of nomadic, starving survivors – and were actively involved in promoting
our Kickstarter campaign months before production began!
Tanya McBride came to us through Cole, actually – they had
collaborated together at Ohio State several years ago, and Tanya’s an
accomplished film and theatre actress in Chicago. She absolutely
nailed her audition for us, so much so that we wound up pushing production
back about a month to accommodate her availability! It was
absolutely worth it to us; she brought a startling humanity and
survivalism to Abira. It’s a hard role to play and a harder role
to make sympathetic, but she took it one step further and even evoked a
sense of real empathy for the character. They really all did such a
fantastic job bringing these characters to life.
You also
have to talk about your movie's locations for a bit, and what were the
challenges of filming there? And what kind of an effort was it to find the
right locations on a budget?
One of the central tenets of low-budget filmmaking is to write for what
you know you have. For better or worse, Gary, IN – a once-proud
steel town that’s fallen into severe disrepair and distress over the
past several decades – filled the bill of a world set decades after the
apocalypse, and Ben had scouted these locations in a variety of ways, from
looking online at sites like Urbex to going out for photography. The
abandoned church, the large factory warehouse, the dilapidated
hospital...these and more were all available to us, and we worked
extensively with the City of Gary’s Film Office to get permission for
all those areas.
The challenges are probably obvious for the most part, especially in a
winter setting: no power, no heat, no running water, etc. We had an
RV on set and either had a portable toilet or access to nearby buildings
for bathroom access, but otherwise we danced around small propane heaters
and carried a lot of hand warmers and coffee! The strange difficulty
we had early on was a sudden warm spell after a blizzard, which caused the
snow to melt and seep into the walls and leak on our sets; it’s a scary
sight to see pieces of roof and ceiling falling nearby because the old
concrete has begun to expand in the heat!
|
But really, budget-wise, you couldn’t ask for much more. We
could look 360 degrees and barely have to do any real set dressing for the
most part; the locations did all the work for us! And since the city
owned the vast majority of the locations, permission was easy to obtain
and as long as we had insurance covered, the fees were minimal.
Taking care of the crew and pre-scouting locations each day to confirm the
locations were safe was the main priority.
What can you tell us about
the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere? It was COLD.
Cold, damp, and dirty! That’s all real snow, real breath, real
shivers, and real dust being kicked up by our actors as they run from the
infected. It was an impossibly ambitious shoot: 94 pages in 17 days
in the dead of Chicago winter. Everyone had a blast, for sure, but
there was a real sense of focus, especially with limited daylight: we had
to make the most of every single day and not think about how cold it was. A few
words about audience and critical reception of your movie so far? So
far, the critical reception of the film’s been spectacular, including
your review, so thanks for that! With rare exception, people really
seem to get what we were trying to do, and haven’t complained that there
wasn’t enough gore or that it wouldn’t make sense for these characters
to be in these circumstances in this world or what have you.
That’s not to say those naysayers haven’t been out there – IMDb’s
full of them! You can’t please everyone, especially on our budget,
and we were never aiming to. We’ve had really positive feedback at
film festivals, and of course our premiere screening with our Kickstarter
backers in Chicago was maybe one of the most fun events I’ve ever been a
part of as a filmmaker.
Any
future projects you'd like to share? We’ve been so
focused on getting this film out into the world that I don’t know if
we’ve thought specifically about what our next endeavor would be! We’re
always developing new scripts – a couple of features, a possible web
series or two – and we’re definitely planning at least one short film
we’ll produce in the coming year. I know Ben’s always writing,
and as I’ve been studying for my MFA at Depaul University I’ve had the
pleasure of reading a lot of fantastic material from aspiring and current
screenwriters. The next project’s out there, for sure, and
probably already in our wheelhouse. But I want us to have the same
visceral, enthusiastic reaction we had when we read Ben’s script.
That’s when we’ll know exactly what we’re doing next. What got you into
filmmaking to begin with, and did you receive any formal training on the
subject? I’m not one of those filmmakers who knew from a
very young age that he wanted to be a director; really, the closest I got
was writing scripts and stories as a high school student. And I was
obsessed with box office reports (blame Titanic for that one).
But it wasn’t until I went to college at Notre Dame that I really
figured out how passionate I was about it, and decided to study it.
After graduating, then, I moved to Chicago to pursue a career as a
freelance cinematographer, and started Glass City Films
with Cole as a
means for making our passion projects. What can you tell us about your filmwork prior
to Battle
Apocalypse? I’ve directed another feature, the
romantic thriller Happily After, but for the most part I’ve worked
chiefly as a cinematographer on all manner of projects: short films,
feature films, documentaries, music videos, commercials. I’m
really proud of the work I did on the Bangladesh doc Strong Bodies Fight
and the feature film NightLights, but I’ve learned from every single
project I’ve ever done. That’s the best part about being a
filmmaker: you get to be a sponge in everything you do, learning tricks of
the trade on each production and applying them to the next one. How would you
describe yourself as director? I don’t know that I’ve
made enough films yet to describe myself, stylistically or personally!
But I love bending and blending genres, and hope to continue doing that.
As a director, I hope every film I make is in service of the story and the
script, and while that might result in some disparate works – Happily
After and Battle
Apocalypse are vastly different works – I
also believe I get exponentially better each time I’m behind the camera
because of that focus.
Filmmakers who inspire
you? David Fincher, Darren Aronofsky, Steven Spielberg, and
Kathryn Bigelow; The Hurt Locker and Zero Dark Thirty are,
to me, two of the best films about war I’ve ever seen. But really,
I’d say Fincher’s my favorite director; the consistency and audacity
that man has in what you might sometimes call simple thrillers, the style
and precision he employs, and the care he takes with his actors… that’s
what I’d endeavor to be, someday. I never run out of filmmakers
that inspire me! And I’d be remiss in not citing a bunch of the
cinematography greats: Deakins, Kaminski, Conrad Hall, Gordon Willis. The
list goes on. Your favourite movies? Eternal
Sunshine of the Spotless Mind will always hold the number one spot for
me. No film has captured my imagination and my heart in the same way
since. After that, though, I don’t even know if I could give you a
top ten list, and definitely not a ranked one. I love blockbusters
like Independence Day alongside small indies like Primer,
and my guilty pleasures sometimes outweigh the critically acclaimed gems
(damn, I wish I could stop watching Armageddon). The Dark
Knight is one of the best crime dramas of the 2000s. The
Social Network also really struck a nerve with me, and I’m still
bitter it lost Best Picture to The King’s Speech. Ghostbusters
is a perfect comedy in my mind. And horror-wise, you can’t top The
Exorcist. ... and of
course, films you really deplore? I’m a man not easily
displeased. Obvious candidates would be the Transformers
movies. All of them. And it’s probably not even fair to
mention Twilight. But if you’re looking for something a
little more unique, I’m also going to go out on a limb and say that
I’ve never had such a negative reaction to a film as I did to Douglas
Sirk’s Written On The Wind. I know that’s one of those
films you’re supposed to study when you’re in film school and admire
for all the mise-en-scene and whatnot. But… ugh. Honestly,
though, on a general level I find things to like in just about every film.
Most people will ask me, “You make films, so do you have a hard time
watching movies now?” And my response is exactly the opposite. If
I’m enthralled in a story, I’m not thinking about the technical
aspects. If the story’s not captivating, there’s always
something interesting to follow, some unique choice the director or actor
made. You have to find that spark in every movie, because someone
obviously believed in it enough to make it! Your/your movie's
website, Facebook, whatever else?
|
Feeling lucky? Want to search any of my partnershops yourself for more, better results? (commissions earned) |
The links below will take you just there!!!
|
|
|
Battle
Apocalypse – we still call it Chrysalis at film
festivals and via our website – can be found at our website,
www.TheRestAreDead.com,
and also on Vimeo On Demand. Other sites:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/therestaredead
Twitter: @GlassCityFilms
Tumblr: therestaredead.tumblr.com
IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2836260/
YouTube: www.youtube.com/glasscityfilms
We check all our social media pages and IMDb often!
Anything else you are
dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask? The
whole reason this film exists in the first place is because of the
Kickstarter campaign we ran back in August of 2012. We had 372
backers who believed in us enough, at a very early stage of the film’s
life, that they supported and backed us to the tune of over $35,000 –
even pledging for things like survival packs and getting to be an infected
in the film – and I’ll never stop being thankful for that. Thanks
for the interview!
Thank you!
|