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Your new movie Little Lucha
and The Big Deal - in a few words, what's it about?
Little Lucha
and The Big Deal is the story of two underdog wrestlers
trying to find where they fit into the world. It celebrates the less
glamorous side of finding your creative joy in life. To
put it bluntly, why wrestling, is this a sport you're also personally fond
of? I love wrestling. Since I was a kid watching taped re-viewings of
Wrestlemania events, I've always appreciated the art form and the skill
that goes into professional wrestling, Even now, I'm obsessed with
AEW wrestling and find the storytelling and style to be one of the
most entertaining forms of art available. I watch religiously every
week. But more than that, I thought it would be a fun world to play in
and a great way to blend my style with Scarlet Moreno's aesthetic [Scarlet
Moreno interview - click here]. Plus,
I just wanted to get thrown around in the ring and this seemed like
a good excuse. (Other) sources of inspiration when writing Little Lucha
and The Big Deal? I wrote this movie as an excuse to work with Scarlet and to learn
from her. Our styles always blended well together, but finding an excuse
to get on screen with her and make something that fit both our styles
was always the goal. This script was written many years ago, and when we
finally came back to it, we realized that we had something unique
and personal to say about these characters. I was inspired by the
idea of playing a character that no one would ever cast me for and
playing in the realm of wrestling. What can you tell us about Little Lucha
and The Big Deal brand of humour? I have a very silly sense of humor, and a lot of the comedy in the
film comes from the way my producer and co-writer Daniel Degnan and
I attempt to make each other laugh. While finding the heart of these
characters was paramount in telling the story, finding the laughs was
also a key element that came both from the writing and from Scarlet and
I having fun on set. Getting sincere laughs out of people is never easy, but
hopefully, the type of comedy we went for in this short works, and
people come out of the movie smiling.
Do talk about
the wrestling costumes in Little Lucha
and The Big Deal, and how much of an input did you have/demand in
their design? I asked my wife to design the Little Lucha costume. I knew a bit
of what I was hoping for in the colors, going for a very simple gold and
black theme. I also knew I wanted Luch to have an upside-down cross on
his mask, something a bit unique - especially for the times. From there,
I just let her run with it. She came up with the look for the mask and
cape and added the wings to the boots. Giving her creative control, she
was able to lean into her strengths and make something interesting and unique. A few words about your overall
directorial approach to your story at hand? Scarlet and I co-directed the film and we tried to allow each
other to work to our strengths. If there was ever a question about what
direction to go, we talked it through and came up with what worked
best for both of us. Most importantly, we made sure to have fun. We made
sure to give everyone on set what they needed to do the best they could
to bring their story or style or character to life. You've
directed Little Lucha
and The Big Deal together with your co-writer and co-star Scarlet
Moreno - so what was your collaboration like? Scarlet and I work together very well. Some would say it's
magical. With a collaboration like this, we tried to make sure that
whatever was important to one another was properly portrayed on
screen, Compromise and understanding are incredibly important on a
project like this. We both did our best to listen and be mindful of what
the other was trying to show. You also
play one of the leads in Little Lucha
and The Big Deal - so what can you tell us about your character,
what did you draw upon to bring Little Lucha to life, and have you written
him with yourself in mind from the get-go? I did write Little Lucha for myself. I'm a small guy so the idea
of getting on screen and wrestling isn't something most people would
think of me to play. I wanted to try something different in a world that
I'm passionate about and this character was very much the type of
character I'd have dreamed of playing as a kid. Donning a mask and
becoming someone else, that's always been a dream of mine. While I never
thought I'd be an actor, thanks to Scarlet's push and help, I was able
to do something I never thought would be possible.
Do talk about the rest of Little Lucha
and The Big Deal's cast, and why exactly these people? Everyone was great. I wrote the part of The Big Deal for Scarlet
and she brought the character to life through her performance, costume,
and personality beyond what I had ever imagined. Meghan Carlson, who
played Callie, was so perfect. We had initially written the role for
someone else. When that fell through, we put out a casting call and were
lucky to find Meghan. She brought the perfect bubbly personality to the
waitress and her performance makes me laugh every time I see it. My son
Max Stifter and his friend Amelia Waters played the roles of little Lucha Lucha and
little The Big Deal, and it was a blast working with them as well. A
few words about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere? The shoot was exactly what I hoped it would be technically and
emotionally. Our director of photography, Dennis Cahlo, understood what
we were going for and made the technical elements flow smoothly. He
asked the right questions and took initiative to add his own flares to
the look and feel. Everyone was excited and having fun, but also knew
that we had limited time and resources. It all moved very fast. Even
with everything that needed to get done, I don't think I've ever laughed
so much in my life. The
$64-question of course, where can Little Lucha
and The Big Deal be seen? Right now, Little Lucha
and The Big Deal is on the festival
circuit. Check out the @littleluchaxthebigdeal Instagram or @flushstudios
on Instagram for updates as to when and where you can check it out. Anything you can tell
us about audience and critical reception of Little Lucha
and The Big Deal? The audience at the LA Shorts International Film Festival was
really into it. The few reviews we've received have been informative and
generally positive as well. For me, it's all about how the team feels
though. We're so proud of this movie. It took a lot of work, probably
far more than anyone even realizes. It was years in the making and the
fact that we took the time to make it is almost miraculous. Seeing it on
the big screen, sitting next to Scarlet, it was incredibly inspiring and
I'm so glad we made it. And future projects you'd like to share? Check out patreon.com/flushstudios to
see what I'm up to! If you want to see more films and art from me and my
friends, consider subscribing. Everything I earn from the Patreon goes
directly into making more movies.
What
got you into the filmworld in the first place, and did you receive any
formal training on the subject? I just love filmmaking and the art of motion pictures. Animation
was my initial route into the medium. I went to school for animation and
still animate to this day. But making feature films and shorts was
always my dream and being able to do that has been an honor for me, What can you tell us
about your filmwork prior to Little Lucha
and The Big Deal? You can see some of my short film on
Patreon or on the Flush Studios YouTube page. My features The Good Exorcist and Greywood's
Plot are available on Amazon, Tubi and other platforms. The
show Scarlet and I met on, Rebel Without A Crew: The Series,
is available on iTunes. How would you describe
yourself as an actror, and how as a director? A goofball. I love being part of weird stories and making films
that surprise people. The more I can surprise someone, the better! Filmmakers,
actors, whoever else who inspire you?
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I'm often inspired by books these days. I read A LOT. Last year
I read over 40 books. This year, it's looking like I'll read over
50 at the rate I'm going. Stephen King is an author whom I
never fully understood. I thought he was too wordy. Over the past year,
I've read many of his books including Pet Sematary, The Mist,
You Like It Darker, On Writing and Salem's Lot. All of them were incredible. But
I don't just read horror. I read romance and mystery books. I read
historical non-fiction and self-help books. I recently read a book on
the love languages of teens that I found (mostly) fascinating. Reading
has become something I rely on daily to help me grow, learn, and
utilize my imagination, Your favourite
movies? The
Lighthouse, The Thing,
Tommy Boy, There Will Be Blood, Alien,
Moana, Glengarry Glen Ross, Beetlejuice. I love movies of all
sorts. Horror, comedy, action? I love it all, ... and of course, films you really deplore? Truthfully, there's nothing that I deplore. If I don't like a
movie, I generally forget I ever saw it. The worst evening of watching a
movie is still better than an evening doing almost anything else. Even a
really bad movie inspires me in some way; sometimes it just tells me
what I don't want to do with my art... Your/your
movie's website, social media, whatever else?
@littleluchaxthebigdeal
@flushstudios
Anything
else you're dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask? Nothing I can think of at the moment :) Thanks
for the interview!
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amazon.co.uk
amazon.de
eThaiCD.com
