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Your new movie Rally
Caps - in a few words, what's it about?
Surface level-wise, it's a story about a young boy who loves baseball, suffers a
traumatic injury, quits playing, and then regains his confidence at a
summer camp with the support of new friends. Thematically,
it's about a family healing from tragedy and estrangement, ultimately
brought back together by the journey of their youngest member, Jordy, as
he finds his way back to baseball.
Since Rally
Caps has a baseball theme - is that a sport you at all enjoy,
actively or at least passively? When
I was growing up, baseball was the most popular sport amongst me and my
friends. Playing, watching, collecting cards, and enjoying gum and
sunflower seeds on summer afternoons—it was pure escapism. I loved its
timelessness compared to other sports. Despite the pressure of some
in-game situations, you are never really up against a clock (although
that's changed recently). As I've aged with baseball, I've seen it go
through its share of struggles and learned it's not immortal. It's just
like anything else in life: beautiful, unique, flawed, but evolving.
Perfectly imperfect. How did you stumble upon
the book of the same name that Rally
Caps is based on, and what made you want to adapt it for the
screen? And what can you tell us about your collaboration with the book's
authors Stephen J. and Jodi Michelle Cutler? When
my first two films were released by Lionsgate, my company put out an
online query seeking finished low-budget sports-themed scripts for
development to be emailed to my company's site. Stephen J. Cutler, who
co-wrote the book with his daughter Jodi Michelle Cutler, did no such
thing. In lieu of a script, he physically mailed me what I'd call a
“Rally Caps fan package”: A huge envelope filled with merchandise—a
golf shirt, hat, and other items—along with the book and a handwritten
note on its cover. I don't remember what it said, something along the
lines of, "Please take a look at Rally Caps; it's going to make a
great movie." At first, I felt a bit bad. Baseball movies are
notoriously hard to make and expensive. My initial thought was, "This
seems like a nice fella with a story he wants to tell, but this movie will
never happen."
Clearly,
I was wrong.
Apart from
the book, what were your sources of inspiration when scripting Rally
Caps?
I
made sure the movie wore its inspirations on its sleeves—The Sandlot,
Field of Dreams, A League of Their Own, Angels in the
Outfield. Those 90s
classics represented a golden age of heartfelt family films, a genre I
always dreamed of working in but thought required a studio-level budget.
There was one specific moment that sparked me to adapt the book. I had been
writing scripts for over a decade in Los Angeles, struggling to get
something off the ground. None of my work was connecting. Then I read an
interview with Jordan Peele where he said something to the effect of "write something that you would want to watch." That struck me
as simple yet profound.
Hungry for a fresh take on a baseball kids' movie, I started adapting the book.
Although Stephen and I discussed making the movie when I started, I
honestly expected it to sit on my desktop and collect dust. But once
people started reading it, it resonated quickly and took off.
Do talk about your approach to the family
movie genre! Referencing
those family baseball classics of the 80s and 90s, and a few since then,
these films often revolve around something magical, or high concept, or a
remarkable true story, which gives them broad appeal. But what if the
family baseball, kids, and summer elements served as a backdrop to a small
concept character-driven indie film? Our movie employs a conventional
sports narrative structure but it’s really a slice-of-life film that
focuses on real people facing everyday problems. I’m not sure if this
blend has been done through the lens of a fun, baseball-themed kids'
summer film before. So that’s what I felt was a fresh take on the
genre. A few words about your overall directorial
approach to your story at hand? I
believe filmmakers often misconstrue “good directing” as having to
have a clear-cut vision for every detail of their creation. In reality,
it's a collaborative effort involving a village of talented individuals
who work their butts off. As a director, I try to express my intent in a
conversation with my colleagues, whether discussing an actor's objective
in a scene or conveying a certain aesthetic to the cinematographer. After
that conversation is had, whether there’s common ground reached or not,
it's crucial for me to step back and let people do their jobs. Let them
cook! What can you tell us
about Rally Caps' key
cast, and why exactly these people?
In my opinion, they all nailed it. It's as simple as that. I wish I could
break down every role and actor for you, but let's focus on the main
stars, the family. When I collaborated with producer Amy Williams to put
together a cast wish list, the first two names we had for Nora and Pop
were Judd Hirsch and Amy Smart. We couldn't believe it when both said yes,
and we were off to the races.
Judd,
a two-time Oscar nominee, brought all his pedigree and experience but had
the enthusiasm of someone making their debut and living out a dream. He
fit our movie in just weeks ahead of working with Steven Spielberg on The
Fabelmans. Despite his tight schedule, he cared deeply about every part of
Rally Caps and his role in supporting the film.
Amy Smart, also a legend with key roles in multiple classic films over the
last two decades, was the ultimate team player. She is incredibly
instinctual, making everything look so easy as an artist. I don't feel bad
saying this because she’s had such a successful career that many could
only dream about, but she's an underrated artist. She just is. There's not
a role out there she couldn't play.
Carson Minniear is an adult in a kid's body—wise beyond his years, instinctual, and
always in the moment. A director’s dream. When working with children,
there's often a lot to worry about, especially if a child is the lead and
not committed to the role. But Carson was committed, professional, and
mature. It was like having an adult colleague on set. He is naturally
gifted and made my job much easier. There’s always a small crop of elite
child and pre-teen actors in every generation. They don’t grow on trees.
Carson has that ability, so, keep an eye out for him.
I also need to mention Ben Morang. He may not get talked about enough, but
he’s stellar. His role was perhaps the most challenging to make
relatable to an audience: a brooding, angry teenager who hasn’t
processed his father’s death. Yet, I believe viewers are engaged and
committed to his character's healing by the end, which is a testament to
his performance. His role called for him to be restrained, often letting
his scene partner take the spotlight and be louder, more emotional, while
he remained more reactionary. That’s selfless acting and takes
discipline. It’s a hard task for such a young person to understand all
of that. But he passed with flying colors. If he hadn't, this movie would
have fallen apart at the seams.
You also have to
talk about Rally Caps'
summer camp location, and what was it like filming there? And how did you
find it even?
I grew up just 10 minutes from the filming site, which made the experience
incredibly surreal. My mom was on the crew throughout the filming, and we
both tried to take in every moment as best we could.
Interestingly, it wasn’t my idea to use this camp, nor did I seek it out deliberately.
Stephen J. Cutler, the co-writer of the book, had a contact at the camp,
and the owner sent us pictures. The camp fit the movie aesthetically, but
it was only after prioritizing it as one of our favorite locations that we
discovered it was near my childhood home.
Do talk about the shoot as such, and the
on-set atmosphere! Several
members of the cast and crew mentioned that it felt like we were actually
attending summer camp. During Covid, with strict protocols in place, 99%
of the team was quarantined on the campgrounds. We slept in cabins and
bunks, ate camp food, and fully immersed ourselves in the experience. The $64-question of course, where can
Rally Caps be seen? 18.99
dollar answer: it will be available for rental, purchase and VOD
everywhere on September 10th, 2024. Should be easy to seek out. If
you want to snag a DVD (remember those?) version of it, you can pre-order
it here: https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1563710692 Anything
you can tell us about audience and critical reception of Rally
Caps? Including
your review, we’ve had mostly favorable reviews. Which I’m grateful
for. As of this writing, we’re certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes :) Any future projects you'd like to share? Nothing
yet. I have a couple of projects "in development", as they say,
but nothing ready to start rolling at the moment. What
got you into filmmaking in the first place, and did you receive any formal
training on the subject?
I have always been involved with the medium on some level for as long as I
can remember. My first film was when I was about 8 years old. It was about
two New York Jets fans (played by myself and my childhood buddy Jason
Campbell, who also appears in Rally Caps) who watch in real time as Joe
Namath predicts the Jets' Super Bowl victory. My dad (the ghost director)
shot it with a VHS camera and edited it on his VCR. Fun stuff.
I didn't fully commit to film as a career until high school, but it was
always something I did in one way or another throughout my whole life. Not
to mention that I watched movies religiously. Back in the 80s and 90s,
when I was growing up, there wasn’t the same access to movies as today.
We as a family watched a lot of the movies that came out in theaters but I
also devoured whatever we had on VHS at home over and over again. The Wizard of
Oz, Field of Dreams, Stand By Me and Boyz ‘N The Hood were my staples—I probably
watched each of those films about 500 times.
What can you tell us about your
filmwork prior to Rally Caps? I
have a pretty diverse group of projects in terms of genre. My first two
features, Know Thy Enemy and Harder They Fall, were shot
pretty much right out of college but secured distribution through Lionsgate. My third film,
The Shift, stars Danny Glover. All
of these movies are available online. None of them are like Rally Caps,
hehe. How
would you describe yourself as a director? I’d
like to think I serve the story, whatever that entails, as opposed to
serving myself. I think there’s where filmmakers go wrong. If you’re
making ego-driven decisions, the integrity of the work suffers. Filmmakers
who inspire you? It's
tough to answer as it’s changed throughout my life. I love the popular
ones, of course: Spielberg, Coppola, Cameron, Scorsese, Zemeckis, Spike
Lee. However, the one who most directly impacted me was Robert Rodriguez.
When I was 20, a friend bought me a copy of his book Rebel Without A
Crew. I read it in one sitting, dropped everything, and made my first
feature film straight away. Honestly, I'm not sure if I would have taken
the leap into filmmaking without reading it. If you're struggling to make
your first film, pick up that book and don't look back. Your favourite movies? To
name just a few... Stand By Me, Field of Dreams, The
Sandlot, Boyz 'N The Hood, Heat, Jerry Maguire, and
Contact. The latter surprises many people,
but I had to mention it. I think it's vastly underrated. ...
and of course, films you really deplore?
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I'm very critical as a consumer, as my friends would tell you, but I don't
actually hate any movies. For instance, some of the widely considered
"worst films of all time" are actually hugely entertaining. I
just have too much appreciation for how hard movies are to make to dump
hatred on them. Your/your
movie's website, social media, whatever else?
https://rallycapsthemovie.com/
https://www.facebook.com/rallycapsthemovie
https://www.instagram.com/rallycapsthemovie/
Thanks for sharing!
Anything else you're dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask? You’re
the man. That’s all. Thank you. Thanks
for the interview!
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