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Your new movie Up Close
- in a few words, what's it about?
Up Close is about a
married man who realizes his life is stuck in a rut and decides to make a
drastic change with surprising results. What were your
sources of inspiration when writing Up
Close, and is any of it based on personal experiences? Up Close
is inspired by the notion if something doesn’t work for you, change it.
Whether it be a job, a relationship or any life choice. Life is too short
for living a life you don’t really want. In this short film, I turned up
the heat on this concept to really explore making a strong choice and
change. Do talk about Up Close's
brand of humour for a bit! I’m not a fan of horror
comedies per se, but that said, I find that if something mundane is
juxtaposed with something extreme, the contrast can be hilarious. Twisted
darkness works best with a smidgen of light to highlight the difference. You've made a rather unusual
directorial choice in Up Close
by pointing the camera at your protagonist's face at all times - now what
triggered this choice, and was this already your intention when you
started to write your movie or did it only sneak in later on? I’ve
always been fascinated by the signs we miss in a social context. At a
dinner table, we chat, we eat, we drink, we look away - and sometimes miss
the interesting signals another person can emit. Keeping the camera on the
protagonist the whole time, we get to see everything. Every thought, every
reaction to what happens around him. People in the scene may miss it, but
we, as viewers, won’t. That is an intriguing concept. It’s all in the
details of what a person tries to cover up or conceal. On
the other side of the camera, you of course also play the lead in Up
Close - so for you as an actor, what were the challenges (if any)
of having the camera in your face at all times? I’ve
acted in other shorts of mine before and to me, it’s an advantage. I
know what I can do as an actor and having written the script, I know
exactly the beats I need, the editing, the transitions I need, so playing
the protagonist was a no-brainer. The interesting thing for this film that
were no cutaways, no inserts of any kind, so there was nowhere to hide.
If something went wrong in a take, we had to ditch it and start over.
Essentially we had to shoot entire scenes until I got what I wanted in its
entirety. The luxury was I didn’t have to worry about continuity.
So do
talk about your character in Up
Close for a bit, what did you draw upon to bring him to life, and
have you written Simon with yourself in mind from the get-go?
I
wrote Simon knowing I’d play him. I wasn’t really keen on shooting
another short film, but since I’m in the lengthy process of raising
funds for a feature film, I thought a short film would keep my head in the
director’s game. I decided if I was to do another short film, I wanted
to shoot something experimental, challenge myself and not just make more
of the same. Up Close
did that. Up until the final edit I wasn’t sure it would work, but I’m
happy with it now. I knew this film needed an excellent sound design as so
much happens off camera, and thankfully I had an ace up my sleeve - the
wonderful sound designer David Salierno whom I have worked with before.
He’s a genius and he really understood what I was going for. Also on the
team, Chelsea Rugg is wonderful editor who I can always throw a question
at and get a thoughtful response. Surrounding myself with a gifted team
makes my life so much easier. What
can you tell us about the rest of your cast, and why exactly these people? Because
the rest of the cast is off screen, I needed voices that were distinct as
well as actors who be able to bring life to a role without the visual
support. Anne Bobby [Anne Bobby
interview - click here] is a good friend and she is always game for a
challenge. She elevated the dinner scene with her excellent play off the
talented Dan Domingues. Jeanine Bartel played my wife and had the right
tone of entitlement and warmth I was looking for. Jennifer Plotzke [Jennifer
Plotzke interview - click here] really
knew how to channel the cold but smooth “hostess with the mostest”
energy. My husband Petros Levounis snuck in there as the Interviewer and
it’s always great to have him involved with my projects. The
$64-question of course, where can Up
Close be seen? Up Close
was literally just completed last week. So I’m working on a trailer
and we have slowly started the film festival submission process. So
let’s see if this odd short gets any love from the circuit. I hope it
will get programmed. Time will tell. Anything you can tell us about
audience and critical reception of Up
Close yet? It’s only been shared by a few
insiders and so far I’ve been relieved at the overwhelmingly positive
reception. Any future projects you'd like to share?
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My feature film House of Abraham (I wrote the
script and acted opposite Natasha Henstridge and Lin Shaye) is coming out
this year theatrically and on streaming. Directed by Lisa Belcher, we’re
working hard on finding a good home for it. Announcements will come soon.
Follow on Instagram for updates. Also, working on financing for a feature
based on my sci-fi short, Into the
Dark, with a great team in Seattle led
by Ben Andrews. Your/your movie's website, social media, whatever else?
www.lukashassel.com,
Lukas Hassel on Instagram, Houseofabrahammovie on Instagram,
Lukas Hassel on Blue Sky. Anything else you're dying to mention and I have
merely forgotten to ask? Silence is complicity. Speak up against
nonsense. Thanks for the interview!
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