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Your new movie Guts
on the Chainsaw - in a few words, what is it about?
After a traumatizing event, Nova tries to put the pieces of her life
back together, to prove she isn't crazy. She sets off on a hike to
find herself and to put some demons to rest that she has been dealing
with in her personal life. But deep in the forest there is a clan
of inbred cannibals, watching Nova ready to terrorize her. What
were your sources of inspiration when writing Guts
on the Chainsaw?
I was doing a lot of research into people who go hiking and are never
found, and I found the subject very fascinating. There are hundreds
of these reports across the United States. People go into the
woods and are never seen or heard from again. At the same time I
was doing research on folklore stories in Pennsylvania and found this
story about albino cannibals that were living in the Pennsylvania
mountains. So, I pretty much combined the two subjects and Guts
on the Chainsaw was born. Plus I'm a huge fan of The Texas Chainsaw
Massacre. I really enjoy stories that could possibly occur and
could possibly occur in our own backyard. Guts
on the Chainsaw sure has its gruesome bits - so what can you tell
us about the gore effects in your movie, and how were they achieved?
I try to stick to good old fashion practical effects. Latex and
jugs of fake blood are still my go-to for effects. We also just
used good old-fashioned water spray pumps for some of the blood effects. I
also used digital effects for the gore. It's much safer to use
digital effects when shooting people in the head. Also with the
explosion scenes, I just don't have the budget to blow up a house
so, we gotta go the digital route.
Do
talk about Guts on
the Chainsaw approach to horror!
Story is first... we had a young girl with issues and how she was
dealing with her personal situation. Build a character we can
cheer for and put them in a bad situation. The first place was the
forest... the forest alone can be a scary place and hiking a long trail
by yourself can be overwhelming. Then add the fact that the main
character is far from anyone or anyplace... Isolation can be extremely
scary. Then the final part would be the crazed inbred people
living in the woods watching or chasing you. So, the
approach is to build layers. How many layers can you have in a horror movie...
as many as you can get to create a situation the
audience can identify with and have them feel those emotions.
Horror isn't all about the blood and guts. It's about creating a
feeling that the audience can identify with and then they can create
their own sense of horror. With Guts
on the Chainsaw being a mostly outdoors movie - where was it
actually filmed, and what were the challenges filming there?
All of the film was shot in backwoods of Pennsylvania. I won't lie
it was done the old-fashioned way with run and gun film shooting. We
didn't get permits for some of the locations. We basically arrived
at a location early in the morning, filmed and got out of the area.
Basically guerilla style filmmaking. Run and gun - that only
occurred with certain forest areas. The rest we got approval from
friends who had great land marks on their property.
What
can you tell us about your overall directorial approach to your story at
hand?
Lead actress Nikki Carlson and I really went over the storyline several times before
filming. We went over each scene and we really went over what the
character was going through at each point of the script. So, when it was
time for the camera to roll she really understood where the character's
emotions should be. As far as directing the other actors, I
basically gave them descriptions from other horror movies and said this
is the type of character you are playing and this is how I want you to
play it. Plus giving them room to make the characters their own. Do talk about
Guts
on the Chainsaw's key cast, and why exactly these people?
Nikki Carson played Nova. She had done a few short pieces and
smaller character roles for me in the past. It was just time to
move her up to the big leagues. Eddie Benevich played Chris the hiker at
the waterfalls. Eddie has been making movies with me for over 20
years so, I always find something for him in a film. Peter Blessel
who played the hermit has also been making movies with me for many
years. Adam Holmes is a good friend who had done some acting in
other productions in the area. He enjoys playing the crazy serial
killer roles, so it was a blast to him on board.
A
few words about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere?
Half of the filming was guerilla style. Basically we were in a rush
on a few days. So, there was this rush feeling at times that we
were limited on time. So, our anxiety was high a few days of
filming. Other days where we had time, the atmosphere was always
laid back and enjoyable. We love what we do and if we are not
having fun we wouldn't make these films. Everyone always looks
forward to the shooting schedule because to us it's like going to summer
camp. We really look forward to it. Anything
you can tell us about audience and critical reception of Guts
on the Chainsaw? Guts
on the Chainsaw is a low budget horror flick that was made on a few
Dollars. We really didn't have a large budget but we tried to make
a movie that an audience would be entertained by from start to finish.
If you can entertain them, then most the time the audience and critics
will forget that they are watching an independent film. Most audiences seem to be enjoying the film and critics have been generous in
their reviews. It's like I always say... I could make a movie with
a million dollar budget and people will still bash it. But if you
can entertain them and get them hooked into the story and what they are
watching... then you did your job. Any future projects you'd like
to share? We start production on the next film in April. I'm doing a film
based on the German folklore of Faust but in a more horror/action way.
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Your/your movie's website, social media, whatever else? Guts
on the Chainsaw is available to rent/buy on Amazon
http://www.legendhuntersfilms.com
https://www.facebook.com/ryan.cavalline
https://www.facebook.com/groups/legendhuntersfilms/
https://www.youtube.com/@legendhuntersfilms2396
Trailer: https://youtu.be/yEj4cpZ-CPA
https://www.instagram.com/ryan_cavalline/
Anything
else you're dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask?
Support indie filmmaking - just by watching a film on VOD, or renting it, or
buying a DVD helps us keep going and making these small films. We
do it because we have a love and passion for telling stories and making
a film. So, the next time you're flipping through Tubi or Amazon,
stop and give that indie film you never heard of a chance. You
might just be surprised by it.
Thanks for the
interview!
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