Director Bret Wood - Psychopathia Sexualis

After recently reviewing Psychopathia Sexualis, I had come across a wide variety of negative reviews on Rotten Tomatoes - most of which seemed to ignoranly miss the point of what the filmmaker was presenting to the keener eye.  In an age of breast implants and plastic surgery, many were expecting titilating tits and ass and were disappointed upon being turned off by hairy, carnival quality frontal male nudity, and the like.  I got in touch with the director Bret Wood and probed the mental poetic licensing behind Psychopathia Sexualis and ended up in a deep conversation about the golden age of early cinema and the qualities of it that fans like ourselves tend to often overlook...

HoH:  Today we are here with Bret Wood - the director of Psychopathia Sexualis - a bizarre adaptation of a sexual dysfunction psychology book written by Dr. Richard von Krafft-Ebing in the 1880's.  It was released on DVD January 9th, 2007, and according to several reviews that Ive come across, it has been widely misunderstood.  So we're here to talk with Bret about the film - get an inside look as to exactly what it was all about - and also look into the method behind his old-school madness...  Bret, thanks for joining us today.

BRET WOOD:  Thanks for the opportunity to talk about the film.

HoH:  No problem...  Psychopathia Sexualis - the book - not exactly a piece of fiction.  Some would say not even a "story".  What made you go with the idea of adapting a psychology textbook into a film?

BRET WOOD:  Well I was reading it, at first, for research on another script I was writing at the time.  Trying to get into the mind of people's secret, sexually deviant lives.  And as Im reading it, Im thinking, "Wow - that would make a great scene for a movie.  That would make a great scene for a movie..."  But you couldn't possibly tie all these things together.  So that's when I figured, "Well, why not just drop the idea of a conventional, single narrative..."  And if you're going to adapt a medical textbook, present it as a medical text - so its just chapter by chapter.  Case history by case history.  Which...  Im proud of that - I like the way that that happened - but a lot of mainstream critics and viewers, they didn't know how to watch a movie like that.  They're used to seeing that simple story, from beginning to end, that they can really get emotionally involved in, but you dont get emotionally involved in a psychological textbook.  So that was the root of one of its main problems connecting with an audience.

HoH:  Right - now when I came across some views of Psychopathia Sexualis - it seemed that a lot of people misinterpreted the effort.  Jeannette Catsoulis in the New York Times puts it in harsh terms. She says "... there is not one moment of fun. Whether in the whorehouse or the sanitarium, Psychopathia Sexualis is an exercise in unrelenting dullness."  Personally, I feel that she and a lot of others missed the point.  When Dr. Krafft-Ebing wrote the book he purposefully presented it in a form that was unappealing to the thrill-seeking eye, so as to be more regarded as professional and of use to doctors and lawyers.  What I took away from your adaptation of Psychopathia was that you were being true to the spirit of Dr. Krafft-Ebing's material, by not casting attractive models and by not exploiting the sexy, T&A aspect of the subject matter...  Is that something that you were conscious of going in?

BRET WOOD:  Absolutely.  Just like his original book - even though he tried to thwart people who would read it for entertainment - there's like a small subculture that still really loves to read this book.  Its just a fascinating thing to kinda page through.  Even though he didnt want people to look at it as entertainment, there's always that group of us that still look at it that way, and I think the film is going to wind up being the same way.  Its going to go over the heads of most people, but there's gonna be like this core audience that appreciates what it is, and doesn't mind that its a medical textbook - you know - and can kind of come back to it and page through it at their leisure. 

HoH:  Did you ever toy with the possibility of taking this a more sexier, more expolitative route?

BRET WOOD:  Uh - not really.  Just because what really interests me in it is the whole creepy, medical aspect of it.  I never intended for it to be "fun" - and I know that frustrated a lot of people.  That review you talked about - at the end she said something like, "If Sharon Stone did this kind of movie she'd be out of business."  If you're comparing this to a Sharon Stone movie, you have no idea what this film's intention was, or - you know - thats just such an absurd point of reference, in my mind. 

HoH:  Right.  Now - Bram Stoker's Dracula.  It kind of occured to me - as you researched the presence that Dr. Krafft-Ebing's book had in the late 1800's - how much of an influence do you think Psychopathia Sexualis had on the origin of the vampire legacy as written by Stoker?

BRET WOOD:  You know its amazing how much blood...  And I didn't mean for so much blood to be in this movie - but I realized that in so many of Krafft-Ebing's case histories, blood was like this sexual fluid that we dont think about today.  You think of other fluids.  But its amazing how much vampirism and a variety of other forms of this - its amazing how blood just isnt thought of as a sexual fluid anymore.  At the time, maybe it was some kind of substitute?  Because...  there was this "Victorian" moral code at the time, that sort of prohibited people from engaging in free sexual behavior, so they had to find these other ways.  So maybe it was, that blood was this bodily fluid that was technically not sexual, so they could indulge in it.  So they'd prick someone's finger with a needle and suck the blood out of it - without feeling like they violated this strict, Victorian moral code - but yet still getting this sexual satisfaction from this unbelievable intimacy with another person.  Drinking their blood.  We could write a masters dissertation on this, there's so much rich material there to think about.

HoH:  When I had spoken with one of the producers of the film - Tracy Martin - she had mentioned she was also the actress in the "golden shower" scene.   She had said that you used apple juice, and that she was cracking up between takes.  Were there any other memorable awkward or funny moments that you can share with us, from when the cast was filming some of these scenes?

BRET WOOD:  ...(long pause)...  Uhhh...   (we both laugh)...  Im trying to think of any people that wouldn't mind sharing...  I guess one of the more fun but challenging scenes to shoot - which actually didnt make it into the film, but is on the DVD as a deleted scene - was when the two women are stabbing the man to death.  They begin wearing these white linen gowns and by the end theyre totally saturated in blood.  It takes place on a big, white floor - and at the end that floor is just stained and splattered with blood.  You know - it took hours to shoot that.  It was freezing cold, and we were doing it in this warehouse...  But everyone's kinda scratching their heads goin, "How's this gonna fit into the movie?"  Ultimately it wouldn't fit into the movie.  It still made a great scene, but it was out of place as far as the context of Psychopathia.  So - that was a fun thing to shoot, but so much of it wound up on the cutting room floor.  Not just that scene, but other full days of shooting.  Like in the cemetery.  But all thats on the DVD so at least we have something to show for the time and the work.

HoH:  The art direction and costumes in general were fantastic.  The way it came together, its shocking to think of this film being filmed in Atlanta, 2006.  Was it very difficult recreating the 1800's on a limited budget - for instance on the train at the end of the film?

BRET WOOD:  Well, you know - we had to use every ounce of resourcefulness we had.  We were lucky - at least in the costumes.  We started out with Pamela Tripp who did the makeup in the film and she starred as one of the maids.  Umm...  Im trying to think of how you'd know which maid she is (laughs)...  But she started out doing the costumes but it was too much for her to be doing both costumes and makeup, so then a fellow named Sean Patton got involved.  He was amazing - he had connections at a local costume warehouse, and so he was able to pull everything we needed.  And not just pull what we needed but say, "Oh no no no no.  You dont want that - you want to use this kind of corset.  These shoes - you need to have these kind of underwear - this kind of jacket - he wouldn't wear that kind of hat."  So thats totally all due to him.  As far as the sets go, that was a total nightmare because...  At first I thought, "We'll just have everything really dark, so you wont see the set."  Get some antique chairs and that'll be it.  But its not that simple.  We had locations fall through so we had to build sets, and try to track down some locations that didnt take too much work to turn into turn of the century Europe or America.  The train was kind of a lucky break.  There was a railroad museum in Chattanooga, Tennessee and they let us film there for several hours - let us have our own train car for a couple of hours for like $500 which, in like, movie location terms is chicken feed.  But they were really great.  They even gave us some extra services, like blasting the steam when the woman is walking up the train platform.  Stuff like that, that was sort of above and beyond the call of duty.  They were excited about working on a film and being involved so we traded on that as much as we could. 

HoH:  It came out great...  Off the subject a bit and back to one of your earlier films.  You did a film back in 1998 called Kingdom of Shadows.  Could you share with some who may not have seen it, what that film was about?

BRET WOOD:  Yeah - its sort of a brief history of the origins of horror.  Mostly in silent film - European film - those films especially.  It was made for Kino International, which is a company that I work for as a producer of DVDs.  I hope it comes out on DVD - we're trying to figure out something to release it with.  Right now its only available on VHS.  Yeah - Im suprised you knew about that.

HoH:  Good old International Movie Database...  (we laugh)  Now - Psychopathia and Kingdom of Shadows are both rooted in early "horror" - both cinema and literature.  Is there something in particular about that time period that fuels your passion for filmmaking?

BRET WOOD:  There is, but I dont know what it is.  I have no interest in making a "modern day" movie.  I have no interest in making a comedy or anything like that.  This is just the type of book that I read - the kind of movie that I like.  Um - its something about the mystery that enshrouds everything.  Im sure that if it were our time it wouldnt seem that mysterious - the fact that its so far away and inaccessable.  I think a lot of it is because so many great filmmakers sort of just captured that period so well - like the German Expressionist filmmaker.  So that, thats now how we think about Europe in the 1910's or 1920's.  Its through the films of early German filmmakers like Robert Weine - in films like The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. 

HoH:  What do you think, personally, are some of the attractive qualities of early cinema that the films of today totally miss or overlook as an asset to telling a motion picture story?

BRET WOOD:  Um...  For one thing, just an unbelievable eye for composition that noone today has.  Well, maybe a few people have it.  The ability to tell a story without dialogue - without pop music.  It kills me to hear people make movies with nothing but a top 40 soundtrack.  Fast cutting is great in certain contexts.  I think there's a grace to silent films that we dont have anymore.  It takes a little getting used to, if you haven't seen a lot of silent films - to really get into that frame of mind.  But when you are there - when you can really lose yourself in a film like that - the characters just become larger than life in a way that just doesnt happen today.  And I think a lot of it is because they dont talk.   With Psychopathia, for example.  A lot of it is pretty much silent.  Theres not a lot of dialogue.  Some of the scenes had dialogue in it, but as soon as someone opens their mouth and started talking - BOOM - we're in Atlanta 2007.  And not just because of southern accents, but because speech just sort of demystifies people and just makes them regular.  Then you have these silent movies that are so mysterious.  Im sure if you heard Valentino talk, you'd say, "Oh yeah, he's just a regular guy..."  But there's something about them being silent that makes them more iconic.  Theyre just larger than life.  And maybe it also has to do with acting without dialogue.  It relies more on physical grace, where its almost like youre watching a dance as opposed to watching someone just mimicking real life. 

HoH:  It incorporated a lot more of the viewer's imagination.

BRET WOOD:  Yeah, yeah.  But it required patience.  I have taught film history, and can not get students to watch a silent movie.  Occasionally they'll hold onto something sort of long enough for it to break through to them, but so many people are just so resistant to it.  Because, it is difficult to get into...  you have to be really patient.  You have to turn off your cellphone and everything and just let yourself be absorbed into the movie.  But its worth it.

HoH:  That can be tough, in an age of instant gratification.

BRET WOOD:  Yeah - well, you can't watch a silent movie while on your computer, while youre checking your emails.  You cant talk on the phone while youre watching a silent movie.  You absolutely will not see it.  Its not an art form for short attention spans.  Maybe I naively thought, "Well, they'll slow down their attentions to watch Psychopathia..."  But...  (we laugh)  ...some have!   Some people have really liked it - have given it a good response.  I think its developing a following, and I think people who like the film are really enthusiastic about it - really avidly support it because it is so different.  And I think other people maybe didnt take the time to look into it and give it a chance, or think about what it actually was that I was trying to do.

HoH:  Do you have any idea what your next project is going to be?  Will it center around the early age of cinema?

BRET WOOD:  You know, I thought it was gonna be...  Everyone said, "Make something more contemporary.  Make something more fun."  So I struggled with a script set in the 60's, about a shriner in the south who opens his own adult book store, and all the craziness that ensues.  Its a good idea, and it had some good stuff in it, but its not me and I couldn't get it to work, so now Im back.  Back at the turn of the century with a script called The Seventh Daughter - www.seventhdaughter.com .  Im going to sort of post the progress of trying to get this thing made into a movie.  Its about a washed up, carnival magician who is reunited with his daughter and is training her to be a psychic - so that he can sort of get revenge on people...  you know, and it goes on from there.

HoH:  That sounds interesting... 

BRET WOOD:  Hopefully its going to be steeped in the same kind of, you know, dense atmosphere and heavy music that Psychopathia was - but I will bow to convention in that it will be a more conventional narrative with a beginning, middle, and end. 

HoH:  Ill tell ya what.  It is refreshing to see somebody be true to an era of work, or a (long pause)... how would you put it - a system of filmmaking that isnt present anymore nowadays - because it still has its attractive qualities if youre, as you said, able to sit and indulge yourself with the story and take the time to watch the entire thing work itself out.

BRET WOOD:  Yeah.  I appreciate the fact that people are making films like Grindhouse, and Black Snake Moon - you know - referencing the film styles of the 1970's - but, can we also look a little further back?   It seems that has sort of become the cutoff point of people's awareness of films.  You know?  To any filmmaker who is currently searching for a style, I strongly encourage them to look much further back.  You dont have to mimic a silent film - you dont have to make a movie without dialogue - but just when you see the command of the medium that some of these filmmakers had, its just awe inspiring.  There's still a whole lot to learn from these early films that people are ignoring today. 

HoH:  Bret its been great talking with someone who has such a great respect and insight for the films that spawned this genre and many others.  Hopefully now people will have a better insight into what Psychopathia was all about, and where it was coming from.  I personally thought it was a very artistic and overachieving film in the respect that it stayed very much true to what the literature was about.  You presented it in a form that was very true to how Dr. Richard von Krafft-Ebing presented his work, for instance, by not casting typical supermodel actors and actresses across the board which was very refreshing to see.  So - I wish you continued success in your work.  We'll be keeping an eye on The Seventh Daughter so good luck with that, and thanks for taking the time to speak with us all here at House of Horrors.

BRET WOOD:  No problem, thanks for having me.

Psychopathia Sexualis

Review
Trailer
Official Website 
Clips:
- The Curious Passions of Sergeant Bertrand 
- The Sadist and the Masochist
The Seventh Daughter website
CLICK HERE to purchase Psychopathia Sexualis from Amazon.com

Michael Hein:  Stephen King's The Stand was one of the first giant novels I was able to get through.  Then he did the reissue of it - went back and added like 500 more pages - and I read it again.  Forever Id be talking about it with horror fans, "You gotta read this thing - you gotta read this thing..."  Always thinking they'd never make a movie out of it though.  Because how are you ever going to make a movie out of this epic?  This epic end of the world apocalyptic scenario...  And then I heard this guy was makin it [referring to Mick Garris].  I remember the media - like Variety - and a lot of people who were big Stephen King fans were kinda like, "Man we're routin for him but how do you bring that to the screen," you know?  Then time went by, the press was startin to come out...  I have not met one fan of the book that doesn't praise Mick Garris' version of The Stand.  From the opening scene when he's breaking out of the military complex - and what did he put on there?  Blue Oyster Cult's Dont Fear the Reaper?  I mean - its like perfect.  How do you not pick that tune, you know what I mean?  The crow, following Stu and Randall through the whole thing - and I was absolutely blown away by it. 

One of the things I kept wondering about with King's work - you see the film versions, that go to movie theaters - they always change this, they always change that, and its never the book.  Its just never the book.  And I remember being blown away by the ending of that book, when King talks about the hand of God just coming down and grabbing the nuclear weapon - destroying Vegas and most of your heroes by the end of it, but - how are you gonna shoot that thing?  I remember just sittin there, bein all pumped - and Im not in a movie theater, Im in my house watching it on television - and Im pumped like at a movie!  And the casting - by the way, not to blow a whole lot of sunshine up his butt - but Im a big fan of that.

Then to go in, and - its not a remake of the Stanley Kubrick film...  Because while The Shining - Kubrick's version - is probably one of the greatest haunted house films ever made - its a great film - its not the book.  Its not even close to the book.  Youve got Jack Torrence - youve got a couple of the you know, youve got the Overlook Hotel and youve got all those things - but theres no maze in that book.  He doesnt freeze to death in that book.  Its like theres just touches in there.  So when I heard that the same guy who did The Stand was going to remake - and actually make a faithful adaptation of this thing - another thing:  how are you gonna do that ending?  Because as I understand it, Kubrick just didnt see it.  Couldnt do it.  Couldnt get it done.  Mick Garris could.  And I loved that version.  Another thing is [Steven] Weber - casting Weber in that role - like, that poor bastard...  Having to follow Nicholson?  And you guys wind up pulling the thing off?  Jees - my hats off to you. 

So - just by those two things alone - right there worth the price of admission, right?  Im gonna let you tell the stories - where is that Lifetime Achievement Award...  Cmon down.  Ladies and gentlemen - Mr. Mick Garris...

(long applauds)

Congratulations man, you deserve it. 

Mick Garris:  I got a chainsaw Sunday but they didnt give it to me.  Well - nobody is supposed to know until tomorrow night [October 22] when the Chainsaw Awards are broadcast.  Mike Gingold knows because its the Fangoria Chainsaw Award.  But we won for the best television presentation - the Killer TV award - so...  We've been winning a lot of awards because we have a great group of filmmakers who decided it would be a lot more fun to do something the way they want to do it, than to get paid lots of money.  This is an incredible honor and I so appreciate it - and thank God for social outcasts like us.  (applauds)  Im so glad I was not popular and on the football team - that would be a shitty life - instead of winning this great Lifetime Achievment Award from you guys.  I really, really appreciate it so much - because Im first and foremost a film fan.  A fiction fan.  And a genre fan, you know?  The first movie I remember seeing was Son of Kong when I was about three years old - on television - near Los Angeles - in San Diego where I grew up.  There were all these late night horror shows back in the days - those of us with gray hair can remember.  And you know - it really was all the social outcasts - the popular people hated that shit.  Thank God, you know?  Its just a real great honor and Im so pleased to be here in New York, where the fans are really fans.  They really care and really give a shit.  To be able to - I feel like - you know Zelig that Woody Allen movie?  You know to be surrounded by all these fantastically talented people - all my favorite filmmakers in my growing up, my gestation period, my wonder years.  You know, here I am working side by side with John Carpenter and John Landis and Tobe Hooper and Stuart Gordon and all these people and it just - its like a great dream.  The fact that the fans have embraced the show and thats its worked well with people who care is so great, because if it had been a failure, we did it.  But now that its a success around the world it just amazes me.  Because Im involved with it, and that doesnt usually happen.  So - these guys have been so great.  I mean when you can get John Carpenter to come back a second year - I mean, he doesn't ever have to work - and he doesnt like to work that much.  He had such a good time on the first one that when he came back for the second one...  First of all, theres no smoking on film sets.  John Carpenter can not help but smoke.  So we actually built him a smoking lounge just for him to be able to relax and have a cigarette.  Its so much fun to be able to go into the studio each day and watch all these different people working in totally different ways, and encouraging everybody to do exactly what they want to do, the way they want to do it, just dont spend too much money.  And to encourage them all to be as different as possible.  We dont want to be like Tales From The Crypt where you knew what you were going to get every week.  You know - its a great show, but thats not what we were trying to do.  We want it to be a totally new experience every week.  One week its a John Carpenter film, you want it to act like a John Carpenter film - a Tobe Hooper film - a John Landis film, and then you know youre going to get humor with your horror. 

Joe Dante doing Homecoming, showing that he could do political satire in the guise of a horror film.  Its amazing.  We won three awards recently, two of them for Homecoming.  We won the Chainsaw Award last week.  We won an Emmy, believe it or not.  Film Festivals - a Saturn award.  Its like, "For us?"  You know?  Its great.  So I just thank you so much for being a part of this and inviting me here to join you.  And to show you this before Showtime's even seen it.  So - you are the absolute first audience to have seen Valerie on the Stairs - it was just finished two days ago.  It was great - when I was invited here, I was like, "We've got to finish this!" so we could view it here.  And the day before I left, I had to run down to Starz Entertainment and show it to the head of the company so that he would approve it - cause Id already said yes to Michael but I didnt tell Starz...   So I hope you enjoyed it.  Its a very different kind of show, or angle for the series.  I hope it wasnt too slow, but, its sort of a quiet sort of thing that creeps up.  And Tony Todd - who is an icon in the genre (applauds) - delivers a performance thats practically Shakespearean.  I really think it was wonderful - so Tony I thank you so much for joining the party and making it a special experience for everyone involved, especially me.  So, thank you.  And everyone here - thank you so much.  If there are any questions I can answer Id be glad to...

Q:  One of the things I love about the Masters of Horror series is the variety of talent you get each week.  For instance, seeing Tony Todd in one of your films - and how you used Richard Band to do the score...

Mick Garris:  Richard Band is normally Stuart Gordon's composer.  And oddly enough - and by the way, Stuart Gordon just finished doing The Black Cat, with Jeffery Combs as Edgar Allen Poe - its great.  And Stuart just did the movie Edmond - which came out recently, I dont know if it played here in New York - and that composer was not Richard Band - he used another composer [Bobby Johnston] - and my normal composer Nicholas Pike was not available because he got a feature last minute, so I grabbed Richard Band and said, "Please - would you do this?"  He was nominated for an Emmy for his score for Dreams in the Witch House last year - and I love the music that he did.   But yeah - we really want to work with people who know and love the genre - and every time we've experimented with those who dont, we more often than not have thrown out the scores.  Its really depressing, and a lot of directors want to bring in their own - we encourage the directors to do it their way - sometimes they wanna bring in somebody, or theres been a lot of aggression by say somebody from a popular rock band, who loves horror and knows how to score...  its tough - it really does take a lot more than just being a fan to be able to do it.  It takes a lot of experience, especially in composing music.  But yeah - theres a long answer to your comment.  Thank you.

Q:  I know its a little early, but have you started planning for season three - and do you have any ideas what directors you might look at - possibly European or British directors?

Mick Garris:  Yes - well, actually this year for season two we had some - uh, an assortment of directors that we didnt have last year.  Including Peter Medak and Tom Holland and Ernest Dickerson and a whole bunch of different folkes.  Next year - if there is a season three - and thats not in stone yet - we hope there will be.  Were acting like there will be.  There are a lot of people - because of the way the show is made, it is a television series, although we hate to refer to it that way, it is a series of short feature films - but theyre done ten days each back to back.  So to schedule all 13 directors that way is virtually impossible.  So we hope that next season, if there is one that we will get people that have already said they will do it.  People like Rob Zombie, Guillermo del Toro, Ken Russell wants to do one, he has a story all written and rarin to go.  But uh - its a matter of timing and scheduling and all. 

Q:  How about Tom Savini?

Mick Garris:  Tom Savini is a great idea - he thinks so as well!  (audience laughs)  So...  We're just trying to make the right thing work out...  Ive seen Toms films.  He does great work.

Q:  Can I get Valerie's phone number?  (audience laughs)

Mick Garris:  Its listed.  Yeah - Clare Grant is an LA actress.  Very difficult to cast that part, as you might imagine.  First of all - the story that Clive wrote was not a short story.  Its an original treatment that he wrote for me and for Masters of Horror.  And in that treatment she is naked from beginning to end.  We realized early on in the casting process - it might be difficult to get someone who can act, to do that.  I think we were considering porn stars at some point.  No but the acting turned out great - Clare is someone who has done a handful of things - she was in Walk the Line and a few other things.  But this is her biggest part, I believe.  And - uh - so - you know...  Finding someone who was beautiful, willing, and comfortable to be naked and being able to act and portray a pretty wide range here - was complicated, but yeah - she did a great job. 

Q:  What other directors are on for this season [two]?:

Mick Garris:  What other directors are on for this season - ok lemme see I have to count to 13... uh in Tokyo were shooting another Japanese episode with Norio Tsuruta, who did Ring Zero, Premonition, and a couple of other Japanese films.  We have Carpenter back, Hooper back, Landis back, Stuart Gordon, Joe Dante, Ernest Dickerson, Tom Holland - and oh Brad Anderson did a fantastic one, it really great.  He s a New York based director who did The Machinist and Session 9 - two of my favorite recent genre films.  Really smart, smart stuff.  The film he did for us - I think its a masterpiece - its really great.  So - I dont know how many people I counted - who did I leave out Cynthia? [his wife]

Cynthia Garris:  Peter Medak.

Mick Garris:  Peter Medak - whose The Changeling I think is one of the better ghost films of all time.  Theres others - Mike [Hein] you probably know better than me...

Michael Hein:  Rob Schmidt.

Mick Garris:  Rob Schmidt, who did Wrong Turn.  He's our Lucky McKee this year - the one who, you know, the name people would be familiar with - schedule was a problem and we had some - Im mean, we wanted to make sure that every "master of horror" would be somebody who had done something influential and successful, and we thought, well, Wrong Turn was a really well made movie and he's a really good guy who really knows his stuff.  

Q:  Whenever you hear the term "Masters of Horror", the name George Romero immedately comes to mind.  Whats the obstacle, maybe, with him?

Mick Garris:  Uh, George has had a lot of scheduling difficulties - theres kind of been a lot of things going on - professionally and otherwise in his life - he has committed both years to doing one - and um, he was going to do Haeckel's Tale for a while, and ended up not being able to.  His Land of the Dead schedule took him all over the world, to do promotion and stuff.  So we couldnt get him on season one.  On season two - it just became impossible as well.  So we are hoping he will be among the season three people.  He is committed to doing one, but we just havent been able to make it work with the time yet.  But were all huge Romero fans - and he of all people should be among Masters of Horror.  But I should also say - "Masters of Horror" the name, was a joke.  At one of our dinners we had, where a bunch of the genre directors got together to just shoot the shit.  The very first one we had - it was Guillermo del Toro, and Tobe Hooper, and John Carpenter, and Larry Cohen - Larry Cohen also did one in the first season.  There were a dozen of us there.  And someone was having a birthday party at the table next to us.  And so, we all sang Happy Birthday to You - and Guillermo del Toro stands up and says, "The masters of horror wish you a happy birthday!"  So - thats where the name came from.  It was intended as a joke.  Then it turned out to be the only way we could sell the show. 

Q:  Its a great title...

Mick Garris:  Well - it is what it is.  I mean, what else can you call a show with John Caprenter and Tobe Hooper and all these people...  yeah. 

Q:  How - does each director choose the source material, or do you have a sit down with an idea already on the table...

Mick Garris:  Its about half and half - the question being how does a director choose his material.  About half of them come in with material - what they want to do - Stuart Gordon, Joe Dante, uh John Landis in the first season and then we hooked him up with a writer in the second one.  And about half of them are things that we develop independently.  We'll bring in writers that I know who are really well versed in the genre.  Richard Christian Matheson, Drew McWeeny, Scott Swan, people like that.  Or we will have short stories - short fiction that we want to adapt.  Or the directors will bring in material.  So, its about 50-50.

Q:  With Masters of Horror, there really arent any female directors. 

Mick Garris:  This always comes up.  (audience laughs)  No - this always comes up.  We've tried.  We went to Kathryn Bigelow, we went to Mary Harron - we went to everyone that - and again it has to be someone who has made influential horror films and not somebody who is in that realm unknown.  Most of the ones we went to turned us down.  Mary Harron doesnt want to think of herself as a horror director, apparently.  American Psycho is one of the great horror films of the last ten years.  Kathryn Bigelow had some health issues and the like.  Were still trying.  We would love to do that.  Were trying to mix it up as much as possible.  We dont want it to be all a bunch of gray haired white guys. 

Q:  Whats the story behind the "13" episodes?

Mick Garris:  You know - 13 episodes is a standard order for a show.  In network tv - usually theyll order a back 9 - for a total of 22.  But 13 is as much as we can handle.  Id love for there to be a significance to it - like "13" "horror" wink wink - but its just a standard number for an industry order on a series. 

Q:  Can you talk a bit about the controversy behind season one's Imprint by Takashi Miike?

Mick Garris:  Yes - Imprint always comes up as well, so let me tell you that story.  We wanted to do an Asian episode, and we had a Japanese partner Kadokawa Films, and the director I most wanted, because Im a huge fan of Audition, was Takashi Miike.  And I was amazed when he said yes.  And when he wanted to do Imprint - which is based on a best selling book in Japan called Bokee Kyote - and for years it has always been thought of as being unfilmable.  And... we shot it.  We gave him some of our concerns that we thought Showtime would have - but, again, this is hand-off creative process.  We give notes, but youre free to take them or not.  In the case of this, they were very concerned, they wanted it to run, and when Showtime saw it, uh, they put a gun in their mouth...  and pulled the trigger!  If you have seen Imprint, I think youll understand why Showtime didnt run it.  There are cultural differences between the Japanese and the Americans - as per to what is acceptable...

Q:  Give us a hint.

Mick Garris:  Have you seen it?

Q:  Yes.  Give us a hint.  What was the problem?

Mick Garris:  Well - I dont think it was the aborted fetuses being thrown in the river, so much.  (audience laughs)  But - there's a torture scene in there...  When I met Miike in Tokyo - and he does not speak any English - but I said to him through an interpreter,  "That scene in Audition, about 45 minutes in, is the most disturbing thing that Ive ever seen in a film."  He said to me, "I hope this will be even more disturbing."  I didnt tell Showtime that.  (laughs)  But, no - the torture scene is excruciating and very hard to sit through and I can understand why Cynthia wont watch it again.  (laughs)  And I know a lot of people that feel that way - but - we let him make the movie he wanted to make.  Showtime has the right not to air anything - they dont have the right to edit anything, and they said, "We really cant show this.  And we dont really want to tell you how to edit it."  Its a very intense piece of film - and to their credit, they did not edit it - and it is now out on DVD unexpurgated.  It is the film that Miike wanted to make and did make.  There were a lot of people calling for our heads for not showing it - but we have nothing to do with what Showtime broadcasts.  And I understand Showtime's reluctance to show it - especially in the wake of all the furor over Janet Jackson's nipple.  (laughs)  So they wanted to avoid the Bush administration from shooting their brains out.  So - anyway - thats the Miike story. 

Q:  Can you talk a little bit about Chirstopher Lloyd, since he hardly shows up in front of the camera anymore?

Mick Garris:  Well - Christopher Lloyd and I did a movie together some years back for television called Quicksilver Highway.   He's a really wonderful guy.  He's nothing at all like what you see on camera.  He's very shy.  He never curses.  He's very quiet - theres no "Hey! Hey!"  Its all very subdued.  I think he works as much as he wants to.  He really liked - there were some really chewy speeches in Quicksilver Highway.  And - he responds to the writing.  And theres some stuff in this where he really responds - I think he's great in this.  What I love is that he doesnt do Doc Brown.  There are moments when you get that gruff Lloyd outbreak - but most of the time he's very straightfoward and we dont really get to see him that way.  I was very pleased with his performance.  I dont know how much he works, but I think he's done a lot of television that we've not been exposed to as genre fanatics.  Anything else?  Its cold in here, huh?  (laughs)

Q:  Of all the directors that youve sought after to do Masters of Horror - which one or ones have been the most difficult to get behind the camera?

Mick Garris:  Romero's been the most elusive.  You know - its hard to reach him.  He moved out of Pittsburgh and was living in Toronto.  I dont know where he is now but its very hard to reach him.   But Clive also told me that, if we were picked up for a third season, that he'd direct one.  Thats would be great because its been a long time since he's directed.  He had a really bad experience with Hollywood - and he's kind of bitter about them.  But this is so non-Hollywood - you know - we shoot em in Vancouver.  Showtime only licenses it - they dont produce it - so they keep their mits off.  There's no studio.  We do this entirely through the auspices of Anchor Bay - and their financing.

Q:  Whats the chance of this maybe ending up on Starz since...

Mick Garris:  Yeah Starz and IDT have merged.  So - no - Starz doesnt have the budget to produce this as a channel.  But it might be the secondary place it runs, after it runs Showtime, it might go to Starz.   Spike is interested but theyd have to cut them to ribbons, and, you know...  we cant really control what happens after that first run.  So - if it goes into syndication. 

Q:  I can only imagine the workload, doing Masters of Horror, not only producing 13 episodes a season, but also doing you own.  But past this series - what do you have brewing?  Perhaps something that you wrote?

Mick Garris:  There's a lot of stuff in the warehouse.  Yeah - Id love to take the novel [Development Hell], and either do it as a feature or as a series of like 9 one-hour chapters, with some of the "Masters" directing some of them as well.  And King and I are talking about another couple of projects.  Masters Season 3, if that happens, thats gonna make a big difference.  There's a bunch of things in the work - in fact my agent's assistant is here, in the back - she can tell you more than I can. 

Q:  You mentioned Vancouver - I notice that a lot of filmmakers like to shoot their material there - even going to back to the television series Millenium, as I remember.  What is the attraction of that city in particular?

Mick Garris:  The first time I worked there I shot Riding the Bullet there and I did not want to go there because - you know - I want the film business to be in Los Angeles, my hometown, and where all the people were losing their homes because of runaway production.  But - they have great crews - its in the same time zone - its two and half hours to get there from LA - theyve really built a deep talent pool there - and its a beautiful city.  So - the choice of shooting outside of Los Angeles or New York is pretty limited.  You go to Prague - or you go...  Canada used to be a lot cheaper than it is now - the Canadian dollar is a lot more valuable against the American dollar than it used to be.  But, uh, they give you an 18% tax break on everything you spend there, so thats a huge amount of money.  Thats the main reason.  If I could do it in LA on the same budget - Id do it in a minute.  But these budgets are tight - really tight - I mean this year was much more ambitious than last year - and Im amazed at what we did and still did it within the budget.  Well, (whispering) a little over the budget.  Valerie on the Stairs is my first film in 20 years as a director that went overbudget.  So, Im admitting this publicly for the first time. 

Q:  How much?

Mick Garris:  How much over?  Well...  should I tell?  (crowd encourages him to do so)  Ok.  It went over by - this is embarrasing - five thousand dollars.  (audience mocks sympathy - awww)  Including the bond!  Which was.. you know... much more than that.  Its a point of pride to do your best work and to do it responsibly. 

Q:  How do you do that on something like The Stand...

Mick Garris:  Well - The Stand was well scheduled and well budgeted.  The Stand was 28 million dollars.  But it was for eight hours - it was for four movies.  100 days shooting.  5 months - 5 states, including here.  We had barely enough to do it - it was a nightmare shoot, because we're outside trying to shoot a dead world where there cant be any planes or trains or automobiles.  It was very difficult.  We shot most of it in Utah which is not the most happenin' state.  Unless youre Mormon.  Which, coincidentally, Im not.

Q:  What was it like shooting The Shining - was there any anxiety about doing it after the Kubrick film?

Mick Garris:  Question being did I have any anxiety doing The Shining?  At that time in my career I was petrified before I made anything.  Especially something based on a favorite Stephen King book.  I was also real naive, because I saw The Shining a few days before it came out at a screening at Warner Brothers.  Was probably my favorite book ever.  An, to be honest, I did not like the movie.  I was hugely disappointed, as most of the reviews at the time said.  It was such a great book.  I now love the Kubrick film - its a great Kubrick film - but it aint the book.  So - I never thought about it until...  We weren't thinking about doing the miniseries - Steve had asked me to do it.  And I mentioned to Gary Sinese, "We're going to be doing The Shining - would you be interested in doing Jack Torrence?"  And he said, "Im not so sure I wanna step into Jack's shoes."  And I thought, "Oh - I never thought of that!"  The first line of any review was gonna be - "Boy, so and so is no Jack Nicholson."  We had a lot of actors that had agreed to do it, who backed out last minute.  Steven Weber, we brought him in three days before shooting began.  King was ready to pull the plug and say, "Fuck it - I dont need this."  So Steven came in, and we read him with Rebecca De Mornay who was already committed - the first person we cast - and he was great!  I probably, fortunately, had never seen Wings in my life, or I would have thought of him as that guy in Wings.  Jack Torrence?  Not the guy in Wings!?  So it was an advantage.  All I saw was this actor coming in and reading the part and really nailing it.  So - intimidating?  Yes.  And the Kubrick fans online hate my fucking guts!  They HATE me.  They should kill Mick Garris for fucking with Kubrick's movie - I didnt touch his movie!  Like King says - The Shining miniseries, The Shining film, and The Shining book, all kinda stand on a shelf together.  Theyre all diffferent animals.  So - excuse my being defensive. 

Q:  You did a great job...

Mick Garris:  Well thank you.  I mean that.  Its one of my favorite things - that film was such a great experience to do.  And by the way - my wife Cynthia played the woman who was in Room 217. (appluads)  Which of course is the room that Ron Hannessey resides in, in Valerie on the Stairs - Im sure some of you noticed that. 

Q:  Are you on the filmmakers panel on Sunday?

Mick Garris:  Im not on the panel on Sunday.

Q:  Dammit.

Mick Garris:  Im going home tomorrorw. 

Michael Hein:  A long deserved trip home for these two.  He's been all over the world nonstop, and we're very very thankful that he came to New York.  (long appaluds)

Mick Garris:  I loved spending Saturday night with all of you.  Thank you so much. 

House of Horrors wishes to thank personally Mick and his charming wife Cynthia for attending the NYCHFF and gracing us all with a personal and unedited discussion on his film career - which really won me over as a new fan.  Mick Garris is obviously a fan of the genre first and foremost - and his enthusiasm for that which we all hold dear to our hearts is infectious.  Valerie on the Stairs was the type of story that appealed to the writer within me - and his production of Masters of Horror as a whole really brings out what we, as fans, truly look to and love about horror films - original, unedited ideas, unformed and untrimmed by major studios.  He has brought us all the gift of being able to see new material from all of our favorite directors - from the rare modern works of John Carpenter to the revamped aggression of Tobe Hooper - Stuart Gordon - it goes on and on.  All the way to the banned-from-television Imprint.  Masters of Horror and Mick Garris reflects that facet of horror that we long for - unedited directorial visions that supercede ratings and popularity.  This is what makes Mick Garris stand out as a director, most especially as an adaptator of Stephen King - and as a producer, delivering to us the best horror movies available today on a weekly basis.  Thanks to festival directors Michael Hein and Anthony Pepe for making it happen, and to anyone who was in the area and missed it - come down next year and join the celebration.  Its like being invited to a private screening party by the director himself.  A very personal and special experience for anyone who buys a ticket.  House of Horrors will be back with Mick Garris to talk a bit more about his recent book Development Hell - and will keep you updated with weekly Masters of Horror reviews as they come out - so keep it here, and see you at next year's New York City Horror Film Festival. 

Director John Buechler:  Hello and good evening.  I’m glad you had fun with it - you were supposed to...  I guess at the very beginning you didn’t know you were supposed to, but you got it...

Q: Why "The Strange Case of Jekyll and Hyde"?

Director John Buechler:  Oddly enough, it’s always been a dream of mine to re-envision this classic horror film.  I always wanted to do a Jekyll and Hyde - to do a contemporary one - but I couldn’t figure out exactly how I wanted to do it until I met this guy [motions to Tony Todd].  I had the pleasure of working with Tony on another film.  He always plays these bad men on the screen but in person he’s a wonderful human being - he’s a big teddy bear - and I said to myself, “It’s Jekyll and Hyde!”  I wanted a way to make the story relevant - Tony could play both roles, one who is over the top screaming mad, and another guy you sympathize with...

Q:  Could you talk about the ending a bit?  I mean - it was fuckin’ awesome!  A guy in a monkey suit killing cops on a roof!  (audience laughs)

Director John Buechler:  Well...  OK - how many times has Jekyll and Hyde been compared to Murders in the Rue Morgue?  How many times in literature and in cinema?  I felt I had to put that in.  I wanted to go kind of extreme, because everyone’s seen a transformation.  How many morphs can you do?  Well we tried to test the limit here... (audience laughs)

Q:  The transformation effects were great - Who did the CGI? 

Director John Buechler:  There is a company in California called Worldwide Effects that did the special effects - and they did an outstanding job with it, dont you think?  And the thing is, thats not all CGI.  We had many people trained in prosthetics - and we were going back and forth - so, its hard to tell where the CGI stops and the makeup effects begin, and I think that's what makes it successful.  It was fun.  Its almost like a Warner Brothers Jekyll and Hyde thing at the end there - when his head expands - WOW - its fun...

Q:  The end - when he's morphing - how long did it take to do those shots?

Director John Buechler:  Actually - we shot it over the space of three days.  Tony was on the rooftop there specifically for one night.  First of all, as Mr. Hyde.  And then immediately thereafter as Henry Jekyll - we shot both versions live and in front of green screen.  It was pandemonium.  I mean - its a real low budget independent film and we moved very fast and very efficiently - but we got all the coverage.  Then we created, on another night, all of the in-betweens - all the animatronics - all the elements that you saw - and then we shot them all over again in my studio in front of green screens so we could work in the CGI... 

Q:  Who did the makeup art?

Director John Buechler:  My company - Magical Media Industries - designed, created and fabricated...  I designed all the makeup effects.  I have an amazing crew - John Fidele is my supervisor - (applauds) - Jenn Rose is the applicator - she is a magnificant makeup artist...

Tony Todd:  Fortunately, every day (he winks to the audience)

Director John Buechler:  She is fine to look at, so - OK...  (audience laughs)

Q:  Actually, one of the questions I have is - when I was talking to you guys outside - seems like the actors in this film....  you know, there's so much camp in there - and so much serious horror in there - seems like you guys had so much fun in the film - working off one another - can you talk a bit about that?

Vernon Wells:  (In a deep and gruff voice)  Hello....  Being as unaccustomed as I am to talking in front of groups of people... (audience laughs lightly) - No.  We had a ball.  All my life as an actor - there've been certain people that I wanted to work with.  And having seen Candyman a long time ago, when I was just a little boy about yea big (audience laughs) - I thought to myself, "I could kick his ass," (referring to Tony Todd) - "And one day Im going to get the chance to kick his ass."  Then I met Tony, and I thought, "He's six feet taller than I am.  I aint kickin no asses."  No - I loved it because I really did want to work with Tony - he is one of the people that I looked up to -

Tony Todd:  When you were only yea big...

Vernon Wells:  And - when John approached me about playing - totally opposite to anything I usually do, which is always being the villain - I was not that keen on it.  Then he told me Tony would be the lead - I was racked with the idea that this would be amazing - because you have two people on film, both who play incredibly viscious human beings playing off each other.  Its either gonna look really good, or we're gonna screw up really bad.  And fortunately, Tony is the consumate and wonderful professional that he is.  He gave me everything I needed to play down - that was what was so amazing about it - I got to play a live, real character - against a man who played a wonderful live, real character in this out of control, insane opposite - and I think to pull that off is amazing, #1 - and to having had worked with him was just that part of my career that Ill always treasure, and yes - we had a lot of fun.  And I thank John - and of course Peter [Davy] - for having the courage to put me in it. 

(audience applauds)

Tony Todd:  You know - I think we had a great supporting cast.  Besides you, Vernon - just a great group of LA people that showed up to work every day.  We had about three weeks to shoot this thing.  There was a lot of days when we had to go and do both characters - it was hard - id have to sit through about 3.5 hours of makeup - but, Im no stranger to prosthetics.  So...  thank you...

Q:  You kept getting up, sweating, in the love scenes - I was wondering - what was up with that?  (audience laughs)

Tony Todd:  Yeah - John ruined that for me because right when we were just getting into it - I "wake up and scream".  Which Ive never done before...  I mean - you know...  (laughs and applauds)

Q:  A question I have for you (referring to Peter Davy) - how did you come to choose to get on board with this Jekyll and Hyde?  I mean - literally - how many times has this film been done?  And there's only two or three versions that are halfway decent.  There are an awful lot of crap versions of this film out there...  So - to back a script - I dont know how it read on the page - its hysterically funny, and its creepy - but you had to wonder, "How is this guy gonna make this?  What is he gonna do with this?"  Can you talk a little about that?

Producer Peter Davy:  Actually - this guy [director John Buechler] is so talented I dont have to worry about it.  If he starts writing a script - from beginning to end I know its going to be good.  Im just the guy that puts it all together.  Thats the basis of the whole thing - the screenplay - and he did a great job with that.  (audience applauds)  And then the rest was easy.  I had Tony and Vernon - a great group of people that work hard - so...  Ive got a couple of friends in the audience that backed me too, so - I want to thank them.  (he shouts to these unnamed benefactors) I want to do a sequel! 

Q:  Quick question for Tony - Im a big fan of the horror shorts and independent scene.  There doesn't seem to be a lot of big name Hollywood type actors or actresses that get directly involved with doing shorts - for instance last year with IOU - this year with Eyes of Samir...  Can you expand a bit on why you like working with director Kevin Shulman?

Tony Todd:  Yes.  He's in the house - in the back.  (applauds)  And if you notice - both shorts were written and directed by him.  So - we met on the set of a movie called House of Grimm.  And, no Kevin - Im not gonna call you a PA - you werent a PA...  but anyway - he had the hutzpah - I read his script, and I liked his vision.  So I like taking chances with new, soon to make their dynamic mark on the film world...  And I love doing independents, so - all kinds - not just horror.  I just love working.  It was an easy decision.  And!  All you filmmakers out there, keep doing your thing, you know?  Tell the stories and write the scripts - keep your eyes open - there's some amazing stuff out there.  (applauds)  I was really impressed by the work I saw tonight.

Q:  You guys are talking saying its independent - are we going to see this on late night cable.  Are we going to see this on DVD?  How will we be able to see it after tonight?

Director John Buechler:  You'll never see it again.  (laughs)  Im going to take the script home.  No - were planning a limited theatrical - were gonna see how it flies, how it goes, and go from there.  You know - its funny, its scary - we just have to find the right neighborhoods... 

Q (Tony Todd):  I have to say - who chose the song at the end?

Producer Peter Davy:  Ill take credit for that one...

Director John Buechler:  Do you remember the end of Halloween?  Mr. Sandman...  Cmon.  You need to be up at the end of something like this. 

Producer Peter Davy:  There is a bit of a story to this.  I heard a song by the ELO (Electric Light Orchestra) - that I wanted to get for the ending.  And when I found out it was gonna cost $100,000 (audience groans) - I quickly changed my mind about that.  And - believe it or not - we got a group from England who emulate the ELO.  And they did this song for us.  A lot less than $100,000.  It was a big, big favor actually. 

Tony Todd:  What about Flava Flav?

Its indescribable fun to be able to watch a brand new horror film with the people behind it sitting in the audience with you.  "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" was an outstanding, enjoyable piece of horror.  It didn't take itself too seriously, and at the same time had a great macabre sense of humor that never let up.  Tony Todd - from the beginning until the end - is over the top and absolute eye candy, watching him switch back and forth from the self controlled Dr. Jekyll to the wild, animalistic, self-indulgent murderous Mr. Hyde.  The makeup was campy over-sized rubber prosthetics mixed with gluttonous CGI morphing at the end - and like one audience member mentioned - Tony Todd playing an ape-man morphing back and forth, killing cops on a roof... you couldn't get enough.  Personally I am counting the days until I can get my hands on this.  Big thanks go to director John Buechler for delivering a well-balanced film, thick with humor but drenched in violence at the same time.  Producer Peter Davy for making it all happen.  Vernon Wells for his gritty and unique performance on the other side of the law.  And the legend, Tony Todd - who, as in Shadow: Dead Riot - delivers another keeper, and something horror fans will be able to watch repeatedly for years to come.  House of Horrors will be watching The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde closely - so keep it here for breaking info on when and where you'll be able to catch this up and coming kick ass film.

After the screening, I went upstairs to the balcony and sort of stumbled onto the best experience I had the entire festival.  I sat in a small triangle with legendary actor Tony Todd and director Kevin Shulman and had a very casual open discussion about the film, the festival, and the life in the city.  We had a kick ass time just shouting over drinks and shootin the shit.  Here's how it all went down...  I started with a one-on-one conversation with the director of Eyes of Samir, while Tony made his way slowly up the stairs amongst the crowd.

John Marrone:  Everyone here is having an awesome time...  Kevin - share a bit with the readers what you find so unique and enjoyable about this festival in particular...

Kevin Shulman:  Well - not to name names, but, I do appreciate any venue that treats the filmmaker like the "brother".  It something thats rare.  I like venues that keep it about the genre.  They dont incorporate any anime - they don't incorporate any booths selling autographs - that sort of shit.  This is about the films and the filmmaker.

John Marrone:  I haven't been around maybe as much as you have - but what touches me about the NYCHFF is that its just so fucking accessable to the common fan.  I mean, if I weren't a writer, I'd be here just the same.  And - I mean - I walked in and Tony Todd is sittin there at the bar.  He shakes my hand - he's fuckin nice - he's like, "Hey - are you coming in to see the film?"  And he don't know me from the other 150 holes in the wall.  So - as a fan - that's priceless. 

Kevin Shulman:  Tony's one in a million.  That was why - when everyone says to me, "How did you muster up the balls to go stand in a line and ask for him to do your first film?"  I worked with him on something else on a much lower level.  I was a second unit director on House of Grimm.   I knew from meeting Tony that he was the kind of man that was going to be responsive, and understand the situation, and really give me, uh - he'd hear me out.  So it didnt seem like that big of a risk.

John Marrone:  He's very approachable.

Kevin Shulman:  That and I told Sid Haig to go fuck off!  He was making fun of me up there...  And he liked that. 

John Marrone:  Oh - so what - you ran into Sid Haig and he had this fuckin attiutude with you?

Kevin Shulman:  Yeah - no...  I got up to the front and he was signing autographs right next to him.  And Sid says, "Hey kid - why dont you just beat it!"  So I said, "Nobodys talkin to you fucker!"  And thats when Tony was like - "Ohhh shit!"  And thats how we hit it off...

John Marrone:  Hey man - you want me to leave that out?

Kevin Shulman:  Fuck it.  Put it in. 

John Marrone:  Awesome.  Hey I remember back when I first met you last year, and you were presenting I.O.U..  We talked about Eyes of Samir and you had mentioned that maybe you were going to aim for a feature with this?  What made you decide to go the short route?

Kevin Shulman:  To be completely honest, I lost momentum.  I lost momentum and I had to start over.  I had taken the financing that I had secured for an I.O.U. feature - and it wasn't enough so I said fuck it - lets start over.  Lets do something a little racier - a little cuttier - a little more controversial - and lets try to make a small feature film but start first with a real sick ass short.  And then incorporate those scenes into the actual feature.  So if this takes off - Ive already shot a quarter of it.  But to be honest with you, at this point - this film has already served its purpose - to like no end.  Ever since I started shootin in with the internet - I mean - the casting of this thing was ridiculous because you have to be forthcoming about what the film is about - for the actors on the internet.  Actors were getting wind of it, calling me a fucking asshole...

John Marrone:  Thats a sensitive subject.

Kevin Shulman:  Its a very sensitive subject.  I dont look at it as an exploitive piece.  I dont look at the terrorists, or the muslims, in a derrogatory light.  It paints ALL parties involved in this film as just as faulty as the other ones.  There's this overwhleming social commentary throughout the film, obviously - that the media is perpetuating the war and theyre the ones turning the dials.  And I think thats what steers the film away from simply just being an exploitive piece, you know?  Im happy that the film has already served its purpose.  What we were looking to do was do a feature of it.  But now it looks like Ive got meetings coming up.  Ive got an offer on the table - and Ive got, for the first time in the last four years - I have a life inside the directing world, and Im really really happy about that.  Its thanks pretty much to Jeff Goldberg - who through IOU and Tony Todd saw me, picked me up, and steered me in the right direction.  I just produced my first feature film with Bill Pullman and Taryn Manning called Your Name Here.  Its an homage to the Philip K. Dick uh, kind of, biography, and its a really, really wacky piece.  I know theyre in negotiations right now with New Line...

John Marrone:  Philip K. Dick - thats science fiction - are you a scifi fan?

Kevin Shulman:  Not per say.  Im more of an entirely horror guy.  When I saw the opportunity to bring a great script to the screen, and I knew that I was the only person that could do it with that amount of money - because the budget was very, very limited. 

John Marrone:  Thats the key to successful filmmaking - working within the means of your budget.

Kevin Shulman:  We essentially robbed, cheated, and stole this film.  I mean - this film had a life because of passion - and that was great.  But - to zero back in on Eyes of Samir.  I was posting the film across the way from Mark Jones - from Leprechaun, Rumpelstiltskin - and we're in talks right now to possibly have me do the next Leprechaun film.  Which is an honor - to be able to step in and do a piece of a franchise - but...  Im gonna wait it out though.  Ive got a couple of other things that are planning out, and...  I think I'll probably have that to fall back on. 

---Tony Todd comes up the stairs emptyhanded and looks at Kevin and me drinking and gives a look like, "Where the hells my drink?"  I ask Kevin if he wants to take a break for a second.  Kevin shakes his head as someone grabs Tony's attention and we continue---

John Marrone:  Ive seen the beheading videos of Nicholas Berg and the like - God rest all their souls - there's something about the whole act of beheading someone with a knife that just gets to me worse than anything else.  So I can understand the angle from which youre coming from to disturb the audience.  Ive watched the news and seem some of the comments made form overseas, about the American being the "White Devil".  The ridiculous fucking notion that Americans are the forces of Satan.  There's a point in the film where the executed reporter, while having her head severed off, turns demonic and into "a white devil" or "American Satan".  Are those comments the source from which that idea comes from?

Kevin Shulman:  The back story to what Sarah [the reporter facing execution] is - Sarah is a Djinn.  Djinns are the muslim versions of demons.  Essentially they kidnap the wrong fuckin journalist.  But yeah - that was the idea.  You can see in the beheading scene - the translation is "Forces of Satan - retreat!" - it brings a literal connotation to whats taking place. 

John Marrone:  So yeah - I wont blow smoke up your ass but Eyes of Samir was kickass - sensitive material, insane gore - it honestly bothered me.

Kevin Shulman:  Thank you.  Of all the people, though, that I wanted to like it, was you.  I didn't want to disappoint you. 

John Marrone:  No - thats cool, man.  I appreciate that you respect my point of view. 

Kevin Shulman:  Well - you know, it all goes back to our first conversation here at the festival last year and our mutual appreciation of -

John Marrone:  John Carpenter!  Right!  Right over there by the bar, I remember.  (Which is something in itself because Im a pretty burnt dude and dont remember much of anything)

Kevin Shulman:  Yeah - maybe he'll stop smoking cigarettes - stop playing video games - and make another film. 

John Marrone:  Yeah.  I loved Cigarette Burns, man.

Kevin Shulman:  Yeah I liked Cigarette Burns too but its time - he's got enough properties optioned now.  Do one! 

--Tony Todd is sitting opposite just kind of staring at us blankly, and Kevin notices---

Kevin Shulman:  All right, so...  Im gonna go grab you [Tony] a drink...

--Tony holds his up---

Kevin Shulman:  Oh - you got one.

Tony Todd:  Shit - man.  I wasn't gonna wait for you!

Kevin Shulman:  You guys wanna speak for a bit?

John Marrone:  You know what Tony - I got so much I wanna ask you, I cant get it all in order off the top of my head.

Tony Todd:  You wanna ask me a question?

John Marrone:  Yeah - but shit - how about I just get in touch with you and we'll do a bigger piece.

Tony Todd:  You got my info?  I dont have a card...

John Marrone:  If its OK Ill get it from Kevin later - you guys just have fun tonight, shit.

Tony Todd:  Where are you from?

John Marrone:  House of Horrors.

Kevin Shulman:  Yeah - he's the guy - they gave IOU a fantastic rating.  Fantastic review.

Tony Todd:  Yeah - anytime, John.  Anytime.

John Marrone:  Great!  ---I raise my glass in his direction---  Cheers man.  Much respect - great fuckin work. 

Tony Todd:  Thanks man.

John Marrone:  I thought you were from New York?

Tony Todd:  I am.  I used to bartend on 43rd and 9th.  Back in my strugglin, strugglin, strugglin days!

John Marrone:  Shit Im still strugglin worse than that still!  (we all laugh)

Tony Todd:  Ha - well - me too.  Its not like, you know....  You see what happened to Snipes?

John Marrone:  No - what happened.

Kevin Shulman:  Theyre up his ass for 6 million, or something like that - tax evasion.

John Marrone:  Sounds like a head hunt...

Kevin Shulman:  Yeah - and you know he's not gonna be in the general population.

Tony Todd:  And you know - mother fucker's prison time isnt gonna be easy.  Everybodys gonna be walkin up to him goin, "Hey, New Jack!  New Jack!!"

(laughs)

Kevin Shulman:  The other thing I wanna add - Ive said this before - and Id just like to make it very clear...

Tony Todd:  There you go - running your mouth again!

Kevin Shulman:  ...This is the premiere horror film festival in the country.  This is the final word.  Its about the filmmaker.  And theres really only a few festivals in the country that matter.  Screamfest is one of them.  But the NYCHFF is the premiere horror film festival in the US.

John Marrone:  There's no gimmicks.

Kevin Shulman:  Exactly - there's no booths.  We're not in Universal Studios.  We're not doin the fuckin....  Michael Hein and Anthony Pepe - I know they know what they've created but I dont think they realize actually how big this thing is going to be.  This is the one.   Now, Europe - thats a different story.  We did Dead By Dawn - with IOU - in Scotland. 

John Marrone:  Thats right.  I remember you mentioning, Tony and you flew there.  How'd IOU get recieved over there?

Kevin Shulman:  We did all right...

Tony Todd:  Did he tell you that he almost got his ass kicked?

John Marrone:  Did he?  What was he runnin his mouth?

Kevin Shulman:  That is pure speculation. 

Tony Todd:  You edited that shit out.

Kevin Shulman:  Of what?  Of that conversation?

Tony Todd:  Youre a punk!  He's a punk.

Kevin Shulman:  I am a punk.

Tony Todd:  He's gonna get his ass kicked again.

John Marrone:  --Referring to Kevin's mohawk--  You know what - hey Kevin - if youre gonna do that shit you gotta shave it down to the skin on the sides....

Tony Todd:  Yeah, you know man?  Its the little things...

Kevin Shulman:  I did.  I had one.  Its growin in.

Tony Todd:  You HAD one?  Now you look like Fluffy the Squirrel.

Kevin Shulman:  Im sorry we all can't be fuckin Pepe LePue with the beret. 

Tony Todd:  ...Im gonna give you a pass.  Im gonna let you get away with that one, but dont think Ill forget...  I love kicking directors asses.

John Marrone:  Do you?

Tony Todd:  I really do.

---The hardyharhars settle down for a couple of seconds and I get my last questions in, as the music and roar of the crowd is making it difficult for us to hear each other---

John Marrone:  Tony - I do have a quick question.  Im a big fan of the horror shorts - and it seems there are very few big name actors or actresses that get involved in this scene.  Last year you were in IOU - this year you were in Eyes of Samir - both by Shulman.  Can you share a bit why you gravitate towards a filmmaker like Kevin? 

Tony Todd:  What am I supposed to do - wait for Snakes on a Plane?  (laughs)  No - as you know - Kevin wrote and directed both shorts - IOU and Eyes of Samir.  We met on the set of a movie called House of Grim.  And no Kevin - Im not gonna call you a PA - you werent a PA - but anyway, he had the hutzpa - and I read his script and I liked his vision.  So - I like taking chances with new filmmakers, soon to make their dynamic mark in the film world.  And I think - I like doing independents, so...  All kinds.  Not just horror.  I just love working.  So it was an easy gamble. And let me say just one thing - all you filmmakers out there - just keep doing your thing.  Tell the stories - write the scripts - keep your eyes open.  Theres some amazing stuff out there.  I was really impressed by the work I saw tonight. 

Kevin Shulman:  Yeah - I think Tony is at the point in his career where he's looking not to rely so much on lasting relationships he's had with previous directors, and he realizes he's been working long enough in the game to have a side career that 99.9% of the world has never even fathomed.  You know?  I mean how fuckin lucky am I to be working with a great actor in Hollywood.  Its something that everybody dreams about.  But you cant rest there.  You cant rest on - you have to continue to build new relationships - continue to really take chances - and I think I embody, hopefully, one of those chances.

John Marrone:  No - Kevin - what I liked about Eyes of Samir as opposed to most of these shorts that have been shown - personally - was that it was shot in a way that was really gritty.  It brought things down to like a street level. 

Kevin Shulman:  The editor of the film is Tanner Stauss.  Im privledged to have such an awesome circle in the film community - and he's an editor that I plan to work with from here on in.  On everything.  He cut IOU.  I mean - that just goes to show you his range.  Theyre two totally different looking films.  Im very proud to be here in New York City for the premiere - and Im very proud to be part of this festival. 

---Kevin at some point becomes distracted by fans and picture takers so I raise my glass to Tony, who's sitting opposite me, and cheers once again---

John Marrone:  I think you got a good keen eye on whats coming up - Kevin's work really stands out.

Tony Todd:  Yeah, I hope he appreicates it.  I really do...   No.  Kevin's a good guy...  (Tony is looking around at the crowd which is settling down a bit, but only slightly...)  Look at this place - whats going on - its already thinned out.

John Marrone:  Yeah - it'll crank back up definitely.  You never really know.  Sometimes - no matter whats going on - it just depends on that randomness of who has a 20 dollar bill in their pocket...

Tony Todd:  Yeah - but this is New York City - you drop a 20 dollar bill on a little Metro card!

John Marrone:  Tony - I pay 1800 in rent and make somewhere around 2200 a month.  Figure that out - I have to work miracles every month.  Im broker in this city than anywhere - I had to smuggle rum in!  You probably remember what thats like...

Tony Todd:  No - I do.  I do.  I hear you.  Like freakin Long Island...

John Marrone:  Im from Long Island.  Thats the only bad part about the island - its too much about finances.  The dating scene for me is about non-existent.  Its a shame - it doesnt matter if youre a good guy or not - do you have dollars?

Tony Todd:  You know - before I did my first film - I used to just walk in New York City.  All through the village...  And those were great days.

John Marrone:  Candyman days?

Tony Todd:  No - before that.  I was doin a lot of theater, right?  Nobody knew me.  Can't do that now.  Subway stations...  Forget about it.  But yeah - the money situation?  The rents too high.  Gotta go to Connecticut or upstate New York and just take the Metro in for an hour and a half and youre good to go.

John Marrone:  I dont know - still too pricey for me.  Ive lived 6 of my last 10 years out in Ohio - got my Mortuary Science degree - but goddamn I missed New York City and I can't really put it into words why.  Do you have any plans to come back to the city?

Tony Todd:  Oh yeah!  My second son - he's 17.  One more year.  He's gonna go to school in Boston - after that Im back to the city.  I love this city.  Love it.  You ever been to Vinnie's on the upper west side?  One of my favorite pizza joints.

John Marrone:  Which one there's like 100 Vinnie's.

Tony Todd:  Right I forgot.  Its on 73rd and Amsterdam.  I know a lotta people are always like this about their pizza - but thats is one of the best pieces of pizza Ive ever tasted. 

John Marrone:  How long have you been gone?

Tony Todd:  Ive been living out in LA for too long.  About 7 years.  I mean - if I had to choose between Ohio and LA - Id choose LA.  But - its too phony. 

John Marrone:  Yeah - and everyone knows it.  You're either in la-la land, or you like stress and reality. 

Tony Todd:  Even the la-la part, living out in Beverly Hills - its not all its cut out to be.  Got a beautiful house up there - go downstairs - there's a huge freakin rat in my grill.  A rat.

John Marrone:  Shoulda just fired that baby up!

Tony Todd:  No shit!  I go to get my brother - come back - five minutes later, that fucker is still in my grill!  Its the little things, man!  So - it aint all that.  Where I grew up we didnt have rats in the grill. 

John Marrone:  There's so much hype involved with money places - where you live.  Like The Hamptons.  You ever make it out there?  They are "out of touch".

Tony Todd:  Thats all about people wanting to be fuckin posey, man.  Posers.  What I love about New York City is that there's a little bit of everything - like the dive bars.  It builds character.  Cause Im a writer, too, right?  It just speaks real character.

John Marrone:  Right.  I mean you can sit on the train.  Have a white guy, a black guy, a chinese dude - you know - a muslim, a catholic, and a satanist - and theyre all talkin the Yankees.  Nobodys really caught up in that "shit".  Thats whats beautiful about this city.  I mean, even with all the muslim, east west crap going on - you can still bring a film like Eyes of Samir to this city, and youre not going to get a hwole bunch of pissy people going, "How can you portray Muslims in that light!"  "How can you try to sensationalize a horrific event like that?"  Its just a great example of how things can be - regardless of political, cultural, or religious differences.

Tony Todd:  It truly is the melting pot. 

John Marrone:  Is it like that out in LA?

Tony Todd:  No.  No.  People sit in their cars.  They dont intergrate like out here.  No - you know what?  I just hop in the car - get the shit I need - go home - play my Xbox...

John Marrone:  Xbox!  Awesome - what games to you like on the Xbox?

Tony Todd:  Table Tennis right now.  Diggin Table Tennis right now. 

John Marrone:  You do Halo?

Tony Todd:  No.  Too overhyped for me.  I like the sports.  Im playing NBA2K, Table Tennis - shit like that.

John Marrone:  Its been great talkin with you Tony.

Tony Todd:  My brotha...

John Marrone:  I hope I dont sound like Im kissin ass - Im not a kiss ass kinda guy...

Tony Todd:  I can tell youre not.  I know...

John Marrone:  I loved Candyman - Minotaur...

Tony Todd:  You saw Minotaur?

John Marrone:  Hell yeah.

Tony Todd:  Where - they have that here last year?

John Marrone:  Caught it on SciFi.  No - just big fan of the roles you play.  Always givin a good, red eyed, stress teary performance - like even in that X-Files episode where you never slept - Shadow, IOU...

Tony Todd:  I didnt have a teary eye in Shadow.

John Marrone:  Yes you did.

Tony Todd:  No I did not.

John Marrone:  Yes you did man, when you were laying on the fuckin execution table, when they were gonna kill you...

Tony Todd:  Well...  Wouldn't YOU!?

Friday night was a lot of fun.  We all continued to sit there and drink, and the party didn't thin out - it got extremely packed.  Pretty soon a very tall familiar man was walking up the stairs and sat down with us.  It was none other than Ken Foree from 1978's Dawn of the Dead.  Ken was extremely friendly as well - and didn't have an attitude at all.  Probably sick to death of hearing fans tell him how much they loved him in Dawn of the Dead, he was still very gracious and polite when I gave him my kudos.  So that was Friday late night at the NYCHFF 2006.  Unfortunately, I missed the premiere of Tobe Hoopers' Masters of Horror entry - The Damned Thing (review) - and his appearance for the live Q & A - but how could I pass an opportunity to sit there with one of my favorite up and coming horror directors, his girlfriend (who was as sweet as she was beautiful), Ken Foree, and my favorite horror actor of all time, Tony Todd.  I hope you enjoyed the candid interview.  I hope to be in touch with Tony in the very near future - and get back to you all with a kick ass in-depth interview.  Thanks again to Michael Hein and Anthony Pepe just for bringing the New York City Horror Film Festival to life, and the House of Horrors Caretaker for having me attend, and giving a fan like me the opportunity to meet one of my only idols in the business. 

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