HHF/B&B Newsletter - INDIE AUTEURS, PAINTED MOUNTAINS, MOVIE MEETUPS and more...

Apr 18, 2024 5:00 pm

INDIE AUTEURS, PAINTED MOUNTAINS, MOVIE MEETUPS and more...

Hi ,

Welcome to our 7th action-packed newsletter. We've had an amazing couple of weeks since we last spoke, meeting an indie directing auteur, visiting one of California's spiritual HIDDEN GEMS and booking our next MEETUP.

So without further ado, let's get on with the show…

AN INDIE AUTEUR WEREWOLF IN LOS ANGELES

Last week we were invited to the LA Premiere of indie auteur, LARRY FESSENDEN’S, new Werewolf horror movie, BLACKOUT, screening at the EASTWOOD PERFORMING ARTS CENTRE (formally the JAXX, and home to HOLLYWOOD HORRORFEST 2024).

Photo SEAN SARDI

It’s a continuation of FESSENDEN’S Monsterverse from Glass Eye Pix. LARRY is the writer, director, producer, editor and even composer and saxophonist on one of the soundtrack’s songs. Directly after the screening actress, film-maker and co-star, ASTA PAREDES interviewed LARRY who had much to say about his creative process and the horror genre.

ASTA PAREDES: Well, first of all, congratulations Larry on creating another soulful film using monster tropes and genre to subvert expectations from an audience.

LARRY FESSENDEN: Thanks. The whole point of my filmmaking is to create an everyday life thing and invite the audience to lean in. So there's a natural tension, because if you set up a genre situation, people are ready for the delivery of that.

AP: And you play on that expectation.

ASTA PAREDES and LARRY FESSENDEN. Photo SEAN SARDI

LF: Yes. I come from an old tradition of carefully observed work. Everything from JOHN CASSAVETTES to my comrade KELLY REICHARDT. Where you're actually slowing the pace down. Some some people get very frustrated. Others seem appreciative of the detail of the character. So it's a ride.

AP: So how do you generally like to work?

LF: As far as finishing a movie, I make movies quickly. I don't do a lot of takes. I have it all mapped out. I work with the collaborators, get the job done and get out of there. And the same with the edit.

AP: Is this a process you’d recommend to others?

LF: No, I'm not saying this is how everyone should make films, but it's what I've come to do, especially when you work at this low a budget. I'm just trying to get at the essence of what the idea is.

AP: I’ve heard you talk about how each of your films in this specific monster trilogy dictate the form in which you explore.

LF: Yeah. The monster dictates the movie. And in the case of my movie DEPRAVED, it's about the Frankenstein creature. In that one he wakes up, he's bewildered. How do we learn? What is that experience? You grow into the world, you become disillusioned, and then you turn into the Frankenstein creature running amuck. It's sort of the trajectory of life, unfortunately.

AP: So, with BLACKOUT, how do you see the Werewolf creature?

LF: The weird thing is he's only the monster for three days in the month. It's a monster that has erratic behavior. He's remorseful in the day and ferocious at night. That led to the political aspect of this movie. We're a divided nation. That came from the idea of this divided personality.

My movies are about sadness and all the other emotions that come with violence. They’re about the aftermath. I wanted to create characters as quickly as possible that were sort of archetypical. And we would work to get the audience to know them as fast as possible. Then we’d smash them away and see if you could build this sense of sadness in the fractured community itself.

AP: Can you explain your filmmaking process a little?

LF: I love actors and, like Hitchcock, I design everything in terms of the shots. I let my DP have suggestions and then I say, let's just shoot it. That's the routine. But magic happens, and I invite it in. You have to be light on your feet and that's fantastic. In BLACKOUT we had 30 locations, 30 different actors and the schedule was crazy. So crazy that I did the AD work.

Actor ALEX HURT (Charley/The Werewolf)

AP: And moving on to my last question, it’s about one of the scenes that I love. Right before Charley (the film’s Werewolf, beautifully played by ALEX HURT) leaves the car, the Pastor asks him what would he do if he only had a few hours left on earth?

LF: Well, it's a fun question. The whole conceit of the movie is you have this absurd dilemma, you’re a werewolf, you’re killing people, but you know it’s unjust so you’re trying to put your house in order. Well how do you do that?

And Charley’s like, oh I know, I've got to bring down the bad guys, plus I need to apologize to my girlfriend. But you know what? Charley never tells anyone he's a Werewolf except to his friend, Earl. But it leads to further problems. He fails to kill himself over and over. He's responsible for Earl getting killed and killing the Good Samaritans. So overall I guess it’s a tone poem. Rather than simply a schematic, where there's a moral. There's no moral.

Although in a weird way, the end is the moral. Where Charley says, “I wish life wasn't all combat and conflict.” And laments “I wish we could notice the sweetness in between.” So, you know, it is actually a cliche in the end. It's like love is the answer.

(Long pause, then LARRY jokes out loud...) I admit it! It’s just saccharin crap! Who needs it!?! (laughs cheekily).

Co-star CLAY VON CARLOWITZ, with LARRY FESSENDEN and ASTA PAREDES with yours truly, MILES FLANAGAN. Photo SEAN SARDI

HHF: This was our first time watching a LARRY FESSENDEN film and we came away wanting to see more of this very exciting and articulate artist. Thanks to both LARRY and ASTA for an informative, insightful and, at the end, very funny interview.

#larryfessenden #werewolf #alexhurt #astaparedes #hollywoodhorrorfest #eastwoodpac #glasseyepix #blackout

BLACKOUT is now available to watch:

Watch on AMAZON

Watch on VUDU

FX OR NOT FX? - THAT IS THE QUESTION

I've been promising an update on my (ghost story) feature film THE WHISPERERS, so here it (finally) is. Everything had been going relatively smoothly until I had a shot that I desperately needed. Something I only realized while I was close to completing the final edit (or so I thought). Lead actress YUKI ITO was wonderful throughout. She was perfect throughout the shoot, and given me every reaction and performance the edit required. But during the editing process I discovered I needed one 'extra' shot. One that hadn't been scripted or boarded. I simply needed a shot of her turning her head 'stage right.' Seems simple, right? Well not if you haven't shot it.

After much searching I found a solution, a shot I could 'repurpose.' It was perfect but for one issue. YUKI was turning her head in the wrong direction. To make matters worse, it was footage taken after I'd said 'CUT' and featured my good self stomping unceremoniously into shot. So what was I to do?

Simple (and thank god I could do the FX work myself - as I'm very cheap for the production). All I had to do was:

Flip the actor's had
Remove a few early blinks
reposition the now 'flipped' actor's moles
Remove the BG
Replace with the original 'unflipped' BG
Remove myself from the BG

And so I did all that - click on the image and see what I did. And also see why you should NEVER do any FX work till the edit is locked. LOL

Click on the photo to see what I did and if it was worth it (LOL).

More on my film THE WHISPERERS in future issues.

#thewhisperers #yukibomb #YukiIto #HollywoodHorrorfest #milesflanagan

CA'S HIDDEN GEM - SALVATION MOUNTAIN

Photos M. FLANAGAN

Looking like something from a 1970s JODOROWSKY movie, what greets you in the middle of absolutely nowhere (in fact it's located in the California Desert area of Imperial County) is in equal parts psychedelic, sublime and truly awe-inspiring. Called SALVATION MOUNTAIN, it is the work of just one man.

That man was LEONARD KNIGHT (1931–2014), a man on a mission. A mission that took 25 years to complete. A mission to spread the words of JESUS and the unfaltering belief in LOVE. LEONARD used over 100,000 gallons of paint, and thousands of hay bales to build his dream. It's definitely well worth the effort to find it - it's specifically located north of Calipatria, northeast of Niland, and directly across from the equally fascinating Slab City art commune.

Surprisingly the location has only been featured in a few movies including the indie low budget horror HOLE (2010) and the more high profile SEAN PENN true life INTO THE WILD (2007). SALVATION MOUNTAIN is open daily.

#salvationmountain #leonardknight

HHF INDIE FILMMAKER MEETUP

Join us for our 2nd indie filmmakers meetup in Los Angeles - Thurs. May 2nd. Enjoy a HAPPY HOUR drink or two (alcoholic or not) to mix and mingle in a truly fantastic venue - the BIGFOOT LODGE. Arrive any time from 5.00pm - 8.00pm.

#hollywoodhorrorfest #boobsandblood #filmfestdistribution #hhfmeetup

RSVP HERE