Director Adam Rifkin premieres Dog Years at Tribeca Film Festival, discusses​ casting Ariel Winter outside her bookworm role on Modern Family, Legend Burt Reynolds, and advice for breaking into the film business.   

I had never met Burt prior to writing DOG YEARS but I rolled the dice and wrote it anyway, hoping he would spark to the material. It was a warts and all kind of charter so I was nervous approaching him. We called Burt's manager and I said to him that I wrote DOG YEARS for Burt and nobody else. I said to please tell Burt that if he didn't want to play the part I wasn't going to make the movie. I know it was a gamble but I just couldn't conceive of anybody else playing Vic Edwards other than Burt.

​Imagine my elation when Burt called me the next day. Burt Reynolds called me and told me he loved the script and he wanted to play the part! I was over the moon! And man, did he deliver. He gave such a brave and heartfelt performance, stripped of all vanity. For a guy famous for his swagger he had no problem digging deep and exposing his most vulnerable self. He blew us all away. ​

At its core, DOG YEARS is a story about growing old and how fast the years fly by. I thought an effective way to explore this visually was to see footage of young, virile Burt juxtaposed against current day Burt. As a result I included some fantasy sequences where Vic confronts his younger self and tries to convince him not to live so recklessly. The way we achieved it was merely through standard movie magic but the end result had a very emotional effect. Once we saw the visuals coming together we were moved in ways we didn't anticipate. ​

Dog Years will be screening at the Tribeca Film Festival from 4/22 - 4/30. Check out the official Tribeca website for the complete list of showtimes.

Follow Dog Years on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram.

Female director SJ Chiro, brings the Clane Hayward memoir to life in Lane 1974, dishes on casting lead actress Sophia Mitri Schloss from (The Kicks), and talks about the South by Southwest experience.

Make sure you believe fully in what you have to say. Be very clear as to why you have to make this film. Find like minded collaborators. Treat each other with honesty, dedication, and respect. ​

It's difficult to imagine getting this film made from a different city. Seattle is unique in the way it accepts and even embraces female filmmakers. The connection to collaborators runs deep. Seattle has a professional filmmaking community with a deep commitment to art. If people believe in your film, it's incredible the kind of support you can get. Of course, it's a two way street. We all support each other to get work done. I used to assume this culture existed in most cities, but I've come to find out Seattle is a very special place. ​

Follow Lane 1974 on Facebook, and Twitter.

Spanish indie film director Jamie Valdueza, discusses creating one of the best horror shorts of 2016 "Burned", working with talent Beau Knapp (Super 8), and Malika Monore (It Follows).

​The story comes out of an idea about trust, I wanted to turn the idea of a victim fighting for survival and understanding into a love story where we desperately want this couple to make things work but we discover that this is not an average relationship. 

​First, thank you for the compliment. I’m glad that they gave you chills. The casting started when I gave the script to a director friend of mine, Jaume Collet-Serra, he was working on a film and had a couple of great ​secondary actors that were starting up and if I liked any of them that he could show my script to whoever I picked. I chose Beau, he was great and he was closer in age to the character. Beau read the script and loved it, so he was the first one to come on board. Maika came after, I was having problems casting Lila and three days before filming I had no one.

​Beau proposed Maika, who was just finishing her second film but still wasn’t known, they were with the same manager. When I saw samples of her work I was blown away and couldn’t believe my luck when she wanted to do “Burned”. I had a terrific cast and with the help of our amazing casting director Lindsey Weissmueller, we got Meredith Monroe and Micah Hauptman which are top talent and the best possible choices. I was very lucky and happy with the cast.

​It was pretty hard, I wanted a realistic feel of the area, and the only way to make it realistic is to go to these real people houses and film in them. An exterior of a house you can just see driving by, but the interior is a different story. Adam, the producer went door by door by the areas and houses that I thought could work and he went into people’s houses and sent me pictures of along with a report of how open were them to let us film there. It took him 3 weeks to find something worth scouting. He worked so hard and it paid off.

The menacing look, came from conversations with Harris the DP, we made the decision to film it in a blue winter light which it made the desert seem more sinister. We also decided to film everything needed to be handheld to feel real and let the actors free to improvise.

​Besides the obvious talent and that they fit the role, I love actor’s commitment to a story or a character. When I met Meredith she was fearless and ready to go wherever I would tell her emotionally. That’s one of the best qualities that you can have in an actor the commitment to explore a character in order to understand their story.

I think it’s the only way for independent filmmakers to have their film be shown and get people interested and if you connect and get lucky you might have a chance to make another film.  I’m not sure that there is another alternative.

​If you are obsessed with making films, go for it. Try to always be involved in films or filmmakers, offer to help even if it’s for free and eventually people notice your passion and hire you. 

​Some people told me the same thing, which it’s great to hear, but I never fully planned it as a feature. I do have a couple ideas of how the story  will continue, I might write a long ​version of “Burned” after I finish with my current project. 

Here Alone is the story of a young woman named Ann who, struggles to survive after a mysterious epidemic. Can you tell us how you came to direct this film? ​
​
For almost six years my friend David Ebeltoft and I had been trying to make our first feature film and try as we might, we kept running into the same roadblock over and over again; money. Before HERE ALONE we built two different films into turnkey operations - projects that were fully realized across the board from a production, logistics, and creative standpoint - yet because we weren't independently wealthy ourselves, and because we didn't know anyone who could afford to produce a 1-2 million dollar film with us, those films stalled out. We were exasperated with the process of trying to find the producing partners we needed to help us source that kind of financing and so David reversed engineered a film that we could produce on our own, for the amount of money we could raise, that would allow us to have agency as friends and collaborators, instead of continuing to wait around asking for permission from those who said "Well, you've never made a feature film, so how do we know you can make a feature film".  

​David wrote HERE ALONE for me to direct. He also wrote HERE ALONE to be a film that in producing it ourselves could prove our business acumen and understanding of how to be responsible filmmakers who make films for audiences. We had three goals when we set out to make the film; to prove that we were capable of delivering a coherent and cohesive feature length film no matter the constraints, to have the film play at any film festival, and to have the film distributed world wide. Two years later we can proudly say that we've accomplished everything we set out to do. ​

Here Alone also stars Adam David Thompson (Mozart in the Jungle), and Shane West (A Walk to Remember). When casting a film what qualities do you look for with actors?
​
As a filmmaker I want to work with actors whose first inclinations and choices are better out of the gate than what I could first ask of them. I want to work with actors who make bold choices, have a reason why, and have something to prove.  Our producing partner Noah Lang had worked with Adam David Thompson on another film and knew that Adam, who was a bit tired of being typecast as the bad/creepy/weird guy, would be fired up about taking on the role of Chris. But past all of that, I wanted to work with Shane West because in 2005 he was on my wife's Top 5 Hottest Guys list, and I just wanted my wife to think I was cool.  ​

Last year you directed the critically acclaimed documentary Amanda Knox which, is streaming on Netflix. Our readers would be interested to learn what Amanda Knox is like in real life?
​
​Amanda Knox, like all of the individuals who were caught up in this tragic situation and story became 'accidental celebrities'. None of these people asked to be in the spotlight. None of them wanted to be reality TV stars. None of them wanted to be in the positions they found themselves in, especially not the poor victim Meredith Kercher who tragically lost her life. Everyone at the heart of the story were turned into characters living this Kafka-esque existence. They were all trapped inside a nightmare which had been created by the media and the audiences voraciously consuming the narratives they were presented - most of which were false narratives designed purely for entertainment. I often tell people that everyone involved at the heart of this story has had an identity and narrative crafted for them when at the end of the day, they're all very normal and real people.

Congratulations! Here Alone opens in theaters on March 31st from TriBeca Films. Can you tell us how you achieved some of the amazing make-up effects on Lucy?
​
In researching and writing HERE ALONE David Ebeltoft was inspired by the work of the Cuban American performance artist, sculptor, painter and video artist Ana Mendieta who was known for her "earth-body" artwork. What you see on screen is an amazing interpretation of that by our hair and makeup artist Lisa Forst. Lisa deserves all of the credit for crafting the shit/mud look, all of which was done practically on set. Lucy and Gina started calling the 'mud look' the 'spa treatment'. It took hours to layer on the different makeup and clay that you see on screen and to this day Lucy and Gina tell us that they still have dirt under their fingernails and behind their ears from all that beautiful grime.  ​

By: Daniel Hoyos | PHOTOS COURTESY Suzanne Houchin​
- ​Los Angeles, California

Director Brian Dannelly talks exclusively with We Blab Entertainment Magazine about, making the cult comedy Struck by Lightning. Also casting Glee's Chris Colfer, Modern Family's Sarah Hyland, working with Macaulay Culkin, and transgender issues in Hollywood.

​Struck by Lightning is a brilliant teen comedy about, an unpopular boy who, recounts the way he blackmailed classmates into help with his literary magazine. Can you please tell us, how you came to direct this film?

My friend and producer, David Permut (Hacksaw Ridge), had the script and he was a big fan of Saved. He thought Chris and I would be a good match and he set up a meeting. I already loved the material and related it to my own time spent in high school. Chris turned out to be an amazing guy. He was thoughtful, kind and smart and I connected with him right away. I LOVED the idea of a teen script that was written by an actual teen- the voice was authentic in a way it may not have been had it been filtered through the passing of time. 

The casting for Struck By Lightning was genius because; we got to see some familiar faces playing roles outside their normal TV personas. What was the casting process like for Chris Colfer, Sarah Hyland, and Allie Grant?

Casting was a good deal of fun and we took great care in bringing this cast together. We were in love with Sarah from Modern Family and I have worked with Allie Grant since she started in Weeds. Carter Jenkins and I became friends on a series I did and he joined us and we were thrilled to discover Graham Rogers. Everyone was a fan of Chris’ and it was a rather easy process getting people to join us. I mean the whole cast is kind of amazing- Christina Hendricks, Dermot Mulroney, Alison Janney, Angela Kinsey, Matt Prokop, ​Robbie Amell, Polly Bergen and Rebel Wilson. 

One of the more notable themes is the sexual preference of Carson Phillips and, the scene where he stumbles upon two closeted gay students. What has been the reaction from the LGBT community?

We were lucky enough to be the closing night film at Outfest which I think speaks volumes. In addition, we screened at festivals all over the world and I think people of all orientations could identify with the film and being an outsider. I love how Chris wrote a character that wasn’t struggling with his sexuality - it was part of who “Carson” was but it wasn’t the driving force. I thought it was a very sophisticated choice. I mean, while it’s important to tell our stories it’s also important to see that our stories have changed. 

What dose the industry have to do in order for us to see more gay roles in the mainstream? 
​
I don’t know if it’s as taboo of a subject anymore. I mean MOONLIGHT just won the Academy Award. In general, I think television and movies need to reflect more of the world as it actually is—all the colors and complexities that make us human—the experiences that connect us and the experiences that are unique to our being. 

​You also wrote and, directed your first feature film Saved! Starring Mandy Moore, Jena Malone, and Macaulay Culkin. Can you give some insight into how you got started in the film business? 
​
I wrote the script with Michael Urban while we were at AFI. During that time, we were approached by an agent who got the script to Sandy Stern at Single Cell Pictures. After that, every studio turned us down. Finally, a small Florida producer came onboard and we started the process of making the film. However, they turned out to not have the money so we closed up production. A short time later, MGM/UA agreed to finance the film and we were saved and premiered at Sundance.  

We often speak to students who want to enter the film industry. What advice would you give someone if they wanted to move to Hollywood and, start a career in the film business?

As a guy who grew up in a small town, I’m a huge fan of film school. I went to the American Film Institute (AFI) and that changed everything for me. I had the right instincts as a director but AFI taught me the craft and the importance of collaborating with cast and crew. I was immersed in a community of like-minded artists and we learned from each other. It was the most amazing two years of my life and I use the tools I learned there in every single thing I do in the business.​

Saved! was the second theatrical film Macaulay Mculkin starred in since 1994’s Richie Rich. Our readers would be very interested to know what it was like working with child-star Macaulay?

Macaulay was a dream. He was kind, funny and humble. He went out of his way to make everyone feel comfortable and he was very helpful to me as a first time director. I will always be grateful he agreed to be in the film.

Can you tell us about any future projects you’re working on currently?

Well, I have another project with David Permut (Hacksaw Ridge) written by Craig Houchin. It was the First Place winner of the Final Draft Screenwriting Contest. It’s about an alcoholic dad who gets out of jail and kidnaps his three young daughters and takes them on a road trip in the 70s. It’s beautiful and moving and funny and everything I love about ​storytelling. We are out to cast now. 
​
I have also been very lucky in that I got the opportunity to direct the season two premiere of MTV’s SCREAM. Directing horror and working for the Weinstein Company was a dream come true. In addition, my writing partner, Michael Urban, and I sold two TV shows in the past year. One went to pilot and one we are waiting to hear if we will be going to pilot. I’m not sure if I can talk about it but it’s EXTREMELY close to my heart and very timely. 

Follow Brian Dannelly on Twitter, and Instagram.
Struck by Lightning is available on Blu-Ray at Amazon and digitally on itunes.

Actor Evan Peters, and Actress Juno Temple on the set of Safelight.

Director Tony Aloupis, talks exclusively about making the highly anticipated feature Safelight. The film stars renown talent Juno Temple (The Dark Knight Rises), Evan Peters (Kick-Ass), Kevin Alejandro (True Blood), Jason Beghe (Californication), and Ariel Winter (Modern Family).

Your first writing credit was for the feature film Sugar. What inspired you to become a screenwriter?
 
I was formerly a musician and I felt comfortable writing within a structured song format. When I decided to write more, I found the same structure in screenplays. That’s what led me into screenwriting.
 
Safelight tells the touching story of a teenage boy and girl as they go on a road trip to photograph lighthouses. Can you tell us where the idea came from?
 
I used to take a train into Manhattan for writing classes and there was a kid on the same train who had CP. I wondered how he might come to accept his affliction. I liked the idea of young people helping each other believe in themselves. And, the lighthouses added visual and thematic dynamics.
 
Evan Peters also gave one incredible lead performance as handicapped Charles. How do you achieve making Evan crippled in the film?
 
I studied the different ways CP could affect someone. Then, Evan and I discussed Charles and which type would fit him. It came down to Evan feeling good about this direction. During filming, it was all Evan making Charles’s handicap real.

Safelight tells the story of a teenage boy and girl who discover a renewed sense of possibility as they go on a road trip to photograph lighthouses along the California coast.
 
Everyone knows California is famous for it’s beautiful lighthouses. How many lighthouses did you actually visit during production?
 
We actually shot 3 lighthouses: Point Arena, Point Cabrillo and Pigeon Point.
 
Safelight was shot in the vast California desert. Can you give us some insight into the location scouting for Safelight?
 
We started in LA and went north until we found lighthouses that we loved. The northern California lighthouses were perfect for the way we wanted to shot the scenes. The furthest north we went was Mendicino.

Actor Evan Peters, and Actress Juno Temple in promotional posters for Safelight.

The immensely talented Ariel Winter from Modern Family plays Vicki’s little sister Kate. How did Ariel approach acting in such a dramatic role being so well-known for playing Alex Dunphy on Television?
 
Ariel is so prepared and professional. We briefly discussed her character and she ran with it. She needed very little direction from me.
 
Rising actress Juno Temple gave a breathtaking lead performance as Vicki. How did you end-up casting Juno?
 
Our casting agents, Nancy Nayor and Andy Henry, sent the script out to the talent agencies and the response was amazing. Juno came in for an audition and then came back to read with Evan and we decided that she was the one. She had an incredible understanding of the character of Vicki.
 
Safelight features the music of alternative rock band Typhoon performing there single Young Fathers.

Safelight recently screened at the Newport Beach Film Festival back in April. What has been the audience reaction so far?
 
The audience reaction has been fantastic. People seem to respond to different aspects of the film.

Safelight is a perfect example of how one can tell a beautiful story while, still getting captivating performances. Do you have any advice for our readers who might be looking to choosing screenwriting as a profession?

I think you have to learn the craft and then write as much as possible. Everything you write is important to developing your skills.
 
Lastly we’ve gotten requests asking where people can view the film. Do you have any more upcoming festival screenings for Safelight?
 
We have actually just sold the film to a domestic distributor and it looks like we will have a theatrical and digital release very soon!
 
Follow Safelight on Twitter, and Facebook.
https://twitter.com/SAFELIGHTfilm
https://www.facebook.com/safelightfilm?fref=ts

This question comes up quite a bit in our industry. Do I need a degree to get a job in film production?
 
I hope not! Haha! But in all seriousness, I don’t think you need a film degree. I think all you need is passion and a drive to make it. Degrees are becoming less and less significant because people are acknowledging more and more that there are creative forms of intelligence that aren’t necessarily sitting in science class all day. That’s why I chose to go to the New York Film Academy in LA. Their program was so hands-on and we can make over 12 films over the course of two years. Some universities only have their students make 1 film per semester! And in a program like the New York Film Academy’s, you then have so many films to test out and practice your personal interests. I think that makes you a strong candidate. Of course there are some jobs that would need an official degree, but those jobs are the less creative ones. I guess what I’m trying to say is, your success in the film industry is not determined by your degree or what college you went to, but rather by your passion and energy.
 
Can you give us some insight into Shantal’s directing style?
 
I like to do whatever will service the story best. This actually connects to the question before about “A Strange Day in July”. That was the beginning of something that I still believe today. That film made me realize what kind of films I want to make and, except for one really depressing experimental film, I’ve been making films like that ever since. I strongly believe that we all need a little more laughter and joy in our lives.
 
Your short film Ticketed just got accepted into Cannes Short Film Corner. Can you describe the feeling after you got the news?
 
It’s really nice to know that people like the film. I just hope that it gives more people an opportunity to see it, and enjoy it. And I also hope it gives me the chance to show people what I can do! I’m trying to work out a way to attend the festival. I would love to create some opportunities for myself while I’m there and meet people who I wouldn’t otherwise get the chance to meet. 
 
Follow Ticketed on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Ticketed

Boston native Elgin James talks exclusively about working with superstar talent Juno Temple (Maleficent, Safelight), in the critically acclaimed feature that rocked Temple to fame 2011’s independent film Little Birds. Elgin also tells us how the Sundance Institute Labs became essential in the making of Little Birds.

Little Birds was your directorial debut. Can you tell us what inspired you to become a Director?
 
I grew up in an environment where the very things that make someone an artist, empathy and vulnerability, were the things you had to bury inside yourself and keep hidden at all costs. When I was young I was terrified of the world and of the violence inside my home and developed nervous tics. The only time they wouldn’t affect me was when I was watching a movie, so film became my escape. I beat the tics by trying to become worse than all of the things I was scared of. Even when I was older and fully engaged in a criminal mindset, movies were still my refuge. I’d slip away from my friends and spend the day in one of Boston’s art house theaters like The Coolidge or The Brattle, discovering Terrence Malick, David Gordon Green, Larry Clark.
 
When I finally had to leave Boston, I had nothing, so I had nothing to lose. I decided to dream big and try to make movies in Hollywood. It wasn’t until I got out here that I realized how utterly foolish that was. I didn’t know anyone, had no film education and absolutely no skills. I showed up and was like “How do you make a movie?
 
Little Birds tells the story of a restless teen that convinces her best friend to help her steal a truck and head to Los Angeles. Can you tell us where the original idea came from?
 
My best friend and I had ended up homeless in Boston as teenagers, and we, with a few others, helped form a multi-ethnic street gang that attacked Neo Nazis and robbed drug dealers. The gang would spread not only across the country but also to other parts of the world. We had nothing and we built, what we saw as, a kingdom. A lot of people, including law enforcement, saw it as only a kingdom of shit, of needless violence and terror. But at least we built something.
And after a year or so after I got to L.A trying to figure out how the hell to make a movie, suddenly people were interested in the numerous articles and media specials about myself and the gang at the time. A studio project of my “life story” quickly got set up with an A-List director and an A-list actor attached. And I was like “It’s easy to make movies, what’s everyone complaining about? (Obviously even more foolish on my part.) I wasn’t even going to write this version or direct this version; I was just the “dumb gang member” in the room to give it “authenticity.” But when the project began to take on a different tone, glorifying the violence I was just coming to terms with, I decided to write and direct it myself.

I’d never written a real script before, and in trying to do so I realized I didn’t want to tell the story of us building this “empire.” I wanted to tell the story of how we both got there. Of the hopelessness and the lack of opportunity and the constant desire to set the world on fire, only to always end up getting burned yourself. And to capture that emotionally I realized I had to strip away the sensationalism. So I turned our characters into two fifteen year old girls trying to leave their small town for L.A.
​
Ironically the day after we got the financing for the film, I was arrested by a dozen FBI agents outside my home for an old gang related charge (I had extorted someone with white power ties into giving money to an anti-racist charity.) So we lost our financing and had to somehow find the money again, and shoot the film before I inevitably went to prison. And after my arrest, so many of my “brothers in arms” three hundred pounds face tattooed criminals, ran for the hills. While a little English actress named Juno Temple never left my side. Leading us to your next question…
 
Rising actress Juno Temple achieved worldwide acclaim after playing Lily Hobart. How did you end-up casting Juno?

The producers had told me to make two lists of actresses. One of whom I wanted to play Lily. And one of whom I wanted to play Alison. I put Juno Temple (who I’d never met at the time) at the top of both lists. We were told by her agents that she wouldn’t be able to audition because she was leaving to go back to the UK, but on the very first day of casting she surprised everyone and showed up (like a fucking rock star, hangover in a leopard jacket.) And as soon as we laid eyes on each other, we were like two lost tribesman who’d finally found each other. She never did audition we just hung out and talked. And I told her she could have whatever part she wanted. She chose Lily, because she wanted to set Lily free.
 
And after my arrest she stayed with me and with the project. We didn’t know if the money would ever come back, and if we’d even get to shoot before I went to prison, but we still would get together several times a week to talk about the film, to talk about Lily, to talk about life. And we became family. Which we still are six years later.

Kay Panabaker played best friend Alison Hoffman a complete contrast to Lily. What went through your mind while creating the character?
 
Initially the characters of Lily and Alison were my best friend and I. But as I worked on it, I had incredible mentors who pushed me to make the script even more personal, and the characters became the two different parts of me. Like Lily, I grew up suffocating in a small town, wanting to get out into the world. And when I did, the world ate me up and spat me back out. And like Alison, what I wouldn’t give now to go back to that small town, to hear my mother’s voice calling me in for dinner. To understand how important the very things I was trying to leave, actually were.
 
Little Birds was filmed in the California desert. What made you change locations from Boston to the desert?
 
I’d spent my childhood in a small rural New England town, and I always felt like I was suffocating. I was a twelve-year-old brown-skinned punk rocker wanting to get out. I wanted asphalt and cement and adrenaline and I was surrounded by pigs and sheep and confederate flags in pickup windows. So when I went to the Salton Sea, with it’s dead water, dead bird bones lined beaches, and harsh acrid desert wind, I realized that even though it looked completely different, it perfectly captured how my small town felt emotionally to me.

Director Jen McGowan shares exclusively the journey to create her feature debut Kelly & Cal starring Oscar nominated actress Juliette Lewis (Cape Fare, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape). 
 
You received a BFA from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. What first got you interested in filmmaking?
 
I did but I actually studied acting there. I first got interested in filmmaking after I finished NYU and tried making a film on my own for myself, and my friends to be in. When I did that I realized directing suited me far better than acting.
 
Kelly & Cal tells the story of a punk-rocker turned suburban mom. Can you tell about the inspiration behind the film?

Well, really the person to answer that is the writer, Amy Lowe Starbin, but I’ve heard her answer this before so I hope she won’t mind. It was a combination of experiencing new motherhood and a memory of having been attracted to a guy who used a wheel chair she sort of combined elements of those two things to create a script that examined identity, aging and new parenthood.

Oscar nominated actress Juliette Lewis did an outstanding job in the lead role of Kelly. How did you end-up casting Juliette?
 
Thank you. Amy and I had her in our minds when Amy was writing. She was our dream cast. But we didn’t really think we’d get her. It was an incredible amount of luck. When we offered the project to her it just so happened that she was starting to act again after having taken six or eight years off to tour with her band. Also, she really connected to the material and she & I hit it off too. Lots of things you can’t really plan for. But I am so grateful it worked out that way. She really is my perfect Kelly.
 
The relationship between Kelly & Cal played by (Jonny Weston) is quite complex. Can you describe the writing process for Kelly & Cal?
 
I can in as much as I developed the script with Amy. When we first discussed the project she had about a third of it written I believe. But she knew what she wanted to do with it and knew the characters intimately. Basically, she would write, I would read and give feedback. We would talk. She would write again. As a director I love working with writers because I know the script is being crafted specifically for me so the development process is very constructive. I think writers also enjoy working like this because they know they’re never going to get opposing notes. There’s only one of me!
 
Filmmakers often wonder how to fund their next project. How did you raise funds for your feature film debut?

I know. It’s the worst. The tricky thing is each situation is not really replicable until you get to the studio level. And even there projects are being set up in ever more complicated ways. For me, quite honestly, my producers discovered me online. They happened to be looking for young up & coming directors and I happened to have a short, TOUCH, playing the festival circuit at that same time and it was doing really well winning a bunch of awards. They saw my name popping up again and again.
They got in touch through LunaFest and asked me if there was anything I wanted to make. I had KELLY & CAL ready to go so I said YES! I sent them the script; they loved it. And they were able to put together all the finance through private equity. That’s pretty much a nice way to say “film-loving rich people”. Like I said, not exactly repeatable. But they key takeaway in that is you just have to always do your best because you have no idea where it can lead. If my short film sucked, this film would never have happened.
 
You were a finalist for the prestigious Clint Eastwood Filmmaker Award. Can you give us some advice for aspiring directors?
​
I was! Well, for all filmmakers, just make what you love. You have to have a point of view and an opinion and then just make it. Don’t try to copy any one else just do your thing. And give yourself time. This is a very different time than when anyone who got into Sundance got a deal somewhere. Take your time. Do your thing. Let the world catch up to you.
 
You studied acting at the Atlantic Theater Company under William H. Macy. What made you change your direction?
 
He taught a couple of my classes. As did David Mamet and Felicity Huffman, I loved acting. And I was good at it. But I did not at all care for the business of acting. I think I was just impatient but I felt as a director I had more control over my work and my career. That may not actually be correct but it’s how I felt. No way to know what would have happened, but I love where I am now so it doesn’t matter. And my acting studies and experience gave me the best training for my directing so it was a good route for me. Everyone has to find the path that works best for him or her.

Kelly & Cal premiered at South By Southwest in 2014. How much involvement did you have in post-production?
 
I worked with my editor, David Hopper, who cut my short films. We cut out of the office in the back of my house so I would say I was fairly involved. Maybe too involved! You’d have to follow-up with him. J we cut in LA and we colored and did sound post in NY. I was there from first draft of the script until final delivery. Editing and sound design are incredibly important to me. They really are the last secret weapons of movie making.
 
Getting feedback from an audience is essential for any director. What has been the reaction thus far for Kelly & Cal?
 
It’s been incredibly positive. From critical response to individual members of the audience it has been overwhelmingly positive. I’m very, very grateful.
​
Kelly & Cal is available to purchase and rent on itunes, Amazon, and Google Play.

Wisconsin native Hunter Adams talks exclusively about making his newest horror feature Dig Two Graves, starring Sami Isler (Captain Fantastic, Sean Saves the World) and Ted Levine (American Gangster, Silence of the Lambs) currently on the festival circuit.
 
Dig Two Graves is a period thriller set in Southern Illinois. Can you tell us where the script came from?
 
The script started out as a story about a young boy wrestling with a difficult and morally ambiguous choice. I had lost my mom around this time and became a little obsessed with the hypothetical question ‘How far would I be willing to go to bring her back?’
There are many films that involve adult protagonists burdened with difficult choices, but I wanted to see this inner conflict reflected through the eyes of an innocent child. During the casting phase, I began to notice that the young girls auditioning for the role of the sibling were much more interesting than the boys who were auditioning for the lead. So I flopped the gender of the main protagonist. But I kept the name Jake because I was too lazy to think of a girl’s name.
 
Dig Two Graves started life as the short film Jakes’ Choice. Did you find any difficultly developing a short into a feature?
 
DTG started out as a short because we planned to use it as a fundraising tool for the feature. It didn’t help with the financing per say, but it definitely helped me clarify the visual and aural design of the film. I was fortunate to work with a very talented cast and crew in Northeast Wisconsin where we shot it.
 
While watching Dig Two Graves I noticed how well the different time periods were captured. How much research went into designing the sets?
 
Production took place in Southern Illinois, about 6 or 7 hours south of Chicago. We shot in January during one of the coldest winters on record. So there’s also a stark beauty you get from the dead trees, howling wind and hanging icicles.
Southern Illinois feels like it’s frozen in time. It was lucky for us because we didn’t have much money to create the period feel so we relied heavily on real locations and what we could find in local thrift stores. And I’m not a huge stickler for exact period authenticity. More important to me is the emotional impact of a location. How is the set and the art direction supporting the themes of the movie. Our set designer Merje Veski did an incredible job (on a very limited budget) of creating sets that conveyed the moral decay and dissolution that is an important visual theme of the movie.
 
Having cast Sami Isler in my short film No One Knows, watching her work is like being in acting class. How did you end up auditioning Sami for the role of Jake?
 
I auditioned hundreds of young actresses from across the country for the part. Late in the process I received an audition tape from Sami. She made really strong and clear choices in the reading. I knew her instincts were good and she clearly had a strong intellectual capacity to analyze and comprehend very complex emotions and relationships that were present in the script.
And she ended being an absolute joy to work with. Her first day on set she had to gut a dead deer, fire a hunting rifle and hold her own against an intimidating Ted Levine.
 
Dig Two Graves blended some incredible live acting stunts. How did Tom Lowell prepare the actors on-set?
 
We did have some challenging stunts but Tom is one of the best in the business. In fact, when we were trying to convince Ted Levine to do the film he was reluctant at first. But then he first learned that Rick Lefevour was the stunt coordinator and that convinced him. Ted actually called me up and said, “If Rick is doing the film, I’ll do the film.” Tom eventually took over production, and was very good at finding a way to make a stunt work with maximum visceral impact. And most importantly, he ensures the stunt is done safely.
 
Ted Levine is famous for his roles in The Silence of the Lambs, and American Gangster. What kind of presence did Ted add to Dig Two Graves?
 
Ted is just a great actor. Having him around elevated everyone’s work, both cast and crew. His acting style was pretty subtle and I didn’t fully appreciate his performance until I was in the editing room and I just couldn’t stop watching him. He’s mesmerizing. And he gives you so many options to work with. He’s an absolute pro.

How can people follow the latest news on Dig Two Graves?
People can follow DTG on our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/digtwograves or our website www.digtwograves.com.