Please tell us about the projects you worked on before making ‘Darkness Hunting’. How did you start, and how did you learn to make films?
The first film I ever made was ‘The Devil’s Instrument’. It is a psychological thriller about a famous novelist trying to get out of a deal he made with the devil. The film was shot in a single location with a single camera and with a one-person crew in a mere five days. I was really proud after it was finished.
I’m a self-taught filmmaker. I didn’t want to bring people coffee or sit around on movie-sets that weren’t mine for decades before ever getting noticed. I realized that if I ever wanted to see a film that I made then I was simply going to have to make the film. I read hundreds of books on filmmaking, watched YouTube videos, and learned to use all of the software involved along with learning about cameras, lenses, recorders, microphones, and lights. The bottom line is, if you want something bad enough, you’ll find a way to get it done.
Tell us about ‘Darkness Hunting’. How do you describe it?
‘Darkness Hunting’ was fun. I would say it’s a horror-comedy exploring the paranormal as well as the ridiculous nature of reality television. I wanted to throw everything into this movie from Ouija boards and ghosthunting to Tarot cards and crystal balls.
Please tell us about your favorite filmmakers.
I grew up admiring some of the greats like Martin Scorsese, Oliver Stone, Steven Spielberg, and Brian De Palma, but I never thought I could ever be like them or make films the way that they did. Then, in the early 90s, there were a lot of great independent filmmakers that came along and really inspired me. They made me realize for the first time that maybe I could make a film one day. They were filmmakers like Robert Rodriguez, Quentin Tarantino, Kevin Smith, and Richard Linklater.
If you were given a good budget, what would be your ideal project?
If I were given a good budget, I would love to complete another genre film; either a thriller or mild horror with strong characters and a compelling story. I really feel you can do a lot with a little, especially if you have characters that an audience cares about.
Describe how you would ensure that production is on schedule. What steps would you take?
I really feel that the success of any film is directly correlated to the amount of time spent in pre-production. That is precisely why I take the time to do it right, and a big part of that is the schedule and production board. Everyone on my set gets a script and a schedule. The schedule has everything broken down and details the scenes and number of script pages that we will be shooting each day. The production board also has all of the scenes that we will be shooting each day, but they can easily be rearranged if changes need to be made, which they often do. If changes need to be made, they are made on the production board first, then, a new schedule is made and given to everyone on set. In short, stay rigid in your filmmaking approach, but don’t forget to be flexible when the unforeseen arises.
What was the hardest part of making ‘Darkness Hunting’.
The hardest part of making ‘Darkness Hunting’ was dealing with a short shooting schedule and actor availability. We only had seven days to shoot ‘Darkness Hunting’ and I thought that I was going to have one of the actors for four days, but something came up and I only had him for three. I rearranged the schedule accordingly and on the last day we had about twelve script pages we had to shoot or we weren’t going to have a film. It took all day and night, but we got it done.
If possible, tell us about your next work. What plans do you have for your future work?
I never intended for ‘The Devil’s Instrument’ to turn into a trilogy, but after the first film was completed, I realized there were still a lot of stories to tell and a lot more for the characters to do. While at a convention, a cinematographer friend of mine, Harrison Whaley, and I worked out a lot of the details for the films and how we might complete them. So, I know I want to complete ‘The Devil’s Instrument: Chapter Two’ and ‘The Devil’s Instrument: The Final Chapter’, but after that, I’d love to work on either a thriller or a film that explores the complexities of human relationships.