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Your upcoming movie Axeman 2: Overkill
- in a few words, what's it
going to be about?
A
group of baddies converge on Cutter's Creek and find the baddest baddie
there with axe in hand.
To what extent will Axeman 2: Overkill
be a direct sequel
to the first Axeman, and
was that one always supposed to be the launch pad for a series? The
story of Overkill picks up where Axeman
ended. Darren and Deputy
Darlene are screaming as the axe comes down. Can't tell too much
about the story because there are many twists and turns and to tell
anything at this stage would compromise the journey. But I'm telling
you, it will be one heck of a ride! You
of course have to talk about your partner on the project Joston Theney [Joston
Theney interview - click here] for a bit, and how do you two share
writing duties on Axeman 2: Overkill? And how did you two
meet up in the first place? Joston
is the character/story guy. I'm the big picture guy. We know
what story we want to tell and he writes it and I am the one who
keeps the journey in perspective. He likes to say that I'm quality
control and I agree in a way. I tell him to concentrate on the story
and the characters and I'll keep the entertainment value in check, lol.
Joston and I met a few years back. We both worked in medicine
- he was a director of marketing for elder care and I was the podiatrist
that supported the facility. During a luncheon/benefit we started
talking about movies, what we loved, what we didn't like so much, and what
we would do differently. He proposed us making a movie together.
I was interested in doing so, and here we are. What can you tell us about
the intended look and feel of your movie? And as the executive producer of
Axeman 2: Overkill, will you have any say when it comes to
creative decisions?
I always have a say, lol. We sat
down and drew concrete lines through the filmmaking process. He's
responsible for portions and I'm responsible for portions. Axeman
was our first film together and it was a great trial by fire for both of
us. We're not perfect and neither was our film, however this time
around we've both stayed in our lanes, honed our talents and fine-tuned
our communication - all of this to bring you the best horror sequel you'll
experience. We're going deeper into the folklore surrounding the
Axeman and bloodying and blurring the lines between good and evil. As of yet,
Axeman 2: Overkill
is still in pre-production - so what's the schedule, what are some of the
major issues, productionwise, at the moment, and any idea when and where
the film might be released onto the general public yet? We
started development on the film quite some time ago so a
lot of issues were ironed out from the beginning. And there's been
nothing here that isn't the norm for every production - we're just
encountering them BEFORE we get to set, lol. Because when we are
there, we want to make sure that we have the best team of actors and the
best crew members to deliver the best film we can to our audience. Everything
we do is with them in mind. Joston gives everything he has to the
process and it's my job to make sure I give everything I have to ensure
those efforts are best received by the fans. Quality Control at it's
finest, lol. While Axeman 2: Overkill
isn't even shot yet, you're already in
the planning stages of Axeman 3: Absolution, right? You of course
have to talk about that one for a bit! And any future projects beyond that
one? Joston
and I still aren't on the same page regarding Absolution, hahaha.
He wants it to be the finale in a trilogy but I see it as a rebirth
of the character and the legend of Axeman. I'll keep letting him
think that it ends there, but we're going to make more! It takes us
to a familiar setting - camp. With a group of counselors who've
finished their summer and are ready to head home when events from
Overkill
spill into their camp. Hell finds them. And buckets of blood
and guts follow. That's all I can say for now.
You have recently also published Santa, the
first in a series of Kim Kramer Mysteries - so you have to talk
about that one for a bit, and the concept of the series as such? Kim
Kramer Mysteries is a series of books which span 20 years in the life of
Kim Kramer, MD. The first book starts out with Kim as a 22 year old
medical student on a Christmas break from Harvard medical school. She goes
to London to spend time with her boyfriend and gets caught up in finding
the true identity of a suspected serial killer and an international
conspiracy. The second book has her hunting for a serial killer who
copies The Boston Strangler after her roommate is is murdered. A
life changing event happens at the end of this book that makes her change
her career from an obstetrician to become a forensic psychiatrist and
devote her life to tracking down the elusive "The Babe" who she
knows is going to become the worst serial killer in history. The rest of
the books in the series follow her career as she tracks down serial
killers all the while learning from each one in her life long search for
"The Babe". What
got you into writing to begin with, and did you receive any formal
training on the subject? And when did you pick up writing for movies? No
formal
training. I am a podiatrist by training. I was too short to be a
basketball player, couldn't sing at all so that ruled out rapping, so the
only option for a nerdy black guy was medical school! Being a total nerd
in high school I read tons of novels and after reading most of them I was
like "I can write better that the crap I just read!" So I
started writing short stories and wrote the storyline for comic books with
my brother providing the illustartions. But my medical practice didn't
afford any spare time to write until 2009 when I suddenly found I had lots
of time on my hands after my divorce which financially devastated me.
I was forced to take some time off and that year I wrote 4
screenplays and started Santa, the first of the Kim Kramer
series.
Apart
from the Kim Kramer Mysteries and the Axeman
movies, any other books or films of yours you'd like to talk about? I
wrote an autobiography called Lost in the USA; The Bizarre Odyssey
of Chris Otiko, which covers my crazy life growing up in London,
Nigeria, emigrating to America at 22, and working my way through medical
school. Writers,
filmmakers, whoever else who inspire you? I
like fast paced novels with elements of surprise. I was a huge fan
of Sidney Sheldon when I was younger. He is my main inspiration because
his books were exciting, got to the point, usually had twists and turns,
and always had strong female characters like Kim Kramer. As for
filmmakers, I am a big fan of Alfred Hitchcock, Steven Spielberg, Quentin
Tarantino, and of course Joston Theney! Your favourite
movies? I like movies about serial killers, thrillers with
a twist at the end or flat out crazy comedies. So that being said
said my favorite movies are Silence of the Lambs, Se7en, The Usual
Suspects, Psycho, The
Prestige, The Hangover, and What's up Doc?
... and of course, films you really deplore?
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A
movie must really suck for me NOT to finish it or just really hate it, and
two come to my mind. Spike Lee's Summer of Sam, which is weird because its
about a serial killer and I love those kinds of movies, and The Blair
Witch Project, again weird because I usually dig horror/suspense movies. Your/your
movie's website, Facebook, whatever else? You
can find Axeman
on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/axemanatcutterscreek
and
you can find us on Twitter at @AxemanTheMovie. Anything else
you are dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask? That's
it. Thanks!! Thanks
for the interview!
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