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Your upcoming movie The Presence of Snowgood
- in a few
words, what is it about?
A private investigator takes on an audacious local community where they
seem to worship an ancient fabled crown and yet are not aware of the
deadly horror and consequences that guard its true existence.
Now how did the project fall together in the first place? It's
a sequel to A
Curious Tale. Local writer Neill McKenzie put
together an all new story and adapted it into a screenplay from our
early conversations back end of 2022. We wanted to make an all new
ghost story shot in the style of vintage english horror flicks from the
late sixties and early seventies. I then used my own
production company Skooch Media to get the film underway in early 2023. What
can you tell us about The Presence of Snowgood's writer
Neill McKenzie, and what was your collaboration like? Neill
is a prolific writer and p/time actor, so knows his stuff. Once we
hit it off on the last movie, we decided to collaborate on an all new
adventure. We wanted to put together a tense, authentic and
gripping movie to make the viewer feel unnerved all the way through,
something that they could really believe in, so luckily we complemented each other with our individual skills, he as a writer and
myself as a creative director. Neill's time, energy and
thoroughness really helped move the project along. A great asset with
such an ambitious film. The Presence of Snowgood
is labelled a sequel to your movie A
Curious Tale - so how closely are the two films related?
Fairly closely. We pick up the action a few years later after the disappearance
of the two protagonists in the last film. The
characters remain and it's set in the same sleepy village as before, but
then the plot thickens and a new set of characters enter the frame to
reveal a real conspiracy in getting their hands on the valuable fabled
crown. Evil ghosts protect the legend of the crown and deadly
consequences occur due to greed. Money is the root of all evil.
Do talk about The Presence of Snowgood
's approach to horror!
The approach to horror is actually very slender as this is a more of a
ghostly, chilling, mystical drama, a psychological thriller with a hint
of nastiness thrown in. It has a hint of early Hitchcock, and also
derives from influences from the English ghost stories shown across the
BBC network in the seventies. It has an english charm which
is something we hope the foreign markets will particularly enjoy. Not
too graphic but very disturbing and unsettling.
A few words about your overall directorial approach to your
story at hand? I wanted to keep the film tense, uneasy, creepy, a feeling of really
rooting for the main protagonist because you know he's going to come
into a lot of grief. But he's likeable so the audience will to be on his
side. Hints of Hitchcock, film noir and Hammer. Keeping it
simple, pacey and believable.
There are a few twists and turns however. What can you tell us about
The Presence of Snowgood's
key cast, and why exactly these people?
Tom Malt is a newcomer to acting. He comes across very likeable and very
natural. He plays the private detective
and really wants to get to grips with what's exactly going on in the local
community. Caroline Munro (The
Spy Who Loved Me, The
Golden Voyage of Sinbad) [Caroline
Munro bio - click here] is our celebrity
featured in the film. She plays Dolores Blackman, and is the person who
employs John Knightly to seek out what exactly happened to her husband
from the last film. Sarah Maud Ward is a seasoned actress who has
worked with Donald Pleasance [Donald
Pleasance bio - click here], Anthony Perkins and Sir John Gielgud.
She befriends John Knightly and ends up not being as nice as we
are lead to believe.
Do talk about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere!
The shoot lasted over four months in all weathers. Principle photography
started early April 2023 and lasted right through until the end of
October. Many locations were used across the English countryside
and coast. Interior filming took place in large houses which were made
to look like a hotel with restaurant etc. On set atmosphere
was generally friendly with all cast and crew, particularly with the car
drivers (vintage car owners club). Most people were very affable and
friendly. Sometimes the makeup team had fun with the ghostly
goings-on, and sometimes the set was rather creepy and unnerving,
especially the night time shoots in the thick woodlands. A hugely
enjoyable experience along with working with film students and
young members of crew. The youngsters really added a different
slant into the production. A little more fun. One
particular night time exterior sequence required a rain storm, so
we had made provisions for fake rain and made everything ready to try
and achieve the rain storm - a car which is stopped on the highway by a
stranger and hitches a lift into the nearby town, in turn he freaks
out the driver who pulls up sharply to kick his passenger out. Luckily
on that particular night, the heavens opened and a storm took place
right on cue! Talk about luck, made the scene look ever better
than we could have ever achieved. We all got drenched, but hey ho!
Some you win! Other locations proved tricky to shoot in,
especially as we were shooting 'live' sound, so background noise was at
times problematic, distant sirens and overhead aeroplanes being the
main culprits. As the film is set in the eighties, special measurements
had to be checked for backgrounds, so as not to reveal present day.
You're currently running a fundraiser to finance post production - so what can
you tell us about your campaign, and in some more detail, what will the
money go into? The internet crowdfunding campaign started in October and was to raise
monies not for the actual production but for the marketing and
distribution campaign which will follow early into 2024. It has
now finished but succeeded in putting a little money into the pot which
is essential for any marketing for any good product. This film is
an independent project, so it's all important to use the money wisely. We really were blessed with
such generous donations especially since we're in the middle of a cost
of living crisis here in the UK.
Once the money's raised, what's the schedule, and any idea when and where the film might be released yet?
The film kicks off with two private screenings at the cinema close by where
the film was made. A market town in East Sussex. Hailsham
pavilion. Two screenings have sold out already and is fixed for
Saturday 9th December 2023. An appearance from Caroline Munro will help
promote the film through her own fanbase with fans attending the day not
only to get signed memorabilia but also to watch Caroline's new movie. We are unsure of general release as we are in negotiations with
marketing and distribution companies as we speak, as we'd like to
launch the movie overseas in cinemas before it goes into streaming
towards the end of 2024 (Netflix, Amazon Prime, Plex
TV). Any future projects beyond The Presence of Snowgood?
None as yet. We'll see how well this one is received. Never say never.
Your/your movie's website, social media, Crowdfunder, whatever else?
IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt27881971/
The Presence of Snowgood can also be found on
Instagram and Facebook.
Anything else you're dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask?
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All proceeds for the films private screenings (400 people) will be going to
our chosen charity, Familymatters.org.
Famed musician Gordon Giltrap provided some of his recent music for the film.
Other original music was composed by Jeff Crampton.
Post production took place over several months in unison with the filming, to
save time on the complete production.
An animation company supplied the opening and closing haunting
animation sequences.
Thanks for the
interview! Pleasure thanks for having me.
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