Your new movie Coyote -
in a few words, what is it about?
Coyote
is a headtrip into the mind of an increasingly violent sociopath as he
loses touch with reality. We’re exposed to his paranoia, delusions,
and hallucinations. It’s up to the viewer to put the pieces of the
puzzle together and understand what is “real” and what is a mental
fabrication.
What were your inspirations when writing Coyote?
And since the film's written entirely from a psychopath's point of view,
to what extent can you identify with your character Bill?
There’s
way too many to list, but according to the internetz, the film reminds
people of Lynch and Cronenberg, both of which are huge inspirations for
me. I’ve had the Lynch comparisons for a while. There’s
been a reluctance for me to acknowledge that and be labeled a Lynch-clone,
but there are many worse labels for filmmakers out there. Eraserhead
changed my life. I love Lynch. William
S Burroughs’ stream of consciousness writing was a pretty good influence
on the script... There’s some Kafka in there too. I’d love to
give you more literary references, but honestly, I hardly ever read
fiction.
Coyote's
narrative approach is of the non-linear, associative nature - during
writing as well as filming, did you ever have the feeling you might just lose
your story in the sometimes bizarre things going on?
Coyote
has a story?
I
think when writing something intentionally open to interpretation you
loosen your grip with the finer details. You have a logline that you
follow with the script, and you don’t stray from that too much...
When you’re on a no-budget and some element becomes impossible or
there’s an opportunity to do something new and better than
what’s in the script, it’s great to exploit those moments to the best
of your ability without the guilt of wondering if an audience will “get
it” or if it strengthens the story arc.
With Coyote
we’re in the realm of dream logic, which at its surface seems to
make sense, but several contradictory elements can serve to confuse or
irritate those with plot OCD that need the puzzle to complete itself.
It’s more about character and experience than the stuff that happens.
I’m
a big believer Bertold Brecht’s Verfremdungseffekt and how it
applies to film (which is essentially the opposite of verisimilitude, or
the willing suspension of disbelief). I feel by ripping people out
of the narrative in various ways (including non-linear storytelling) and
thrusting them back in results in a viewing experience that lasts much
longer in the memories of the viewer.
Coyote
does get rather violent at times - so do talk about these scenes for a
bit, their narrative necessity, and was there any line you refused to cross
(for other than budgetary reasons)?
What
is necessary for a narrative really? It’s all kind of gratuitous
if you think about it.
I
can say that, personally, I’ve always had an attraction to violence,
death, sex, and human emotion. I think a lot of people have these
same interests. We have this reptilian brain that tells us to kill
and fuck, but a logical brain that says there are repercussion for doing
so. When we were homo erectus, maybe we acted on whatever instincts
we had, and now that we’re domesticated, we’re sort of deprived of
these experiences. Maybe that’s why we seek out violent or
prurient materials; to live vicariously through fictional characters and
not feel guilt about their actions.
As
for lines or boundaries, nothing was off-limits with violence, although we
were dramatically limited by budget. I would’ve killed a lot more
people with more money.
As
for other boundaries, that’s a little more interesting, and a constant
topic of discussion between myself, Bill Oberst jr [Bill
Oberst jr interview - click here], and Carrie (my wife and
producing partner). I drew the line at scat myself. Oberst was
talking to me about a film he agreed to do at the time where his character
painted in feces, which kind of revolted me, but now I think I was just
being short-sighted. I’m open to scat now.
For
Oberst, I tried pushing him to his breaking point throughout the whole
set... and he does things in Coyote
that I’ve never seen a professional
actor do on screen. I asked him if he’d amputate his arm for a
role. His response? If we can reattach it later, I’d do it.
That’s dedication.
What can you tell us
about your overall directorial approach to your subject at hand?
In
the case of Coyote, like many DIYs, you don’t have the chance to do
weeks of rehearsals before you shoot, and there are so many distractions
that I feel I did a pretty piss-poor job of directing on set. I’m
still young, still learning the give and take of a set where you have to
fill many behind the scenes roles, and direct on the fly. I kept
things simple, used levels of intensity, referenced animals, and focused
more on Oberst and how he’d respond to the natural inclinations of the
other actors.
However,
there’s a huge perk to writing/directing/producing in that you can break
a fundamental rule of writing and write direction into your script.
Analogies and metaphors not only make your script more colorful and easy
to read, but give actors insight into your mind and creative processes.
If there was no time for us to have a conversation about the scene, the
actor had subtle hints to drive his or her instincts. You can’t
overload your script with that shit, but it’s helpful when used
sparingly.
From
what I know, you have written Coyote
with Bill Oberst jr [Bill Oberst jr interview - click
here] in mind from
the get-go - so why him, how did you get him, and what was your
collaboration like?
I’d
never heard of him before he sent me an email. He hadn’t worked
with the Asylum yet, but had a masterful demo reel. Three of them
actually… one was a horror one, another was dramatic, and a third one
with stage stuff. I saw him as a complete package, and wanted to
exploit all of his strengths in a script crafted with him in mind.
He’s since branded himself almost strictly as a horror guy, which is
good for business, but I hope he transcends the genre because he’s
really great at everything… a true character actor.
The
dude couldn’t be more of a professional. He lowered himself to our
standards and didn’t skip a beat. In fact, he raised us to the
pinnacle of trash. I’ve never seen remotely this much publicity or
interest in anything I’ve ever done.
I
remember Oberst out in my back yard digging out a grave that I’d dug
weeks earlier because it was too small for our coffin to fit. The
dude is a trooper, and collaborated in every way during production, post
production, and PR for the film. He was instantly everyone’s best
friend.
What can you tell us about the rest
of your cast, and why exactly these people?
Bill Finkbiner
and Victoria Mullen both turned in pretty outstanding video auditions for me.
I cast Finkbiner partially for his size in relation to Oberst.
Oberst is so ripped, I needed a bodybuilder to look big in comparison.
He’s a super-dedicated guy. I loved having him on set.
Mullen…
It’s kind of remarkable that she hasn’t pushed through to higher
profile shoots. She was in Ape and some other films at the
low-budget level, but the road is a lot tougher for women… or so I’ve
read. She was a blast, and our roommate for a couple of weeks.
The
rest of the cast… Is there a rest of the cast? Some of the actors
I’ve worked with before, and they’re reliable, funny, and/or
charismatic enough for me to bring them back over and over. Others
were experiments found on local casting sites and Mandy.com.
Do talk
about the shoot as such for a bit! It was really hot.
I’ve blacked out everything else. A few words about
critical and audience reception so far?
I’m surprised by
every positive review. It’s been overwhelmingly positive. I
don’t know what to say. I thought I was making a film for everyone
to hate. I thought the clamoring by horror fans to see something
unique and different weren’t looking for something like this, but
apparently people actually enjoy watching it. Any future
projects you'd like to share?
Nope.
There are a ton of them though. You can track me down if it
interests you.
What got you into
filmmaking to begin with, and did you receive any formal training on the
subject?
I’ve
been doing SOV stuff since I was about 5 years old. The first thing
I did of any interest was called Live or Die which I shot on my parents’
VHS camcorder. I don’t know why I picked up the camera, but
whatever reinforcement I got for what I made must’ve made a strong
impression.
I
graduated with a bachelor’s degree in film production. Now, I
sound like a fraud with all of my DIY filmmaking bullshit... Four
years of college didn’t teach me half of what I learned on one DIY film
set though.
What can you tell us about your filmwork prior
to Coyote?
All
of my recognized works are usually surreal shorts and character driven,
but I can’t recall any of them being horror films. In fact, I
didn’t think Coyote was a horror film until post-production arguments
with Oberst. He was right. I try to think of the world without
genre.
Penile
mutilation and bathtub death scenes abound everywhere! Everything
with exception to Coyote
has been released for free on the intertron
webscape.
How
would you describe yourself as a director? I
hear the word young a lot. I take that to mean inexperienced but with
potential. It couldn’t mean that I’m hip or “in” because
somebody would have heard of me. Filmmakers
who inspire you?
Fuck,
man, you want a list? I’ll
go with Ronny Carlsson who makes surreal DIY films like me. I can
pick his brain on why he makes the choice he does and that means more to
me than any non-interactive film.
Your favourite movies?
Alright,
I’ll give you a list… Top ten (ish) in no particular order:
1.
Eraserhead
2.
Santa Sangre
3.
Last House on the Left… or A Nightmare on Elm Street (I can’t decide)
4.
Strange Circus
5.
Taxi Driver
6.
Videodrome
7.
Antichrist
8.
Evil Dead/Evil Dead 2
9.
Suspiria
10.
Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance
...
and of course, films you really deplore?
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Ummm. I don’t care much for Uwe Boll’s films. I
did like Rampage though, so there’s always an exception. Maybe…
Disney TV movies? I’m grasping here.
Your/your movie's website, social media, whatever else?
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2869610/reference
https://www.facebook.com/JuengersCoyote
Anything else
you are dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask? Not
that I can think of. Thanks for the interview! Thanks
for the interview!
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