It is about a highschool bully named
Mercy, pulling off a prank on Sally at the senior prom which has
catastrophic consequences. In a nutshell, Carrie meets Ginger Snaps.
With The Moonlight Feels Right being a
werewolf film, is that a genre you're particularly fond of?
Yes, I grew up terrified of
An American Werewolf in
London and Silver Bullet, both are
on the list of my favorite horrors of all-time. The werewolf is one of my
favorite Universal horror monsters only second to
gill-man (The Creature
from the Black Lagoon).
(Other)
sources of inspiration when writing The Moonlight Feels Right?
The short story for Valentine's day
featured in the anthology horror Holidays. Mostly the feel and
aesthetics.
What
can you tell us about The Moonlight Feels Right's approach to
horror?
Brinke Stevens |
It's meant to revitalize the tropes of
the past or what has become typical of horror while at the same time
taking a modern approach. By modern I mean the "high-brow"
horrors like Hereditary, Saint Maude, or The
VVitch.
You also have to talk about the creature effects
you've planned for The Moonlight Feels Right for a bit!
I plan on giving the audience two looks
for the werewolf, mid-transformation and a full-transformation. We are
going practical and designing a suit for one of our actresses to wear.
Full-on prosthetics for the face. While I am a fan of not showing too
much, I plan to give enough to see the she-wolf in all her glory.
A
few words about the intended overall look and feel of your movie?
I like a burgundy red aesthetic for the
film that is reminiscent of The Crate from the anthology Creepshow. The film is going to have slow, drawn out and
sometimes strange shots. Something different and unique.
Anything
you can tell us about the projected cast of The Moonlight Feels Right,
and why exactly these people?
First off we have legendary scream queen
Brinke Stevens [Brinke Stevens
interview - click here]! She is known for Slumber Party Massacre and
is playing Mrs. Kessler in The Moonlight Feels Right. Then we have Angel
Bradford (Slumber Party, Slaughter Party), who is moving up quickly in the
horror ranks appearing in a few horror films currently in production.
Cassidy Burroughs, Amanda Renae, and Demaree Wiitala, who are up-and-comers that I have worked with and are excellent. We are also working on
one more big casting announcement, stay tuned for that!
As far as I know, you're
currently running a fundraiser for The Moonlight Feels Right - so
what can you tell us about your campaign?
The campaign is on IndiegGoGo and we have
a ton of wonderful perks, three of which get you in the film as an extra
or in a scene with Brinke! Majority of the budget is going toward the
practical effects in both the werewolf and gore. Anything helps us out
including a share of the website.
https://igg.me/at/1MGuyA1lygY/x/23091498#/
Once the
budget's in place, what's the schedule, and any idea when and where The
Moonlight Feels Right might be released yet?
We plan to shoot in November. The film
will be part of an anthology horror, not a lot is out there on this as we
are planning. However, the release of the short could be in mid-2022, and
the anthology a bit later.
Any
future projects beyond The Moonlight Feels Right you'd like to
share?
I do have something on the back burner
that is going to tap into my fascination with Jack the
Ripper. That's
about all I will say.
What got you into filmmaking in the first place,
and did you receive any formal training on the subject?
I grew up with films my dad exposed me
to, Ray Harryhausen flicks, Godzilla, and
Star Wars. Over the years my
fascination with film only grew. At a young age I would create outlines
for films and imagine who I would cast in what, but I didn’t really jump
at filmmaking. I thought it was too far to reach. Then about three years
ago I decided to go for it. Wrote up a short script and made my first
short titled The Box. Since then I have studied videos on YouTube
and practiced with shorts. I was also mentored by Michael S. Rodriguez [Michael
S. Rodriguez interview - click here] and
cut my teeth on a short with Jeremiah Foila.
What
can you tell us about your filmwork prior to The Moonlight Feels Right?
I have always worked on horror and
creatures or the psychological. One of my shorts titled It Calls won
a competition, and Prey by Night won
Best
Sci-Fi and Best Make-Up.
For me it's about evolution and getting better at the craft to tell better
stories.
How
would you describe yourself as a director?
Involved, I tend to be right behind the
camera watching closely and often don’t look at what the camera is
capturing but the scene in front of me. I am not as hands-on as some but
definitely not distant. Finding my voice and vision has been the greatest
struggle but I am finally getting there.
Filmmakers
who inspire you?
A multitude, Quentin Tarantino for his
love of cinema, Ari Aster for his brilliance with the horror genre, Steven
Spielberg because he is simply the best, Stanley Kubrich for the
performances he got and camera movements, M. Night Shyamalan because even
though he fell from grace he still managed to make some intense and
captivating movies, and Zack Snyder because he truly knows how to make an
epic film.
Your favourite movies?
Star
Wars, Jaws, Signs,
Unbreakable, Midsommar, An American Werewolf in
London, and Zack Snyder’s Justice League.
...
and of course, films you really deplore?
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Anything made by Uwe Boll, Rob Zombie,
and Eli Roth. I will admit I love Eli’s love of horror and cinema but
not his films.
Your/your
movie's website, social media, IndieGoGo, whatever else?
You can find me on Facebook and
Instagram at Anthony Piseno.
The movie's website is on Facebook at
https://www.facebook.com/groups/210127131113856
IndieGoGo:
https://igg.me/at/1MGuyA1lygY/x/23091498#/
Anything
else you're dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask?
Hope everyone can check out the
IndieGoGo and get involved on Facebook, that’s it.
Thanks
for the interview!