June Issue with filmdude.
full transcript:
filmdude
I really enjoyed the film. My buddies and I screened it last night while doing laundry.
darrett
Oh..that's my favorite way to watch films at home. I need to be doing something useful with my hands while I watch. I have a pottery wheel in front of my TV and that relaxes me.
filmdude
Agreed. I laughed a great deal. To the point that snot was running down my face and the tears blinded me.
darrett
Good thing you had laundry around you. (laughs) So happy you enjoyed it.
filmdude
Immensely. I will have to watch it again since I missed most of the dialogue.
darrett
Please do, as there is a lot of dialogue.
filmdude
It was a stage play first, correct?
darrett
Yes. in Hollywood. 2009.
film dude
You were in the original stage production?
darrett
Yes. Although, I was going through a very difficult time during that period and my understudy did most of the performances.
filmdude
Did you have difficulty selling investors on a black and white period comedy?
darrett
Not really. Strangers on the street would even give us money. Most of the the money came from regular folks who spend a great deal of time outside . People are hungry for stories from other time periods. Especially, funny ones.
filmdude
hmmm. Why did you choose to shoot it in black white?
darrett
The director of the stage play had wanted badly to do black and white make-up as an aesthetic choice but the actors were against it. Imagine having make-up on your head, neck, hands, etc. A total pain in the ass and messy. But now with a film version we could do black and white and it would have no effect on the actors. Though some of the actors wanted to know how to act in a black and white world so I told them to be less colorful, but not boring.
filmdude
It must have been exciting to get those moody noir shots.
darrett
Oh my God, yes! We used flashlights. We had a set of 350 military rated flashlights. The DP was brilliant. I would tell him where to put the camera and what kind of feeling I wanted and then he would start pointing beams of light like a painter.
filmdude
You built period sets?
darrett
Yes. When I had free time I would build the sets. I am a carpenter as well. The Art Dept. would sometimes help.
filmdude
I totally understand.
darrett
Apartments, a detectives office, a moat for crocodiles, a bridge, a library and such.
filmdude
A moat for crocodiles? Not real ones?
darrett
No. Of course not.
filmdude
Why did you cast Joe Mantegna as Bugsy Siegel?
darrett
Because he really would not leave us alone about it. It has been a life long dream for him and no one in Hollywood would cast him as Bugsy. He pitched a tent in my front yard and would not leave until we cast him. And since I live in an apartment building it was akward for everyone. When I would leave for work in the morning he would already be dressed as Bugsy and he would try out different accents. I never cared for them. Some were really off-base like high pitched gerbal squeezing sounds. But then one day, a wednesday I believe, he did this cool voice and had this cool walk and I just hugged him. He became Bugsy at that moment. Sometimes tenacity really pays off. Not usually, but this time it did.
filmdude
Is he as cool as he looks?
darrett
The coolest.
filmdude
How is Kirsten Vangsness to work with?
darrett
It's difficult. Her acting technique requires her to ignore the director. She had a mentor when she was younger who taught her real intense methods for reaching the truth. She always has to have a potato in her costume. Hidden of course. There is no way I could expect the audience to comprehend the constant appearance of a potato. Fortunately she was very amiable and since she was the executive producer she had a lot of pull on set. She bought the crew a swing set which they loved. Transporting it to every location was a bit much, but we did it. She does a great job in the role. She is Mona.
filmdude
This is your first feature as a director? Why did you get to direct?
darrett
I had a camera. (laughs very loudly) I had also watched a lot of old films and people felt that was
important. It really came down to the vote.
filmdude
The vote?
darrett
There were 8 producers, me being one of them. One night we decided one of us should direct so we held a vote. We all had to give 10 reason why we should be the director. I guess I gave the best reasons.
filmdude
Why was the budget so high? 415 million dollars seems extreme for a small independent film?
darrett
I get asked that question a lot. It can be confusing. The film did not cost that much. Our budget was included in the theme park budget.
filmdude
Theme park?
darrett
Yes. The film noir theme park will open on the same day and date as the film. We will release on VOD that day too. The iPhone app, calendars, cookbooks, toy guns, fake cigarettes. When Kill Me, Deadly is released all these events and items will be hitting the world at the same time. We call it SHOCK AND AHHH!
filmdude
Brilliant. Marketing a film in this new climate just takes different ways of thinking now.
darrett
Exactly. We had an advertising plan in place with submarines all ready to go. And I mean…a fleet of 36 submarines going up and down the coast. But then we realized the visibility was weak. How many people would actually see the artwork on the side of the submarine? It works well for buses and skyscrapers... but submarines? not so much.
filmdude
What's next for the Kill Me, Deadly team?
darrett
We have worked out a deal with Fortune 500 companies to do film noir training sessions. The employees dress up in noir outfits and talk that noir talk. It's about boosting morale and productivity. Bill Robens, the writer of the film, has a lot of work cut out for him. He has to modify modern corporate jargon into the noir slang. But it will be a huge cash cow for us and that is how we will fund future projects.
filmdude
Can't wait to see what you guys come up with.
darrett
Me too. (laughs)