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| Director DAVE WASCAVAGE interview 8/04 (w/deek) originally done 4/04 |
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Alright, again, as part of the kick-off-triumvirate of horror-fication (lets see how many words I can make up in this interview) we're pscyhed to have one twited s.o.b., and indie-director on the rise, Dave Wascavage with us here at Purerockfury.com. Dave, more recently, is the director of the soon to be cult-classic/nature run amok film, Fungicide (yes, Killer Mushrooms!), and is also currently at work on his most recent creation, that being a flick called "Suburban Sasquatch". In anycase, a warm welcome for Big DW, as we like to call 'em (and no, you don't actually have to clap in front of your computer unless you choose to be rubber-room bound)!
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DEEK: Dave, thanks for joining us man- now where exactly is your operation based out of (Troubled Moon Films- www.troubledmoonfilms.com)?
DAVE: First, thanks so much for taking the time for the interview Deek – always a pleasure to invite people into the madness that is my mind. The only way I can describe Troubled Moon Films is to say that it’s based out of my crazy psyche that is my brain. But for logistics sake, let’s just say outside of Philadelphia, PA.
DEEK: Mmmmm...home of Gino's cheesesteaks! (Snapping out of a hunger-trance) Now we'll start with the old-school...I was perusing through your archives of movies you've done, your origin (wording it like that makes you sound like some comic book villain!), and what you're presently involved with, and I quickly noticed that one of your early horror-flicks was something long-windedly titled (love it!) "Revenge Of The Earth-Chomping Intergalactic Space Marauder"? What the...? Is that available anywhere? Tell us a little about that one...
DAVE: Yeah, that’s a title and film that’s near and dear to my heart. “...Earth Chompers” as we refer to it around Troubled Moon, was really just a fun flick. While it’s not my first, it was the longest of any film I’d done up to that point. It’s 45 minutes or so, and my only intention was just to make something for some family and friends to get a kick out of it. But the real subversive tactic with the film is that I used it as a recruiting tool – I wanted to create a product that I could use to showcase my talents (at least the ones I had to that point). I figured that way I could start bringing in more and more talented people to take on my scripts. It’s hard to get a film going when you promise people what it’s going to be, if you have little evidence to back it up. It was a great film to work on, and there were a lot of good lines. But this is a film that’s definitely not something to distribute. It’s going for the core “Godzilla/big monster destroys city” audience. I will say that my mother, who played the president, did an outstanding job. What really killed me on making the film was the extensive Computer Generated (CG) work, and the sound effects. I ended up burning out two hard drives from that film! It took sooo much time to do it too!
DEEK: Now, congratulations is also in order since I hear that you just somewhat recently landed some sort of distro deal with your indie-flick Fungicide! For those who'll be too lazy and so uncaring as to not check out Dave's website, here's the quick lowdown on Fungicide:
"Take a kooky bed and breakfast owner, add a wrestler who suffers from spontaneous combustion, one greedy land developer, a reality game show nut, and a crazy scientist. Mix well with blood thirsty monstrous mushrooms. What do you get? A comedy/horror film like this!"
Now Dave, gotta ask, Killer Mushrooms!? Not your average, nor common horror-fare. Where'd the idea come from? I mean, I've seen Day Of The Triffids, 134 killer-snake films from Dean Cain's crap-fest Boa, to King Cobra, and even that Killer Tongue flick, but killer fungi seems to be a first! Or is it? Where the hell did the inspiration for this come from? Illegal subtances? Sleep deprivation? Twinkie-filling addiction?
DAVE: Man I am such a fan of monster flicks – even the bad ones! I just dig the idea of some kind of unholy, unearthly thing just rampaging around! But people who know me realize that this is nothing out of the ordinary for me. I’ve always had crazy ideas for stories and films anyway. Since I was a child, having thousands and thousands of fantasies and images that run through my head, it’s just bound to happen that one of them gets exploited as a novel or movie. I can’t imagine what my mind would be like if it were on mind-altering drugs. It’s tough enough inside there as it is! But I had a basic idea for this film a month before finishing “..Earth Chompers”, although it was really nothing more than a basic title at that point. So Mary (my wife) was going to write this film with me, and while we were eating out one night, we started batting around ideas. I just threw it out on the table – “What about – killer mushrooms?!”. Hadn’t been done before. So during the dinner we just kept going back and forth, adding ideas as layers and the concept was getting funnier and more do-able as we’d continue. After dinner it took me two hours to write an outline of the story. And there it was. It turns out that as we developed the characters and dialog, there was a lot more in the concept than we anticipated. We knew from the get-go that this was going to be a comedy horror film, and that it was going straight for a cult audience. It was great fun to write, and the actors (Dave Weldon, Dave Bonavita, Wes Miller) really took to their characters well. We wanted to try to make the characters and dialog as easy for the actors to say and emote as possible, since none had done any professional work to that point. The biggest challenge was in the filming. We shot about 95% of the material in a matter of 2 ½ days. It was an exhausting weekend. But the real work is in the post production phase. That’s where you have to find all the good shots, throw away the crap, and fix any one of a million mistakes that happen during filmmaking. There is so much involved that it truly separates the filmmaker from the hack. And thank you very much on mentioning the distribution deal! This was actually the sixth contract I was offered for Fungicide, and I was really happy with the offer. This has totally surpassed anything I could have asked for with the film! My goal was only to make a movie and entertain a few people, and here I am with a distribution deal! Unreal, man. A blessing to be sure, but still kind of surreal.
DEEK: And its damn inspiring to others to see that "the little guy" still can make big things happen! Now, I haven't seen the full movie yet (Fungicide), but from the stills available on www.troubledmoonfilms.com, it looks as if you've dabbled in the realm of computer animation for a good deal of the creatures effects. What kinda program did you use? Alot of us aspiring indie dorks would be curious to know how involved and expensive it is to attempt something like 'dis.
DAVE: You haven’t seen Fungicide yet? Dude, then what am I doing this interview for? And when do I get a trip to the “green room” for some free eats? Seriously though, I find that CG work is extremely handy and flexible. It’s like a directors dream come true – the ability to take endless amounts of shots and change lighting, direction, angles all in a matter of minutes. The downside is that it can come off looking really fake, and you have to be careful not to overuse it. I really used a lot of it in Fungicide, but I integrated the reasoning into the film itself. Since I build my own PC’s, it’s easy to take a selection from a variety of software programs available that do this 3D animation. That’s the biggest cost you’ll have, since the more powerful programs are the more expensive. Although if you seek it out, you’ll find some really nice freeware programs that do a nice job also. But the biggest investment you’ll make is time. You need plenty of that, and patience to develop CG work. As a resource, the internet is a vast and amazing area where you can find reviews and tools for a variety of these programs. It took me about 8 months of working with the software and training myself to learn as much as I did. And I’m still learning today. But rest assured that there are people out there who are willing to help, or who have come across problems that you may be encountering. You need to keep working at a problem, trying to solve it, and be willing enough to see it through to the end. CG's a way to solve problems and make logistics easier, but it’s not required though, and there are many stories that you can write that don’t need it. For Fungicide, it had it’s place and worked well. But I’m also forced into a corner like German cinema of the 20s and 30s. Since I can’t directly compete with Hollywood, I need to make my films as original and off-beat as possible. That’s a key for indie filmmakers to learn. Unless you get the $100 million budget with star players that attract moviegoers, your going to have to struggle for a little while- and that means doing whatever it takes.
DEEK: Very thorough answer, thanks man. Now hoppin' around in subject matter, overall, what was the most difficult aspect of bringing your fungicidal ideas to fruition? I'm sure, as would probably be the case with most any shoot, you had some obstacles to overcome, last minute changes to be made, run-ins with the man, bad taco meat problems for the crew, etc- do tell...
DAVE: Flexibility was the key for this film. There were a few scenes dropped and several were altered due to time constraints. So you need to know when and how you adjust certain scenes based on these changes- and they happen on the fly. You need to be able to be a filmmaker, a leader, a manager, a friend, the scriptwriter, and the producer all-in-one. For these indie films you don’t have a choice! Your cast needs to be flexible to work with you, and you need to be flexible to know when to push and when to step back. For Fungicide, when I was reviewing the raw footage after principle shooting was done, I found that 2 scenes were missing. Now, you can’t get everybody together and re-shoot since you’re relying on the same weather and lighting conditions, and people really don’t have a lot of free time. So you have to figure out how your going to stay true to the script, and adjust the story to match it. And you have to keep the cast happy so you don’t push them over the edge. You need to keep that in mind, especially if you have critical scenes that need to be shot. But you also have to have the producers hat on, to know what must be done in order to get the film completed. Sometimes that can really take a lot out of you. I don’t see the CG work or the directing or the producing as challenges. But it’s being able to communicate your dreams and ideas, then having to encourage people to help bring them to fruition -that’s the biggest challenge.
DEEK: And is it true that Mr. T and Tom Selleck are in talks now to possibly be involved with "Fungicide 2: When Athlete's Foot Attacks"?
DAVE: Yes, they are actually eating caviar in my house right now watching me do this interview. Mr. T? Tom Selleck? Please! Those guys wouldn’t allow me to cut their lawn! How about Julia Roberts, though? I can find a role that she can play for a sequel. Julia, you out there? Call me, babe! But if you are trying to probe me for secrets on Fungicide 2, rest assured that there is already a skeleton draft that exists. I have had several people express a desire to see a sequel made (and a few that asked to be in it), which I think is a great compliment, but there are no plans for it right now. I have too many other stories I need to pursue first. If a demand for it exists, then I’d do it. A lot of material gets scrapped when a story moves to the screenplay part, so that’s material for a sequel there. On top of that, there are a lot of concepts that I alluded to in Fungicide that I knew I could explore with a sequel someday, if I wanted to.
DEEK: Hey, also keep in mind that Carrot-top is ALWAYS available! Anyway, mushing onward to this present day n' age Dr. W- as was mentioned, Suburban Sasquatch is you're current project. Give us a quick rundown on that. What kind of budget are you working with on that too? If you don't mind my asking. Alot of people have also been wondering if there will be any guest appearances from Ogopogo, The Yeti, The Dover Demon, or Nessie in this one. Can you spill the beans on that yet?
DAVE: I’ve been in love with Bigfoot since a little kid. Every time “In Search Of” would come on with Bigfoot, or there would be a special on Bigfoot, I’d have this sick, scared fascination with watching these shows. I just always thought he was so cool. So it’s always been a desire for me to have a story about the big guy. But whenever you see films that have Bigfoot in them, or any other creature of this type, they're pretty one-dimensional and have little character depth. I wanted to create a story where Bigfoot was as important as any other character, and that his true motives and behavior are not what you’d expect. I put a lot of effort into developing this story and it’s characters, not just for Bigfoot. It’s important to me that the story has many layers to it. You may not get it on the first viewing, but I want people to see a different story when they watch it for a fifth, sixth, and tenth time. It’s too easy to get hooked into the Hollywood machine and turn out characters and storylines that are tried and true moneymakers. I’d rather take a risk and do something original. That’s what Suburban Sasquatch is all about. The budget for Suburban Sasquatch was around the $3500 range. That’s pretty cheap for a film. I mean, it doesn’t feel cheap when you’re shelling out the money, but the quality of the output is amazing for this cost. The thrust behind Fungicide was to make it as cheaply as possible. The idea for Suburban Sasquatch was to spend what I needed to get it done. It was critical for me to have my story told here, and I was going to do it regardless of how long or how much it cost. I’m going to have the premiere this month (April), and am really excited about it. I can’t give away too much about the story. But I will say that there is a lot more to Bigfoot than you ever thought possible, and this film will explain quite a bit about his history. But I didn’t want to dilute the story with other creatures – this was important for me to create a new legend for Bigfoot, one based in both reality and in my imagination.
DEEK: Any idea when it might be available?
DAVE: Besides the premiere in a few weeks, my current plan is to have maybe one or two other public showings of the film. In addition to that I’ll be pursuing a few film festivals, and then seeking a distributor. This is definitely a more commercial product than Fungicide, and it’s probably the closest I’ll make to a “normal” film. But I won’t be selling it to the public for at least another 6 months or so. My current plan is to have a single DVD of the film with the trailers, and a special edition double-DVD with outtakes, a making of documentary, fun on the set, and various interviews and material. But I’d like to get as much audience interaction with it as possible before I start selling it. Since money isn’t a goal, I’ve given myself freedom to enjoy the film and the excitement that I see people get from it. I’m always open for options too. If enough people want to see it, and we can’t arrange a public showing, I can easily make a trip to bring the movie to them for screenings. As long a they have yummy munchies. But seriously, the time has passed for using existing models and frameworks for showing films. There’s too big of a culture for cult films and non-hollywood productions to be locked into the “you can’t use my theatre because a distributor won’t let me” attitude. So that means I’m going to do what it takes to keep making films and showing them.
DEEK: You stick it to 'em brutha! Hey, you a big cryptozoology-flick fan? If so, any particular thoughts on some of the more recent films from this subgenre that have been released- Loch Ness, Wendigo, The Untold (aka "Sasquatch"), etc?
DAVE: I’ve honestly been so busy with this film for the past year and a half that I haven’t seen any of these films. I try not to “cross-breed” my ideas with other films. It’s good to be inspired, but I don’t want to be led. But I am a huge fan of these films in general, and I’m just a horror-nut. And there is something to cryptozoology (both from the film aspect and reality aspect) that I just dig. I mean, how cool is it in our ultra-cynical society to still be searching for creatures that defy logic and science? I love it! What a slap in the face to all those people who pray to science get! I mean, look at the Coelacanth: a creature thought extinct long ago turns up in the 20th century. You can see some scientists scratching their heads saying “whoops, 'gotta re-write our theories, boys”. As much as I am an engineer and I love science, I am sick of the mentality that believes that we can’t find anything strange or paranormal in this world. A few of the cast members saw a film called “Sasquatch” (released in 2000) but said it wasn’t very good. I think I caught a bit of it on the Sci-Fi channel, but turned it off after 5 minutes. It didn’t really hold my attention. I mean, it’s good to get some simple entertainment from a movie now and then, but I want to create characters and situations that grow and change – that these people are alive and exist not only in the film but in the backstory that you can create for them. Some of these films don’t come close to that, so I’d like to see more of that happen.
DEEK: And what's next on the slate for Troubled Moon once you guys release S.S.? Or is what i'm asking of you, government protected, would-have-to-give-you-a-columbian-necktie-if-I-told-you inside knowledge that can't be uttered within reach of civilian ears?
DAVE: Well, I’m still waiting for the gift basket you guys are supposed to give me for this interview. So how can I tell you any secrets? Jeez, what does a star have to do around here???
DEEK: Gift Basket? I got a few old promo rubber-squeeze-wallets from the 80s I could toss your way, but thats about it. Besides, half the stuff you asked for in the rider can't be legally found north of the Mexican border!? Cut me some slack man!
DAVE: Ok, I’ll give in a little bit. Mary is coming back to help me co-write the next film which we’re shooting in June. I’m working on the casting now and buying more equipment, and I’m having Matt Black (from Blackheart Films, who’s worked with Tom Savini) doing my makeup and special effects for the film. He’s a great guy and really knows his stuff. He’s already shown me some spec work for this film, and it looks amazing. I’ve also got Troy Sanders (of seriousfix.com) doing makeup as well, so between the two of them we’re going to have a good old bloody time. As far as the story, let’s just say that zombies are a favorite of mine, and I think the world needs a good kick in the ass with a new take on them. And I think there’s a little social commentary that needs to be made as well. But that’s all you’ll get from me. If you buy me a dinner, maybe I’ll tell you more. Seriously, I hope people know me as being approachable and down to earth. The only limiting factor I have is time.
DEEK: Speakin' o' which, we're just about outta' that, so Dave, thanks so much for taking the time out to yap with us lowlives here at Purerockfury.com. We hope to hear from you in the future and good luck with all ya' big galoot.
DAVE: Thank you for taking the time, and the pleasure was all mine. Feel free to keep in touch or email me. As long as I have the time I love to talk about this stuff. I wish you the best, and hope your site really takes off! Pursue your dreams because they are YOUR dreams – and they are what we strive for in life!
For more info on the films of Dave Wascavage, please check out www.troubledmoonfilms.com
ALSO- notes of interest concerning Dave Wascavage
1 - Suburban Sasquatch is available on DVD (in a single and special double disc edition) and on VHS starting on August 27th
2 - Dave is currently editing his next horror film
3 - Filming on a zombie movie starts in September!
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