Horror movies &stuff Interviews Director/Writer Chris Sivertson
We recently talked with filmmaker Chris Sivertson about his horror adaptation film, "The Lost" which is now available on DVD. The film is based on the Jack Ketchum novel and stars Marc Senter as 19-year-old Ray Pye, who decides to murder two young women while hanging out at some campgrounds one nice summer day. His friends, Jen and Tim, witness the murder and help him cover it up. Four years later, Ray has never been arrested for the crime. Detective Charlie Schilling and his ex-partner, Ed Anderson, know that Ray did it.
They just could never prove it. Charlie figures it's about time they did prove it. He's ready to push Ray harder than ever. They also never found the gun that Ray used to murder the women at the campground. That rifle, as well as a handgun, are hidden behind the mirror in Ray's bathroom. Ray can only be pushed so far. The time will come when he takes the mirror off the wall and shows everyone who is in charge.
MR. H:What do you think is the most important key element to success when adapting a novel to make into a feature film?
Chris:Just recognizing what will work in a movie and what won't. It's tough because when you read a book, you usually understand quite explicitly what a given character is thinking at a given time. That is more open to interpretation in a movie and I think you just have to go with that. If you're trying to over-explain things, so everyone in the audience has the same exact idea of what's happening, and of what the characters' motivations are, you're in trouble. You have to be confident that your actors will convey whatever is necessary to understand about their characters.
MR. H:When casting the film, most importantly the part of Ray Pye, what was behind the decision to pursue Marc Senter for the role?
Chris:At the beginning of the process I was worried about finding a suitable actor who could embody Ray Pye. I wanted to work with someone new and fresh. So Dino Ladki, my casting director, and I just went about it the old fashioned way and spent months auditioning people. Marc just blew everybody else away.
MR. H:You managed to also obtain a lot of talent on the female side for this movie, with Erin Brown, Dee Wallace, Katie Cassidy, and Robin Sydney. How did those casting decisions come about, and do you take just a little bit of credit for your film spring boarding the careers of some of these ladies, Katie and Robin in particular?
Chris:With Erin Brown and Dee Wallace Stone, those were just two actresses I specifically wanted from the beginning. They were both just very obviously perfect for the movie. We found Katie and Robin through the audition process. I believe the old cliche that real talent will win out, given enough persistence, so I don't take credit for helping out anybody's career.
MR. H:What was it about Jack Ketchum's novel that attracted you to this project, and made you want to do this movie?
Chris:The characters in the novel are fascinating. I read the book and got obsessed with them. I felt like I knew all of them. From the beginning, I felt like I knew how to bring these characters into a movie and keep what I loved about them on the page alive in a new medium.
MR. H:You've co-directed a few horror projects, but with "The Lost", you were fully at the helm as director. How easy or hard was it to make that transition, and were you excited about finally having a horror film all to yourself?
Chris:It was easy. I think co-directing a movie is more difficult because that's an intense relationship, and any relationship worth a damn is going to be volatile in some ways. The only stuff I've co-directed is with people who are like family to me.
MR. H:This film was made way back in 2005, but is only hitting DVD today in wide release, and before that...it received a limited release earlier this year. What was it that kept this movie from coming out earlier than it did?
Chris:I completed the movie in October of 2005. It immediately started playing in festivals in Europe the same week I finished it. U.S. distributors first saw it in March of 2006 when it showed at SXSW in Austin, Texas. We were negotiating with distributors who saw it there shortly after that and meanwhile, the movie continued to play all over the world in various fests. There was a long period of negotiations with different companies during this time. We insisted on two conditions. We wanted at least a modest theatrical release and we wanted to leave the movie unrated. Those aren't easy conditions to have met these days. These things take time.
MR. H:This is a very gruesome and shocking film, material wise. With that being said...how was the mood on set among the talent involved?
Chris:During the gruesome sequences, things on the set were well, gruesome, I guess. There's some heavy shit that goes down, and this being a movie, this stuff has to be created in the flesh. So emotions run high and things get intense. But there's enough lighter material in the movie that the actors got some much-needed breaks from all the bleakness.
MR. H:How long was "The Lost" shoot and what locations did you guys film in?
Chris:We shot the movie over the course of four weeks. It was entirely shot in and around Los Angeles.
MR. H:Did you get Jack Ketchum's seal of approval on the script before you moved ahead with production on the film? How was his reaction to the script you had put together?
Chris:I kept him in the loop throughout the screenwriting process. He was very enthusiastic and encouraging. He always understood that some things have to change in the transition from page to screen, so he wasn't precious about his material. At the same time, I think he recognized the fact that I wouldn't be making the movie if I didn't want to retain the true essence of what he had created.
MR. H:Did you have any specific message you wanted to send to the general public with this movie, or was this film strictly just a movie you wanted to make for horror movie fans absent of any particular message?
Chris:I don't like message movies. They don't interest me at all. I'm interested in people. It's great how there can be this person and some people love that person while others can't stand him or her. But "love em or hate em", it's still the same person. That's very interesting to me and I kind of look at movies like people. Everybody should get something different out of a movie experience and if you're trying to shove a message down your audience's throat you're kind of killing that possibility. Messages are for term papers and political speeches, not for movies. Themes are important to movies, but a theme is quite a different thing than a message.
MR. H:Are there any plans for a sequel or prequel to "The Lost"?
Chris:No. I joke about the idea once in awhile, but it's not something I am serious about any time soon.
MR. H:How has making this film boosted your status as a director, a little or a whole lot?
Chris:I guess a lot, because I had no status at all as a director before I did this movie.
MR. H:You have more horror projects on the way with "Wicked Lake" which you wrote, and which is currently in post-production last we heard. When should we expect to see that film released?
Chris:That will probably come out around Halloween. You see, that movie had distribution in place before it was made, so this stuff happens quickly.
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