Horror movies &stuff Interviews "Slime City Massacre" Writer/Director Greg Lamberson!
HM&S.com chatted recently with "Slime City Massacre" Writer and Director Greg Lamberson, who's sequel to his 1988 cult-horror-hit "Slime City", recently wrapped shooting in Buffalo New York. "Slime City Massacre" is set in the wake of a "dirty bomb" attack, where a New York City neighborhood known as "Slime City" has been evacuated, except for the homeless ("displaced refugees"). Four squatters searching for food in the ruins of the Zachary Devon Soup Kitchen discover a supply of mysterious wine.
When they drink the wine, they are transformed into hideous slime creatures driven to murder - an intermediate step as they are possessed by the spirits of cultists who committed suicide years earlier. The films cast boasts genre familiars such as Lee Perkins, Kealan Patrick Burke, Debbie Rochon, and others, including Robert C. Sabin who returns in the sequel as Zachary, a character opposite of the character he played in the first film, suicidal cult-leader Alex. In this interview, Lamberson talks the film, it's cast, "Slime City" then and now, and other "Slime City"-related stuff with us!
MR. H:You directed the first "Slime City" film back in 1988, and now are doing the sequel 21 years later. How has filmmaking changed now compared to back then?
Greg:We shot SLIME CITY on 16m, and SLIME CITY MASSACRE on Hi Def 24p. On SLIME, my cinematographer, Peter Clark, was a college friend of mine and as inexperienced as I was. Our shots were pretty static. On MASSACRE, I decided to hire a professional Director of Photography, Chris Santucci, who works here in Buffalo but also travels around the country. He's built up an arsenal of equipment, so for the first time I had a dolly, jib rig, and something called a "slider" at my disposal.
Chris also uses a 35mm lens adapter, which really creates a "film look" in camera, without resorting to tell tale post production gimmicks. We never really discussed an approach to the material, but we were in sync as far as trying to make this film cinematic and not just a disposable exploitation movie. I discussed some shots with him ahead of time, and any time I came up with something unplanned on set he would just say "Okay" and make it happen. I've never had a situation like that before, and I fully credit him and his crew - an AC named Shannon Madden and a sound mixer named Ryan Richards - with making this film look as good as it does.
MR. H:How big was the budget for the first film, and how big was the budget for the sequel "Slime City Massacre"?
Greg:The original film cost $50,000 in 1986, but a lot of that was lab costs that don't exist for a HD movie. I'm going to keep the budget for SCM to myself until I know what it actually is! But I paid several of my actors and some of my crew, so it's a much more ambitious production than the first one.
MR. H:You assembled a great line of talent for this movie. Lee, Debbie, Robert, and Angelina and Jennifer, two up and comers. How'd you luck out in getting such a talented cast?
Greg:It's amazing, isn't it? First, I wouldn't have made the film without Robert Sabin and Mary Bogle from the original. This started out as a project for us to do together, then evolved into much more than that. It was so exciting to work with both of them again, even though they had no scenes together, and I'm really proud of the work they did. Jennifer Bihl had a small role in GRUESOME, the short film I made a couple of years ago based on my novel JOHNNY GRUESOME, and I knew right away that I wanted her to play the equivalent of Mary's character in the original, only bigger. Of the main cast, she's the only one who lives here in Buffalo, and she did a fantastic job.
Roy Frumkes (STREET TRASH) came to town for the last day of filming - he plays a villain - and he said that Jennifer has a real career ahead of her if she wants it; he called her a "refined Anna Paquin." Debbie Rochon was a revelation on this film; I wrote her character for her, and I started really believing in my script when I saw how devoted she was to it. I could spend this entire interview discussing the contributions she made to this film and none of it would be hype. She was a tremendous force of positive creativity.
I met Lee Perkins at a convention a few years ago and we stayed in touch. I've wanted to work with him for a long time, and he and Debbie really fleshed out their characters. I miss Lee already! Angelina is somewhat local - she works on the west coast but is staying here to help her family. She had a small part that I kept expanding, and she probably has one of the most memorable scenes in the film, something that wasn't even in the script.
My past films have generally been about two or three characters, but SCM has about 30 speaking parts. It's a real ensemble piece, and all of the actors realized that and worked well together. One person you left out is Kealan Patrick Burke, a fellow horror novelist who plays the male lead. He and Debbie and Lee stayed in "Actor House" together, and Kealan, Debbie, SFX artists Arick Scztmecki and Andrew Lavin - and me! - all got SCM tattoos.
There are other people I should mention as well: Dick Biel and Tom Merrick from SLIME CITY; Tommy Sweeney from UNDYING LOVE and NAKED FEAR; and Eric Mache, who's appeared in my other films and designed my posters and graphics. And Brooke Lewis gives a tremendous performance opposite Robert Sabin - her fans should be very pleased. Honestly, I feel blessed with this cast. They went above and beyond the call and did something very special with my script.
MR. H:Tell us the basic premise of "Slime City Massacre", and how it connects to the first film.
Greg:In the first film, we learned that a cult leader named Zachary Devon and his followers committed suicide in the cellar of an apartment building. The spirits of the cultists possessed the tenants in the building years later, and Robert Sabin's character was possessed by Zachary. Most of that was back story; we never saw Zachary, except in a dream. In the new film, flashbacks show the origin and demise of Zachary Devon's Coven of Flesh. And I cast Robert as Zachary, which was great fun. But the flashbacks are only interspersed through the main story, which is set in a post apocalyptic NYC. This time four people discover Zachary's wine and "Himalayan yogurt," and all four of them get possessed.
MR. H:How bloody and gory will "Slime City Massacre" be compared to the first movie? Will it take it up a few notches, or is it about on par with the first one?
Greg:There will be a lot of SFX and plenty of gore, but a lot more action. This will be a fast paced film that will out-do the original in every respect. We had a six-man FX crew, and two of them will be doing CGI as well.
MR. H:So now that the film has wrapped, the editing process has begun. Which you expect will be completed in full by years end. Which means "Slime City Massacre" will be out by 2010 sometime. Take us through the steps of the editing process for this movie, and how it will go.
Greg:My editor is Phil Gallo, who did the score for MOTHER'S DAY, edited NAKED FEAR, and directed his own features, WEST NEW YORK and MATTY FRESNO AND THE HOLOFLUX UNIVERSE. He's the best editor I know, and I'm basically turning the film over to him and allowing him to do what he does best. In this day and age, a lot of indie filmmakers like to edit themselves. That's admirable, but I think a talented pro editor can do a better job. Phil will handle the picture editing, sound editing, and color correction. Mars is doing our score, Giasone and Marcy Italiano are creating a theme song, and Stephen Romano is doing our opening credits.
MR. H:So far, which distributors are at the front of the line to get "Slime City Massacre"?
Greg:I'm not talking to any distributors yet. I've been at this too long to get shafted, and I believe in this project too much. We'll do some festivals in 2010 and see what's available to us.
MR. H:How do you guys plan to roll this movie out, straight to DVD, straight to VOD, or a small theatrical run first?
Greg:I'd like to play at some quality festivals and get some midnight bookings. Based on the uncut footage I've seen, this film deserves some sort of theatrical release, even if it's just midnight shows on weekends.
MR. H:Musically, what kind of soundtrack will "Slime City Massacre" sport?
Greg:SCM is a celebration of 1980s splatter flicks, so Mars will be going the synth route. He's also a fan of Italian horror flicks, so there will be some sort of influence by those. Most important, the score will have a very full sound.
MR. H:Any possibility that there'll be a second sequel somewhere down the line if part two does well?
Greg:Never say never, and at least one character survives the MASSACRE, but if I do another one it will be down the road. SCM is special because it isn't a horror sequel tat was rushed out to capitalize on the first film. I waited two decades to do this, when I had a story that I really wanted to tell. I don't see any reason to rush into another one unless I come up with a story that needs to be told.
End.
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