#35: “Nobody Said: Wow, We’re Doing Something Revolutionary Here”: Ron Bonk on his Early Found-Footage Film STRAWBERRY ESTATES

Today’s guest is Ron Bonk, best known as the owner of the New York-based underground production and distribution company SRS Cinema. Ron started out as a filmmaker in the shot-on-video world of the 1990’s, writing and directing low-budget genre films like CITY OF THE VAMPIRES and THE VICIOUS SWEET. He went on to direct several independent horror films like CLAY, MS. CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST or the tongue-in-cheek HOUSE SHARK. With SRS Cinema, he’s produced and distributed numerous other films with splendid titles such as AMITYVILLE BIGFOOT, PUPPET SHARK or COCAINE CRABS FROM OUTER SPACE.

Our conversation revolves around a found footage film Ron Bonk made in the late 90’s called STRAWBERRY ESTATES, the story of a professor and his student who, along with a medium and a cameraman, venture into an abandoned insane asylum to communicate with the dead – what could possibly go wrong? Ron made the film twice – once in 1997, and then again in 1999, for a mere $400, to capitalize on the success of THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT. In our conversation, Ron talks about the making of both versions, and how he approached the found footage aesthetic and its spirit of authenticity. He also talks about his first ventures into the world of filmmaking, and how his film poked fun at the conventions of no-budget films while embracing the shot-on-video aesthetic which has very much become a standard these days.

The interview was conducted in connection with our German-language podcast Lichtspielplatz, so if you speak German, please check out Lichtspielplatz episode #68, which features an in-depth discussion of STRAWBERRY ESTATES and many other found footage horror films. Also, make sure to listen to our interviews with found footage filmmakers Ted Nicolaou, Brian Leslie, Stefan Avalos and Dean Alioto here on Talking Pictures.

So without any further ado, here’s director Ron Bonk!

The mp3 file can be downloaded HERE.

Photo courtesy of Dean Alioto
Editing: Christoph Schwarz
Music: Clark Kent

#35: “It’s Good to Be Ahead of Your Time, But Not a Decade”: Director Dean Alioto on Pioneering Found Footage Film UFO ABDUCTION

Today’s guest is Dean Alioto, writer and director of the groundbreaking found footage horror film UFO ABDUCTION, which also became known as THE MCPHERSON TAPE. The film tells the story of a family whose house is surrounded by alien creatures one night, and while the panicked people inside the house become more and more frightened and try to deal with the situation, a family members records the entire event with a 1980’s-style home video camera. Dean made the film on a shoestring budget in 1989 while he was in his mid-Twenties, and while there have been several found footage and pseudo-documentary precursors since the 1960’s, what is striking about UFO ABDUCTION is how much it anticipates the aesthetic and the storytelling that was popularized ten years later by THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT and other found footage horror films.

In our interview, Dean Alioto talks about the making of this unusual, pioneering film, and which strategies he used to make the material more authentic. He relates the incredible and hilarious story of how the film disappeared, then reappeared and was thought to be a real recording of an actual close encounter of the third kind – which then, through many strange coincidences, led to the production of a remake called ALIEN ABDUCTION: INCIDENT AT LAKE COUNTY, which was released in 1998, again directed by Dean. We also talk about some of Dean’s other projects, including his latest horror film PORTAL, and some of his upcoming productions.

The interview was conducted in connection with our German-language podcast Lichtspielplatz, so if you speak German, please check out Lichtspielplatz episode #68, which features an in-depth discussion of UFO ABDUCTION and ALIEN ABDUCTION and many other found footage horror films. Also, make sure to listen to our interviews with found footage filmmakers Ted Nicolaou, Brian Leslie, Stefan Avalos and Ron Bonk here on Talking Pictures.

So without any further ado, here’s director Dean Alioto!

The mp3 file can be downloaded HERE.

Photo courtesy of Dean Alioto
Editing: Christoph Schwarz
Music: Clark Kent

#34: “It’s very easy for me to scare myself”: Director Ted Nicolaou on THE ST. FRANCISVILLE EXPERIMENT

Today’s guest is Ted Nicolaou, best known for his many collaborations with producer Charles Band, including the popular SUBSPECIES series. Ted started out as a sound recordist on Tobe Hooper’s cult classic THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE and then went into editing, working on films like ROAR, TRANCERS and GHOULIES. As a director, and ofentimes as a writer, too, he made films like the offbeat horror comedy TERRORVISION, charming fantasy movies for children like DRAGONWORLD or LEAPIN’ LEPRECHAUNS, and, of course, the aforementioned SUBSPECIES films – a series of vampire horror films which made perfect use of their impressive Romanian locations and managed to mix vampire lore, dramatic horror and a dose of eroticism with just the right amount of tongue-in-cheek B-movie attitude.

Our conversation, however, revolves around a lesser-known film which Ted directed: THE ST. FRANCISVILLE EXPERIMENT – a found-footage horror film that came out shortly after THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT made its mark on the horror genre. The film tells the story of a group of filmmakers who set out to spend the night in a haunted Louisiana mansion, hoping to encounter the ghosts of the victims of Delphine LaLaurie, the real-life New Orleands socialite who brutally tortured slaves in the 1800s. Ted was brought onto the film after some elements had already been shot, and he encountered a production that wasn’t as carefully prepared as it should have been. In our interview, Ted relates how he came on board of the film, how the handled the initial shoot without much room for directorial influence, and how he and the production team then went about to restructure the film and add elements in reshoots – resulting in a horror film which wears the influence of BLAIR WITCH on its sleeve, but manages to create a chilly, atmospheric mood and several effective scare scenes of its own.

The interview was conducted in connection with our German-language podcast Lichtspielplatz, so if you speak German, please check out Lichtspielplatz episode #68, which features an in-depth discussion of THE ST. FRANCISVILLE EXPERIMENT and many other found footage horror films. Also, make sure to listen to our interviews with found footage filmmakers Dean Alioto, Brian Leslie, Stefan Avalos and Ron Bonk here on Talking Pictures.

So without any further ado, here’s director Ted Nicolaou!

The mp3 file can be downloaded HERE.

Photos courtesy of Ted Nicolaou
Editing: Christoph Schwarz
Music: Clark Kent

#33: “We Didn’t Think Anyone Would Watch 1½ Hours of Crappy Video of Running Around in the Woods”: Stefan Avalos on Found Footage Precursor THE LAST BROADCAST

Today’s guest is Stefan Avalos, who was once profiled by Wired magazine as “one of the twenty five people helping to reinvent entertainment”. Together with Lance Weiler, he wrote, produced, directed and starred in the found footage thriller THE LAST BROADCAST, a film which they also shot, edited and scored themselves – and which became the first feature film that was released digitally in commercial cinemas in 1998. The film is a true crime documentary about the two hosts of a cable access show called Fact or Fiction who disappear in search of the mythical Jersey Devil creature. A strange fan who accompanied them and returned unharmed is seen as a murder suspect, but the documentarian believes that the footage will reveal a different story.

Before making THE LAST BROADCAST, Stefan Avalos directed his feature film debut THE GAME in 1993, an edgy crime thriller about two college boys who become involved in a deadly counterfeiting scheme. Later on, Stefan directed the supernatural horror film THE GHOSTS OF EDENDALE, produced films like Paul Tarantino’s black-humored horror comedy HEADHUNTER, and worked as a visual effects creator. His documentary STRAD STYLE about a man from Ohio trying to make a perfect copy of a Stradivarius-quality violin without any formal training in violin making, was released in 2017 and won several awards at festivals like Slamdance.

In our conversation, Stefan Avalos relates the true story behind his first feature film THE GAME and talks about the development and thought process behind creating THE LAST BROADCAST – including the surprise ending and the documentaries which inspired the film. He discusses the strategies he and Lance Weiler used to make their film look authentic, and remembers a few incidences where people were somewhat confused about the reality of the story. He also talks about the ideas behind THE GHOSTS OF EDENDALE and discusses his future projects. In our conversation, we also dive into a fascinating discussion of what AI will be capable of and how that might affect the future of filmmaking – and the future of film consumption.

The interview was conducted in connection with our German-language podcast Lichtspielplatz, so if you speak German, please check out Lichtspielplatz episode #68, which features an in-depth discussion of THE LAST BROADCAST and many other found footage horror films. Also, make sure to listen to our interviews with found footage filmmakers Dean Alioto, Ted Nicolaou, Brian Leslie and Ron Bonk here on Talking Pictures.

So without any further ado, here’s director Stefan Avalos!

The mp3 file can be downloaded HERE.

Photo courtesy of Stefan Avalos
Editing: Christoph Schwarz
Music: Clark Kent

#32: “In 1999, There’s a Lot of Things People Don’t Know About”: Brian Leslie on Producing the BLAIR WITCH Follow-up THE BLACK DOOR

Today’s guest is Brian Leslie, producer of the found footage horror film THE BLACK DOOR, which came out in 2001 on the heels of the success of the genre-defining THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT. THE BLACK DOOR was directed by Kit Wong, and Brian Leslie was brought on board by his production partner Lucas Lowe. Lowe, best known as the director of martial arts action films like KING OF THE KICKBOXERS and AMERICAN SHAOLIN, had worked with Brian on a horror/mystery anthology series which was originally called THE LEGENDS OF THE BUSHWALKER and was then renamed DIARIES OF DARKNESS, with Lowe as director, Brian Leslie as producer, and both as creators and writers. There is an interesting and somewhat ironic connection between THE LEGENDS OF THE BUSHWALKER and THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT, but I’ll leave it up to Brian to tell this story. Both Lowe and Leslie then worked on THE BLACK DOOR, the creepy story of an investigation into the mysterious background of a severely wounded hospital patient, which leads to an old satanic sect – and one of the film’s highlights is a “found” 8mm film of a ritual performed in the 1930’s, which easily counts as one of the most effective set pieces in the history of found footage.

In our conversation, Brian discusses his background as a producer, the development of THE LEGENDS OF THE BUSHWALKER and its surprising connection to the film which kickstarted the first wave of found footage horror back in 1999. He talks about the making of THE BLACK DOOR and its individual elements, including a haunted house. And he relates a bizarre, frightening and ultimately very sweet encounter during the production of THE BLACK DOOR.

The interview was conducted in connection with our German-language podcast Lichtspielplatz, so if you speak German, please check out Lichtspielplatz episode #68, which features an in-depth discussion of THE BLACK DOOR and many other found footage horror films. Also, make sure to listen to our interviews with found footage directors Dean Alioto, Ted Nicolaou, Stefan Avalos and Ron Bonk here on Talking Pictures.

So without any further ado, here’s producer Brian Leslie!

The mp3 file can be downloaded HERE.

Photo courtesy of Brian Leslie
Editing: Christoph Schwarz
Music: Clark Kent

#31: “I Don’t Need Cute” – Director Carl Schultz on THE ADVENTURES OF YOUNG INDIANA JONES

Today’s guest is director Carl Schultz, and our conversation revolves around his work on the TV series THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES, or THE ADVENTURES OF YOUNG INDIANA JONES, as it’s later been retitled. This lavishly produced early 90’s show, a spin-off of the popular Indiana Jones movies, follows the adventures of Indy as a boy, played by Corey Carrier, and as a young man, played by Sean Patrick Flanery, encountering numerous famous historical figures and events. Carl directed several episodes of the show, including the first few episodes which has the protagonist meeting contemporaries like Pancho Villa, Winston Churchill, Theodore Roosevelt, and learning about the Mexican Revolution and the suffragette movement, among others. He also made the famous “Mystery of the Blues” two-part episode set in Chicago where Indy meets jazz musician Sidney Bechet and gangster Al Capone. Furthermore, Carl directed many of the bookends of the show, segments with a 93-year old Indy reminiscing about his earlier adventures.

Carl Schultz (left) on the set of YOUNG INDIANA JONES with executive producer George Lucas.

Carl Schultz was born in Budapest but left Hungary in the 1950’s and moved to Australia, where he established himself as a versatile storyteller. He directed several TV productions, including the mini-series RIDE ON STRANGER from 1979, based on the novel by Kylie Tennant set in the 1930’s, and the mini-series LEVKAS MAN from 1981, based on a book by Hammond Innes. Carl also directed several notable theatrical features, including the 1983 drama CAREFUL HE MIGHT HEAR YOU, the quiet story of a young kid caught in a custody battle between his two aunts, which won eight Australian Film Institute Awards, plus the David Williamson adaptation TRAVELLING NORTH from 1987, the deeply human story of an old curmudgeon who tries to enjoy his retirement days without going through the pains of addressing his health problems, and Carl’s American debut, THE SEVENTH SIGN from 1988, an apocalyptic horror movie starring Demi Moore and Michael Biehn.

In our conversation, Carl recalls the freedom he enjoyed as a director and his impressions of the show’s writer’s room. He also discusses his thoughts on the Old Indy bookend segments and his general approach as a filmmaker to the Young Indy stories.

The interview was conducted in connection with our German-language podcast Lichtspielplatz, so if you speak German, please check out Lichtspielplatz episode #67, which features an in-depth look at the Young Indiana Jones TV series. Also, make sure to listen to my interview with actor Sean Patrick Flanery here on Talking Pictures!

So without any further ado, here’s Carl Schultz discussing how he came on board of YOUNG INDIANA JONES!

The mp3 file can be downloaded HERE.

Photos courtesy of Carl Schultz
Editing: Christoph Schwarz
Music: Clark Kent

 

#30: “It Made Me Read THE TRIAL by Franz Kafka”: Actor Sean Patrick Flanery on THE ADVENTURES OF YOUNG INDIANA JONES

Today’s guest is actor Sean Patrick Flanery, and our conversation revolves around his work on the TV series THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES, later re-titled as THE ADVENTURES OF YOUNG INDIANA JONES– a lavishly produced spin-off of the popular Indiana Jones movies which ran from 1992 to 1996, following the adventures of Indy as a boy, played by Corey Carrier, and as a young man, played by Sean Patrick Flanery, encountering numerous famous historical figures and events. Sean appeared in the lion’s share of the episodes, with Indy fighting numerous battles in World War I, joining Sidney Bechet’s jazz band in Chicago, getting involved with the Easter Rising in Ireland, going to Hollywood to work with John Ford and Erich von Stroheim, and meeting other legendary people like Albert Schweitzer, Ernest Hemingway, George Gershwin or Charles de Gaulle.

After some commercials and smaller roles, YOUNG INDIANA JONES was Sean Patrick Flanery’s first big role in a major production. He also appeared in movies ranging from the cult success THE BOONDOCK SAINTS (1999) and its sequel (2009) to films like SUICIDE KINGS (1997), BODY SHOTS (1999), D-TOX (2002), SAW 3D (2010), the seventh part of the horror movie series, to the recently released horror film NEFARIOUS. On TV, Sean was part of the show THE DEAD ZONE based on the Stephen King novel, where he appeared in several episodes from 2002 to 2007, and he joined the show DEXTER in 2013 for its 8th season. He’s also a martial artist and a writer – his debut novel JANE TWO was published in 2016. On the book’s webpage, Sean’s bio includes the charmingly tongue-in-cheek statement: “He has appeared in over 100 movies and television shows, some of which he hopes you’ve seen, and some of which he hopes you haven’t.”

In our conversation, Sean recalls how the Young Indy series juggled all sorts of different storytelling approaches, and how he experienced the show as an actor. He discusses the educational part of the series and remembers his favorite episodes and directors.

The interview was conducted in connection with our German-language podcast Lichtspielplatz, so if you speak German, please check out Lichtspielplatz episode #67, which features an in-depth look at the Young Indiana Jones TV series. Also, make sure to listen to my interview with Young Indy director Carl Schultz here on Talking Pictures.

So without any further ado, here’s Sean Patrick Flanery recalling the audition process of Young Indiana Jones.

The mp3 file can be downloaded HERE.

Photo courtesy of Sean Patrick Flanery
Editing: Christoph Schwarz
Music: Clark Kent

#29: “We Need the Indiana Jones Character”, Says Novelist Max McCoy

Just like in our last episode, today’s guest is not a filmmaker but a novelist. In our last episode, I spoke to Rob MacGregor who wrote several Indiana Jones novels at the beginning of the Nineties – this time, I’m talking to writer Max McCoy who continued the series from 1995 to 1999 with four original Indiana Jones stories, starting with INDIANA JONES AND THE PHILOSOPHER’S STONE and continuing with INDIANA JONES AND THE DINOSAUR EGGS, THE HOLLOW EARTH and THE SECRET OF THE SPHINX.

Before his Indy series, Max had already written several novels in the Western genre, including THE SIXTH RIDER, SONS OF FIRE and its sequel HOME TO TEXAS and THE WILD RIDER. After the Indiana Jones books, he wrote several other Western novels like HELLFIRE CANYON, DAMNATION ROAD or the Ophelia Wylde Paranormal Mystery series and the Ghost Rifle series, but also thrillers like HINTERLAND, non-fiction books like ELEVATIONS: A PERSONAL EXPLORATION OF THE ARKANSAS RIVER, and the novelization of the Steven Spielberg-produced TV series INTO THE WEST. Max has won not only several awards for his novels, including three Spur Awards, but also for his investigative reporting – because in his other career, Max also works as a journalist and for many years taught as a professor of journalism at Emporia State University in Kansas.

In our conversation, Max recalls how he became involved with the world of Indiana Jones, and how he distilled the ideas of George Lucas into a series of stories that feel very close to the original Indy movies. He discusses the importance and the appeal of the Indy character, the input from Lucasfilm and some ideas that didn’t make it into his novels. He also talks about his research process, his literary influences, and much more.

The interview was conducted in connection with our German-language podcast Lichtspielplatz, so if you speak German, please check out episode #64, which features an in-depth discussion of the Indiana Jones novels by Rob MacGregor, Max McCoy and Wolfgang Hohlbein. Also, make sure to listen to my interview with Rob MacGregor here on Talking Pictures – the novelist who six original Indiana Jones novels in the early 90’s.

So without any further ado, here’s Max McCoy!

The mp3 file can be downloaded HERE.

Photos courtesy of Max McCoy
Editing: Christoph Schwarz
Music: Clark Kent

#28: Mythology and Spirituality: Rob MacGregor on his Indiana Jones Novels

Today’s guest is not a filmmaker – but his best-known work is closely connected to one of the most popular movie series of all time. It is novelist Rob MacGregor, who wrote the novelization of Steven Spielberg’s third Indiana Jones movie, INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE – and then went on to write six more original Indy adventures shortly afterwards, starting with INDIANA JONES AND THE PERIL AT DELPHI in 1991 and then continuing with DANCE OF THE GIANTS, THE SEVEN VEILS, THE GENESIS DELUGE, THE UNICORN’S LEGACY and INDIANA JONES AND THE INTERIOR WORLD throughout 1991 and 1992.

Rob also wrote many other novels, including the Will Lansa Young Adult series which started with PROPHECY ROCK in 1995 and the Nicholas Pierce series which started with CRYSTAL SKULL in 1991. He also published many other mysteries, adventure stories and sci-fi & fantasy stories, including SEVENTH BORN and TULPAS; he wrote books together with Peter Benchley and with Billy Dee Williams and he wrote novelizations for movies like THE PHANTOM and SPAWN. He also wrote numerous non-fiction books, many of them with his wife Trish MacGregor – including books on synchronicity, psychic powers and paranormal mysteries.

In our conversation, Rob recalls his early days as a writer and his journey into the world of Indiana Jones. He talks about working on the six Indy novels and the connections between the stories, the input of George Lucas and Lucasfilm, the popularity of the Indy books and some of his influences in terms of mythology and writing.

The interview was conducted in connection with our German-language podcast Lichtspielplatz, so if you speak German, please check out episode #64, which features an in-depth discussion of the Indiana Jones novels by Rob MacGregor, Max McCoy and Wolfgang Hohlbein. Also, make sure to listen to my interview with Max McCoy here on Talking Pictures – the novelist who continued the Indiana Jones novel series with four more books in the late 90’s.

So without any further ado, here’s Rob MacGregor – who is unsure whether he should re-read his Indy books after all those years …

The mp3 file can be downloaded HERE.

Portrait photo courtesy of Rob MacGregor
Editing: Christoph Schwarz
Music: Clark Kent

#27: “Nothing Would Ever Top the Ark of the Covenant”: Screenwriter Menno Meyjes on INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE

Today’s guest is screenwriter and director Menno Meyjes, best known for his collaboration with Steven Spielberg in the 80’s. Menno was born in the Netherlands but moved to the United States in 1972 to study at the San Francisco Art Institute. After writing a script for one of the best-known episodes of Spielberg’s AMAZING STORIES TV series – “The Mission”, starring a young Kevin Costner and directed by Spielberg himself – Menno received an Academy Award nomination for his adaptation of Alice Walker’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel THE COLOR PURPLE, as directed by Spielberg. As a screenwriter, he also worked on films like Franklin Schaffner’s LIONHEART, Russell Mulcahy’s RICOCHET and Edward Zwick’s THE SIEGE.

After THE COLOR PUPLE, Menno was brought in to work on the third Indiana Jones movie, INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE, taking over from writer Chris Columbus whose MONKEY KING script had been rejected. In our conversation, Menno talks about his collaboration with George Lucas and Steven Spielberg and how elements like the search for the Holy Grail and Indy’s father were introduced.

He also discusses some of the other films he’s worked on, including his directorial debut MAX, an independent gem starring John Cusack as a Jewish art dealer based in Munich who, shortly after WWI, encounters a young, struggling painter named Adolf Hitler whose anger and disillusionment is slowly finding other, more harmful outlets. Menno also talks about his work on MANOLETE, a biopic starring Adrien Brody as the popular Spanish bullfighter, and he discusses his more recent move back to the Netherlands to direct independent films like THE DINNER and THE REUNION.

So without any further ado, here’s Menno Meyjes recalling how he came on board of INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE.

The mp3 file can be downloaded HERE.

Editing: Christoph Schwarz
Music: Clark Kent

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