Gut follows lifelong pals and co-workers Tom (Jason Vail) and Dan (Nicholas Wilder) – who grew up together sharing a passion for horror films. Does that love of the genre go too far...?
Tell me about yourself...When did you know that you wanted to make films? What are your biggest influences?
As absurd as it may sound, the first time I can really remember being interested in wanting to make movies was after watching a Hollywood-themed episode of Muppet Babies when I was a kid. Over the years that desire became somewhat more tangible, first came script-writing and acting starting when I was about 14, mostly little theater stage stuff, then came producing/directing with my first short when I was 19, and the rest as they say... is a work in progress. Aside from the world of The Muppet Babies, I'd say I've taken a lot of inspiration from filmmakers like David Cronenberg, Takashi Miike , Michael Haneke and Peter Jackson,
How did Gut came about?
My wife Anna and I came up with the original premise and story outline. We wanted to come up with something that would work well within the constraints of a low budget, i.e. minimal number of characters and locations and a simple, but hopefully nonetheless compelling story. I think it turned out to be even more of a character piece than originally planned, and I'm fine with that because that's where it went naturally from script to screen so to speak.
Describe the Main Characters
Tom, husband to Lily and father to Katie is a 30-something man, who has for all intent and purpose all the makings of a great life, but for some hard to explain reason is unsatisfied. In many ways he kind of reminds me of the character Gary Oldman plays in the movie Romeo Is Bleeding, his need for more and different things in his life is the ultimate self destructive force. That's very much what Tom goes through in Gut, albeit perhaps a little less overtly unethical than the character Oldman plays.
The Best and Worst Day on Set
Best day was the final day of principal photography because we'd succeeded and we all (well most of us) shared a toast in a big circle at the final location. That was by no coincidence also the worst day because the shoot was over.
My review was somewhat critical of the film. How do you handle that kind of stuff?
I'm glad you asked about that. It's a good question and one that deserves to be asked more often. Sometimes I agree with the reviews, sometimes I don't. It really just comes with the territory. It can be frustrating, don't get me wrong, especially when a review seems more about taking down a film or its participants than attempting to make an objective evaluation, and it seems like that happens a lot, especially to independent and low budget films. I'm not about to challenge any critics to a mock debate or get into a public brawl about it, though, that's just stupid and I'd be surprised if anyone ever really comes out on top in those situations, or even should for that matter it's just really childish and pointless. Sure critics should try to be fair, but filmmakers should also take their licks like the rest. If there's ever really the need to work out differences between a critic and a filmmaker, doing something like this (a Q&A) is probably a great way to go about it, or just having a chat over a beer.
This is the best answer I have ever gotten to this question when I have asked it.
What do you hope folks take away after they watch Gut?
I hope it just sticks in their minds, and makes them want to watch it again. I wanted it to have a real unsettling, lingering effect like Takashi Miike's Audition or Time of the Wolf or History of Violence. I hope folks realize that it's mostly about the process, the disintegration of those character's lives, and not so much about the conclusion, though I'm satisfied with it personally. The end for me is really like punctuation, it could be a comma, a period, or an ellipses like it kind of is in our film.
Your favorite film is? And Why?
Oh man, I don't know. I can never settle on just one so I think I'm gonna bring up Cannibal Holocaust. It's not my favorite movie or probably even one of my favorites, but it's one of those films that just doesn't go away. It nests in your subconscious indefinitely. I was thinking today actually about why it's so effective. It all comes down to something very core I think, and that is that it's not about the cannibals. I mean can you imagine if it had been? Who would even still care now? No, what makes it so memorable the central characters in the footage are both protagonist and antagonist. They come in there with lofty intentions and then, as is so often the case in history, they wreak havoc on the natural inhabitants, but they get what's coming to them.
Your least Favorite film is? And Why?
Man, same problem, just too many, plus it just isn't good policy to talk shit about other films when you're a filmmaker yourself. Kinda like the old adage "don't sh*t where you eat" you know? That said, I think I've seen enough found-footage films, zombie films and slashers for a while. It sometimes seems as if the sub-genres are almost starting to replace the genre itself, they're dominating so much, and that makes it less exciting for me, at least as a viewer. I like when movies feel as if they come from a personal place or attempt to invert some of the many genre cliches. My horror-watcher two cents anyway.
What Advice would you give to other aspiring filmmakers?
Don't become complacent. It isn't getting easier to make it in this business, it's getting harder. Make the best possible movie you can, and then get ready for the huge task of promoting it and giving people a reason to care or pick you out of a massive list of other titles, because nobody, even the a die-hard genre fan, watches everything. Your key art, your trailer, they're as important as the movie when you're working on a no-name indie level you need that stuff to pop and really stand out in the crowd. Also, in terms of press, I sometimes get the impression that there's a certain expectation out there that once you've made a film the press will just come to you, and most of the time this just flat out is not the way it works. You're going to have to spend countless hours soliciting your film to publications, online and off. If you do this probably get pretty good results, been our experience at least. Hope this is somewhat helpful at least. I don't want to sound like a jerk, I know how hard this is, but it's really something I feel is worth emphasizing.
That's all. It was a true pleasure chatting about Gut I wish you continued success!
Thanks for the opportunity!
I told Elias to stay in touch and that he and Anna are welcome back any time for any reason.
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