Bigfoot

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Created: 21 April 2006

Make no bones about it, the new Masters of Horror are rising from the low budget ranks and the latest to break through is up and comer Ryan Schifrin.

His debut feature film ABOMINABLE (which he wrote and directed), is about a Bigfoot type creature wrapped in a REAR WINDOW-like plot device. It arrives in limited release in Los Angeles this weekend (at the Sunset 5 in Hollywood) before it hits the Sci Fi Channel on May 20.

Schifrin recently spoke with iF MAGAZINE about his travails of self-financing, limited shooting schedules and finding distribution as well as what other projects he has on the horizon.

photos courtesy Ryan Schifrin

[left] After all the horror movies Lance Henricksen and Jeffrey Combs have been in, you think they would know better than to roam the woods in the middle of the night; [right] the ABOMINABLE creature

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RYAN SCHIFRIN:

iF: How much research did you do on the Bigfoot phenomenon for the script?

SCHIFRIN: I feel like I?ve been doing research my whole life. Since I was a little kid, cryptozoology has fascinated me, and I would read tons of books about The Loch Ness Monster, Bigfoot, Mothman, The Jersey Devil, UFO?s and other unknown mysteries. Now, I must say that this isn?t a documentary about Bigfoot ? we did refer to certain things like the strong smell associated with the creature, but this is a horror movie, so he acts and sounds more like a savage beast. We made him into a bloodthirsty monster, and in real life there aren?t too many Bigfoot stories like that. I ask the more serious Bigfoot researches to forgive me!

iF: I know that the title SASQUATCH was taken, but any particular reason you went with that title?

SCHIFRIN: Since the film is set in the United States, and not in Tibet, we had a character explain that the creature isn?t Bigfoot, it?s something bigger and meaner, more like the Abominable Snowman of the Himalayas. Plus, we have snow in the movie! That counts, right?

iF: Where did the genesis for combining REAR WINDOW and a horror film come from?

SCHIFRIN: The idea came from knowing I had a limited budget to work with. When you have a limited budget, it?s best to use limited locations. Look at what they did with SAW ? most of it took place in a bathroom. I saw REAR WINDOW when I was eight years old, on the big screen. It left a lasting impression on me, and when I thought about limited locations, REAR WINDOW immediately sprang to mind. My next thought was how much I love the TWILIGHT ZONE episode "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet", with William Shatner on an airplane, and he sees a monster on the wing of the plane but no one believes him. In REAR WINDOW, Jimmy Stewart witnesses a murder and no one believes him. I love the idea of a character trapped by circumstance, and watching events they are unable to control or prevent, yet they have to find a way to rise to the occasion.

iF: What locations did you film at?

SCHIFRIN: Most of the filming was done in Idyllwild, California. It?s a very small town in the mountains above Palm Springs, about 2 ? hours out of L.A. The population is around 2,000. We also shot on a sound stage in L.A. for a few days, and did an additional scene at Griffith Park ? including the famous Bronson Caves. I figure, you haven?t shot a ?B? movie until you?ve shot at Bronson!

iF: How long of a shooting period did you have and what were some of the challenges that you had directing?

SCHIFRIN: I think we did principal photography in 24 days, with 2 days of second unit photography (although it was actually just first unit shooting trees and sunsets). Later, we went back and shot a new scene with Lance Henriksen, Jeffrey Combs, Rex Linn and Ashley Hartman, and that took 2 nights. So, 28 days including the second unit stuff.

There were so many challenges ? at a certain point the production gears up and the train leaves the station ? you have cast and crew and equipment all up on this mountain, and this juggernaut is moving ahead ? and all you can do is run in front of the train laying down tracks and hoping you get far enough before it runs over you. No matter how well you plan, there are always unexpected things that arise. Our very first day of filming, a crew from the power company showed up and shut off the power. They informed us that they were going to be right in the area for weeks, sawing down dead trees that were near power lines. Essentially, this would have been the end of the production, we would have had to shut down, and I doubt there was enough funding for us to have started up again later. We begged and pleaded and finally the guys called their supervisor and moved their operation to another part of the mountain ? their only requirement was that we invite them to our cast and crew parties. So, on the fourth day of filming, we had a party and we all hung out.

The second week of shooting brought us a series of blizzards. We had cover sets, but at a certain point we realized it would be cool if the end of the film had snow in it, so we spent a few nights shooting outdoors as freezing snow fell on us. It was miserable, but it looks gorgeous on film. It was scary, the guys moving lights and fog machines were getting zapped. The snow kept coming, and we?d have to go out there with shovels and spend hours just clearing it away, for continuity?s sake.

When we shot the new scene with Lance Henriksen, the time crunch was scary. It was outdoor night shoots, and the sun was going to come up at a certain point, whether we were finished or not. And going to a third day was not an option. When it came time to film the campfire scene, which is dialogue heavy, we were right next to the Greek Theater. We had checked the schedule, and there were no concerts planned for that night, so we thought everything was cool. Just getting that location was tough, because a lot of productions shoot there. Anyway, we show up to shoot the scene, and there?s a Beach Boys concert going on at the Greek Theater! The sound is echoing everywhere. They were throwing a last minute Hurricane Katrina relief fun benefit concert. We called to find out when the concert would be over and we were told 10 pm. Well, 11 pm rolled around, and the music was still going, and the sun is going to come up at 5 am no matter what ? so you can imagine how stressful that was. We shot everything we could that didn?t require dialogue, and then finally it got quiet and we shot the scene ? and kudos to Lance and Jeff for doing such a great job at 3 am!

After all that, we took the film to the lab to have it developed, and were told that the negative was warped. I think I probably lost 10 years off my life right there. It turned out the negative was fine, and that the machine they were running it through wasn?t calibrated correctly, but for about twelve hours I thought we were screwed.

I could go on and on, but the usual pressures of not enough time and money were always hanging over our heads. And I can?t complain, because if you really stopped to think about all the things that could go wrong, you?d never embark on something this risky. We were blessed to have gotten through it all relatively unscathed.

iF: Was it difficult directing material that you had written?. was it tough to allow other creative input at times?

SCHIFRIN: When you write something you see it so clearly in your head, so it makes it easier to direct it because you know exactly what you want to get. Then the challenge becomes communicating these ideas to the cast and crew so everyone is on the same page. Neal Fredericks, our D.P., and I sat down with the storyboards, and we shot-listed the entire film. This blueprint allowed us to be much more flexible when someone would suggest a good idea. Since I had a very specific game plan, right down to the camera angles and lenses we?d use, it?s hard on the actors because they don?t have the freedom to go wherever they want in the scene. I was always open to any ideas that will make it better, so whenever anyone would suggest something, whether it be an actor or the 2^nd A.D., if it was a good idea I would do my best to use it. I really can?t complain, I got to make the movie I wanted to make, and any shortcomings are my fault and responsibility. Everyone contributed ideas that made it better, and I was lucky to have so many great, experienced people around me. I really love collaborating on creative ideas, it?s so much more fun to have other people share your enthusiasm for something and brainstorm about it together.

iF: How was working with several horror film icons -- Dee Wallace Stone, Lance Henriksen, Jeffery Combs?

SCHIFRIN: Once I got over being star-struck, it was nothing short of a dream come true. I grew up watching their films, and movies like RE-ANIMATOR are a large part of the reason I wanted to make films in the first place. Dee, Jeff and Lance are all pro?s, and I was worried they be jaded, having been in so many huge blockbuster films. But, they didn?t treat this like a chore ? they were very professional, very enthusiastic, and really easy to get along with. Jeffery is brilliant ? every take is gold, and you never know what he?s going to do. He never ceases to amaze me. Dee is an incredible actress ? she has her own acting school ? and really my job was just to get out of the way and let her do her thing. And she?s such a sweet, classy lady ? a very generous person. And Lance was fantastic ? he had so many great suggestions, he?s been on so many sets and is very interested in the thought process going on behind the camera. You couldn?t ask for a better mentor. Lance and Jeffery have worked together before, so for them it was a fun reunion, and it looked like they were really enjoying themselves, which certainly set me at ease!

iF: Who were some of your influences growing up?

SCHIFRIN: George Lucas, Bruce Lee, Steven Spielberg, George Romero, Alfred Hitchcock, John Hughes, Gary Gygax, Musashi Miyamoto, R.A. Salvatore, and Roger Hargreaves (the Mr. books!)

iF: How do you feel about the current state of horror?

SCHIFRIN: Compared to the ?90?s, I think that horror is doing really well. In fact, I?d go so far as to say that horror is here to stay. You saw the same thing with video games, where something that was once a niche hobby that appealed to ?geeks?, is now part of the mainstream culture. Horror is the same way. There?s never been such a diverse audience for horror. You have PG-13 horror, like THE GRUDGE that appeals to teen girls (which is a huge, growing audience) and you have hardcore torture horror like HOSTEL, which appeals to an older crowd. Of course there are the usual remakes, some of which are great and some of which don?t work, but that?s just the norm with Hollywood ? it?s isn?t confined to the horror genre. The studios spend so much money making and marketing films that they have to go with a safer bet, and remaking brand names is part of that. With the success of so many horror films, like the SAW films, the studios are creating all of these genre divisions ? Universal has Rogue, Sony has Screen Gems, Fox is creating a new one ? and that?s only going to further establish the genre as something as legitimate as romantic comedies, action films etc. The days of horror being treated like a second cousin to porn are over.

iF: Is it difficult to raise financing on your own?

SCHIFRIN: Raising financing is one of the hardest challenges. Everyone talks a good game, but when it comes time to actually doing something, suddenly no one wants to step up. There are so many projects that never make it out of the starting gates, because it is a huge gamble, and it takes a strong, persistent belief in something to convince others to come along. I had made some noise with a short film I directed, called EVIL HILL, which got a lot of attention and aired on the Sci Fi Channel, so having a track record (even a small one like that) helps calm nervous investors. Think about it, if you were going to have a major operation done, would you go to a doctor who has never operated on anyone before? How do you convince people to risk their money on an unproven filmmaker? The one thing you must have is passion. It is the only thing that can sustain you through the delays and frustrations.

iF: Was it more difficult to find distribution?

SCHIFRIN: Yes, finding distribution was a real growth experience. I?ve learned a couple things, from doing it the hard way, and here is my advice: Don?t show your film to distributors until it is totally finished. Don?t send it to them on DVD, or have a distributor-only screening. Instead, try to build up some hype and buzz about the film, so people are interested in seeing it. Then, try to get the film into a festival, where potential buyers can see it with an audience. You can?t get people to see a film they?ve already seen, even if you?ve made it a lot better. You only have one chance to make a good first impression, so use it wisely!

iF: Are you self-distributing the film?

SCHIFRIN: As of right now, Freestyle Releasing is putting the film out into a few theaters. I don?t know if it will expand to more theaters or not. And then, on May 20^th, it will premiere on the Sci Fi Channel. After that it will be released on DVD. We?re still figuring out the DVD deal, trying to decide what?s the best way to go ? luckily, we?ve had some good offers so far.

iF: How was it working with your dad Lalo Schifrin when it came to scoring? Was there ever a moment you said, "I don?t know if that works, can you do this for me?"

SCHIFRIN: My dad had one concern before he agreed to do the film: What if I didn?t like his score? Would our relationship be harmed? I had to laugh, because the way I saw it, there was no possible way I could dislike his score! I completely trusted that he would knock it out of the park. I had a temp track on the movie, which was there to help with the editing and pacing, and showing it to some people to gauge reactions. I didn?t tell my dad "Please copy the temp track", because he hates that. I just told him, these are the emotions and moods I?m going for, and then I got out of his way. It would have been ridiculous for me to micro-manage him! I don?t think I had any significant changes after I heard what he was doing with it ? I suppose our lines of communication were strong enough that he knew what I was looking for, and boy, did he deliver! It is such a special thing to have had my dad do the music for my first film, I can?t tell you how much it meant to me.

iF: Can you tell us a little bit about WIMPY?

SCHIFRIN: WIMPY is a spec screenplay that I sold to Warner Bros.-based Alcon Entertainment, and Original Film for Neil Moritz to produce. It?s an action-comedy with some elements of fantasy ? that?s about all I can say about it, because they want to keep the story under wraps for now. I hope it turns out well, but I won?t have much say in what they do with it. Having sold a script does lend me a certain amount of credibility, which is great when you?re talking to people about future projects. It goes back to that doctor analogy I made ? people feel safer dealing with someone with a track record.

iF:What projects do you have that you want to do next?

SCHIFRIN: There are several that I am excited about. I have one that?s like MEN IN BLACK and GHOSTBUSTER, called S.P.O.O.K.s. It might become a graphic novel first, we?re right in the middle of it now. And, of course, I have some horror projects that I really want to do. I love the genre, and hope to continue working in it. I really am eager to get back into the director?s chair ? I figure this is what I?m meant to do if I?m crazy enough to want to jump right back in, after all of the insanity the last time around!

http://www.ifmagazine.com/feature.asp?article=1477