Rapidly making a name for himself in the indie scene, director Shawn Burkett has worked tirelessly to generate his name alongside the up-and-coming brand of genre directors. Now trying to drum up funds for his next film Stranded, I talk with him about his career, his process and what he hopes to accomplish with his upcoming Bigfoot film.
Me: Hello and thank you for taking the time to do this. First off, where did you get the urge to go
into directing?
Shawn Burkett: It just kinda happened lol I’ve told stories through art and songs for years, but when I got into filmmaking and working with other I realized I had to be more vocal to achieve what I had in my head. It was rough at first, but eventually, I opened up a bit.
Me: Were you always into genre films growing up? What films specifically got you into watching horror movies?
SB: Oh yeah, it all started with The Universal Monsters, and just grew from there. My Grandfather is the one to thank my addiction to horror lol He would take me to the local video store 3 times a week, and I’d say before I was 12 I had rented the entire horror section.
Me: Having worked on various aspects of film production, do you have any particular preference for working on any?
SB: I really like to be hands-on, and that’s something I’ve slowly been letting go of since Travis Wilson joined Concept Media. Most of my film until DFITW 2 I shot, edited and scored. So it’s nice to be able to focus more on directing and the visual flow. So yeah, Cinematography lol.
Me: With plenty of short films early in your career, what tools and skills do you acquire working on those that transferred to feature-film projects?
SB: For me personally, short films were like practice. Practice makes perfect and you can see what you're doing wrong before attempting something on a much larger scale. In a way, it gives you a chance to play around with lighting, and new gear or gear you’ve never had access to.
Me: When writing a new project, what's the one fall-back tactic that you're always able to draw inspiration from?
SB: Okay, this might sound nuts. But each of my films has been written to a song, that I played on repeat while I was writing. For Don’t Fuck In The Woods, I listened to “In the Mouth of Madness” by Nightmares. For Betsy, I listened to “Of Minor Prophets And Their Prostitute Wives” by Pedro the Lion. For my contribution to Don’t Fuck In The Woods 2 I listened to “Livewire” by Oh Wonder. And for Stranded I have chosen “Bury a Friend” by Billie Eillish. It’s a weird process, but it’s I can listen to those songs, and for me, I reconnect and remember where my head was at.
Me: You and your partner Ryan Stacy launched the company Concept Media in 2011. What drew
you to create your own label and what do you hope to achieve with it?
SB: I can tell you I never though it would have grow this much lol. It was a shot in the dark for us. Ryan had a script and he was thinking about submitting it to a Joe Bob Briggs contest, but one night we were chatting and I was like “Let’s just make it ourselves?”. And that’s where it started lol We researched gear that we would need and talked our friends into helping us, and I took out a school loan to have the film put on a disc. And that’s how Concept Media was started lol.
Me: With ‘Betsy’ just being released and now starting work on ‘Don't Fuck in the Woods 2’
and ‘Stranded,’ does it make it fun or stressful with so many projects ongoing at once?
SB: It’s stressful for sure lol, I hate paperwork the most out of all of it. But the projects I’m currently working on i’ve dedicated certain days though out the week to work on each, that way I don’t overload my brain. Plus I drink lots of coffee.
Me: So, speaking of the new film 'Stranded,' where did the inspiration for the film come from?
SB: Honestly The Legend Of Boggy Creek terrified me as a kid lol. Plus I have a love for creature features in general, and I feel comfortable to an extent staying in that genre. I’m still terrified of the dark, and the woods at night. But that’s because of all the monsters in my head lol.
Me: Is there anything from your childhood that helped to flesh out the characterizations?
SB: With Stranded, part of the story is based off my family, as well as some of the character names and how they carry themselves.
Me: With a large gluttony of Bigfoot films made in recent years, what do you plan to achieve to help it stand out from those other films?
SB: What’s great about Bigfoot is that there are so many different interpretations. But I’ve spent years researching and following Bigfoot to where I’ve put that in to the script. Taking different peoples opinions into account on how Bigfoot lives and hunts, as well as state by state reports. But also, we are grounding this film with a sense of realism. There’s more than just a Bigfoot story here.
Me: With a cast of experienced and talented indie actors, how'd you settle on the cast getting involved in the film?
SB: I’ve had Stranded in my head for over 2 years now, so I’ve been able to see these people in action on different sets, and as different characters as well as see them grow as actors. But I take several things into account, and one of the most important is their level of reliability. You can be a huge award winning actor or actress, but if your reliable or dedicated to the project then I’m going to look at someone who is.
Me: Do you prefer working on these types of films with plenty of practical effects that are making a comeback?
SB: I’m defiantly into creature features lol I’ve got some other storylines on my computer, but I feel more creative working on a creature feature. We do loads of practical effects, but we also have some CGI in there. Most people don’t know this, but the first DFITW had loads of CGI, but it was all to darken or had the fact that we didn’t have a back to the creature suit lol. But I feel for atlas the past decade practical effects have been making a comeback. Which for most indie filmmakers, that’s all we know lol.
Me: Lastly, with the project just launched on Indiegogo what can you tell us about that as well as anything else coming up you'd wish to tell our readers about? Thank you again for your time.
SB: Our main goal is to make a phenomenal movie, that has action, gore, a Bigfoot, but with an emotional story powering it. We are currently raising funds via Indiegogo, which you can visit via strandedmovie.net - We are currently prepping for our upcoming shoot for a second teaser trailer, which will be release by April 8th! Other than that, thank you for your time and be sure to check out STRANDED!
To check out their Indiegogo campaign, check it out HERE.
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