A multi-faceted individual in the industry who's capable of many aspects of filmmaking, writer/director/producer Matthew John Lawrence is slowly building a body of work that should make for a name to watch in the genre for a while. Now, in honor of his most recent film Uncle Peckerhead being released on VOD, I talk with him about his early work in the genre, the creation and shooting of the 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?
Matthew John Lawrence: I was a late bloomer when it comes to film. I've always loved the medium but it seemed so unattainable, probably because I equated film with Hollywood for so long. I initially was pre-law going into college but then, after taking a television production course, I switched my major. But, even during college, I was almost completely focussed on television. I wanted to work in comedic TV based out of New York City so I interned at The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, SNL, and Chappelle's Show Season 2.
Following college, I released a record and toured with a band for a year but, after we broke up, I worked as a videographer for an advertising agency. After hating the shit out of that job, I decided to go back to school and study film. And the rest is history...
Me: Were you always into genre films growing up? What films specifically got you into watching horror movies?
MJL: Since I was little, I was always drawn to genre films. I grew up in the '80s and 90's so my mom would take us on weekly pilgrimages to the local video store. It's been discussed at length by many but the horror movie section was always the one that caught my eye. The artwork on the covers was mesmerizing for a little weirdo like me. The idea that you were taking home something taboo, something crazy and/or depraved that your parents were clueless about.
My earliest horror movie memories involved the original Halloween and The Exorcist. Halloween was probably the first. I remember begging my mom for six months to let me rent it. Finally, she caved and enlisted my dad to watch it with me. I remember watching that opening and being SO FUCKING SCARED. I told my dad I had to pee and probably stayed in the bathroom for a good hour. I don't think I finished the film that night.
Me: When you entered Boston University, did you originally intend to go for film studies?
MJL: I entered with the intention of studying film production but I originally wanted to concentrate on cinematography. I was really into photography at the time but, in my first semester, I had to take a Screenwriting course and immediately fell in love. Directing was a natural extension after that because I'm a control freak and didn't want another person to potentially butcher my vision (btw I'm kicking my own ass for using "vision").
Me: When you finally decided to focus on creating film, was there any kind of push towards a specific style or format?
MJL: I studied film production so we worked entirely with film, and I really loved it. It forced me to be more thoughtful in my pre-production practices and, during the production, the crew as a whole is forced to exercise more care and attention. Plus, it looks fucking great! I would honestly love to shoot on film again but, alas, I've never had the money or resources to get that done.
I'm pretty open when it comes to style. I believe the story should inform the aesthetic approach you want to take. I'm pretty open when it comes to those talks with the cinematographer and other visual collaborators.
Me: How would you describe your visual style?
MJL: Let's take my latest film, Uncle Peckerhead. Note: I'm also conferring with the two cinematographers who worked together as a team on the film (Kyle Kelley and Michael Sutter). For example, we were referencing iconic punk photos in the scenes taking place at the big shows. We also wanted the band's performance to be reflected in the camera work (to the point where the camera was in "the pit" in the final show).
Aside from the shows, we adopted a more formal, straightforward style throughout the film to let the comedy, performances, and FX shine.
Me: Having worked on various aspects of film production, do you have any particular preference for working on any?
MJL: Writing and directing is my focus, I would say. I like to edit but largely do it out of necessity because, by the time we get to post-production, we don't have much of a budget left.
I've also really enjoyed producing. There's something satisfying about helping a director realize his/her/their vision and fighting for them to make it happen.
Whatever the position, I really enjoy seeing a project through from beginning to end. It's fascinating to go from a seedling of an idea to a full-blown film that screens in a dark room full of strangers.
Me: With work on plenty of short films early in your career, what tools and skills do you acquire working on those that transferred to feature-film projects?
MJL: Filmmaking, whether shorts or features, always involves a lot of lessons learned. There's no such thing as a perfect production so you're always building on what you learned from previous experiences, making new mistakes, and vowing never to make said mistakes again.
Probably the best thing to come from working on a bunch of films is you get to know people. You get to see how they respond to crazy stressful situations. You get to witness their capacity to empathize and collaborate. That's how you learn who you want to work with again. That's how you earn trust. That's also how you make new friends outside of this insane process.
Me: That brings us to your latest project, the upcoming "Uncle Peckerhead." What can you tell us about the project?
MJL: Uncle Peckerhead is a Faustian gorefest, a horror-comedy with heart, a madcap music & monster movie, a post-Trumpian punks v. hillbillies drama of epic proportions, you get the picture. The film is being released on all major digital/VOD platforms to rent or buy on Tuesday, August 11th. You can also pick up a Blu-ray with tons of goodies on August 25th.
Please rent or buy it. I need to eat.
Me: Being the writer, director and editor of the project, did it challenge you to be involved in various capacities at once on a project like this?
MJL: Probably the biggest challenge was producing and directing at the same time because I was largely pulling double duty on set. But, when working on a micro-budget, you know what you signed up for. I want to make movies, come hell or high water, and everybody on set is wearing several if not dozens of hats.
Knowing that you're going to edit is actually a blessing in disguise. As I'm directing, I'm also thinking like an editor. If you already know, or are constantly thinking about, what you need to cut the scene, it's easy to assess when to move to your next setup.
Me: Where did the inspiration for the film come from? Were there any unique stories about its conception?
MJL: The original idea for Uncle Peckerhead was that of a short-form series, where a punk band lived in a dingy house with an old hillbilly tweaker. The show would be executed like an early 90’s family sitcom, whereby the group would get into misadventures each week, and Peckerhead would pass along words of wisdom which would help resolve the conflict at the end of each episode - a punk-rock Full House with a redneck Mr. Belvedere, if you will.
As I was developing the series and writing episodes, I went to a certain unnamed genre festival with a short film I had produced. While I did see a few great movies, I was struck by how homogenized and self-serious a lot of the horror features were; they didn’t share the same chaotic and joyful nature a lot of my favorite movies embody. In short, they weren’t any fun, and I noticed that festival-goers too were hungry for an energy which was not present.
After a few beers on the final night of the festival, it got me to thinking, “Maybe I should stop talking shit and put my money where my mouth is.” It was then I began in earnest to write and develop Uncle Peckerhead as a feature film.
As script development went on, the film began to significantly change in terms of scope and theme. I set the story during DUH’s first tour and began to pull from my own personal experiences as a touring musician in my early 20’s. In addition to this, I began to interview friends, including Jeff, who had war stories of their own. In the media, touring is represented as a romantic adventure, but in reality, bands are playing empty venues and eating shoelaces in Walmart parking lots every night. It’s largely a soul-crushing experience, not unlike some (most?) days of independent filmmaking.
Additionally, I couldn’t help but to be influenced by the highly polarized times in which we were now living. I was fascinated with the number of pieces being written on the “forgotten male" who had turned to Trump in 2016. I’m not sure if it was initially a conscious decision but I could see that the film’s “punks v. hillbilly” premise was mirroring a theme that was happening around the country. An older white guy (who, on the surface, was polite and charming) was willing to embrace a completely nihilistic agenda with no concern for the livelihood of future generations, because he felt the world had left him behind.
Note: I fully acknowledge that the film is a lowbrow horror-comedy with blood and shit aplenty, but it’s also about the political stuff. I digress…
Me: With a cast of experienced and talented indie actors, how'd you settle on the cast getting involved in the film?
MJL: Jeff, who plays Max and wrote all the music in the film, has been a great friend for the past decade or so. We've collaborated on a lot over the years so he was there from the beginning.
As the script would depend heavily on comedic timing, I knew I wanted to cast comedic performers over musicians from the beginning. As a resident of Brooklyn and huge comedy nerd, I was elated when we had Chet Siegel and Ruby McCollister both come in to read. Aside from absolutely crushing their respective auditions, I had seen both women perform around the city and was already a fan. And despite not having any prior musical training, both women jumped at the opportunity to learn how to play their instrument.
The scariest casting though revolved around the titular character, Peckerhead. I knew the performance would be a tight-rope walk. In order for the film to work, you would have to find a genuinely charming and affable dude. Someone who could be funny but not goofy or hack, a redneck but not a buffoon, an older guy who could traffic in menace without being cartoonishly evil. And the casting process for Peckerhead was a slog. In addition to the countless video submissions we received, we spent three full days meeting with actors to play the part of Peckerhead. And not one of them came close to what we were looking for.
Note: I know three days does not seem like an extensive casting call but we only held auditions for four days in total and, well, the production was dirt poor.
Finally, Kristy Richman (producer) texted me one night with yet another video audition for Peckerhead: “Take a look at this guy. He’s doing a play in Florida currently but he’s Brooklyn-based sooo… maybe?” I watched David Littleton’s audition on my phone and BAM! That was it; we found Peckerhead. Within a couple weeks, we brought him up to audition with Chet, Ruby, and Jeff. The chemistry was magical; the four had me laughing out loud, and the film was READY TO GO.
Me: What was the set like while shooting the film? How did the cast and crew react to the type of film being made?
MJL: The film was shot on a micro-budget, largely depending on the hard work and goodwill of all my family and friends, a true labor of love. As I mentioned before, most of the crew was comprised of individuals with whom I had worked on several projects over many years prior to Peckerhead.
Those who were not connected before joining the film quickly became a part of our traveling group of misfits. And travel we did. The film shot for three weeks in June with Sundays off; 18 days in total. The production was on a tour of its own: New Jersey (where we shot over half the film, visiting many of the punk-rock haunts I frequented as an angsty teen), Brooklyn, and Philadelphia. We begged, borrowed, and stole every inch along the way.
Filmmaking is strange. The process itself, at this level, is pretty grueling. Long hours, stretched means, constant figurative fires of all shapes and sizes at every waking moment. Though the conditions were constantly strapped, and our backs always against some kind of wall, the creativity continued to pour through, and every member of the cast and crew fully dedicated themselves to the cause.
One of the most heartening things I witnessed during the production was the bond formed by the main cast. Chet, Ruby, Jeff, and David would travel to and from the set via the tour van every day; the four were inseparable, eating all their meals together and sleeping at the same house. They began to morph into a tight-knit group much like a touring band would, as the dynamic between the actors continued even after the cameras stopped rolling.
Me: Do you recall having any odd or funny on-set stories about yourself or any of the other cast/crew members?
MJL: My head is swimming in crazy stories to share. One that immediately comes to mind involves a location. We decided to shoot two of the big FX scenes at my sister-in-law's apartment in Brooklyn. To put it lightly, we were not prepared for the amount of damage we would inflict on this apartment. A couple highlights from those hellish days:
1) The two bedrooms were WRECKED - fake blood, bile, and shit EVERYWHERE. One of the producers neglected to book a cleaning crew after the shoot so Jeff (who plays Max), Ryan (our UPM and Shiloh in the film), Wicky (Co-Producer & Production Designer), and myself spent all night cleaning the floors and walls. It took us 7 hours to get it done and I still needed to come back after the shoot to repaint the entire space.
2) She and I got in so much trouble from the landlord because we left a bloody mattress out front, along with huge buckets labeled blood, thick poop, etc.
Needless to say, I'm still trying to make it up to her. She is a saint. Thanks, Kat! <3
Me: Lastly, what else are you working on that you'd like to share with our readers? Thank you again for your time!
MJL: I've got a few feature scripts I'm hoping to get produced. One of them, Larry Gone Demon, takes place in the Uncle Peckerhead Universe as it centers around the band DUH. You can check out more information on that film and others at subtletrex.com (our production company).
Pleasure was all mine, Don! Take care!
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