ARROW INTRO: My short film
THE RED HOURS
will premiere in competition at this year’s SITGES FILM FESTIVAL
(see its Fest page here) which is good news
to me and everybody who was involved in the film. We couldn’t be happier!
Screening dates/times are on: Oct 06/17:15 at the Sala Tramuntana and on
Oct 08/18:00 at the Auditori Melià. So in light of its first showing, we’ll
be sharing cast and crew diaries with yall, giving ya insight as to the
shoot and the people behind it.
DONNY BROUSSARD
Director of Photography /’Producer
DONNY BROUSSARD:
When my bud John Fallon
first sent me the script to his feature film “Red Hours,” I was pretty
excited. It had everything that any self-respecting horror fan could want;
blood and gore, nudity, smart dialogue, and nudity combined with blood and
gore. I remember talking with him about this script, and could hear the
frustration in his voice because of the difficulties he was facing while
trying to get it made. Then one day I get a call from John saying that he
was going to write a short version of “Red Hours,” allowing him to shoot the
meat and potatoes without having to spend major coin. When I let this sink
in I was excited for two reasons, one being that I was stoked that I would
finally get to see my bud’s flick realized, albeit in a shorter form, and
second I was secretly hoping that he would ask me to help in some way. I
got my wish because he called me shortly after first to say he sent me the
script, and then asking if I would be willing to work as his director of
photography as well as work behind the scenes to make “Red Hours” become a
reality.
When I got
my copy of the script I was surprised at how intense it was even in this
condensed form, so I started to pull it apart and figure out what kinds of
locations I was going to need to find to make this flick happen. I also
knew that I needed to find a crew as well, and one that was willing to work
for beer (we like beer in Louisiana). The first location I secured was the
bar. The awesome fellows at Bootleggers were nice enough to let us use
their bar for “Red Hours.” After the bar I need to find a location that
would allow us to film with more blood and gore than most horror features
use, which meant that there would be a huge mess to clean up at the end of
each shooting day. This wasn’t an easy task, but thanks to production
designer Killian Williams we got the location we needed and much more.
After we locked the two main locations Killian got to work on designing the
interiors that would be used in the flick, and I started searching for props
and supplies that would be needed for the film.
Me and Deke Richards (Mark) after his kill take.
John knew
that he wanted his friend, fellow actor Deke Richards to take the leading
role in “Red Hours,” but that left us with the task of finding a leading
lady. Once John decided that he wanted to find a local Louisiana girl for
the role of Natasha I started looking around the Lafayette area, and both
John and I finally decided to give the role to Alicia Hoff, an actress that
had worked with us on my short film “Wide Asleep,” but a few weeks before
principal photography she hurt her knee forcing us to seek out another
actress. After a handful of failed auditions I met Amy Wickenheiser. She
came into my office to talk about the part, and it was apparent that she was
willing to put in the time and do whatever it took make the character of
Natasha come alive. As soon as she left my office I called up John and told
him that I thought we had our girl. With the role of Natasha filled by Amy
we decided to cast our friend Heather Westwood as Drew.
Finally we
had most of the resources we needed to make Johns vision come to life on a
shoestring budget. Actor David Lawson and I drove out to the New Orleans
Airport to wait for John and Deke, and I could feel the excitement in the
air. Dave and I had such a great time working with John on the first flick
that we couldn’t wait for this shoot to start. As soon as the guys got off
the plane we started talking about the shooting schedule, but once we got
home we cracked a few beers and relaxed a while before the madness that was
the “Red Hours” began.
Me and John at work.
The first
day of shooting started at around 8AM, and had it’s share of problems, but
overall it went off without a hitch. Shooting in a bathroom with a large
mirror is never an easy task, but with a little preparation it’s still a lot
of fun. The first day was a blast! Watching Deke act was pleasure and
working with John was the most fun I’ve ever had behind the camera. After
we wrapped the first day we did what most tired film crews do with a full
day of shooting ahead of them, we started drinking. Once we got to the bar
things got a little more difficult than we had hoped they would. First, we
didn’t get the amount of extras that we wanted, and the bar was difficult to
light with limited means. So we shot all day and at the end of the day
realized that it would probably be best to reshoot a few of the scenes with
some better lighting. It was an exciting and stressful location to shoot,
but watching John in action, and seeing Amy, Heather, and Deke kick ass was
worth every second of stress.
While I
enjoyed shooting the entire film, by far the most enjoyable shooting days
were the ones at Killian’s house. The main reasons being that we got to use
gallons upon gallons of blood, and shooting half naked girls is never a bad
thing. Also, working with Heather is always fun, she never looses her cool,
and does her best to keep everyone on set happy and comfortable. Another
highlight of this location was the production design that Killian worked up,
it was inspiring.
Shooting the ladies…
When the
shooting was finished we got to hang out with the boys for a few more days,
and talk about the work that we had just completed. I can’t thank John
enough for letting me into his demented world, letting me shoot his film,
and giving me the chance to work with a talented cast of actors. I hope
this little flick brings John the success he deserves because never in my
life have I ever worked with anyone that cared more about film than this
man. He’s a good friend, a talented writer, and a hell of a director.
While “Red
Hours” is making the rounds at film festivals I am going to help out my bro
by posting any and all news concerning “Red Hours” on my little website
www.killerfilm.com
Yes, we like head!
VISIT THE OFFICIAL RED HOURS WEBSITE HERE
VISIT THE
RED HOURS MYSPACE HERE
STAY TUNED FOR MORE RH CAST/CREW DIARIES!
