UHM - Upcoming Horror Movies

Mark Tapio Kines contacted me via email a year-or-so-ago to help promote a film he just finished called Claustrophobia. At the time he created a few posters for it and let the viewers vote on which they liked best. After the voting ended we lost contact until recently, when I contacted him after hearing the good news that Lion's Gate purchased the distribution rights. Now the title has been changed to Serial Slayer, but since this interview was conducted before the title-change, we'll be referring to the movie under its original title. Anyway, you can check the film yourself when it hits DVD in December 14th, but in the mean time you can check my review of it here. I thought it would be interesting to release an interview and the review at the same time, so I'd recommend reading the review before checking this. Otherwise, enjoy...

NOTE: This interview has been re-posted in its original format.

CONDUCTED BY: FrighT MasteR
EDITED BY: FrighT MasteR
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON: November 16th 2004

FrighT with Mark Tapio Kines

Let's start off with a brief intro on yourself, so the viewers can get to know ya a little better.

Okay, I was born in Massachusetts in 1970, moved to San Jose, California at the age of 2 and grew up there, one of four kids, divorced parents, lower-middle-class suburban upbringing. I started drawing at 4, started making animated films at 16 and directed my first live action short at 17. I went to CalArts in 1989, majored in animation, but most of my projects were live action. In 1992 after I graduated I moved to Los Angeles and worked as a graphic designer for 10 years, first CD-ROMs then web design. In 1999 I finished my first feature, a romantic drama called Foreign Correspondents. I worked a little more at my day job (which by then was as art director for Paramount Pictures' online division) until 2002, when I quit to make my second feature, Claustrophobia. I finished and sold that in summer 2003. I'm half-Norwegian, a non-smoker, an infrequent meat eater, and a very infrequent drinker. I have a girlfriend of one year, no kids, and no pets except for a little blue betta fish named Gordon. I live in a guest house, which I rent, on the outskirts of West Hollywood.

Have you always wanted to work with film?

Sure. Even when I was 7 I had the feeling that's what I wanted to do, but never actually figured out that it was a career I could pursue until I was about 15 or so.

You wrote and directed Foreign Correspondents, which is your first film, but with that film you gathered an interesting cast of familiar faces, like Melanie Lynskey (Rose Red, Abandon), and Corin Nemec (The Stand, Parker Lewis Can't Lose) to name a few -- how'd you get a cast like that for your first feature?

Originally I was going to work with actor friends from CalArts and whoever I could find. Then I came across a web site for Heavenly Creatures, Melanie Lynskey's first film, and thought "she would be great in my movie." So I contacted her through her agent and she came to the US from New Zealand to act in the film. She hadn't worked since Heavenly Creatures and was excited to be in movies again. Corin Nemec, Wil Wheaton, and all the others auditioned for their roles just like any normal actors.

Have you learned a lot from your experience with your first film to your second?

Yeah, definitely. Some small details, like how a director should always wear headphones, hooked up to the recording equipment to make sure the production sound doesn't suck. But most of the stuff I learned was on the business end. In the case of Claustrophobia, I decided to produce as well as direct - I figured if I was self-funding my film, I should decide where the money goes. There were some costly mistakes on Foreign Correspondents that definitely would not have happened if I'd had any control over financial matters. Producing and directing at the same time is tough, and I'd rather make my next film with a good producer and somebody else's money, but for Claustrophobia it was a very smart move.

Is Claustrophobia based on any real-life events? Considering the killer hunts down victims in suburban neighborhoods using a crossbow, it seems like it's very possible.

I tried to keep the story believable, even working in references to real-life events like the Malvo-Muhammed killings around DC in late 2002, but as far as I know there have been no reports of crossbow-wielding serial killers! Though strangely, a year after shooting the film, I read some story about some teenager in Australia who was shooting kids on a playground with a crossbow. Life imitates art sometimes, I guess.

I thought the houses shown in the movie were very nice (especially the first) -- where they owned by people you knew or did you have to rent'em out?

Both. The house at the beginning - where Judy O'Dea is killed - is my editor's place. We actually cut the entire film there. In fact, while we were shooting Judy's scenes my editor was down the hall, working on the film! The main house used throughout the film belonged to acquaintances of mine from CalArts. They, unlike my editor, charged a pretty penny for the use of their home, but it was the perfect location. I actually wrote the script to take place in that very house, so I'm lucky they even agreed in the first place.

The film essentially only has three stars (minus the killer) and takes place in one location -- did you have any doubts about how audiences would react to it?

No. I wrote the story specifically to use the single location and small cast as assets, not liabilities. I didn't think anybody would watch it and go, "Oh, I wish they went to another house," or "This would have been better if there were six characters." And I knew the story and the acting would be strong enough so that you wouldn't miss any production values.

Two months to write the script. One month for casting, storyboarding, hiring crew and other prep. Production went for 2 weeks - 9 shooting days - with a day and a half later in the year to shoot the prologue and epilogue. It was exactly one year between the first day of shooting and the finished product. It's not so much that editing took 11 solid months. It was just sporadic because my editor had a day job, so we could only meet once or twice a week sometimes. And sound editing took a lot longer than planned. The guys I hired turned out to be kind of disappointing. Anyway, I also went traveling for about 3 months during that period.

Just trying to get everything shot in 9 days drove me nuts, especially since the whole story takes place before dusk, so we couldn't shoot past 7pm. Also, there were some difficulties with the homeowners, who were blaming the crew for every nick and scratch in their 80-year-old home (which they bought as a government repossession - the place was not in great shape!). Also, one of the actors, and I will never say who, became very difficult on the set and made for a not entirely pleasant experience. I hate the stress of production anyway. I can't eat, can't sleep, have fever dreams, the runs, you name it. But you gotta do it.

Was the only reason why you set it during the day as opposed to night, like most flicks, is because it seemed more sensible that since the killer hunted his victims at their homes with the crossbow that he'd need the light?

That's one of the reasons. Mainly, I simply liked the idea of setting a serial killer movie during the afternoon. Usually night is seen as the dangerous time, with daylight bringing a feeling of safety. I wanted to remove that safety net.

Did it ever worry you that having it set in the day would relieve it from some of the tension that the dark could possibly offer?

Well, I know you said that in your review! :) To me, though, to have horrible events happen during broad daylight lends a nightmarish feeling to the story. There's something surreal about it that I like. So no, I was never worried about that.

Lion's Gate bought the distribution rights -- where was it at when your film finally got noticed by them?

Lions Gate's involvement is a very mysterious thing to me. I have no idea how it came about exactly. My producer's reps, Integration Entertainment, sold the US video rights directly to a company called filmnic in July of 2003. I met the head of filmnic, Stan Wertlieb, only once, and that was a couple of weeks after the deal was done. He said filmnic wouldn't actually release Claustrophobia themselves, but would make a deal with one of the home video labels they had relationships with. I guess it took them several months to strike the deal they wanted, and that was with Artisan, which was then purchased by Lions Gate. So that's how Lions Gate got involved. Sort of by default.

How'd it feel to have a big distributor like that take such an interest on a small indie film like Claustrophobia?

It feels great, of course! Everybody oohs and ahhs when I tell them my film's being released by them. It's too bad I have no relationship with Lions Gate myself, so for now I can only hope they work hard to market the film and get it to large video retailers. It's entirely out of my hands. At least I'm pretty sure they didn't recut the film.

Original Art

New Art

Final Art w/ dif. title

I remember you made a few posters for the Claustrophobia some years back and UHM helped host a voting process that let viewers decide on which they liked most. It was successful, but after Lion's Gate bought the rights you were given new art and even a new title (Serial Slayer) -- how did that make you feel?

Mostly, it just reminded me how powerless you are, as an independent filmmaker, once you sign the contract and get paid. It's like, you can have your creative freedom, or you can have money. The more you have of one, the less you have of the other. I'm pretty bummed by the rather obvious title and new box art, but ironically, the title is more literal than "Claustrophobia," since the film really is about a serial slayer, and not anybody with claustrophobia! But mostly I'm concerned about two things: First, that the cheesy title and art will keep away my ideal audience, and second, that those who pick up the movie at the video store expecting something gory and dark like the box suggests might be disappointed when they discover that it's a talky, character-based suspense story that takes place during the daytime. We'll see. Hopefully people will rent it for a laugh and then find themselves liking it more than they expected to.

No. In the sort of situation where I might have a say, I'd probably be getting less money, if any at all. But you know, the movie is currently out in Norway with my title and my artwork, and people are still reacting to it in different ways - some love it, some hate it. So it may just have the same varied reaction when it comes out in the States with the new title. I guess.

What else are you currently working on or plan to do in the future? Anything geared to straight-out horror?

I am currently writing my next project, which is tentatively titled Dial 9 to Get Out. It's a scary movie set in a suburban office complex. I am thinking of making it a little bloodier, but there won't be any straight-out gore or supernatural elements, so it's a toss-up over whether there will be more "horror" than Claustrophobia.

Strangers on a Train, Blue Velvet, Raise the Red Lantern, High and Low, Blowup, Vertigo...

Are there any people in the business that you look up to or would like to meet in person?

I have a feeling most film people would disappoint me if I met them in person. Directors can be pretty boring in conversation. Except for John Waters. I'm sure he'd be hilarious.

What kind of advice can you give the fans that might want to write, produce or possibly even direct?

Make sure you have energy, personality and especially humor in your work. I see so much stuff made by amateur filmmakers - and yes, I still consider myself an amateur too - that is trying so hard to be important and serious, and I think, dude, you're 21, you don't know anything yet, so stop being so pretentious. Life is full of humor and every audience appreciates a little levity, no matter how dark the film. Not that the humor can't be equally dark. In fact that's even better.