Rue-Morgue Magazine, Issue #111 sat down with Thomas Newman, creator of Bong of the Dead, and garotted this interview out of him...
In filmmaking, it isn't the budget, or even the story, that makes for a successful film; it’s the characters that inhabit it. Nothing else works if the audience doesn’t care about what happens to the people within the movie. Too often this is overlooked, but not in the stoner/zombie comedy Bong of the Dead a micro-masterpiece with a ton of heart... and intestines, brains, and severed limbs!
"When I set out to write the film I always knew I wanted to do a zombie film that had more to it than just characters avoiding getting eaten while going on a mass killing spree in the name of survival, and good gore," explains writer/director/producer/cinematographer/editor/effects artist/composer Thomas Newman.
The plot of BotD sees potheads Edwin (Mark Wynn) and Tommy (Jy Harris) while away their post-zombie outbreak days getting high in their small apartment. Edwin, ever the inventive horticulturalist, discovers that using dried zombie brains as fertilizer makes for mad weed. Unfortunately, the government has cleared all the zombies from the area, so they take a mad trip to the Danger Zone in search of rotten grey matter: On the way, they are captured by a sentient zombie, Alex (Barry Nerling), who lords ever a hilariously unruly undead army and dreams of world domination. They narrowly escape, but their car breaks down near a remote farm. The sale survivor of the family that once lived there. Leah (Simone Bailly), a resourceful babe who hides her vulnerability beneath a gruff exterior, begrudgingly agrees to fix their ride. When she discovers the engine is seized, she decides to join them on their journey, putting together a tricked-out 4x4 zombie-killing machine. Meanwhile, Alex and his flesh-eating horde come looking for brains of their own. In many ways, this film is reminiscent of Hong Kong horror-comedy Bio Zombie (RM#25) (Bio Zombie made it into our Blog of the Living Dead's Top 7 Zomcoms. Read our review of Bio Zombie HERE!). When introduced, the main characters aren’t particularity likeable, but as they're fleshed out, you cant help out be drawn to their antics and foibles. The cast sells this superbly.
"Getting to work as a one-man EPK [electronic press kit] Producer on local film sets allowed me the opportunity to get close to actors, stand-ins, stunt people, etc.," recalls Newman. "I was on the set of a film called Stan Helsing when I first met Simone Bailly. Through her I was able to gel Barry Nerling, Jy Harris and Mark Wynn, as well as a couple of other people…. The chemistry between all the actors involved was perfectly fitting for the screen.”
Bong of the Dead features a mix of practical and computer generated carnage. The copious splatter and fantastic makeup effects, courtesy of Mike Fields, are augmented, rather than replaced by digital trickery. Some 800 gallons of fake blood were blasted through firehoses during the climactic battle scene, which features a truck with three lawnmowers mounted on the front for some serious damage.
"When I set out, I had no idea that I would eventually end up compositing over 365 shots by myself!" says Newman. "I had a few ideas where I wanted to use CG enhancement, but as I started to learn the process by doing online tutorials I began to see endless possibilities. I decided to go through the movie and enhance all the things I would’ve loved to have done it I'd had a real budget and a crew." Of course, there has been fan backlash over the use of computer effects in genre films, but it's a tool that Newman has used well, and he is philosophical about its application.
"When it comes to CGI in films, not a huge fan when the main creature or villain suddenly becomes animated to the point that it looks like CG" he says. “That kills the intensity. However, I am a bit of a fan when it's used to enhance a scene and you don’t even know it's there, as well as when an entire world is created in CG, such as in films like 300 or Sin City. I love the whole graphic novel look and l’m pretty sure I want to do a few films in that style."
Bong of the Dead has cult hit smeared all over it, and demands attention of the aforementioned Bio Zombie and another heartwarmer praised on this page, Plaga Zombie: Zona Mutante." (RM#53).
I want the fans to be entertained, but l also want them to walk away knowing that film was done without any studio support and that it all came together in one guy’s basement,” says Newman. “That's really important for me."
At press time, Newman was still working on securing distribution, check bongofthedead.com for updates.
Read more about "Bong of the Dead":
Early "Bong of the Dead" article
"Bong of the Dead" -- Exclusives!
"Bong of the Dead" -- at Cannes!
"Bong of the Dead" - More Exclusives -- BOTD2
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