Film Focus – Unit PR

As part of our Film Focus series, we’re joined by Liz Rodriguez, founder of EMR Media; specialising in Marketing, Branding and Publicity Services for the entertainment industry. Today we’re going to be talking about the role of a Unit PR within film production and the value that such a role can add to the success of your film.

Interview with film director Brett A. Hart

I recently had the pleasure of speaking to Brett A. Hart, a writer, director and editor based out of Oklahoma and LA and also Creative Director of Sweat Equity. Brett is probably best known for directing the 2007 thriller Bone Dry starring Lance Henriksen and Luke Goss.

Hi Brett, thanks for taking the time to talk to us. You’ve probably been asked this a million times, but how was it working with Lance Henriksen and Luke Goss?

Hey Scott! When talking about ‘Bone Dry’ and the process of collaborating with Lance Henriksen, and Luke Goss I have nothing but the fondest of memories.  It was a tremendous joy working with the two.  We all knew exactly what we were setting out to make… knew the tremendous obstacles we were going to have to overcome… and became family within the first weekend.

We had our first reading at Pemrick Fronk casting on a Friday.  Since the three of us are so detailoriented that afternoon reading turned into a three day/weekend reading that went from casting director’s office, Jerry’s Deli on Ventura in The Valley and eventually to Lance’s house.  It truly was a one of a time experience.  I’ve been directing ever since around the age of 7… but this was my debut film… my first time working with a decent budget and with two of the finest actors to date.  We shot in some of the most severe weather conditions in the height of summer… yet we remained strong friends… allies… and focused on bringing this 6 year passion project of mine to life.

I’m very proud of the results… and I’m proud that I was one of the first to recognise Luke’s abilities.  Since this little Indie he’s gone off to star in a ‘Hellboy II’.  And I’ve been honoured by Henriksen’ fans that include this in the hallmark of his finest films.  It took a long time to cast… but once I found them… I knew Luke and Lance were my Eddie & Jimmy.

Do you have anything exciting you’re working on at the moment?

I’ve got several projects in the pipeline. The one I’m most excited about is ‘The Pursuit’ being written by Jeff (Bone Dry) O’Brien and produced by Glen Lougheed. Once again we’re tailor-making a film with Lance in mind. I don’t want to say too much about it… but I can say that it’ll be in the same vein as ‘Bone Dry’ but tenfold… and once again we’ll be revisiting the desert.  This time however our story is an ensemble piece… a turbulent roller-coaster ride through the scalding middle east.

Other projects are one of the late Dan O’Bannon’s (Dark Star, Alien, Total Recall) last scripts ‘The Pain Clinic’, and two other passion projects of mine being written by Scott Spencer.  ’King’ set in the Ozarks in a secluded home that becomes a battleground for survival between grandmother, granddaughter and a seeing eye dog bent on becoming the master.  And ‘The Unhallowed’ about the rise of a composer’s career through a series of tragedies that occur after being bewitched into love.

I notice you work with the RED camera system quite a lot; do you think it will eventually replace film as the media of choice for film-makers?

I’ve worked with Red only three times, but I’ve enjoyed it each time. Honestly I wouldn’t say that I feel RED will become the definitive system to film on in the near future.  As technology consistently changes. In fact it tends to get smaller with advancements. I’ve yet to work with the Canon 5D but am impressed by what I’ve seen.

Actually if there are any definitives with technology is that there are no definitives.  When we set out to make ‘Bone Dry’ I did experimentation with HD vs. film before there were many HD features. I’m proud to say we made the right decision to go HD. We kept our cost realistic and I can’t imagine film emulsion surviving the locations and extremities we were shooting in.

We’ll continue to see advances in technology… and we’ll continue to see purist that relish in the nostalgia of the origins of film.  For me… I lean towards several things. Quality. Affordability. Efficiency.  If you can shoot and edit on set with digital technology you’re eliminating the turnaround rate.  At one time you’d have to wait till the  lab processed your film to review your ‘Dailies’.  Now the technology is creating what should be coined ‘Instancies’.

What are your thoughts on the British film industry, any favourite movies or actors?

Though I always wanted one of my cast members to be British for ‘Bone Dry’ I still feel embarrassed to say that I feel slightly unexposed to the British Film Industry. Some of the actors I considered were Tim Roth and Christopher Eccleson. I even approached Simon Boswell to score the film early on. I would say that I have more favorite musicians out of the UK than filmmakers.

Most of the filmmakers I love from Britain have relocated to the U .S.  Hitch would have been one of the first.  The Scott Brothers. Unsure about Alan Parker. I’d have to say Danny Boyle is my favourite. His work is amazing. Guy Ritchie is always fun, but Boyle’s work is really unmatched. He’s always discovering new talent. No matter how incredible the circumstances in his film the characters always seem real. And you always walk away from one of his films with resonance. I guess Christopher Nolan is like that as well. I’m always attracted to films that seem plausible. Both of those filmmakers are wonderful. Though I don’t know if Nolan has relocated.

The BBC TV Mini-Series ‘Wallander’ is one of my all time favorites.  The stories, filmmaking and performances are all top notch. I love the title song ‘Nostalgia’ by Emily Barker. The Director of Photography Anthony Dodd-Mantle is a favorite of mine.  In fact I believe they shot Red on the series. Kenneth Branagh’s portrayal of a haunted and morose detective changed my opinion that he was an over actor to the fact that he’s tremendously talented.  That series represents what I love in entertainment.  It has bold story-lines about real people in inhuman situations, high end production values, and takes the audience to locations not overly exposed.

What training have you had when it comes to film making? And how important do you think it is these days to have recognised qualifications?

I feel that higher education is tremendously valuable.  It’s a wonderful time in life of discovery. With that said… I do feel filmmakers need a real sense of business skills in order to survive after college.

I actually was talking to a friend from high school the other day and we both recognised that I should have gone straight from high school to Los Angeles.  I really didn’t want to go to film school. Did it for my family.  I had already shot several 20 minute short films and had even been paid by the age of 15 to direct. I think you know if you have a talent. I knew when I was 7. I was obsessed by filmmaking. When forced to go to bed early… I envisioned set pieces, shots, story-lines; ways to execute scenes unlike any seen before. In fact… I’ve yet to capture some of those ideas as a young child.

But – I do think you can learn a lot… and you’ll always learn… and more importantly you’ll make contacts in film school.  Regrettably I do believe there will be a tremendous decline in cinema for a long time. Technology has made it too easy for everyone to think they are filmmakers. Distributors will have to cull through 100s of hours of films that honestly should probably never be submitted. I think if you have the vision you should never be discouraged. On the same token… you should be responsible… and not burden others with work that is subpar.

Filmmaking is a love hate relationship. A tumultuous romance. You’ll know if it’s in your blood… because you won’t be able to do anything else. Ironically when I went off to film school I was taking senior level classes as a freshmen. When my car was hit by a train I was unable to make it to classes. I learned more during that time frame than any before. I was stranded so I watched every film I could get my hands on. I studied filmmakers like Spielberg, writers like Rod Serling, and began to look into the works of foreign directors like Greenway, Jean Jacques Annaud, Luc Besson. That was really all the schooling I needed.  If you’re going to go to film school, learn business!

So what’s your background? Did you roll straight into making your own feature or was it an up-hill struggle to break into the industry?

Touched upon this a bit in the last question. But yes… it has been an uphill battle. I came from a middle-class family. My mother supported my dreams all my life. My father was usually gone making a living. His greatest gift to me was his ear for music, love of films and technical mind. However there wasn’t a surplus of cash to just throw away and let me run off to L.A. and leisurely “Break Into” the business.

I got my first break doing low budget music videos. Quickly I became more interested in commercials. These allowed me to work with actors, choose the type of music and generally storylines that I wanted. But to get ‘Bone Dry’ made took 6 years of juggling building an agency and raising finance for the feature. I used all my vacation days to scout the desert.  Worked nights on pre-pro.

And when I was editing the film I was pulling at least 80 hours a week between the day job and the feature at night. To be honest… that was the easy part. I was seeing the footage. So I no longer had to wonder “will I ever make a feature”?  But to get to that point in time I had written or been involved with dozens of scripts, projects that either lost steam or just weren’t meant to be.  It’s a very time consuming process. Other’s just fall into the job.

I think it was Orson Welles that said he conned his way into Hollywood. And to a degree… within reason… you have to do it all to get that ‘vision’ seen.  Lie, cheat, steal, and still try and not sell your soul at the end of the day.

Any other advice you’d give to aspiring film-makers?

I’d like to say these were my words… but they were my mentor’s, the late Richard Franklin (Psycho II, Cloak & Dagger, Road Games).  I was about 15 and it was the summer I had to make decisions. Was I going to pursue a career in computers, music, sports or film?  My family & I were on vacation in San Antonio, Texas and we were staying at the same hotel as the Universal studios cast and crew of ‘Cloak & Dagger’. ‘Psycho II’ had just come out and I was blown away. It was smart, suspenseful, tragic an homage yet original. So I made it a point to find the director.

Richard and I crossed paths in a stairwell. I was so green that I didn’t know genres yet.  When he asked me what type of films I made… my reply was “Like yours”.  He was taken aback by this young Texas aspiring filmmaker and immediately took me under his wing.  While visiting the set the next morning he took time out to show me around and autograph my Directing book by Richard L. Bare.  Within it he wrote “Never Be Discouraged”.

Those words got me through a lot of turbulent times. And those words are what you should live by. If you know in your heart of hearts you have a gift… never take no for an answer.

Ok, here’s the biggy! You’ve just left the Bless and you fancy going to a club… do you go to Mosh or to Scream?

Well I’ll substitute ‘The Bless’ for ‘The Flying Tomato’ from Denton, Texas (now burned down) that I used to frequent and get pissed at on a Thursday night in film school.  And if I’ve done a really bang up / proper job of getting ‘pissed’ I’d hit both ‘Mosh’ and ‘Scream’.  And if I could turn back time… I’d spend MUCH more time enjoying that period in life.  Though I didn’t feel the need for filmschool… I did love college. I loved going out and feeling the energy of the other artists around. I would recommend for anyone with that burning desire to become filmmakers to keep in mind that you only live once.  That your time will come.  Don’t have such tunnel vision that you fail to enjoy the present.

I’d give up several high paying salaries to be 18-22 again and have that one night at Mosh & Scream.

And last but not least, what can we look forward to from Brett A. Hart in the future?

Blood… Sweat… Tears… and hopefully a few well made films.

Thanks for taking time out to speak to us Brett!

Stencil Media will keep you up to date with news of Brett’s future productions as and when we have it, but in the meantime, if you’ve not yet seen Bone Dry then you can pick up your copy now from Play.com

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