So as a filmmaker and a fan of all types of Cinema, i love to embrace movies that are truly off the beaten path. David Lynch's Inland Empire would be a prime example. My theory is that films pretty much make themselves. You can have an idea, write a script, cast the project, etc., but when all is said and done you usually end up with something that was 80% the filmmakers vision and 20% Fate. With Indie Filmmakers I'd say it's more 60% Vision, 40% Fate. A perfect example is "TRICK OF THE WITCH" -- in the beginning, the 2 other producers and I had a perfect plan, but if things came out the way we envisioned during our first few production meetings, we would have had an entirely different picture. So much changed during the course of filming... locations, last minute script changes, casting changes, etc. All I think were for the better. The film will be heading into editing and post production in a few weeks. From looking at the footage so far we all agree that we have something very unique and different from what is out there right now. This movie has it all... horror, suspense, drama, comedy... and all out craziness. I feel that marketing it for the horror audience is the way to go, but there is more to it than typical scares. We have a leading lady who is not your typical leading lady, we have characters that aren't paint by numbers, we have suspense that may actually weird you out and yet make you giggle at the same time. This makes me very happy. There's a certain audacity in some of the scenes we shot. We were rushed for time during certain shooting days and when you have to meet deadlines you sometimes have to accept the best "final take" you can. These, I believe were Happy Accidents. I'm very excited to see what the next few months come of this film. I'm putting the post production in the hands of someone I not only trust very much, but admire for her creative vision. This would be Vickie Velvet... musician, photographer, editor, actress - you name it! She is an all around artist that is extremely talented and has a very cool style and rhythm to her work. Her husband is an amazing editor and the team of the two of them will bring something even more unique to this. I will be posting preview clips from Trick of the Witch in the coming months and I can't wait!
Another fun thing on our minds is the future... I wrote Trick of the Witch with the possibility of a sequel. If it is successful we may go there. My producer and I have been chatting about the next project and today some exciting thoughts came up while brainstorming. I can't reveal much yet but if we go through with it, we will be doing something that hasn't really been done in the world of cinema (as far as i know) and it will be something that will please not only future fans of Trick of the Witch, but haters as well.
Stay tuned folks... we promise to make this interesting!
Actress of the Day: KEYANNA SAWYER
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ACTRESS OF THE DAY - KEYANNA SAWYER
Keyanna co-stars in Trick of the Witch playing the role of Courtney - one of the fashion models stranded at the mansion. Her character is lucky to find a way out of the mansion before all the mayhem begins. Problem is... something is waiting for her in the desert! Will she escape the madness? You will have to see the movie to find out!
Keyanna came to our attention through auditions we held during pre-production. On paper, she had the right look we wanted for Courtney, but what made it even better was that when she walked into the casting room, she had such a charming personality we instantly clicked with. Right then and there we knew we found our Courtney!
Filming with her was a blast! She brought such a great energy to the set and did amazing! She even asked to come to the set during the days she wasn't scheduled because she was having a great time being there with us and the other actors.
We added a bunch of stunt work into her role that wasn't in the script to make her scenes a bit more action packed. She took it like a trooper and blew us away with her SuperWoman fight moves! She is definitely an actress to keep an eye on!
Here is some info from her bio:
Standing at 5'9", Keyanna Sawyer is definitely not classified as the girl next door. With a wide range of abilities, she is an exceptional commodity in the entertainment industry. Having a vivacious personality and a heart of passion, she and her loved ones knew that entertaining was definitely her thing. She started her quest by joining John Casablanca's Modeling and Career Center in her hometown, Memphis, Tennessee at the age of 16.
At that point, anything and everything was her motto. While training at John Casablanca's, she went on to place top 5 in the Elite Jeans contest and placed top 10 in the Miss Tennessee USA Pageant, which helped launch her career as a professional model.
Keyanna has featured in national campaigns, commercials and run-way shows in New York and Los Angeles for clients such as: CW Network, Ampro Industries, Doritos, and IPhoneto name a few.
With roots in the modeling world, Keyanna has branched out to conquer Hollywood. She made her professional acting debut as "Mary", a lead character in the 2009 Indie Film "Ano". It has all been uphill from there appearing on television shows such a Melrose Place, Three Rivers, and CSI Miami.
While Keyanna isn't modeling or acting she devotes her time to her family and her foundation, The Sawyer Foundation.
ACTRESS OF THE DAY... GIA FRANZIA
ACTRESS OF THE DAY – GIA FRANZIA
I cast Gia as the lead in my 3rd film FASHION MURDER GROOVE. She played the role of Claire… a good girl with amnesia. The movie has yet to be released be we are working on getting it out there after a bunch of red tape and road blocks that have held it back. Her performance is not to be missed so keep your eye out for it!
Red Carpet...
My producer and I with Trick Of The Witch cast members promoting the film at a Golden Globes pre-party! (left to right: Chris Morrissey, Share Cherrie, Rebecca Da Costa, Jovanny Venegas, Abigail De'Ath, Louis Montano, Keyanna Sawyer, and Shay Alexis Brown)
In The Beginning Was a Worm...
One Friday night after a long day of work, i get a random phone call from a drunk drag queen friend that was working a weekend job in a desert town an hour and a 1/2 outside of L.A. - she called to tell me how she was stranded in the middle of nowhere at a little house with barely anything around except a bunch of fog and a red full moon -- she said I would love it because it would be the perfect area to film a horror movie. I agreed that it sounded cool but pretty much shrugged it off since this friend usually rambles on about crazy random things no matter where she is.
The next day she calls me again to tell me how she found out about a bunch of weird folklore in the area. The woman she was working for told her a bunch of creepy stories about neighbors being murdered and rumors of supernatural myths in the area. This got my attention and made me curious to check it out.
My friend asked me if i would be willing to come out to look at the location and meet with her boss to hear more creepy stories. I hesitated due to the long drive out there but finally agreed since i had no other plans that day.
When i got there, It WAS perfect for filming. Everything looked straight out of Texas Chainsaw Massacre and the stories WERE pretty creepy. The woman living there offered her house as a location if we wanted to shoot there. A few plot ideas popped into my head but on the long drive home I figured it would be way too far to bring a whole crew and actors down there and it would cost way too much to get something off the ground.
That night I get an out of the blue message from another friend that I worked with on previous projects who randomly tells me that she wants to produce and put money into filming a new movie. I immediately tell her "i have a creepy house in the desert we can film a horror movie at..."
Her answer "i'm in! Let's put together a treatment!"
A couple weeks later... I sent her the treatment, we finalized it and I began writing the actual script.
I guess some things are just meant to be....
I Would Like, If I May, To Take You On A Strange Journey...
Welcome to the official TRICK OF THE WITCH movie blog! In the coming weeks, I will be posting some of my recent adventures filming this wicked little film. I will also take you with me as we complete and present the movie out there for all your curious eyes to see.
Tomorrow is our final day of shooting and I feel like we've accomplished a lot in very little time! We started pre-production on the film this past October and filming began the 2nd week of January... i'm very excited to jump into post production and put all of the puzzle pieces together for your viewing pleasure. This is just the beginning so sit back and enjoy the ride...
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