CHRIS KAHLER ’10-In-One Chris, The Swiss Army Knife of Indie Filmmaking’

CHRISTOPHER KAHLER

Grave Robbers From Outerspace,The Shrieking,Cant Stop The Rock,Into The Woods,ROT-Reunion Of Terror,Spring Break Massacre.

1) So,Is CHICAGO your favorite location to shoot films ?

Nope. I have very few filmmaking friends here so even the stuff I do shoot locally is usually in the suburbs. Somehow I associate “production value” to things I don’t see every day because that’s what I like to see personally. Even when I have friends in from out of town, my tour of the city doesn’t include the normal tourist attractions. I show them where movie scenes were filmed from ‘Ferris Bueller’s Day Off’, ‘Henry: Portarait of A Serial Killer’, ‘The Blus Brothers’, etc because I find it more interesting. Besides, getting to travel to do what you enjoy anyway is a bonus.

2) Does MUSIC add anything to films ?

Absolutely ! There was an early film study that showed the same scene with 3 very different styles of music and it gives the viewer a different experience each time because of that alone. I saw some PBS special about the importance of film music. Kids were shown horror movies without the music and they said it was “boring”. That reminds me of the stories of John Carpenter showing Hollywood types ‘Halloween’ back in the day before the famous score was added and they all passed on it. I guess that means the kids were right ! One thing I really dislike is when people tend to over use bands they meet on MySpace or wherever and don’t really put their music in context in a scene. Just because something is cool to listen to at home doesn’t mean a housewife would be listening to it at home in your movie when zombies come crashing through her house. It can actually ruin as well as enhance if not used wisely.

3) One Sentence Descriptions-David ‘The Rock’Nelson________GG Allin___________Phil Herman_________Joel D. Wynkoop__________Nancy Feliciano_______________.

Wow ! I might not work with any of them again after this LOL Let’s see…

David “The Rock” Nelson is the most entertaining when he’s actually making his style of films rather than promoting himself.

GG Allin was a lot more sane than people gave him credit for and knew more about ‘Green Acres’ than anyone I’ve ever known.

Phil Herman needs to stop thinking an angel investor will fund his feature scripts and take the initiative upon himself to make films like ‘The Usher’ since he would definitely shine in his element.

Joel D. Wynkoop is a force of nature that would easily become an ‘A’ list actor if given the right script and direction because he’s amazing to watch, but so often misused in many films I’ve seen.

Nancy Feliciano should start a series of physical fitness DVDs since she’s only getting more fit looking with every movie of her’s I’ve edited over the last 7 years.

4) Wanna explain KICKSTARTER.COM ?\

My version ? Basically people who have ideas go on there to beg for money from people to fund these ideas. It could be a movie, book, CD or whatever. If people like it, they might make a donation towards it to see your idea happen. Usually the more a donation is, the more stuff you will give them for helping you get your idea into an actual product. The trick is you have to set an amount and have finite amount of time to get it or you get nothing at all. Even more scary is I’ve seen some really bad ideas reach their goal amounts. I can be seen on there currently begging to finish funding my remake of ‘Plan 9 from Outer Space’ this summer LOL

5) So,Grave Robbers From Outerspace…Michelle Shields and David ‘The Rock’ Nelson seem to be the names in credits,Any other surprises ?

I think the biggest surprise is we’re not making a spoof at the original’s expense or making an outright bad movie. Somehow mugging for the camera to tell people “we’re making a joke of it- get it ?” doesn’t appeal to me. It’s the equivlent of picking on a handicapped kid really. The only reason to do a remake that I can justify is a great idea didn’t live up to the expectations of the original for whatever reason. A sci fi movie with zombies in it is a great idea, but the “worst movie of all time” is pretty harsh. We’re doing it as a lowest budget project possible to prove that it can be done, too. Everyone involved is a fan and doing it just to be a part of this weird experiment of mine. Even if I had a budget of millions, I’d still hire every one of them again to do it because you can’t put a price on dedication.

6) BEST of Kahler On/Off set ?

If you absolutely have to have a movie done in a limited time with a very limited budget, it will be done. Producers love me for this and have flown me out to California because I’m cheaper to feed 3 times a day than 5 other people to do the same jobs. “Can’t” is not in my vocabulary at those times. I always say “hope for the best, prepare for the worst, and do the best with what you have at all times” and live by that on set. I earned the nickname ’10-In-One Chris, The Swiss Army Knife of Indie Filmmaking’ for this early on. It’s the best way to get a filmmaking education and learn what to do and not to do. So many of these young guys don’t get that. They make a MySpace page for their film, list themselves as directors, and have no clue of how to get anything done. You can’t be a general if you’ve never spent time in the ditches during a war LOL

7) WORST of Kahler On/Off set ?

I lose track of time easily and since I’m enjoying what I do, I expect everyone else to keep going for hours at a time as well. Part of the problem is I have it set in my head exactly how things should play out and if it’s not quite what I picture, we do it again many times until it is. I don’t do storyboards or bother explaining everything at the time either since I already know how I’m going to edit the scenes together. I tend to get very serious about it which throws people off because I’m usually very easy going otherwise. I tend to yell badly when there’s people talking or making noise during a take. Since most people have never heard me that way before, it’s pretty shocking I guess. I’ve been told a camera makes me turn into the wolfman LOL

8) Where do the titles to your movies come from ?

‘Grave Robbers from Outer Space’ was the original title to the Ed Wood classic and I felt that was fitting for our remake. ‘Christmas with Billy’ was exactly that- had you been surrounded by the police in a hostage situation. ‘Maybe…’ was a reference to “maybe they’ll escape, maybe they’ll live to see tomorrow, maybe….” which was pretty much my way of giving the viewer hope in a hopeless situation. My films don’t have the typical Hollywood happy ending. Titles to earlier unfinished films and yet unfilmed scripts tend to revolve around some bad element about the situation. As for the many films I’ve worked on as some sort of hired hand, that’s up to their directors. You don’t always have to be the one running the show to make your involvement known. Music, editing, camerawork, suggestions on sets – I get some presence in everything I’ve ever worked on.

9) Proudest project or moment ?

At the moment, myself and a few of the players in ‘Grave Robbers’ just finished up a short for the 24 Hour Film Race in Chicago. 4 of us from the cast pulled off a very well done and intense entry for the contest. The funny part is besides me as director on ‘Grave Robbers’, none of them have ever met before, nor do they have any scenes together in it. It’s that common mentality of the local people I’ve surrounded myself that proves we’re all on the same page and I love them to death for it. I’d say expect to start seeing some familiar faces in upcoming productions because I couldn’t be prouder of them.

10) What last comment or thought to leave us with ?

Work hard at your dreams, don’t take yourself too seriously, and learn what you can along the way.