Exclusive Romford Horror Interview with Actor Sam McMillan for ‘Mr Whispers’ and ‘Black Chariot’

Film Names:
 Mr Whispers: In Mr Whispers, we unveil a chilling story of long-buried horror, set in a town desperate to forget its tragic past. For decades, rumours have swirled about a place on the outskirts… a derelict cinema where something unspeakable once occurred.

Black Chariot: Chilling and uncanny, we follow three young men in their attempt to retrieve a red case that harbours a horrifying secret. But they are not alone in these woods and cannot even trust one another—not the girl they’ve taken hostage, nor the puppet master who lured them here. They are all alone in the dark, except for a 1957 Black Wolseley 15/50 that prowls silently in the night. Do not look into its red headlights…

Directors:
Mr Whispers: Seumas MacNeil, Oliver Revie, Dorian Todd

Black Chariot: Lawrie Brewster

Writers:
 Mr Whispers: Seumas MacNeil, Dorian Todd

Black Chariot: Lawrie Brewster

Starring:
 Mr Whispers: Megan Tremethick, Stephen Corrall, Sam McMillan, Dorian Todd, Novarro Ramon

Black Chariot: Laurence R. Harvey, Megan Tremethick Richard Pate, Dorian Todd, Nick Ford, Novarro Ramon, Sam McMillan

In a new exclusive interview on Blazing Minds I got a chance to ask Actor Sam McMillan a few questions about his films Mr Whispers and Black Chariot, which have been selected to play at the Romford Horror Film Festival on Sunday the 22nd of February.

Q. Your films Mr. Whispers and Black Chariot will have their World Premieres at the Romford Horror Film Festival. Can you tell us a bit about what we can expect from each film?

A. Without giving too much away I would say that the answer is similar between both movies. For Black Chariot I think that the audience should expect to be taken on an emotional journey that is amazingly brought to life, creating a overwhelming sense of unease, by everyone involved such as our amazing writer/director Lawrie Brewster, our DOP Michael Brewster and my amazing co-stars Laurance R. Harvey, of The Human Centipede 2 (2011), Megan Tremethick, Dorian Todd and Novarro Ramon to name a few. As for Mr. Whispers I would say that a deeper sense of dread is to be expected as I feel like all the characters have been written and brought to life with such authenticity that you can’t help but get invested and form an emotional attachment to everyone in the movie.

Q. You play Tyler in Mr. Whispers, written by Seumas MacNeil and Dorian Todd, and Samuel Baxter in Black Chariot. Can you tell us a bit about the characters and what first attracted you to them?

A. In terms of Tyler in Mr. Whispers, he is a quieter and more introverted character that prefers to keep to himself, his hobby is making short films and getting hands on with cameras. While being introverted he is still very empathetic towards the other characters during the situation they find themselves in, Tyler is especially close with the character Adam; played by the super talented Dorian Todd who also co-wrote and co-directed the film. As the film goes on you discover that these two really do know each other really well and are genuine long-time friends. My character in Black Chariot however, is also alienated from his fellow characters but this time it is because he is an extremely emotional character, sometimes to his detriment, and he is not afraid to get his hands dirty and get into a fight if he feels like it is necessarily. I was drawn to playing Sam in Black Chariot mainly due to how much of an emotional character he is and for the fact that he wears his heart on his sleeve. Then I was drawn to Tyler as it was a different kind of challenge as he is so invested in camera stuff so I had to do a fair amount of research on that.


Q. What sort of preparation did you do to prepare for each role?

A. To prepare for the role of Sam I, firstly, went back and watched a couple of Alfred Hitchcock films, those being Vertigo (1958) and Psycho (1960). I then started going through the script and started to link the emotional high moments for the character to real emotional experiences that I have went through in my life as much as I could, so that I could convincingly portray those emotions. The process for Mr. Whispers was largely the same as I absolutely needed to make sure to harness the right emotions, so that it didn’t seem like I was making light of any of the serious matters that are explored throughout the film. I also made sure to study other found footage movies and the way they are shot, so that I could replicate it as best as possible given that Tyler is the camera operator during the majority of the film.

Q. Are there any elements of either character which you feel reflect some of your own personality?

A. I feel like the thing that reflects my personality the most in both of these characters is how much they think and care about other people, sometimes others wants and needs before their own. This reflects to my own personality because I am always much happier making sure that those around me aren’t struggling with anything or letting stuff weigh them down as personally. I have been there and would rather not see those I care about suffer in silence and pretending everything is okay.

Q. Did you make any changes to the character form how it was written in the original script?

A. As far as I am aware I didn’t make any changes to the character. As an actor I feel I am able to apply myself and make my performance work around what is written in the script, instead of needing the script to be changed to suit me. However, what helps that is the amazing writing team, for Black Chariot there was the fantastic Lawrie Brewster who also directed the movie, who I had worked with a little bit in the past before production started on Black Chariot. He is really good at writing characters to suit people’s acting strengths while also allowing them to challenge themselves with a role so that always is a massive help. For Mr. Whispers we had the ultra talented Seumas MacNeil and Dorian Todd who are also great for writing characters to have such amazing depth while still seeming like a person and not just like yet another horror movie character which helped me connect with Tyler in a real human way making it easier for me to embody him and understand him as is written without needing any changes.

Q. What were some of your favourite moments during filming?

A. One of my favourite moments during the filming of Black Chariot was getting to work along side the horror legend that is Laurence R. Harvey. This also proved to be quite a nerve racking thing, especially since I couldn’t make it to the first day of shooting. I had a family commitment so I was the last person on the shoot to meet him, which stressed me out more, but those fears were put to bed very quickly since Laurence is a lovely person who was absolutely fantastic to work with. I also loved working along side Novarro Ramon and Dorian Todd to bring the character changes, and mentions to life that shift throughout the entire film which was fun to play around with our dynamics considering that they are two of my dearest friends. A final favourite moment for Black Chariot was any scene I had with the amazing and mega talented Megan Tremethick as the character of Nell. Working with Megan is always an absolute dream as she always brings the exact energy that is needed to bounce off of. For Mr. Whispers, I’d say my absolute favourite moment happens towards the end of the film and Tyler is carefully searching the cinema, with an honourable mention going to a pair of scenes that happens a little bit after that one which involves Adam, Kathryn and Leon in some conflict.

Q. Did you experience any issues during filming?

A. My main issues on both of these shoots was how cold it was. This was more of an issue for me as I suffer from Crohn’s disease, which affects a whole host of different parts of my body. It also means that I feel the cold just that little but more than the average person, which unfortunately tends to make rainy forests and abandoned cinemas a little bit of a nightmare scenario for me. Other than that my only issue was the fact that around the time we started shooting Mr. Whispers, I had just had a professional wrestling match and must have taken a move a little wrong. I noticed after doing a few takes of holding the camera the area around my right shoulder blade seemed to be giving me a little bother, which ended up getting worse as shooting went on but it was manageable. It just meant that I’d hand off the camera to someone else whilst reviewing takes and in-between scenes you’d find me just laying on the ground.

Q. What makes Mr. Whispers and Black Chariot stand out as something different in the horror genre?

A. I feel like one thing that makes Black Chariot stand out in the horror genre is how much time and care it takes to build up the characters as people. They all have their own ambitions and what their lives are like outside of what we see in the movie. It also manages to get sympathy from the viewer from the start which allows you to relate and be invested as the events of the film transpire. Another way I would say that Black Chariot stands out in horror is that it presents and handles very serious subject matter. Some horror films just make reference to something serious that a character has been through, but Black Chariot gives it time to breathe and serves as an integral part of a characters history. 

I feel like Mr. Whispers stands out, especially compared to the found footage sub-genre, as it manages to balance the found footage style of filmmaking with more traditional and carefully framed up shots, sometimes happening within the same scene. I also feel like it stands out as it gives the characters real objectives and motives for reacting how they do to the situations in the movie. This is something I feel mainstream horror sometimes overlook, leading to audiences not being able to relate to the characters as it sometimes feels like there is no reason to their emotions and actions.

Q. What do you hope people take away after watching the film?

A. When the films are over I hope that people are able to come away from them thinking and reflecting, whether that is about the film they have just watched, or about something that has happened in their personal lives. I really do hope that as the credits roll someone in the audience takes that time and just pauses, fully absorbs and lets the subject matter resonate with them. As for some, this could be the first time they are able to just stop and properly think about something that is going on in life, and to me that is a really beautiful idea. I also hope that people come away from the movie with a new sense of understanding, but also a new found sense of curiosity and hopefully inspiration to want to be a film maker themselves.

Q. Do you have any other projects which you are currently working on?

A. As of writing this I am not long out of production of a feature film that was written and directed by Dorian Todd called MEOW which I won’t say too much about here, what I will say is that I can’t wait for people to see what we’ve brought to life with this film and I can’t wait to see the response to it. When it comes to projects from me, I am currently working on developing a number of wrestling related horror short films. Hopefully I can then start thinking of developing a feature from there as well, which I am bringing to life with the help of Fair City Wrestling/ Dundee and Angus Pro Wrestling as well as the British Horror Studio. My hope is to blend my horror film knowledge and my wrestling skill into telling a somewhat familiar tale but from a completely unique angle which I am excited to see how that ends up shaping together.

Q. If someone was looking to get into filmmaking what advice would you give them?

A. The best advice I can give to people that want to get into film making is to find a group of like-minded friends who share your passion, and from there start writing your own movies. I would recommend to start of with doing several micro short films to ensure that you are building up your skills in all aspects. Especially focus on getting your audio recording to be the best it possibly can since audiences are less likely to excuse bad audio over bad visuals. Another piece of advice I would give is to try to come up with unique ideas for your projects and to try to stay away from doing mainstream ideas without having your own spin on them. You cannot possibly go against a mainstream Hollywood movie on little to no budget, so make yourself and your projects stand out and more people will be interested in watching it

You can find out more about the British Horror Studios and support them on the their Patreon Page here

Mr. Whispers and Black Chariot are having their world premieres at the Romford Horror Film Festival on Sunday the 22nd of February. Mr. Whispers will be screening at 4.20pm and Black Chariot will screen afterwards at 6.50pm. You can find tickets and festival passes on the Romford Horror Website.

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