A Wakefield Project (2018)
Director: L. A. Lopes
Writer: Lindsay Seim
Stars: Lindsay Seim, Dennis Andres, Anthony Bewlz, Rob Archer, Dan Yeager
The veil between the living and the dead has lifted for 24 hours, would you survive?
Date & Venue: Friday 11th January 17:30
Park Inn by Radisson Palace, Southend, Church Rd, Southend-on-Sea SS1 2AL, UK
A Wakefield Project is a new horror from director L. A. Lopes which has been selected to play at Horror-on-Sea Film. I got a chance to ask
L. A. Lopes few questions about what we can expect from the film.
Q. A Wakefield Project has been selected to play at the Horror-on-Sea Film Festival, what can people expect from the film?
Audiences can expect an hour and a half of beautifully executed cinematography, thoughtful and electric composition and a cast of talent who work seamlessly off each other. Hopefully they enjoy the ride of the story we are presenting.
Q. It is your feature debut as a director and is based on a script written by Lindsay Seim, who also appears as Chloe in the film. What made you decide this was the right script for your first feature?
To be honest, this film mostly fell into my hands. I was initially set to be producing, but when the attached director had to step away for personal reasons, we were already one week into shooting. So, I was asked to come on board and piece the rest of the film together. You can imagine it was a stressful experience, but one that came with plenty of invaluable lessons.
Q. What were your inspirations for the look and style of the film?
Jay Guerriere, my cinematographer, has such brilliant eye for colour and composition. Together we wanted to highlight the beauty of small-town living and Merced California ended up being the main inspiration. How to capture the complexity of that town and translate it to our film was a challenge but one I think we succeeded at.
Q. What makes A Wakefield Project stand out in the horror genre?
This is film dives into one of the many mysteries of the world and how it can affect our dimension. Solar flares are still very mysterious to the scientific community, so having our own spin on what one effect might be, I believe is what sets us apart.
Q. Did you have to change any elements of the original script during filming?
Yes, frequently. Lindsay Seim, with all her hidden talents, rewrote the entire script while on set because the initial version was not working. So, once we had her version, we had a much better scope of how the film would come together. It was definitely a team effort that found the foundation for this film.
Q. What was one of your favourite moments during filming?
Working with Dan Yeagar and Rob Archer on their scene was one of my best moments. Both these men are well over 6’5 and have such gravitas in their physical and personal selves. Getting to play with those kinds of titans and their energy was absolutely a highlight.
Q. Do you have any other projects which you are currently working on?
I’m currently in pre-production for my next Feature Film I’ll be directing called Contention. We will be shooting in the spring with Ladywood Productions. And this is a script I have been waiting to bring to life for some time. I am very excited to take everything I learned from this project and apply it to pushing the boundaries with my next film.
Q. If someone was looking direct their own horror film, what advice would you give them? Play to your budget. I think to many of us indie film makers are trying to make films that follow the standard Hollywood outline, but we can’t complete because we can’t even come close with our budgets. Find something new, play with your audience, give yourself the free reign to push the norm, otherwise you’ll fall in with the crowd. And above all pay attention to the details, make everything in every shot be there for a reason.
You can find out more about the film on the website:
www.ladywoodproductions.com
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/ladywoodproductions/
and Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/ladywoodproductions/
You can find out more about the feature films playing at Horror-on-Sea Film Festival and details of tickets on the website.
Published in various websites, Philip is a reviewer who is best known for his interviews and media coverage of independent projects including; films, books, theatre and live events. Always on the lookout for something different to cover!
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