He is the man behind All That You Love Will Be Carried Away Dollar Baby Film.

SKSM: Could you start with telling me a bit about yourself? Who are you and what do you do?

James Renner: My name is James Renner, and I’m a freelance writer/director living in Cleveland, Ohio. Recently, I’ve had several articles published in a weekly magazine out here called, “Scene”. My favorite piece so far has been the story from March about three local police officers who chased a UFO into Pennsylvania in 1966. I also work on films and commercials when they come to town.

SKSM: When will you make All That You Love Will Be Carried Away? Can you tell me a little about the production? And how long take it to film you think?

James Renner: I recieved the rights to All That You Love…in August of last year. Since then, I’ve been trying to secure financing for the project. We actually had an investor who pulled out a day before we started shooting. I had to end up putting most of the expenses on a credit card. But, we did start shooting April 19th, and it went very well. Better than I could have hoped, actually. Now, I have to begin the editing process, and eventually work with the composer from Cleveland State who will write original music for the piece. His name’s Mike Bratt.

SKSM: How come you picked All That You Love Will Be Carried Away to develop into a movie? What is it in the story that you like so much?

James Renner: All That You Love… stands out from King’s usual writing in some way. First, it has no supernatural element, no monsters. It’s a simple story about a traveling salesman, and his search for purpose. Alfie Zimmer, the central character…the only character really, is just such a cool guy. He’s very funny, even if his intention is to kill himself.

SKSM: How did you find out that King sold the movie rights to some of his stories for just $1? Was it just a wild guess or did you know it before you sent him the check?

James Renner: I’ve been checking in with King’s office twice a year since I was 17. I found his office number while I was doing research for some high school paper.

SKSM: How does it feel that all the King fans out there can’t see your movie at the time when it’s ready? Do you think that will change in the future? Maybe a video release would be possible?

James Renner: I don’t know if there will ever be a video release, but there are other ways for fans to see these dollar babies. Hopefully this will land in some festivals, and of course there’s the internet. I don’t want to make a profit. I just want to make something King will really like.

SKSM: Did you have any personal contact with King before making the movie?

James Renner: I met him once at a reading in Princeton. I didn’t go there, I just crashed the reading. It was so great to hear him in person. He’s got a wonderful stage pressence and a terrific sence of humor. He looked up at the top balcony and said, “I think I saw some pieces of plaster falling from underneath you guys. Good luck up there” or something like that.

SKSM: Do you have any plans for making more movies based on Stephen King’s stories? If you could pick – at least – one story to shoot, which one would it be and why?

James Renner: I would be happy to direct any future King story. They’re all wonderful. I have my favorite, but I’m not about to spill those beans.

SKSM: Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions. Is there anything else you want to say to the fans that read this interview?

James Renner: Trust ka.

He is the man behind The Man In The Black Suit Dollar Baby Film.

SKSM: Could you start with telling me a bit about yourself? Who are you and what do you do?

Nicholas Mariani: My name is Nicholas Mariani and i was born in Salt Lake City, UT and raised in Rochester, MN. He has worked on numerous commercials, feature films, and IMAX movies. In 2002, he served as Post Production Supervisor on the animated film The Princess and the Pea and the live action feature Jumping For Joy, which won an audience award at the Chicago Film Festival. In 2003, he produced the short film Flash in the New York City area. He is a graduate of New York University’s prestigious film program. The Man in the Black Suit marks his directorial debut.

SKSM: When did you make The Man in the Black Suit? Can you tell me a little about the production? How much did it cost? How long did it take to film it?

Nicholas Mariani: The film was shot in the summer of 2003 on location in Park City, Utah with the crew from CBS’s hit television show ‘Touched By an Angel‘. It was a twenty page script. We shot it in two days. The longest day was nine and a half hours long.

SKSM: How come you picked The Man in the Black Suit to develop into a movie? What is it in the story that you like so much?

Nicholas Mariani: I thought it was a very interesting presentation of grief. Rather than deal with a heavy-handed one to one sort of thing, King converted what is essentially a tragic family drama into a sort of horror piece in a very interesting way. I thought it was a very compelling piece of material that had a lot going on in it. It’s got a lot of layers and on the surface, it’s a very engaging story, but there’s also a lot going on underneath it all.

SKSM: How did you find out that King sold the movie rights to some of his stories for just $1? Was it just a wild guess or did you know it before you sent him the check?

Nicholas Mariani: No. I had no idea. In fact, I had approached a lot of other authors before I even thought of King. It was really just dumb luck. After getting rejected by every author in town, I sat down and read King’s latest short story collection just for pure fun and stumbled onto “The Man in the Black Suit“. I loved it. I thought ‘there’s no way Stephen King would ever let me do this.’ But, at that point, I figured I had gotten a rejection letter from everyone else, so I might as well complete my collection. To my surprise and astonishment, he said ‘yes’.

SKSM: Was there any funny or special moment when you made the movie that you would like to tell me about?

Nicholas Mariani: Not really. The whole production went pretty smoothly. That’s the benefit of working with a professional crew. I suppose the one bit of ‘trivia’ that jumps to mind is the fish we use in the beginning, which is a live fish, was actually caught about thirty seconds before the shot was taken. We had a fisherman come that day and just dropped his line and pulled out a beautiful trout for us to use. Just like clockwork. The guy really knew what he was doing! Incidentally, the fish lived and we put it back right away, so please, all you animal activists out there, don’t write me any letters.

SKSM: How does it feel that all the King fans out there can’t see your movie? Do you think that will change in the future? Maybe a video release would be possible?

Nicholas Mariani: Oh, they can see it. I have film festival rights and the right to show it privately. Other than that, it’s all done on a case by case scenario with King.

SKSM: Did you have any personal contact with King during the making of the movie? Has he seen it (and if so, what did he think about it)?

Nicholas Mariani: I sent him a copy but have not heard from him.

SKSM: Do you have any plans for making more movies based on Stephen King’s stories? If you could pick – at least – one story to shoot, which one would it be and why?

Nicholas Mariani: Nothing specific jumps to mind. Everything King’s written with the exception of maybe five or six titles has already been made. I’m excited to see what Vadim Perlman does with “The Talisman” and I’m also excited to see how “Riding the Bullet” translates.

SKSM: Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions. Is there anything else you want to say to the fans that read this interview?

Nicholas Mariani: I’d like to offically thank Stephen King once again and say I think it’s very cool and refreshing to see someone of his stature willing to help someone like me. Also, if there are any Hollywood producers reading this who are looking for a director, contact me immediately!!

He is the man behind Strawberry Spring Dollar Baby Film.

SKSM: Could you start with telling me a bit about yourself? Who are you and what do you do?

Doveed Linder: I am 27 years old and live in St. Louis, Missouri. Making movies is what I do full-time; occasionally I work odd jobs to help pay the bills. In addition to STRAWBERRY SPRING, I have made an action/western feature called, DEFIANCE, which is distributed through Lions Gate Films. I have also made a short film adaptation of Edgar Alan Poe’s THE TELL-TALE HEART.

SKSM: When did you make Strawberry Spring? Can you tell me a little about the production? How much did it cost? How long did it take to film it?

Doveed Linder: The production of STRAWBERRY SPRING occurred from February to May of 2001, six days of shooting all together. The production cost several thousand dollars, though we still cut a lot of corners from a financial standpoint. Since we weren’t operating with a large pool of cash, we had to shoot sporratically – a weekend here and a weekend there.

SKSM: How come you picked Strawberry Spring to develop into a movie? What is it in the story that you like so much?

Doveed Linder: I’ve always liked the story, STRAWBERRY SPRING. In 1995, when I was taking film classes, I made a 6-minute adaptation of STRAWBERRY SPRING, shot on 8mm film. This was my very first attempt at making movies. In 2001, I decided to re-make the film as a gauge to see how my skills had improved over the last six years. I also selected STRAWBERRY SPRING as a screen adaptation, because it’s a story that gives a lot of information in a short period of time.

SKSM: How did you find out that King sold the movie rights to some of his stories for just $1? Was it just a wild guess or did you know it before you sent him the check?

Doveed Linder: I had read on a few occasions that Stephen King has a policy that allows any student/independent filmmaker to adapt his novellas/short stories for the price of one dollar. This policy allows the filmmaker the noncommercial rights to his story.

SKSM: Was there any funny or special moment when you made the movie that you would like to tell me about?

Doveed Linder: I can’t recall anything particularly funny about the production of STRAWBERRY SPRING. It was a production that occurred very smoothly and pretty much without a single hitch.

SKSM: How does it feel that all the King fans out there can’t see your movie? Do you think that will change in the future? Maybe a video release would be possible?

Doveed Linder: I feel very good about the exposure of STRAWBERRY SPRING. It has been showcased at many festivals, including the Cannes International Film Festival. It would be nice to release it on VHS or DVD with other Stephen King short films, but I haven’t pursued that avenue. It would require a considerable amount of research, paperwork, and permission from King, himself.

SKSM: Did you have any personal contact with King during the making of the movie? Has he seen it (and if so, what did he think about it)?

Doveed Linder: I have no idea if Stephen King ever saw the film. On one occasion, I received a letter from him, which basically instructed me to sign an Agreement before showcasing the film.

SKSM: Do you have any plans for making more movies based on Stephen King’s stories? If you could pick – at least – one story to shoot, which one would it be and why?

Doveed Linder: I would love to make another film based on the writing of Stephen King, but I don’t have any immediate plans to do so. THE REAPER’S IMAGE, THE MONKEY, CROUCH END, and MRS. TODD’S SHORTCUT are all stories that have interested me. If I was granted one wish, I would make a feature length anthology based on those stories. They are very imaginative, very visual, and would probably make for good cinema.

SKSM: Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions. Is there anything else you want to say to the fans that read this interview?

Doveed Linder: I can relate to all Stephen King fans, because I am a fan, myself. I hope people feel that STRAWBERRY SPRING was treated with respect and I hope to see many adaptations of King’s work in the future.

He is the man behind Luckey Quarter Dollar Baby Film.

SKSM: Could you start with telling me a bit about yourself? Who are you and what do you do?

Robert David Cochrane: Born in Seattle, Washington on June 4, 1970, but I refer to myself as a native of the San Francisco Bay Area. I grew up in the east bay suburb of Walnut Creek from 1975-1988, graduating from Ygnacio Valley High School. I was a varsity athlete in football, basketball and track. I earned my B.A.degree in broadcast journalism from San Diego State University in 1992. I pursued my dream of becoming a sports broadcaster but found my interests more varied than the narrow focus of sports and moved on. After working on cruise ships in Hawaii, the Mexican Riviera and the Caribbean for two years as a disc jockey, I docked in Los Angeles to attend UCLA‘s prestigious screenwriting school.

Since graduating, I have written 20 feature scripts. Three of them have been produced into independent films: “All or Nothing“, Sugarbed Films (1998), “The Playaz Court“, Artisan Entertainment (2000) and “The long road home“, Bro n ‘Stine Productions — my own production company — (2003).

I have acted in lead roles in all three productions and made my directorial and solo producing debut with “the long road home” (WINNER — BEST FEATURE, audience award New York Independent Film and Video Festival, July 2003). “All or Nothing” is currently being considered for distribution; “The Playaz Court” was released to home video/DVD in the U.S. and Canada in Sept. 2002 by Artisan Entertainment and plays currently on Pay Per View and on Black Starz Cable Network. I recently adapted and directed two Stephen King pieces: A)”Luckey Quarter” (from King’s latest collection, “Everything’s Eventual“) and “Roland meets Brown” an exerpt from “The Gunslinger” (Grand Prize Winner in the American Gunslinger Contest).

I currently perform as Caesar at Caesars Palace on the weekends and have been featured on “The Tonight Show” with Jay Leno, The Travel Channel and MTV. I am also in several local and national commercials.

During the summer of 2002, I wrote, directed, edited and co-produced a commercial and other promotional media for Nevada Democratic Gubernatorial candidate, Chris Petrella.

I am in pre-production with two projects:
1)”Boys of Summer“, a documentary following a father with Parkinson Disease and his son around the country to see all 30 Major League Ballparks (website: http:// homepage.mac.com/bromack/).
2) “Broken Reality“, a feature I am co-directing, producing and starring in. (scheduled to begin shooting in Oct./Nov ’04).

In addition, I will begin teaching acting classes (in conjunction with the non-profit group Women in Film), am co-founder/owner of Las Vegas Link, the only casting breakdown service in Las Vegas, working on several children’s books with my father and am recording an album of songs he has written and performed.

SKSM: When did you make Luckey Quarter?

Robert David Cochrane: Shot in July 2003 (3 VERY HOT days)

SKSM: Can you tell me a little about the production?

Robert David Cochrane: The production came together very suddenly. I got the rights to the project in January 2003. I hired a producer, Steve Mandel to find the money (we projected $10,000 as the budget). The great difficulty in that is, by definition, the rights to the story are “non- commercial” — meaning there’s no money to be made off of it. It’s hard to attract investors in that light. Mr. Mandel never found that money, but he did get some people and product involved that were instrumental in making the project go.

Things got rolling very quickly in June — with a deadline to finish the project by late July to take advantage of some available editing suites (as television is on hiatus over most of the summer). The film was shot in time, but, because of difficulties in post- production, the opportunity to use those facilities was lost. I have since been slowly piecing the film together with the help of some extremely generous and talented people. It has come together beautifully.

SKSM: How come you picked Luckey Quarter to develop into a movie? What is it in the story that you like so much?

Robert David Cochrane: I identified with the lead character, Darlene, right away. I felt for her struggle with the idea of hope — and the pain that one can experience allowing for it (or not allowing for it). It seemed like one of the stories Mr. King writes that people overlook because it’s not blood and guts horror. It’s very human. It’s about hope and faith. It reminded me, in that light, of “The Shawshank Redemption“. Also, the story is simple, takes place in Nevada and I have a background/connection with some casinos — so the producer side of me was thinking — “I can do this”.

SKSM: How did you find out that King sold the movie rights to some of his stories for just $1? Was it just a wild guess or did you know it before you sent him the check?

Robert David Cochrane: I did a lot of reserach into this. As a long time “CR”, I read with special interest his notes to all of us. In those notes, in a certain piece (which I leave up to the true “CR” to find) he tells about the process of getting a “Dollar Baby”. I followed this process with two of the greatest assets I have: hope and persistance. It was certainly not a wild guess when I sent him a check. There is a process to follow and, again, I encourage anyone interested in it to really study his works, be respectful and follow the process.

SKSM: Was there any funny or special moment when you made the movie that you would like to tell me about?

Robert David Cochrane: The most special moment (or moments) was (were) sitting with Elise Robertson, a wonderful actress who portrayed Darlene, and discovering layer after layer to her character and the story. Discovery is one of my favorite elements of any artistic process and finding little moments of magic throughout was a thrill. She brought so much to the character and was extremely open to my suggestions and never complained under what were sometimes difficult situations.

SKSM: How does it feel that all the King fans out there can’t see your movie? Do you think that will change in the future? Maybe a video release would be possible?

Robert David Cochrane: I have a meeting with Mr. King coming up in New York soon. I will know more about the future of “Luckey Quarter” after that. Fans should keep checking in to the message boards at www.bronstineproductions.com for more updates.

SKSM: Did you have any personal contact with King during the making of the movie? Has he seen it (and if so, what did he think about it)?

Robert David Cochrane: I have yet to meet Mr. King (on any level – beyond the intimate relationship of writer/ reader and writer/adapter-director) personally.

He will see the movie (or at least have the opportunity to do so) before I meet him in New York.

SKSM: Do you have any plans for making more movies based on Stephen King’s stories?

Robert David Cochrane: I have great hope.

SKSM: If you could pick – at least – one story to shoot, which one would it be and why?

Robert David Cochrane: Like the rest of the world lining up, it has long been my feeling that I would be part of Mr. King’s ka-tet in making The Dark Tower into some form of movie experience. There is so much going on in that series and I feel such a deep connection to/with it that it would be the thrill and honor of a lifetime to be involved in whatever manner ka (and King) sees fit. He has said the books will have at least a five year life of their own after the seventh and final book is published. I think that’s a great idea — a gestation period, if you will. After that…it is what it is. I think winning the American Gunslinger Contest and the way I handled that work will hopefully show my dedication, passion and care for the content.

SKSM: Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions. Is there anything else you want to say to the fans that read this interview?

Robert David Cochrane: Mr. King has long been my favorite writer. I have also felt a sense of destiny in terms of our creative paths — knowing that somewhere along the line we would cross. Perhaps this is the depth of it, but something tells me otherwise. I look forward to working with him to help entertain, frighten (when necessary — and sometimes it is) and ultimately, shine light upon the world with hope, faith and wink of naughtiness.

Thank you,

Robert David Cochrane

He is the man behind Paranoid Dollar Baby Film.

SKSM: Could you start with telling me a bit about yourself? Who are you and what do you do?

Jay Holben: Wow. That’s a question for the ages, isn’t it? My name is Jay Holben, I’m a filmmaker in Los Angeles. For more than half a decade I’ve been working as a cinematographer on independent films, shorts, commercials and music videos while trying to work toward a career as a director. Prior to that I worked as a chief lighting technician and before my work in motion pictures, I worked for many years in legitimate theater as everything from a stagehand to stage manager, from master electrician to master flyman, and from lighting designer to director. Making Paranoid in 1999 was my first step toward the directing chair, professionally, and my first time back at directing since a short film that I made in 1994 back in Arizona, my hometown. Today, with several more short films and commercials under my belt as a director, I am continuing to pursue that career path while producing independent work and continuing work as a cinematographer.

SKSM: When did you make Paranoid? Can you tell me a little about the production? How much did it cost? How long did it take to film it?

Jay Holben: We shot the main body of principal photography on Paranoid on May 9, 1999 in just a single day – although I had been doing “second unit” and insert work without crew or cast (a few shots at a time) for several days prior to May 9th. That Saturday was the only day with cast and full crew and we shot the majority of the film in that day. Basically I was producing a number of independent projects – shorts and speculation commercials – all at the same time and I found that I had a window during that production rush to direct something myself (something I hadn’t done in five years). One of my philosophies of producing independent work on a limited budget is to group several projects together to share resources, that way each production only pays a fraction of the hard costs associated with equipment and services. Film costs are always a delicate subject as most people don’t want to really talk about what they spent. In my case, because of the multiple projects and because I was able to ask many favors and donations from companies I had done business with in the past, Paranoid was shot on 35mm and completed for just over $3,000. A far cry from most of the $50,000 short films that I have worked on.

SKSM: How come you picked Paranoid: A Chant to develop into a movie? What is it in the story that you like so much?

Jay Holben: I have always loved the poem of Paranoid. Back when I was active in speech competitions in high school, I performed Paranoid: A Chant at several tournaments and did very well with it. When I realized that I had a window of time of just a single day to direct my own project, I knew that I had to find a strong piece of material that could be contained and photographed in that one day. I’ve been a King Constant Reader for many years – since the early 80’s when my brother gave me a copy of Thinner – and I immediately started thinking about Stephen’s writing as something to adapt and Paranoid was the first thing that came to my mind. Not only have I always loved the poem and always felt that it had an incredible and visceral visual sense to the prose, my idea of it was primarily housed in one location with one actress – perfect for the limitations of my shoot. So I went for it. Also, I loved the challenge of bringing a poem alive on screen. I’m often drawn to the subjects and material that most people stray away from: a single character trapped in the corner of a room, no real spoken dialogue, no character interaction – most filmmakers told me it wasn’t a good idea to make the film, and that made me love it more. I’m always up for a good challenge.

SKSM: How did you find out that King sold the movie rights to some of his stories for just $1? Was it just a wild guess or did you know it before you sent him the check?

Jay Holben: There’s a mild misunderstanding here to clear up. Stephen’s Dollar Deal has been relatively famous in the King community. The author’s philanthropic policy of granting specific permission to student filmmakers (and in my case a struggling independent looking to move up the ladder) to adapt his short work rose to public prominence first with the Night Shift VHS collection in the late 80’s and then with the history behind Frank Darabont’s acquiring of the rights to The Shawshank Redemption. The misnomer is that people believe that Stephen sells the rights to these stories for $1 – and that’s not the case. Stephen grants his PERMISSION to the filmmaker to adapt the story, but no rights are granted. The rights to his stories cost thousands and thousands of dollars. What this means is that the filmmaker who is honored with Stephen’s permission may make the adaptation and show it non-commercially (in film festivals, classrooms and as examples of their work). If there is any profit, sale, commercial presentation or wide distribution to be made, then a proper negotiation has to take place for the actual rights to the story. This is an important distinction to make, as I’ll detail more in one of your next questions. Being an avid King fan, I knew of his Dollar Deal policy and was quite honored that he allowed me the permission to make this adaptation.

SKSM: Was there any funny or special moment when you made the movie that you would like to tell me about?

Jay Holben: Actually yes. One of the shots in my screenplay required a cockroach to crawl across the floor. I tried to find a cockroach around my home in the two weeks prior to the shoot, to no avail (I suppose in normal circumstances, that would be a good thing). In desperation, I called a company that specializes in providing insects to motion pictures, and inquired about getting a roach. They had roaches and would send them out in batches of three with a “handler.” For transportation, handler fee and the roaches themselves, it would be $300. $100 a day, each, for a cockroach! As that would have been 10% of my entire budget, I declined their services and kept looking for a “non-union” roach. I lucked out while shooting one of the other projects in Hollywood’s Griffith park where I stumbled upon a pair of dung beetles (actually, in my book, much creepier looking than a simple cockroach). With the help of a fellow crew member (she did the dirty work, actually) we acquired the beetles and gave them temporary housing in a glass jar with dirt and dung until their day before the cameras. When that day came, I had to find a way to control the beetle during the shot. As I was shooting the “second unit” or insert shots during several nights before our main shoot (after I had finished a full day working on one of the other projects I would take the equipment home with me, unload it into my apartment, set up a couple of shots, shoot them and then go to bed to get up the next morning, reload up the equipment and go back to another shoot all day) I was all alone and had no one to help me control this roach while I operated the camera and pushed my own dolly. So I grabbed a large 44 ounce drinking cup and placed it over the beetle on the floor. When I needed her to walk across the floor, I’d lift the cup and let her go. Then I’d capture her back in the cup – gently slide the cup “back to one” and take another shot. After half a dozen shots or more, I put the beetle back in the jar and went to set up the next shot with the beetle crawling behind a toilet. After I lit that shot and had the camera set, I went to get the beetle only to find it on its back kicking in what appeared to be great agony. “Oh my God, I’ve killed it!” I thought and – about a second later – I realized how COOOL it looked! So I took the writhing beetle and put it on the floor and shot one of the more memorable moments in the film with this beetle on its back kicking and thrashing violently. When I was done with the shot, I put the beetle back in the jar – apologized for killing it – and went back to work. An hour or so later, passing by the jar again, I saw the beetle was just fine and moving around as if nothing had happened. A few days later, telling this story, I learned that certain types of insects – roaches and beetles – if they feel their life is threatened can spontaneously give birth. Amazingly, that was exactly what was happening. If you look at that moment in the film and freeze the frame – you can actually see an egg sac protruding from the beetle’s rear. After shooting the beetles were released back into the wild where, I’m told, they named the children after me.

SKSM: How does it feel that all the King fans out there can’t see your movie? Do you think that will change in the future? Maybe a video release would be possible?

Jay Holben: This is a question that I get often, and it relates back to my explanation of the Dollar Deal above. The reality is that perspective can’t be further from the truth. Stephen has been EXTRAORDINARILY generous and supportive of Paranoid and has allowed it to be seen in many venues thus far. When you consider that I don’t own the rights to his story, I have merely paid him $1 as opposed to several thousand, the fact that he has allowed anyone other than my mother to see the film is remarkable. It is a true philanthropic policy that he has. In this specific case, Paranoid was the first Dollar Baby to be allowed to be released on the Internet (although Stephen’s representatives limited that time to eight months in our agreement) and Stephen gave me permission to release the film on Total Movie Magazine’s Inside DVD which had over 100,000 copies pressed and sold. Really, other than The Boogeyman and The Woman in the Room – which were both released commercially on VHS in the late 80’s – Paranoid has been the most widely released Dollar Baby to date. I have no complaints whatsoever about where I’ve been able to show this film. As a fan myself, I understand the desire to collect all the Dollar Babies – and I’ve attempted to do that by contacting as many of them as I can – but I also understand and completely respect Stephen’s position. If he allows these films to be widely released for just $1 – then he’s thumbing his nose at the real pros and studios who pay handsomely (and appropriately) for the proper rights to his work. To my knowledge, there isn’t another author of Stephen’s stature that has such a generous policy to support young filmmakers. So, for the savvy fan, there are copies of Paranoid out there. There is always the potential that there will be another venue for Paranoid’s release – although at this time nothing is planned. Really this film was just made for my “show reel” – my calling card as an example of my directorial skills – and the fact that it has been publicly seen at all is amazing. I’ve seen the Total Movie DVD’s on eBay and they seem to do fairly well. Also – when we released the high-resolution version on the Internet from the official website at www.paranoidthemovie.com, we had more than 36,000 downloads of the film – so there are a LOT of fans that got to see it and, for that, I am extremely grateful to Stephen for all his support.

SKSM: Did you have any personal contact with King during the making of the movie? Has he seen it (and if so, what did he think about it)?

Jay Holben: Not during the making of it, but I was honored that Stephen called me when he saw the copy of the film I sent him. It was a short, but fantastic conversation mostly asking about me and my background as a filmmaker. In his own succinct way, he did offer this opinion of the film: “You’ve got a good film here, I liked it.” And for me, what more do you need?

SKSM: Do you have any plans for making more movies based on Stephen King’s stories? If you could pick – at least – one story to shoot, which one would it be and why?

Jay Holben: I would love to adapt another King story. There are so many that I love so much that it’s hard to narrow it down. I think far too often the adaptations of his work veer off into the goofy territory and he’s given a bad shake (especially in television), but when his work is adapted correctly, it can be an amazing film (even Oscar worthy!). Currently I have no plans to adapt another, but I’m always open if Stephen is.

SKSM: Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions. Is there anything else you want to say to the fans that read this interview?

Jay Holben: The experience I have had after making Paranoid, and the extraordinary support from the Stephen King fans has been overwhelming. I still get regular e-mails asking about the film and how they might see it – even three years after it’s release on DVD and on the Net (it was also a top rated short on iFilm.com for several months). It has been wonderful to become a more intimate member of the King community and I’m really thankful for all the kind words and support. Keep an eye on www.adakin.com to see what we’re up to next!

If anyone is interested in reading more about Paranoid – they can visit www.paranoidthemovie.com and especially www.paranoidthemovie.com/directors_notebook – which is an intensive section on the making of the film from pre-production to post-production.

All the best,

Jay Holben, Director
Los Angeles, CA

He is the man behind Here There Be Tygers Dollar Baby Film.

SKSM: Could you start with telling me a bit about yourself? Who are you and what do you do?

James Cochrane: I’ve been a Stephen King fan since about 1988 after I read Pet Semetary (someone gave us a whole box of books and I liked the cover to it so here I am). At the moment I work for a television company as a computer tech for High-Speed Internet- this is my means to afford the lavish lifestyle of which I am accustomed to, ie: buying way too many DVDs, purchasing the occasional limited Stephen King book and my NEW addiction collecting all things Joe R. Lansdale, and sometimes if I remember I will buy food.

SKSM: When did you make Here There Be Tygers? Can you tell me a little about the production? How much did it cost? How long did it take to film it?

James Cochrane: We filmed Tygers over 3 days here in Prince George at a school that has now been closed down due to budget cuts- it was the top floor and for some fool idea I chose to film on the side that the sun came in almost all day… it was sweaty and irritating and fun as hell! The bathroom scenes were shot in the basement of the school so we did not need to move the cast or any of the equipment which was good cuz inherently I am lazy.
Through a friend of mine who runs a casting company we had a night of interviews about two weeks prior where I met all the kids who wanted to be in it and then I chose the 3 main and the 27 background children.
Our dolley for moving the camera (as best we could) without too much shake was my roommates rolling office chair and another I borrowed from work. We filmed the classroom stuff over the mornings when it was not as hot and the bathroom/hallway stuff in the afternoons.
Overall the productions cost me upwards of about 100 dollars and I think that that is a bit high- I hate high budgets I try to stay as low on the budget scale as I can cuz I am cheap and I don’t have the balls to ask people for money- but so many of my friends volunteered and pitched in that that in itself was probably worth tones more- hell with some of the volunteers I’m still paying…joke

SKSM: How come you picked Here There Be Tygers to develop into a movie? What is it in the story that you like so much?

James Cochrane: First off my history of Tygers is one of broken memories but the short version is this: My Grade 7 teacher (one of my favourite teachers of all time) read to us from Skeleton Crew during U.S.S.R. (unsustained silent reading) and I like Tygers then but it wasn’t until Grade 10 or 11 that I finally read Skelton Crew and put two and two together that it was a Stephen King story.—- So my happy memories of youth kept this story in the back of my head.—-….and when I finally got off my ass to be a filmmaker I pulled Tygers down off the shelf (actually I bought the paperback because I only have the hard cover)—- I like Tygers for it’s sheer wonderment. I like that we can maybe fool ourselves into thinking that maybe this was all a manifestation of the little boy’s mind. I like that we see the stigma of being young and being so embarrassed that you would rather be killed then risk being laughed at for being yourself. That is scary to me—- I still think like that.

SKSM: How did you find out that King sold the movie rights to some of his stories for just $1? Was it just a wild guess or did you know it before you sent him the check?

James Cochrane: As I said earlier I have been a King fan for some time now and I had heard about it through the many readings and articles I’ve collected. So somewhere in the vastly empty head of mine I knew about these Dollar Babies. Then when Lilja of Lilja’s library mention Jay Holben’s film I realized it was time to shake the moss off my ass and produce. So I sent a little email to her and she forwarded King’s work address- which in retrospect I should have known, I mean everyone in the world knows King’s work address… and then I sent it in.

SKSM: Was there any funny or special moment when you made the movie that you would like to tell me about?

James Cochrane: If anything I’d like to mention to anyone planning on making a film one word of advice- they say never work with kids or animals and this is completely true save for this little piece of advice: you can work with kids if you have what I call KID WRANGLERS. These are adults- I’m talking 1 adult per 5-6 kids that can supervise the little buggers; keep them busy, keep them happy because a bored kid is worse than any spoiled actor out there

SKSM: How does it feel that all the King fans out there can’t see your movie? Do you think that will change in the future? Maybe a video release would be possible?

James Cochrane: I chose to do a Dollar Baby of Kings for the sole reason the test myself; To kick myself in the ass and DO something. I chose King because I love King and to try my hand at something that is his gave me the energy to do it and complete it- for him. —-As all the smoke cleared I have no plans to make a tape of this or DVD or anything else for that matter. This was my first film I have done more over the years that followed and am still doing them. I learned a lot from this one and made a lot of mistakes. —-There is a thought in the back of my head to pull out the old DV tapes and re-edit the way I work now but I’m sure that disrespects my past abit, I think. —–It is there in all it’s naked raw beginning-ness and I am proud of what I did but I don’t need to beat the world on the head with it. —-Tygers was never meant for most people to see… It took me a year to edit it (well it took me a year to learn how to edit it) and for all the people that helped me I thank them so very dearly cuz if it wasn’t for them it would have taken longer I’m sure. —- I have Tygers as a DVD for my family and friends and an mpg on my system… I will show it to everyone who asks but I won’t be releasing it into the wild.

SKSM: Did you have any personal contact with King during the making of the movie? Has he seen it (and if so, what did he think about it)?

James Cochrane: NONE and nope

SKSM: Do you have any plans for making more movies based on Stephen King’s stories? If you could pick – at least – one story to shoot, which one would it be and why?

James Cochrane: Since I am on this shooting with children kick Suffer the Little children might be a larf- if for no reason than that. —–But what I hope to have Stephen King let me do now that I am older and wiser is Ballad of the Flexible Bullet- I lve that one… I think it would be great to film and spooky.

SKSM: Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions. Is there anything else you want to say to the fans that read this interview?

James Cochrane: —

He is the man behind The Lawnmower Man Dollar Baby Film.

SKSM: Could you start with telling me a bit about yourself? Who are you and what do you do?

Jim Gonis: I’m originally from New York; I was a film student at NYU when I made “Lawnmower Man.” I moved to Los Angeles a few years later to be a screenwriter. For the past eight years I’ve been working at Playboy in a department called Playmate Promotions, which is like model booking. However, I’m still writing. I became a King fan in 1980 when I read “The Stand,” it’s may favorite novel and I’ve read it four times.

SKSM: When did you make The Lawnmower Man? Can you tell me a little about the production? How much did it cost? How long did it take to film it?

Jim Gonis: The film was shot in 1985 but I didn’t manage to finish it until after graduation. It was for an undergraduate class called “Junior Narrative.” The original budget was $700 but ended up at $5000 due to various logistical problems. In our very small group of students, we each had very little experience shooting color negative and synchronized sound, so this was pretty ambitious. After all the raw footage was shot I struggled for a long time to edit it myself but finally had to hire an outside editor, which helped tremendously — I had spent so much time on it that I lost perspective, and the editor, Andy, really tightened it. Then finding a negative cutter, composer, mixing the sound, doing an answer print, all these things took time while I was still a full time student, preparing to graduate, getting my drivers license, things like that…which is why it wasn’t finished until a year after graduation. I already had my grade from the course, so I didn’t have to spend the extra money to finish it, but I just had to complete it after all that work and talent had already been invested.

SKSM: How come you picked The Lawnmower Man to develop into a movie? What is it in the story that you like so much?

Jim Gonis: When I first picked up “Night Shift” I started with the shorter tales, and that was among the shortest so it was the first one I decided to read. It blew me away, it was so unremittingly random, graphic and horrifying. When it came time to consider making a short film, my group of about four other film students, we went through so many ideas, all of them original, but none of them exciting enough. And in the class, time was running out to decide on an idea. The problem was, I didn’t really like short films and couldn’t come up with an idea that I liked. But when I thought about adapting a story, my mind first went to King, then to that first story I read. (The mid-1980’s were the boom period for King adaptations, remember.) We were sitting in a car driving around Manhattan, frustrated and desperate for inspiration, when I threw the idea in the air, and it rolled along from there. Because I came up with the idea to adapt it, I ended up with the director’s role, but it was intensely collaborative with such a small crew. By the way, there is a comic book adaptation by Walt Simonson that we worked closer from than the original story itself.

SKSM: How did you find out that King sold the movie rights to some of his stories for just $1? Was it just a wild guess or did you know it before you sent him the check?

Jim Gonis: Someone had told me about it after the fact, and I made the really stupid mistake of sending him cash! (I didn’t have a checking account yet at that age, but it would have been ideal to have a returned check signed by him.) I think I sent a videotape copy of the film in the same package.

SKSM: Was there any funny or special moment when you made the movie that you would like to tell me about?

Jim Gonis: The funny moments now are when I re-watch the film and notice small errors — there is one shot when you can hear me say “action”…and the shot where the mower flies off the balcony, the tripod case is in the background (though it’s not very visible). And, since some scenes were shot months later than the first shoot, the hair length of the actor who played Parkette is sometimes longer, sometimes shorter, so I notice these things and laugh. And, why didn’t I try to find a larger, more threatening lawnmower?! I do recall one very late summer night when we were shooting only the mower going through the house, and just trying all these gonzo things like taping smoke bombs to the underside of the mower to look like exhaust, and backlighting it; and throwing wood chips against it to look like it was eating through a chair. That was fun, and we used most of those shots.

The memories that are “special” just involve all the people I got to work with on the process — really generous actors; committed film students; the talented craftsmen I turned to for postproduction; and many friends and acquaintances who took the time to drive, get food, and allow us to use their home as a location! When you’re involved in what is more or less independent film making, even on such a small scale, you rely so much on people for so many things, and all that generosity is what stands out in my memory. It’s kind of miraculous in hindsight; I’m sure most indie filmmakers can relate.

SKSM: How does it feel that all the King fans out there can’t see your movie? Do you think that will change in the future? Maybe a video release would be possible?

Jim Gonis: I’m grateful that your site is now making it possible to for fans to see it. Finally! Although, I suspect a great majority of the short student films that get made are far better in many ways, yet never get much of an audience, so I feel very lucky that my film — just by virtue of being a King adaptation — still gets mentioned on websites and in books. Think of it, next year will mark the 20th anniverary of the shoot, yet here I am still answering questions about it! I think it also helped that the feature version was so unfaithful, that any truer adaptation would be apt to attract more attention.

SKSM: Did you have any personal contact with King during the making of the movie? Has he seen it (and if so, what did he think about it)?

Jim Gonis: After it was finished I sent him the tape but didn’t receive any feedback. A couple of years later he did a signing in New York so I finally met him and asked his opinion, and it was generally favorable — I think he said he got a kick out of it, something like that. Wish I could recall his exact words.

SKSM: Do you have any plans for making more movies based on Stephen King’s stories? If you could pick – at least – one story to shoot, which one would it be and why?

Jim Gonis: I’ve been away from production for so long, and I’m sticking to writing now. But I like those early “Night Shift” stories the most, and if I had to pick one it’d probably be “Battleground” — very exciting, cinematic and fun story. And I’d get a stop motion team for all the effects, no CGI! But then it’d probably take me about 20 years to finish.

SKSM: Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions. Is there anything else you want to say to the fans that read this interview?

Jim Gonis: “God bless the grass!” (Interpret that as you will, I know the smoking laws are different in the Netherlands.) Thanks for watching my film, hope you enjoyed it. And thank you, Bernd, for putting it on your site.
Best,
Jim Gonis