Horror to DIY for

Three filmmakers discuss collaboration and making mistakes

Around 2013, Nathaniel Davis, Mia Riddle, and Ambrose Sunday met at gatherings for the Oklahoma Movie Makers group, a twelve-year-old grassroots collective dedicated to educating and inspiring local filmmakers. They worked on one another’s short films and their collaborative first feature, “The Wretched,” a horror-comedy about three porn stars trapped in a haunted bed-and-breakfast—all of which they’ll present with a Q&A and giveaways at Circle Cinema on November 19 at 7 p.m.

Joe O’Shansky: Tell me about your short films. You seem to be into horror.

Mia Riddle: Actually, I only like making horror films. I don’t like watching them.

Ambrose Sunday: [“The Hook Up”] is a short my friend Dustyn came up with. It’s about a serial killer who gets what he deserves. The script was very funny to me, for some odd reason. We decided to go ahead and film it because it was very short. I added some complications to the script, such as a little more blood—okay, a lot more blood [laughs]. But it was already storyboarded and written when I got ahold of it.

Nathaniel Davis: Ambrose loves blood.

O’Shansky: Mia, tell me a little about “The Creeper.”

Riddle: [Producer and editor] Jeff Johns first told me about “The Creeper.” He said he wanted me to direct. I was so unprepared. This was the first script someone wanted me to direct. I was super nervous. I filmed the entire thing, and Jeff edited it. I really wanted this film to look professionally shot and I think I hit that, for the amount of experience I had.

O’Shansky: That was your directorial debut?

Riddle: No, that was the first time I had directed someone else’s work. I had participated in the 24 Hour Video Race [at Living Arts] and won the two times I entered.

O’Shansky: Nathaniel, tell me a little about “Mika,” especially how you came to shoot in Japan.

Davis: I was visiting a buddy, and one of the things I wanted to do while up there was to shoot a short film. Luckily they knew actors. Japanese actors are excited to work with an American. There was a bit of a hurdle to cross as far as translation [goes], so I had to spend a lot of time shooting video examples. Luckily they were really hype to work on the film, which made the experience a little easier.

They didn’t quite get the script at first, but I explained to them that it was as if Alfred Hitchcock had directed a Jerry Lewis movie, and suddenly they completely understood.

Basically it’s about a screenwriter who is given the opportunity of a lifetime if he can finish a new script in a couple of days. His wife is injured in an accident, causing him to divide his time between writing and taking care of her.  As his wife begins to take up more and more of his time and the deadline draws nearer, the writer succumbs to madness. It’s very tongue-and-cheek.

O’Shansky: That sounds weird and serendipitous.

Davis: It really was. I had Hello Kitty coffee to celebrate when we wrapped.

O’Shansky: Tell me about “The Wretched” and how you came to collaborate on it.

Davis: We were wanting to work on a project, but we didn’t know exactly what. I had written a couple of screenplays but didn’t have anything quite finished. I ended up writing the opening to “The Wretched” and sending it Mia’s way. She seemed to respond [well] to it, and it just kind of built from there. We had try to figure out how to shoot it on the cheap.

Sunday: Yeah, that’s the normal guide to independent filmmaking. Push your limits and go as cheap as possible.

Riddle: “The Wretched” was a complete learning experience. There are some things I would do differently, and there are some things I wouldn’t do at all. I feel a little indifferent about the way it turned out. Like this is one of those films that you kind of laugh at when you get older. I have never been more worn out in my entire life.

Davis: “The Wretched” was a two-year odyssey. We pretty much made every possible mistake there is. There were some re-castings, which was heartbreaking but necessary, unfortunately. Everybody in the production busted their butts making this thing. We stayed up an insane number of hours, shot an insane number of days in a row, and pretty much ate tacos and pizza for weeks, but this is the sacrifice you make for the art of filmmaking.

O’Shansky: That sounds glorious. And a little like my life. Minus the shooting a film part. So you’re happy with it?

Davis: I love the way it’s turned out. This could have been a complete train wreck, but I definitely feel confident with the final product. It is insanely glorious. Wouldn’t trade it for anything.